Classical Kung Fu Weapons

Why are Classical Weapons Still Being Practised?

An interesting feature of Shaolin Kung Fu is its weaponry. No other martial arts in the world can boast or a range of weapons as wide or as varied as that in Shaolin Kung Fu. In most martial arts today students learn mainly unarmed combat, with some techniques for use against armed opponents. In Shaolin Kung Fu there are complete weapon sets which are as important as unarmed sets in the standard curriculum. In the past weapon sets were even more important than unarmed ones. This was nat- ural at the time, as who would not use a weapon to fight if it could be carried freely?
However, carrying a weapon is now illegal in most countries. Why then, you may ask, learn to fight with weapons if you are not likely to use them in real combat?
There are many good reasons why classical weapons are still being taught today, although many people who practise them may not know them! If you ask a Kung Fu instructor wily he or she teaches classical weapons, he or she may say that it is part of the Kung Fu tradition, and Kung Fu training without weapons is incomplete. Teaching classical weapons can also be a good way to attract students, since many people find learning about these beautiful, sometimes strange, weapons interesting, and practising them gives a class a distinct Kung Fu flavour, as there are no such elaborate, impressive weapons in other martial arts systems.
There are, of course, other reasons more relevant to self-defence. Nowadays you do not lash a sword behind your back or grasp a spear in your hands and walk about the streets, as many Kung Fu exponents did in the past. But in a fight, even under ordinary circumstances and in ordi- nary places, you can often find a piece of wood or a sharpened pole that can be used, even if only clumsily, as a rod or a spear. Moreover, if other people use such improvised weapons against you, you will be able to deal with them more competently if you have learned the principles and prop- erties of their classical counterparts in weapon sets. Many modern improvised weapons are images of classical ones. A broken bottle acts like a dagger, a bicycle chain hke a soft whip, a heavy object like a round hammer, an ordinary chair like a Kung Fu bench.
If you carry weights while you practise your unarmed sets, you will not only find it more tiring, but you will also find that you can further increase your stamina and power. Practising weapon sets is similar to this in many ways, and you will probably prefer to hold novel and often fanciful weapons, rather than dull dumb-bells. Some special skills are required for, or achieved through, the use of certain weapons, and these skills are generally also helpful in unarmed combat. In practising with long, heavy weapons like the trident or the Guan knife, for example, you need stable stances, or else you may swing yourself off tile ground. These stable stances, consolidated by training in weapon sets, are transferable to and useful in unarmed combat, enabling you to swing an opponent off the ground.

Staffs

There are two main types of staffs: long staffs, which are about 7ft long and short staffs, which measure about 5ft. Long staffs are almost always tapered, and are sometimes called mouse-tail staffs because of their shape. Short staffs are seldom tapered, and are thus sometimes called double- headed staffs.
The long staffs originated from the long spears carried by classical warriors. Monks at Shaolin Monastery found the spears, which were originally intended for horse backfighting, too long for fighting on foot. They also found the aggressive4ooking spearheads inappropriate in their peaceful monastic environment. So they removed the spearheads, and practised with only the shafts.
Shaolin disciples were, and still are, well known for their skills in using the staff. During the Tang Dynasty, a group of 500 monks from the monastery, used staffs to help the government quell a notorious bandit uprising. Later, when the Tang Dynasty itself became oppressive, a Shaolin disciple, Zhao KuangYin, used his staff- and of course also the soldiers who supported him – to found the Song Dynasty. If you are interested in the staff techniques this first Song emperor used, you can find them in a staff set known as Embracing Dragon Staff, although it is likely many of the original techniques would have been changed through time.
In one of his battles, it is said, a portion of the emperor's staff was cut off by an opposing general. The emperor must have been very sentimental about his staff, for instead of changing to a new staff, he joined the two portions with an iron chain. He then developed some very useful techniques with this new weapon, which he called a sweeper presumably because he wanted to sweep away all his opponents with it. The sweeper became popular for some time: some people used it because it was effective, some because it was novel, and others because it was used by the emperor himself.
At that time carrying a weapon in public was not illegal. But while carrying a sweeper was allowed by law, it was nevertheless very inconvenient because it was a long weapon. Hence, some people shortened the shaft so that the two pieces could be placed together and tucked under clothing. This shortened weapon is called a small sweeper, to differentiate it from its longer brother, the big sweeper. You will probably recognize the small sweeper as the nunchaku, which is actually the Japanese pronunciation of the Chinese words meaning two-sectional staff, a name by which the small sweeper is also known.
Although the two-sectional staff can be carried about conveniently, its combat functions are simple and few; thus it is not as effective as the big sweeper or other weapons. Although it was widely used in Japanese karate, it was not popular in Chinese Kung Fu. Recently, however, after the celebrated Bruce Lee introduced it into his films, it enjoyed an unprecedented spell of popularity. Some people, probably because of their lack of exposure to other, more elaborate weapons, even commented that it was an ingeniously efficient weapon. It became the fashion to use it, and even to hang it on walls as decoration.
Its cousin, the three-sectional staff, is more useful, with many and varied combat techniques. Because of its structure, it is comparatively difficult to learn to use it, but once the techniques are mastered, it becomes an exceedingly versatile weapon.

Whips, Knives and Other Weapons

There is another weapon with three sections, the three-sectional whip. A Chinese whip is very different from the conventional Western variety The three-sectional whip consists of three short but heavy metal rods jointed together by chains, and attached to a handle. Using the throe- sectional staff is difficult, but using the three-sectional whip is even more demanding. Some students have suggested wearing helmets in their practice, because if they are not careful their whips may hit their own heads, but that is not a good idea because it reflects poor control of the weapon. There are also five-, seven-, nine- and thirteen-sectional whips. These are referred to as soft whips, although the short steel rods of which they are comprised are very hard. They are called soft because they are flexible, and to distinguish them from the steel whip, which bears even less resemblance to a Western whip.
The steel whip is a piece of metal rod about (2+0.5)ft long, with ornamental bamboo-like designs on it. If it is plain, it is called a rod. A rod should be used as a rod and not as a knife or sword, because they have different combat properties. Like the steel whip or any heavy stick, a rod is mainly used for hitting, and if you want to stop an aggressor effectively without killing him or her, the best places to hit are the elbows, c0llar bones, knees and shins. A heavy strike on the head, however, can cause serious injury or even death.
With a rod you can smash your opponent if you strike hard, but to cut him or her into pieces – something you will be unlikely to want to do – you would need a blade weapon. There are many types of blade weapon in Shaolin Kung Fu, and they are generally classified as knives. A Western reader would normally call them swords, using the term 'knives' for smaller utility implements. The Chinese, however, use 'swords' to denote double-bladed weapons which are usually light and dainty, and 'knives' for single-bladed weapons which are heavier and tougher. Knives and swords are qualitatively different – much more so than just in being single – or double-bladed. It is a sure sign that a person understands little about Kung Fu weapons if he or she uses a sword as if it were a knife.
There are three main categories of knives: the short butterfly knives, the intermediate waist knives, and the long big knives. Butterfly knives are about (1+0.5)ft long, and, like the wings of a butterfly, they are always used in pairs unless they are used in combination with other weapons.
Waist knives, which are about 3ft long, are often sheathed and worn at the waist. They are usually used singly, and are then known as single waist knives; but they are sometimes used in pairs, known as double waist knives. Western readers would probably associate a waist knife with a sabre or a scimitar.
Big knives are actually not big, but long – or rather their handles are long. The blade ora big knife is about (1+0.5)ft long, and is attached to a shaft measuring about 5ft. Probably the best known-exponent of the big knife was GuanYi, a great general of the Three Kingdoms period (221-265 CE), who is honoured by the Chinese as the God of Righteousness, but often mistaken by the West as the God of War. So skilful was GuanYi that the type of big knife that he used is now called the Guan dao or Guan knife. Other popular types of big knives are the nine-rings big knife, the block- the-gate big knife, and the chop-horse big knife.
Nine metal rings are attached to a nine-rings big knife so that a clang- ing sound is made when it is used. Ifyou have guessed that the purpose of these noisy rings is to distract the opponent's attention, you are only part- ly right. When skillfully used, they can also hamper the opponent's weapon.
The block-the-gate big knife gets its name from its historical back- ground. In ancient China bandit captains often used it to block any attack on the main gates of their hideouts, although of course not all those who used it were bandit captains. If you want to develop the skill to fight your way into bandits' hideouts to rescue damsels, you should familiarize your- self with this big knife! Know your opponent, including the weapon he uses, and you will win 100 times out of 100 batdes – so advised SunTzu, one of the greatest strategists of ancient China.
Chop-horse big knives were not used by butchers for chopping meat off dead horses, but for soldiers chopping the legs off live ones, so that the warriors on the horses would fall from their horseback and be killed or captured. Unlike the other types of big knives, which were mainly used for horseback fighting, it was used for fighting on foot, especially against opponents on horseback. Thus, the shaft is shorter, and its blade longer than those of other big knives.

The Spear Family

The most popular weapon for horseback fighting throughout Chinese history has been the spear. This is understandable because technically it is easier and faster to pierce an opponent with a spear than to slash him with a blade weapon. There were numerous warriors in Chinese history noted for their excellence in using the spear, and some of the best known were the woman general Fan Li Hua of the Han Dynasty, the ever victorious Zhao Zi Long of the Three Kingdoms period, and the family of Yang generals of the Song Dynasty. So skilful was Zhao Zi Long with his spear that in his 50 years of military life he never lost a battle.
The spear has a head attached to a long shaft with a red tassel at the joint. There are some derivatives from the spear, such as the mao, or snake- headed spear, the ji or the crescent-moon spear and the hook spear.
TheThree Kingdoms period, which was a time of heroic fighting and strategic manoeuvre, again supplies remarkable examples of famous masters using these weapons well. Zhang Dei, whose face was recorded as black like charcoal, and whose beard was as britde as a brush, used a snake-headed spear 12ft long. Lu Bu, who was reputed to be as handsome as he was valiant, is perhaps the most famous exponent of the crescent- moon spear in Chinese history, and it is sometimes called Lu Bu ji after him.
The warrior who invented the hook spear was the great Song general Yue Fei, who was a Shaolin disciple. The Tartars who attacked the Song Dynasty were expert cavaliers, whereas the Song soldiers were mainly infantrymen. The Song army was no match at all against the Tartars, untilYue Fei, employing the principle of avoiding the opponents' strong points and attacking their weak ones, changed his soldiers' ordinary lances to hook spears to attack the legs of the enemies' horses, thus throwing the Tartars to the ground, where they became quite helpless.

Light and Heavy Weapons

An interesting contrast to the spear is the Chinese sword, which is always double-bladed with a pointed tip. It is therefore a weapon for thrusting as much as for slashing, but it is never used for hewing or chopping like a knife or an axe. Using a light, dainty sword as if it were a heavy, tough knife, swinging it round one's head and wielding it against an opponent's weapon, is a sure sign of someone who does not know how to use it properly.
A skilful swordsman tries to avoid clashing a sword with an opponent's heavy weapon, for doing so would blunt the razor-sharp edges, or break its delicate blade. A Chinese sword almost never touches an opponent's weapon during combat. Skilful dodging, precise anticipation and agility are necessary for good swordsmanship.
If one reduces the size of a sword, one has a dagger. But a dagger is used differently from a sword. The main combat function of a dagger is stabbing rather than thrusting, as with a sword, but ifthe opponent is very close, thrusting with a dagger can be a formidable technique. Learning to use a dagger to defend against an opponent with a longer weapon is a very useful way of developing the skill of dodging, which can be used in unarmed sparring.
If heavy and massive are the opposite of light and dainty, then the tri dent is the antithesis of the Chinese sword. While the sword is like a shy lady, the trident is like an insistent bully, always attempting to knock down the opponent's weapon by its massive weight. Sheer weight, however, is not its only asset. In the hands of a skilful exponent, its three heavy prongs can be used to lock or disarm an opponent.
Moreover, it is more difficult for an opponent or a weapon to get past the three prongs of a trident and move along the shaft to strike the user than to get past the heads or the blades of other long weapons. There is also another interesting advantage in learning to use the trident. According to Chinese mythology, it is the most popular spiritual weapon for chasing away, or keeping under control, evil spirits. So, by practising with this weapon, you may acquire some of this aura.
Another heavy weapon is the round hammer. This is a short weapon, and is usually used in pairs, each hand holding one hammer. It is an ancient weapon, which was popular in the Shang (1520-i030 BCE) and Zhou (1030-480 BCE) Dynasties, when copper was often used to cast it. It is therefore often called the copper hammer, although it may be made from other materials. It became less popular later because people had devised other, less clumsy and more effective, weapons. Nevertheless, if you practise a round hammer set nowadays, you will find it a useful way to develop stamina and power.
Another short, heavy weapon normally used in pairs is the hand axe. It is sometimes called the whirlwind axe, because a skilful exponent can create a little whirlwind by swinging it vigorously. The hand axe origi- nated from the ancient long battle axe, which was widely used in horse- back fighting during the early Chinese dynasties. It was later displaced by the big knife, and then the long spear.

Common Implements as Weapons

While some weapons like the battle axe and the crescent-moon spear are exotic, others are more commonplace – items in normal circumstances which can be used as weapons in times of need. The umbrella, the bench and the walking stick are some examples of these implement-weapons.
The Chinese bench, which was frequently used in tea houses in classical China, is still a common feature in many Eastern countries today. The umbrella and the walking stick are very useful weapons if one knows how to use them as such. If you do not normally use a walking stick – and of course one aim of Kung Fu training is to help you do without one as you get older – learning a set of umbrella techniques may one day prove to be very useful in self-defence.
You should not, however, use an umbrella the way a lady in a comic strip would use it, by hitting an assailant on the head with it. Ifyou do, it will usually be the umbrella not the head that breaks. The potentially destructive property of an umbrella is in its pointed end. An umbrella in combat, therefore, is more advantageously used for thrusting than for hit- ting. Should you need to hit with it, use the hard handle instead of the cushioned ribs.
This illustrates two important points that may save your life one day Improved weapons for self-defence are all around if you look for them, and you should use their destructive properties if you want them to be effective. For example if an assailant attacks you with a knife or a dagger, do not fight back empty-handed or worse still just stand there helplessly. Quickly grab a chair or stool, and simultaneously shout for help. Your shouting may attract others to your aid, and it may also frighten the assailant into running away.
You should hold the chair or stool in such a way that its legs point towards the assailant. If he or she still threatens you, do not just stand and wait. Take the initiative and strike first. Do not strike the head or body, because while you are doing so he or she may thrust the weapon at you. Use the legs of the chair to strike the hand that is holding the weapon; it is like four rods striking at the same time. If you hit hard enough, he or she may drop the weapon. If you get the arm between the legs of the chair, turn it round so that the legs twist it. Having disarmed the assailant, and if you are fighting for your life, thrust a leg of the chair right into the face. Then the assailant will either run away, or hold his or her face in pain. You can pick up the weapon and run away, shouting for help and still holding the chair just in case the assailant chases you.