KUWA - Kobudo Gives Arizona Gardening a Real Punch!

Shihan Neal Adam (5th dan) of Phoenix hooks Rich Mendolia’s
 (of Mesa) knee with kuwa in ippon kumite. Dr. Adam, Paula Borea
 (2nd dan), Bill Borea (2nd dan), Rich Mendolia, Satish Andalam,
Ryan Harden & Abimael Rolon all tested and received kuwa
certifications at the Arizona School of Traditional Karate in Mesa
 in February 2010.

Kobudo is a an important part of Shorin-ryu karate, so much so that the karate and kobudo are inseparable. Few weapons epitomize kobudo more than kuwa (the common garden hoe) also known as a gawa or kue. This is because kobudo is considered a peasant art, and what could better define a peasant than a hoe, a tool of the peasant class.

Karatedo and Kata and essentially the same, and this is valid for kobudo. Kobudo is developed through the study and continual practice of kata and each and every technique or movement in a kata must be understood and developed into bunkai or self-defense applications. The bunkai also needs to be pragmatic otherwise the value of the technique will be useless.

There are few kuwa kata: I only know of one - Matayoshi No Kuwa Nu De (Kue no de), which is the kata of Seiyo No Shorin-Ryu Karate Kobudo Kai, and I’ve seen variations of this kata.

                                  

Parts of the Okinawan Kuwa include the bo handle (eii), the
pommel (ejiri), the head (egashira) and blade (kuwaba). Here
Sensei Bill Borea from Seiyo No Shorin-Ryu Karate Renmei
defends against strike by Sensei Paula Borea at the
Arizona School of Traditional Karate in Mesa, Arizona.

Kuwa training can be done with modern garden hoe although one must be careful with these as the majority are not well made and tend to fly apart as some of you witnessed during my teaching of kuwa years ago at the University of Wyoming. One of my first strikes during kihon practice sent the blade (egashira) flying like a missile into our tatami (mat) against the front wall or shomen of the dojo wall. It surprised everyone including me. Luckily, I was in the front of the class of about 100 students with no one was in front of me. So if you purchase a hoe from a local hardware store it is best to reinforce the weapon by drilling and adding and anchor screw to secure the blade to the bo. For those who want to remain traditional, search the Internet for a Japanese style grub hoe. The kuwa consists has a butt end (ejiri), handle (eii), head of the hoe (egashira) and blade edge (kuwaba).







Training in Kue no De Kata at the Arizona School of Traditional Karate

Kuwa is used similar to a bo, but it has the advantage of a blade at one end. The egashira is used to hook weapons to redirect them, hook an opponents knee, back of neck, foot, etc and is also used for tsuki (thrust strikes). The kuwaba is used to cut an opponent as well as remove toes, ears, and fingers. The butt of the kuwa (ejiri) is used for thrust strikes, while the bo handle (eii) has many uses including blocks and strikes. So the next time you are working in your tomato garden in Gilbert, Chandler, Mesa, Tempe, Scottsdale, Phoenix, etc., remember, you have a weapon in your hands - just learn how to use this fabulous weapon!

Training with hanbo (3-foot stick) in Mesa, Arizona at the Arizona School of Traditional Martial Arts, 60 W. Baseline.