The fourth level Heian has 27 counts and has many similarities to H2. The kata’s primary stance is kokutsu-dachi (back stance), but students first learning this kata must also contend with the new kosa-dachi, a cross stance that is quite awkward for most karateka. H4 introduces the student to many new techniques such as kosa-uke, shuto-uchi, kakiwake-uke, mae-empi, and hiza-tsuchi. To perform H4 properly, a certain amount of flexibility is required as all of the mae-geri (front kicks) are jodan (upper level). Heian Yondan also has more kicks (5) than the other Heian kata. Slow moves must also be mastered in this kata; there are four of them. Much of H4 involves double-hand techniques, with morote-uke (double-hand block {x4}) occurring more than any other technique. Obviously, morote-uke was held in high regard during this kata’s creation.
Esprit Bubishi et Karate-Do 