Kobudo is a term used to describe the various traditional Okinawan weapons taught through the practice and training of "Ti," what is called today, "Karate." It is kind of a misnomer of sorts because karate being an empty hand system that incorporates weaponry isn't really, overall, an empty hand system unless the practitioners assume adding in weapons used by the hand make it a part of karate but I digress into another subject.
Kobudo is a system of practice all its own and in some instances stands alone in the world of Okinawan martial disciplines. It is only a part of karate because that is how it was taught to the Americans occupying the Asian theater after the end of WWII.
In defense-protection oriented training and practices the use of such kobudo weaponry such as the sai, the tuifa and the bo or staff all contribute to an ability to use items in your environment to defend and protect when force levels, disparity of force when an attacker has weapons or it involves multiple attackers, etc., come into play when you failed to avoid, escape-evade or deescalate or when you are surprised and attacked and other ways one might end up in the mix of physical aggression.
Weapons often are thought of as those weapons used and taught in the dojo regardless of whether Okinawan tools or swords or halberds or any other weapon. None of these are appropriate or even advised as weapons of carry for defense-protection. Choosing the weaponry to teach and train for defense-protection must be accomplished with the social, legal and moral requirements because it is very easy to slip into an illegal state rather than a legal one. It is a slippery slope and not just attitude get mixed in but perceptions as well. Oh, and don't forget that in modern times everyone has the ability to record events making it even harder to defend actions in defense-protection.
Back to weapons, weapons training must have an appropriate intent if for defense-protection. In that light think of those requirements of social and legal ramifications and adjust your efforts accordingly.
Kobudo is not meant to be useful in defense-protection directly, i.e., in that one carries around those weapons, often unwieldy, etc., around to defend and protect. You never know until you are in that situation as to its necessity as to force levels, etc.
To connect kobudo to modern needs as to hand-enhancers, the weapons of opportunity, from the environment must be associated and intended in the training and practice regimen. Example, the yawara is not meant to be carried around although the manufacturer would argue that point because it is associated perceptively as martial in nature and may be perceived by the uninitiated and uninformed as a weapon of aggression insinuating that one who carries it is one who has the intent of aggression and violence in mind going out the front door in the morning.
The yawara stick is similar in shape to a small tactical flashlight. You could conceivably have that for hobbies or work or both. They are easy to carry in a made for it holster on your belt easy to pull out and use. Many of them have a high lumen setting that triggers a strobe that when flashed, even in daylight, one’s eyes would stun the mind and allow for escape and evasion tactics.
Each person lives and works in a variety of environments and once you perform a threat-assessment to those environments then you can decide which, if any or all, would expose you to possible attacks. The next step is to observe and be aware of what in those environments can be used to defend-protect such as exist to escape and evade; decide what, if anything, is there to put between you and an attacker/interviewer that would provide you time; then those things in the area that you would then be able to mimic a kobudo weapon, like the staff or bo of karate, that you can wield to make the attacker hesitate and use, like the chair in the Lion’s cage of a lion tamer, to keep the attacker back and unable to commit a physical violent act.
Weapons of Okinawa were often used in karate because karate in and of itself was a prerequisite to train so one could handle the weapons later much like a prerequisite of university subjects laying out what was needed before being allowed to attend the class.
This should be studied, trained and practiced especially for defense-protective goals and objectives.
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