add site
services
publishers
database
health videos
toolbar
stats
live show
health store
more stuff
JOIN/LOGIN
| advertise add site services publishers database health videos
| | about toolbar stats live show health store more stuff JOIN/LOGIN |
For other uses, see Bo. The bo staff dates back in history and seems to appear in texts in a variety of different forms. These forms have differences in sizes, as well as differences in the woods that they were made from, even differences in how they were handled. It is known as one of the earliest weapons and is also known as a distance weapon. That is to say that you don't need to be at close range to utilize it. In reality the texts say pretty much the same thing but include some interesting variations. It does appear however, that the art of bo fighting was derived from the Japanese. But then all martial arts were adapted by each eastern country and developed into individual styles of martial arts, weapons included. Bo (boh) Jap. "staff" or "stave" A wooden staff five to six feet long. It is one of the five weapons systemized by the early Okinawan developers of te, and may have originated with the poles used by farmers to balance heavy loads across the shoulders. {[</ref name>] [(http://www.bo-staff.com/history_of_the_bo.html)]}
[edit] TypesThe bō is usually made of tapered hard wood, such as white oak, bamboo, or — in some cases for training purposes or for a different style — rattan. Sometimes it is made of or plated with metal for extra strength. A full-size bō is sometimes called a rokushakubō (六尺棒: ろくしゃくぼう). This name derives from the Japanese words roku (六: ろく), meaning "six"; shaku (尺: しゃく), a Japanese measurement equivalent to 30.3 centimeters (0.994 ft); and bō. Thus, rokushakubō refers to a staff about 6-shaku (1.82 m; 5.96 feet) long. The bō is typically 3 cm (1.2 inch) thick , sometimes gradually tapering from the middle to 2 cm (0.8 inch)at both ends. This thickness allows the user to make a tight fist around it in order to block and counter an attack. The most common shape is the maru-bo, or round staff. There is also the kaku-bo (four-sided staff), rokkaku-bo (six-sided staff), and hakkaku-bo (eight-sided staff).[1] STANDARD STRAIGHT BO are 4.6 (Akaido bo) to 7 feet long, 1 to 1 1/4 inches wide; material veries by choice. Length may vary from 4'-8'. This type of bo is heavy, slow to move, but very powerful. It is quite effective for smashing or crushing. It was useful for carrying heavy loads or aided in travels across difficult terrain. In combat an especially large bo, sometimes made of metal, was used and had blades or studs added to the surface to assist in the lethal capabilities of the weapon. STANDARD TAPERED BO 6 feet long, 1 1/4 inches wide and tapers to 3/4 inches at ends; the wood veries by choice. This type of bo is light in weight and very well balanced due to its design. The center is the weapon's fulcrum and allows for quick action. It has reduced rigidity because of its tapered ends. Blocks and strikes can be executed with whiplike movement. The smaller ends were excellent for penetrating armor or flesh in a combat situation. {[</ref name>] [1]} [edit] Martial artsThe Japanese martial art of wielding the bō is bōjutsu. The basis of bo technique is te, or hand, techniques derived from Quanfa 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". [2] As in Okinawa-te, attacks are often avoided by agile footwork and returning strikes made at the enemy’s weak points. [2] 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. [3] 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. [edit] HistoryThe earliest form of the bō, a staff, has been used throughout Asia since the beginning of recorded history.[4] The first bo were called ishibo, and were made of stone. These were hard to make and were often unreliable. These were also extremely heavy. The konsaibo was a very distant variant of the kanabo. They were made wood studded with iron. These were still too cumbersome for actual combat, so they were later replced by unmodified hardwood staffs.[5] 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. [4] 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. [4] Although the bō is now used as a weapon, its use is believed by some to have evolved from non-combative uses[citation needed]. 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.[citation needed] 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").[citation needed] There are stick fighting techniques native to just about every country on every continent.[citation needed] [edit] Popular culture
[edit] See also
[edit] References
http://www.bo-staff.com/history_of_the_bo.html
[edit] External links | |||||||||||||||||||
| ↑ top of page ↑ | about thumbshots |
