The Weapon, in and of Itself

Weapons, in my opinion, are a very important part of the martial arts. When you practice with a weapon, you learn to use it as if it were a part of you. It is an extension of yourself. But that takes a very high degree of martial arts training which is why I believe it is important for every martial art to have weapons practice.

Another thing I have always thought of are two different kinds of weapons.

There are weapons where you must first practice with your bare hands for a long time until you are able to use those abilities through through the weapon. Examples of this would be the weapons used in kobujutsu (nunchuks, bo, sai, tonfa, etc) and many (if not all) Chinese martial arts weapons.

There there are weapons like the katana where you pick it or a practice weapon up and start learning how to use it from day one. You don't need any bare handed training prior to learning the weapon.

As you see these are two ways to learn the weapon, but both have and take you to the same goal, to become one with the weapon.

Well said. But you missed one important point about weapons training.
It's cooool :cool:

Thank you. heh, oh yeah! That is the reason I got so interested in it in the first place.

I'd love to train in Japanese weapons Like the Katana and the tonfa but I teach CMA and I would be called a fraud for sure since our CMA style doesnt have much weapons.

That's horrible. I hate it when people have a problem with cross training. That would be like if I were made fun of at where I study TKD for practicing shotokan or something.

Your comment about cross training in Shotokan was a little misplaced.

It has always been more than a little strange to see the forms in Tae Kwon Doe advertised as being thousands of years old, but they look VERY similar to the forms of Shotokan.

All politics aside. I have nothing but respect for anyone who trains hard and works through his/her material. But have you never asked why this seems to be so?

In Boston,

Dale Dugas

I've never asked because its not true. The forms in tae kwon do (all associations and federations) are not 1000's of years old. Though, I have heard some day dreamers say that who would like to believe it. But no one really believes them. The reason they look similar to shotokan is because tae kwon do was based on shotokan.

Your are one of the first Tae Kwon Doe people who has not tried to force feed me that old as shaolin history.

Thanks for the candor, its not expected much and is appreciated.

In Boston,

Dale

Weapons are a tremendously important part of any martial art.

Many people ask: "what are the chances of me having a knife or a bo or even any type of weapon in a real fight?"

If u have a weapon or not, it doesn't matter. Because to learn a weapon is to know a weapon. This simply means that if u know how a bo or a knife can be used, u can use ur knowledge of the weapon as an advantage.

Yes, very well said. That really applies to those who focus on such weapons as the katana. They are true martial artists even though they will never actually have their katana with them.

As for tae kwon do, I'm just telling what I know and what my instructors have told me. I've never actually talked to anyone who believes the myth about TKD being around for so long, but I know people talk like that from what I have heard others like you say. However, don't be confused with Korean martial arts, which have indeed been around for a long time, perhaps not as the incarnation that we learn in the dojang, but the Koreans have needed martial arts for centuries and therefore do have a martial arts history that dates way back. But TKD is a very new martial art, however, the concepts of TKD which have been taken from other martial arts are as old as shaolin.

Tae kwon do is actually a rather old martial art. The name tae kwon do is new, but really that's all that's new about it (excpet the olympics tae kwon do). And at the time Korea started developing martial arts, it was still part of China, so it of course borrowed many things from chinese martial arts. And there are weapons in tae kwon do, but most tae kwon do practitioners concentrate more on their "bare-hand" skills rather than weapons skills.

Bare hands forms are not required to learn Okinawan weaons training nor Chinese weapons.

I beg to differ. Every single shotokan school I have ever seen, and that is a lot, requires you to train in the use of barehanded fighting for a long time before you are allowed to even think about using a weapon. In fact, usually you must reach green belt I believe to start learning a weapon.

And from what I have read (so take what you will out of that), traditionally you practice tai chi for 10 years before using the sword.