Zen Kobudo: The Mysteries of Okinawan Weaponry and Te [Paperback]

Mark Bishop (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: September 1996

Kobudo is the famous armed Okinawan fighting art that utilizes farming implements in combat. Developed centuries ago by peasants who had been disarmed by the government, this ingenious art is a vital component of the Okinawan fighting arts. This book studies the individual kobudo systems as they are practiced in Okinawa today and discusses their various histories. Illustrations.

Product Details

• Paperback: 96 pages
• Publisher: Tuttle Publishing; 1st edition (September 1996)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0804820279
• ISBN-13: 978-0804820271
• Product Dimensions: 7 x 4.8 x 0.5 inches
• Shipping Weight: 6.4 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 3.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (4 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,169,890 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

7 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Dissapointing after his first book, December 20, 1999

By 

Travis Cottreau (Wellington, New Zealand) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Zen Kobudo: The Mysteries of Okinawan Weaponry and Te (Paperback)

This book is an attempt by Mark Bishop to do a complete history of Te and weapons martial arts in Okinawa. He goes into archeological evidence of early stone weapons in the early parts of this book and then proceeds through generations of royalty and the modern folk tales of weapons and Te experts from the turn of the century.

Unfortunatly, there just isn't a lot to talk about concerning these subjects. Much of the information, especially 100+ years ago is difficult if not impossible to substanciate. I thought that this was going to be another book like his first where he got stories concerning Te and Kobudo and tried to sort through them by comparisons between different masters. This isn't what the book is.

I felt that there wasn't much substance to the book and I was much better off with the Kobudo and Te section from his last book where he wandered from dojo to dojo talking to masters about their styles. Certainly, that section in "Okinawan Karate" was probably larger and certainly meatier than this entire book, which was much too small and unsatisfying.

This is for a die-hard amateur karate historians only. There are some facts (not really fully referenced unfortunately) that aren't available elsewhere that are worth looking at, but they could fit on just a couple of pages.

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars History of Kubdo, July 3, 2001

By 

M. A. Ramos (Florida USA) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Zen Kobudo: The Mysteries of Okinawan Weaponry and Te (Paperback)

Mark Bishop writes well, and does so again here. With the title I was expecting more. Like his first book, stories about weapons and the Master's who used them. Instead what we have is a history of weapons. He goes from the stone age through the Okinawan weaponary.

The very first section does a great job of cataloging the various types of weapons practiced with in Okinawa, including the umbrella.... I feel this. like all of Mr. Bishops book should ne in your Martial Arts library.

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Puzzling Depth & dizzying too...., November 12, 1997

By 

J. Balbirnie ([e-mail]) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Zen Kobudo: The Mysteries of Okinawan Weaponry and Te (Paperback)

Mark Bishop; the next Donn Draeger of this century ! Mr. Bishop with all his usual depth and research plumbs what assuredly is "obscure" to even those who MAY perhaps fathom it. To those of us who ARE fellow practitioners of a given ~martial path~ this work's purpose is somewhat obscure. The intended message is somewhat clouded.... regretably. Perhaps the next time round...