Ryu-Kyu Kobudo Hozonkai

Le Kobudo correspond au maniement des armes dans les arts martiaux japonais.

Two main currents can be distinguished; first, that of martial arts practiced on the largest island of Japan (Honshu), and then, martial arts from the  
Okinawa archipelago .

• Japanese Kobudo originated   on the battlefield, and its practice, taught in ancient traditional schools, is closely linked to swordsmanship. It therefore incorporates movements typical of swordsmanship. These schools were generally reserved for samurai.
• Okinawan Kobudo, instead   of using weapons derived from war (swords, spears, bows, etc.), uses everyday tools, such as sticks, oars, rice flails, sickles, etc., transformed into weapons for self-defense. It was developed by peasants and then enriched by Okinawan nobles under the influence of China and all of Southeast Asia.

The most common weapons of Okinawan Kobudō are:

• The  bō , a long walking stick that serves as a basic weapon.
• The  sai , a metal trident used in pairs.
• The  tonfa , a wooden weapon used in pairs and originally used to turn millstones to grind cereals.
• The  nunchaku , a flail used to thresh grain. A horse-bit-shaped variant has specific techniques.
• The eku , an oar used by fishermen, and whose tradition is maintained in the  hāri , maritime boat racing festivals, inherited from South China via Taiwan.

Secondary weapons, because less common, generally practiced by more advanced students, include for example:

• The  kama , a sickle used in pairs that is used to cut the stalks of cereals, such as rice
• The  rochin  and the  timbe  : this is a spear and a shield often made of turtle shell (more solid).
• Tekkō  , a kind of knuckle duster in the shape of a horse stirrup.