The Bo Staff

Bubishi is the Japanese pronunciation of the Chinese Wu Bei Ji, "Account of Military Arts and Science". This is the title of two different Chinese documents.

The first Wu Bei Ji was a book produced in 1621 by Mao Yuanyi: a massive compilation consisting of 240 chapters in five parts and 91 volumes, treating all aspects of the art of war.

The second Wu Bei Ji was a compendium of topics loosely related to the Fujian-based quanfa traditions of White Crane and Monk Fist boxing, probably dating from the mid-to-late Qing dynasty (1644-1911.) It contains anatomical diagrams, philosophical essays, defensive tactical strategies, and poetry. No author is known; the book is most likely a collection of pieces from various sources put together by an anonymous editor. It was popular in Okinawa among Okinawan-based quanfa practitioners during the 19th and early 20th centuries.

An English translation of the second Wu Bei Ji by Patrick McCarthy was published in Japan in 1991 and the United States in 1995 as Bubishi: the Bible of Karate.

In this mysterious text, the bo staff is referred to as “the essence and foundation for all martial arts that use weapons”. It is in this ancient text that diagrams depicting karateka using the bo staff look remarkably similar to those techniques used today.

Not wanting to rewrite something well written, Wikipedia says it better about the bo:

A bō (棒: ぼう) or kon, a long staff, usually made of tapered hard wood or bamboo, but sometimes it is made of metal or plated with metal for extra strength; also, 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, or just under 1 foot; and bō. Thus, rokushakubō refers to a staff about 6-shaku (1.818 m, about 6 ft.) long. The bō is typically one and a quarter inches thick in the middle, gradually tapering at both ends to three quarters of an inch. This thickness allows the user to make a tight fist around it in order to block and counter an attack. The most common shape, maru-bo, is a round staff, while kaku-bo (four-sided staff), rokkaku-bo (six-sided staff), hakkaku-bo (eight-sided staff) also exist.^[1] Other types of bō range from heavy to light, from rigid to highly flexible, and from simply a piece of wood picked up off the side of the road to ornately decorated works of art.

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". ^[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.

The earliest form of the bō, a staff, has been used throughout Asia since the beginning of recorded history. The staff evolved into the bō with the foundation of kobudo, a martial art using weapons, which emerged in Okinawa in the early 1600s.

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 cruel steel of the samurai’s swords. In an effort 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.

Although the bo is used as a weapon in modern day kobudo, it is evolved from non combative uses. It was used to carry baskets or buckets across the shoulders. It also had use as a herding staff and, with a little alteration, a fishing spear.

Even though it’s obvious that the Okinawans didn’t invent the “stick”, they definitely perfected it’s use.

The Bo-jutsu forms practiced by the samurai (warriors) have names ending in "Kon". These art forms were presented to the king and are distinct from "Son-Bo", the common people's Bo-jutsu. In ancient times, the Kuba (Chinese Palm tree) was used as material for Bo. The grain of this hard tree is wavy-like, the same as oak. Kuba was an ideal material for Bo. It is not easily broken or bent in actual fighting and, in case it is broken, it's still an effective weapon as the broken point is quite sharp. However, in recent years, oak has been used as a Bo material.