I don’t speak for all Isshinryu, only my own practice from my instructors training.
It has been sufficient to keep me training over 30 years now on the Isshinryu weapons kata.
A brief look at my own Kobudo studies
My the last day of Isshinryu weapons instruction was when Charles Murray taught me Shi Shi No Kon in April 1979 as he was packing to return to a career in the USAF. He was teaching me in his backyard, then a line of thunderstorms would come in and as the rain and lightening began he would go inside to continue to pack.
I remained outside in the rain, lightening and thunder working on the form, concerned only that I could get it. Then it would start raining again and he’d go back inside and I’d still be out there working in the rain. I had trained with Charles about a year and a half, a large part of my instruction was the Isshinryu weapons kata, then he was gone and I was alone.
In our two years together I studied the Isshinryu Bo, Sai and Tonfa kata.
I knew just practicing the weapons kata was not enough, so for about the next 5 or 6 years I regularly competed in Open tournament weapons competition in my area. Having to compete against some of the better open weapons competitors in the states at that time forced me to work harder, if anything competition is an intense training exercises.
During that time I also studied with an number of different friends on Bando Staff and Stick, Yang tai chi sword, 3 sectional staff and other studies in Bo, Kama and Tanto.
In all it was to be about 8 years into my own study before I began teaching weapons on a regular basis.
From my study and observations I developed an underlying set of principles about how I would teach Kobudo.
● Foremost, Okinawan Kobudo (Bo, Kama, Sai, Tonfa) isn’t really studied for use, anywhere. Weaponry continues to have a role in the world’s development (good and bad) but the chance you’re going to need to defend against the kobudo weaons (much less using them in turn) is very small. The value of kobudo, on the whole, is not for practical use, I believe other reasons answer why these practices still exist.
At the same time, other weapons studies (Knife, Stick) still retain street potential.
All of these studies have elements in common as well as differences to explore.
● I was not going to teach Kobudo to the youth I trained. I felt their time would be put to better use working on our kyu empty hand studies. I have observed in Kobudo age is a significant factor in good weapons technique, and that older karate-ka had an advantage over younger karate-ka, simply because they had stronger muscle and connective tissue development. My observation is that even strong youth Kobudo competitors are often using modified technique, which I believe is dictated by their bodies development.
All of my students, younger and older, are of the permanent part time variety. There is not enough time to do everything that could be studied and I’m satisfied the method in which I instruct has shown worth in how they’ve developed.
● For adult training I include one weapons kata as a requirement for Sho-dan preparation. I’ve varied which kata depending on the students interests. It may be Isshinryu Bo or Sai, Bando Staff or Stick.
● I’ve found Kobudo study extremely important for advancing dan studies. In fact in time we often spend ½ of our time working on weapons. I find the very long term study of the weapons kata builds a varied set of physical skills applicable to all kata technique applications studies. I’m referring to 10+ years training.
Each weapon is an entire system of study as complex as the karate you study. The Bo, Kama, Sai, Tonfa, Stick, Knife, etc., while sharing some underlying principles of movement, each use different skills to be developed. That range of skills, as developed, increases the students empty hand potential. Example: Grabbing an arm and pulling it down eventually becomes grabbing an arm and pulling it down as if you were striking down with the sai, and the difference in acceleration of the arm affects the control and openings created into an attack.
Long term skill development can only be understood when those skills develop.
● While I find the dan student study of Isshinryu’s weapons kata invaluable, I don’t necessarily find that they must study all of the kata. The system as I teach it is a complex study and based on not setting anything aside but continuing growth in all. For additional study I find most dan students are training for their own needs, and only a few are training for the fullness of the art’s potential.
What I use is a core of study kata covering stick, staff and either bo or tonfa is very sufficient for long term growth. It’s not that I’m not willing to teach everything, but if the student doesn’t choose to remain on top of all the material they’ve studied I’d rather have them focus on a core that still reaches towards the same goal, advancing studies.
For the few the entire curriculum is available, spread over say 15 or so years of study, with kama and knife studies only available for our developed instructors.
● The core weapons study has a more important benefit than the power development of the weapon. As an instructor it’s an invaluable guide to developing advanced students. I don’t accept now you know the kata and all you have to do is practice for the rest of your life.
Many of the skills I choose to develop are found within the weapons kata studies. The weapons extends the visual line of the students technique, allowing small errors to be magnified and noticed easier, and working to correct them in the weapons kata eventually transfers into the empty hand kata study too.
Among the many skill components are:
Bo – coordination of both sides of the bodies technique as for chambering and striking simultaneously. Sai – a variation on the Bo principle above, but the weight of the weapons separately in each hand takes the body alignment needs to further levels of refinement.
Tonfa – extremely useful in grip development with precision. A very difficult instrument to use with precision as only your palm controls the spins. Long term study increases the hands potential to fit the shape of an attackers body with precision.
Kama – very different skill sets depending on which kama study you are using. Very heavy weight kama that can dismantle a car, very light weight kama, or light weight kama with continual shifting technique as I teach.
Bando Stick – probably the king of the weapons I teach simply because it’s so adaptable. Our study is not stick as a weapons to weapons fighting system, but as a back up weapon for defense against random attack. Certainly both studies have common values, but there are also differences. The stick can move through metal detectors undetected, something to consider as our times continue to change. It can be studied in various lengths, and at times we work with different objects, a soda can, a book, a pencil, a rope and others to show how the study works with all of them uniquely. It also has the side benefit if you can’t put something in your hands, it becomes an empty hand art of worth too..
Bando Staff - A very different system of movement from the Bo, closer to Chinese staff studies and originally designed for fighting horseback riders. Where the Okinawan Bo we study concentrates on using the weapon in the middle, the Bando staff works all sections of the length, offering a wider range of striking. It also incorporates many of the movement styles of other Okinawan Bo studies not in Isshinryu Bo, allowing our final range of potential to become more interesting.
There is quite a bit more to discuss. Always too much to do and too little time.
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