Training Focus (훈련 초점, hulryon chojjom) – June 6 & 8

Posted on 4 June 2017 by Calvert

A Brief History of the Bo Staff

The Bo staff (or Bong) on the surface is one of the most simplistic of all weapons. Used in many different art forms from karate to jujitsu to kung-fu, the Bo staff is one of the most destructive and adaptive weapons available to the martial artist. The Bo Staff offers a range of opportunities for disciplined forms, footwork, distancing, and control.

staff-fighting-3-bw-web Unlike many other martial weapons, the bo staff has a very long range and enables the practitioner to have superior reach against an opponent. Most Bo staffs are about 1.8m (or 6 feet) long and 3cm (or 1 inch) thick. The concept of a wooden stave as a weapon can be found easily in most cultures – the Quarter Staff in medieval English for example.

An expert armed with a Bo can keep a more heavily armored and armed opponent at bay frustrating and neutralising their effectiveness. While this weapon can not be easily concealed, it is so common that most armed opponents will not even think twice about it. For example, it could easily be disguised by carrying buckets or baskets. These buckets would be carried on either end, and the staff would be draped across the back. Simply set the buckets down, slide the staff out, and you are instantly armed. The key is that you are trained in the proper technique to make the weapon as effective as possible.

The Bo Staff – Simple Tool to Deadly Weapon

While staffs have a history of being used throughout mankind, the Asian martial arts have taken this weapon and turned it into an art form.While the weapon has been used informally since the earliest recorded history, a martial art called kobudo emerged from Okinawa in the early 1600s that featured this weapon. Arising out of necessity, commoners of Okinawa were banned from having weapons. This ban forced the people to find other ways to defend themselves, and using a simple staff proved to be an easy application.