Bō

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The Japanese martial art of wielding the "bō" is "bōjutsu". The basis of bo technique is "te", or hand, techniques derived from kung fu and other martial arts that reached Okinawa via trade and Chinese monks. Thrusting, swinging, and striking techniques often resemble empty-hand movements, following the philosophy that the "bō" is merely an "extension of one’s limbs". [http://www.shotokan.net.au/weapons.html Weapons] ] As in Okinawa-te, attacks are often avoided by agile footwork and returning strikes made at the enemy’s weak points. [http://www.hathagojuryukaratedo.freeservers.com/photo5.html Kobujitsu] ]

The "bō" is typically gripped in thirds, and when held horizontally in front, the right palm is facing away from the body and the left hand is facing the body, enabling the "bō" to rotate. The power is generated by the back hand pulling the "bō", while the front hand is used for guidance. When striking, the wrist is twisted, as if turning the hand over when punching. [http://www.shotokankarate.ca/kobudo.htm Kobudo] ] "Bō" technique includes a wide variety of blocks, strikes, sweeps, and entrapments. The "bō" may even be used to sweep sand into an opponent’s eyes.

The earliest form of the "bō", a staff, has been used throughout Asia since the beginning of recorded history. [http://www.seishinkan.info/ Seishinkan Bujitsu] ] Used for self defense by monks or commoners, the staff was an integral part of the Tenshin Shoden Katori Shinto Ryu, one of the martial arts’ oldest surviving styles. The staff evolved into the "bō" with the foundation of kobudo, a martial art using weapons, which emerged in Okinawa in the early 1600s.

Prior to the 1400s, Okinawa, a small island located south of Japan, was divided into three kingdoms: Chuzan, Hokuzan, and Nanzan. After much political turmoil, Okinawa was united under the Sho Dynasty in 1429. In 1477, Emperor Sho Shin of the second Sho dynasty came into power. Determined to enforce his philosophical and ethical ideas, while banning feudalism, the emperor instituted a ban on weapons. It became a crime to carry or own weapons such as swords, in an attempt to prevent further turmoil and prevent uprising. [http://www.aoskkf.com/weapon.html History of Okinawan Kobudo] ]

In 1609, the temporary peace established by Sho Shin was violently overthrown when the powerful Satsuma Clan invaded Okinawa. Composed of Japanese samurai, the Satsuma Clan took over the island, making Okinawan independence a thing of the past. The Satsuma placed a new weapons ban on the people of Okinawa, leaving them defenseless against the steel of the samurai’s swords. In an attempt to protect themselves from the devastating forces of the Satsuma, the people of Okinawa looked to simple farming implements, which the samurai would not be able to confiscate, as new methods of defense. This use of weapons developed into kobudo, or "ancient martial art," as we know it today. [http://www.aoskkf.com/weapon.html History of Okinawan Kobudo] ]

Although the "bō" is now used as a weapon, its use is believed by some to have evolved from non-combative usesFact|date=February 2007. The "bō"-staff is thought to have been used to balance buckets or baskets. Typically, one would carry baskets of harvested crops or buckets of water or milk or fish, one at each end of the "bō", that is balanced across the middle of the back at the shoulder blades. In poorer agrarian economies, the "bō" remains a traditional farm work implement.Fact|date=February 2007 In styles such as Yamanni-ryū or "Kenshin-ryū", many of the strikes are the same as those used for "yari" ("spear") or "naginata" ("glaive").Fact|date=February 2007 There are stick fighting techniques native to just about every country on every continent.Fact|date=February 2007

ee also

*Bōjutsu
*Budo
*Gun (staff)
*Hanbo
*Jo (weapon)
*List of martial arts weapons
*Okinawan kobudo
*Okinawan weapon
*Quarterstaff
*Stick fighting
*Tambo
*Tanjo
*Kanabō
*Yubi-bo

References

External links

*http://ejmas.com/jmanly/articles/2003/jmanlyart_wolfcosta_0203.htm
*http://www.martialarm.com/weapons/weapons-bo-staff.html
*http://www.fangshendo.com/bo_staff_dvd.html