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THE KAMA
Okinawa's Deadliest Farm Tool
by Michael Rovens and Mark Pollard
page 2
The Kama
Okinawa's military subjugation forced its aristocrats to devise
new methods of protecting themselves, their families, and their villages.
By applying their knowledge of combative principles to farming and fishing
tools, new methods of self-defense were created. Ni-cho kamajutsu is using
a pair of common garden sickles, or kama, in a martial way. Perhaps more
clearly than any other weapon, the kama can trace its origins back to
farming. A bladed weapon, the kama is a genuine farmer's tool used for
centuries in Okinawa and Japan. The kama's development from a farming
implement to a kobudo weapon is well documented. Nagamine Shoshin, founder
of Matsubayashi-ryu and Ota Sensei's teacher, writes, "The kama, a hand
sickle, is still widely used as a farming implement in Okinawa today"
(The Essence of Okinawan Karate-do, p 266). Indeed, the best quality kama
can be purchased at ordinary hardware and garden supply stores in Okinawa.
Still, these kama are produced for farmers and intended for actual labor
in the fields. They look and feel very different from the flashy kama
often used in tournament competition.
Choosing a Weapon
Ota Sensei explains to kobudo students that it is not necessary to become
proficient in all of the traditional kobudo weapons. Rather, for battle
it is important to practice and master only one weapon. After all, in
combat, it is possible to use only one weapon at a time, and it ought to
be the one you are the most comfortable with. Ota Sensei recommends
choosing a weapon based upon an emotional response: because the weapon
calls out to you. Ever since Ota Sensei began learning the kama, it was
his weapon of choice. Undoubtedly, the inherent danger in handling the
kama was an attractive feature to a man like Ota Sensei, who prides himself
not on his ability to generate lethal force, but on his ability to control
it! In Ota Sensei's kobudo classes, he prefers to see students develop
reasonable proficiency in at least one or two other weapons before
beginning to learn the kama.
The risks involved in kama training may be the primary
reason why the weapon is less commonly practiced than other kobudo
weapons. Practitioners should heed Grandmaster Nagamine's warning: "...
insufficient practice may result in self-inflicted injury" (p. 268). While
bumps and bruises are a customary part of kobudo training, no other weapon
is as dangerous to the practitioner himself as is the kama. Ota Sensei
recalls many instances where new students of the kama seriously wounded
themselves, even severing fingers. Ota Sensei himself bears many scars
from the kama. One time after lodging the kama point so deeply into his
shin bone, the blade bent and a piece of the tip chipped off when he
removed it from his leg. For this reason when he came to the United
States, he used to recommend the kama only for people who were ready to
confront life and death situations. However, over the years, he has
changed his mind and now believes that practicing the kama is beneficial
because it forces students to concentrate and focus their minds. In this
way, kama training helps both kobudo and karate students to develop mental
discipline.
Comparisons between different kobudo weapons are frequently made all the
time by both karate and kobudo stylists. However, Ota Sensei firmly
believes that practitioners should not compare one weapon to another.
Each weapon has its own advantages and disadvantages and each weapon can
be deadly if wielded by an expert. However, clearly more than any other
weapon, the kama demands the highest level of mental focus and concentration
to practice because of the blades' sharpness.
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ABOUT THE AUTHORS
Eihachi Ota Sensei is a Matsubayashi Shorin-Ryu Stylist with
over 35 years of experience. He is also an expert in traditional
Okinawan kobudo. Michael Rovens is chief instructor and Mark Polland
is a senior instructor at Ota Sensei’s dojo in West Los
Angeles.
For further information they can be contacted at their central
dojo at:
This article is reprinted with the kind permission of
Mr. Angel Lemus, Editor,
Bugeisha.net
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