Chinese Weapons
Chinese Martial Arts known in China as wushu or here in the west as Kung Fu or Gong Fu is famous for its vast array of weaponry. From the Spear to the more esoteric Emei Peicers the Chinese martial systems have them all.
Weapons along with hand to hand combat started to develop in China about 5000 years ago. There are differences between North and South caused mainly by the geography and physical traits of the native people. Tradition states the weapons were divided into eighteen the 1982 Lau Kar-Leung film Legendary Weapons of China lists them as :
This is not the definitive 18 Weapons list and I expect these weapons were chosen as much for their fight choreographical quality than authenticity.
I guess though that as nobody can be sure what the true list is, this is as good a list as any ! It does have some glaring omissions though such as single broadsword, although double broadswords are represented.
Playing with lists when there is no chance of proving anything is fairly pointless. Indeed I had started to prepare my own list and then thought what’s the point, I had no justification for inclusion other than the weapons I chose I had been around for many years.
What at is generally accepted though is that there are four primary weapons that most (Northern) styles will have as part of their system and generally learn first. These are Staff, Spear, Broadsword and Straight Sword. The Southern styles also have their weapons but (much like China !) I will concentrate on the Northern systems first.
Staff (Gun)
The Staff is also commonly known as a cudgel (although most dictionary definitions will say that cudgel is a short stick). The most common techniques are sweeping, striking and thrusting both in a linear and upwards fashion to the groin or chin. Often, it is slid through the hands from end to end which brings the staff to life.
To guage the correct staff length extend the arm above the head, the staff tip should reach the wrist of the overhead arm.The staff should be made of straight hardwood although most modern practitioners prefer a tapered staff made from waxwood which is more akin to the spear material and extremely flexible and light. There is no definitive standard, indeed Chen taiji traditionally has longer staff sometimes up to 3.6 metres long.
The Shaolin Temple although famous for many styles of Kung Fu traditionally excels at staff play. As the Shaolin Temple devotees were buddhist they believed it was proper not to harm living things and the staff was preferred to edged weapons and became the weapon of choice. When they left the Temple the staff proved very functional. It was useful as a tool for walking on rough terrain or carrying items by slinging them to the staff and carrying them over the shoulder. Also it was non-threatening to strangers.
There is a famous legend of the Jinnalou King. It is set in the Yuan Dynasty (1206AD -1368AD) about a lowly cook at the Temple called Jinnalou. The Temple was attacked by a force that had been rampaging through the country and the bandits were winning the fight. Jinnalou asked the Abbot to give him a chance to beat the army. As the situation was getting desperate and he had nothing to lose: the Abbot gave Jinnalou permission to attack the army. Jinnalou used techniques he had devised based on stoking the oven fire whilst working in the kitchen. The bandits were scared away and from that time on the staff was studied more seriously at the Temple and Shaolin Staff became famous throughout the country.
Spear (Qiang)
The spear was probably originally made from bamboo but is now usually made from waxwood although Rattan is also utilized in the South. Both materials are light and extremely flexible. The wood is sometimes soaked in oil to increase its strength and resilience.
The spear usually has a brightly coloured ‘beard’ originally made from horsetail tassles and a rattle where some small stones (these days – loose steel balls) are fitted. They are fitted where the metal spike is attached to the wood. They serve two functions, they are for distraction and in the case of the beard a second function may have been to stop blood running down the shaft from the blade to the handle which could cause the spear operator’s hands to slip. For this reason the beard is sometimes known as the Xue Dang or the Blood Stopper.
Traditionally, the spear was used for ground and horseback fighting and was called the ‘King of the Long Weapons’. Its lightness gave it great speed and agility compared to other long weapons. It is used mainly for stabbing although its length allows the user to ‘wrap’ around an enemy’s weapon and force it from their grasp.
Acording to Chinese history the spear developed from the lance (Mao) in the Jin Dynasty (265AD - 420AD). General Yu Fei further developed the spear in the Southern Song Dynasty (1127AD – 1180AD) when he added a sharp nasy hook at the end. The spear has since spawned many varients.
The spear is an easy weapon to wield but a hard weapon to use. It takes great skill but an experienced practioner can use it to devastating effect.
Pu Dao
The Pu Dao (Dashing Sabre) is known by many names but probably the most famous is the Horse Chopping Broadsword. It is often taught in Shaolin systems' schools. It is a Northern and a Southern weapon. In the south it is often called Ti Dao (Kick Broadsword) or Cai Yang Dao ( Cai Yang's Broadsword) but the Northern stylist's name of Horse Chopping Sword is the most common.
This description came after Marshal Yue Fei in the Southern Song Dynasty (1127-1280 A.D.) developed a sword with a short handle and long sword blade. It was known as Yue Fei's Long Handled Sabre (Yue Fei Da Dao) or quite literally, Yue Fei's Big Broadsword. Legends say that he used it to attack the enemy horses' legs and the name stuck!
In fact this type of weapon was often used for horse to horse fighting, lighter versions in ground fighting (hence another name, Wrestling Broadsword) and of course, to chop horse's legs.