Gedan-no-kamae (下段の構え Hiragana: げだんのかまえ), frequently shortened simply to gedan, occasionally shortened to gedan-gamae, is one of the five stances in kendo: jōdan, chūdan, gedan, hassō, and waki. Gedan-no-kamae means "lower-level posture." This position is adopted when the sword is held out in front of the body pointing at the waist in kendo, or at the knee or sometimes the ankle in kenjutsu.
It is considered a variant of chūdan-no-kamae and therefore appearing as a defensive posture, but instead it is used to deflect blows and create striking opportunities. This stance is used as a transition from chūdan-no-kamae to a tsuki (thrust). It is called the Kamae of Earth (地の構え chi-no-kamae) in Yagyū Shinkage-ryū.[1]
The German school of fencing refers to this stance as alber "Fool's guard"; as it serves it bait the foolish with apparent weakness.
Gedan-no-kamae is generally similar to porta di ferro ('the iron door' or 'the iron gate') in the Italian school of swordsmanship, in which it is seen as the most defensive of all postures.