Shotokan Kata · Beginner (9th–8th Kyū)
Step through all 21 movements below. Each shows the technique, the stance, the direction you turn, and which side (left or right) performs it. Use the arrows or press play; the drawn figure changes with every move.
Heian (平安) translates as “peace” or “tranquillity” — a calm, settled mind — and Shodan (初段) means “first level.” Together the name promises that a student who has absorbed these forms can defend themselves well enough to keep a peaceful mind. It is the gateway to Shotokan: for most students it is the very first kata they are tested on.
The Heian kata were created by the Okinawan master Ankō Itosu around 1905. Itosu wanted to bring karate into Okinawa’s public schools, so he distilled older, more dangerous forms into a graded series of five teachable kata he called the Pinan. When Gichin Funakoshi — Itosu’s student and the founder of Shotokan — introduced karate to mainland Japan in the 1920s, he renamed the Pinan series Heian to suit Japanese pronunciation.
A text reference for the whole kata — useful for memorising the order away from the mat. Every technique is performed in front stance (zenkutsu-dachi) unless noted, and each takes a single, complete step.
| # | Technique | Stance / turn | Notes |
|---|
Heian Shodan is built from a small vocabulary. Master these shapes and the kata becomes a sentence you already know how to read.
Each links to a full breakdown in the techniques glossary, with its own illustration and common uses.
Kata was never meant as shadow-boxing. Bunkai (分解, “analysis”) is the practice of decoding each movement into a real self-defence application against a partner. A single move can carry several valid interpretations — here are common ones for Heian Shodan’s signature sequences.
Taught to beginners as a block against a low kick, but a more practical reading treats it as an escape: the hand pulled to the hip releases a same-side wrist grab while the down-sweep clears the attacker’s arm — then the stepping punch is the counter.
Turning to a threat from the side, the “down-block” traps a grabbing arm, and the hammer-fist (tettsui) drops onto it — or onto the collarbone — as you draw the attacker off balance.
Each shutō-uke is a block and a strike: the withdrawing hand grabs and pulls the attacker’s arm while the open “sword hand” strikes into the neck or clavicle. The back stance loads weight to receive and counter in one beat.
Every technique should be one clean step that arrives fully before the next begins. Settle each stance; speed comes from crispness, not haste.
Zenkutsu-dachi should be long and low — front knee over the toes, back leg straight, hips square. Too short or too upright and you lose all the power the kata is teaching.
Hand and hip must arrive together (kime). A punch that fires early has no body behind it.
The non-working hand pulls sharply to the hip. That retraction is what drives the blocking or punching arm — dropping it halves your technique.
The two kiai (moves 9 and 17) are focal points of total commitment — not a polite shout. Examiners listen for them.
At a yellow-belt (9th–8th kyū) test, examiners are not looking for a black-belt performance — they want to see that the fundamentals are honest. Typically that means: the correct sequence from memory, strong, consistent stances, technique and stance arriving together with clear focus (kime), the two kiai in the right places, an accurate embusen (you should finish roughly where you started), and composure — a calm, deliberate pace under the pressure of being watched. Requirements vary between associations, so confirm the exact standard with your own dōjō.
The illustrations on this page are study schematics — they show the shape of each move, not a real body in motion. To see Heian Shodan performed at full speed by senior instructors, watch reference footage:
▶ Watch “Heian Shodan” performances on YouTubeOpens a YouTube search in a new tab. Look for JKA / Japan Karate Association or established Shotokan instructor demonstrations for the most standard version of the form.
See the full Heian series or return to the kata library.