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WABUKAN Arsenal · Staffs and sticks · Okinawa

Bo

The long staff, traditionally six shaku (about 182 cm). It is the first weapon learned in Okinawan kobudo.

Bo
Bo WABUKAN illustration

Also known as

棒 · rokushaku-bō; kon (Okinawan)

Origin and history

The long staff is one of the oldest weapons anywhere; in Okinawa it became the core of kobudō, with kata named after masters such as Sakugawa Kanga (18th c.). Japanese koryū schools such as Tenshin Shōden Katori Shintō-ryū also teach bōjutsu.

Martial arts that use it

Bojutsu Okinawan Kobudo

Construction

The standard rokushaku-bō is six shaku long (about 182 cm), round or octagonal, often tapering towards both ends, usually of red or white oak.

Basic techniques

Training

Stick and staff training starts with grips, stances and basic strikes and blocks practised in the air or on a target, then two-person drills at controlled speed. Many schools use rattan or padded sticks for sparring, with a helmet and gloves.

Safety

Wear a helmet with a face grille and padded gloves for any contact work; hands and fingers are the most common injuries. Check sticks for cracks and splinters and retire damaged ones.

Legality (general information)

Sticks, staffs and other impact or flexible weapons are ordinary objects in some countries and restricted weapons in others (several European countries, for example, regulate nunchaku, batons or weighted chains). Carrying one in public without a good reason can be an offence even where owning it is legal. Transport it in a bag and use it in the training hall. This is general information, not legal advice: check local law.

Did you know?

The staff is used in both ends: a bō fighter constantly switches which end strikes, which is why the grip sits about a third of the way along.

More weapons

Tonfa Hanbo Eku Gun (staff) Baston (rattan stick) Silambam staff

Sources

Original WABUKAN text, written from these cross-checked sources (facts, not sentences).

  1. Wikipedia — Bō
  2. Wikipedia — Okinawan kobudō