The ''yawara'' is a Japanese

weapon A weapon, arm or armament is any implement or device that can be used to deter, threaten, inflict physical damage, harm, or kill. Weapons are used to increase the efficacy and efficiency of activities such as hunting, crime, law enforcement, ...

used in various

martial art Martial arts are codified systems and traditions of combat practiced for a number of reasons such as self-defense; military and law enforcement applications; competition; physical, mental, and spiritual development; entertainment; and the preserv ...

s. Numerous types of

jujutsu Jujutsu ( ; ja, link=no, 柔術 , ), also known as jiu-jitsu and ju-jitsu, is a family of Japanese martial arts and a system of close combat (unarmed or with a minor weapon) that can be used in a defensive or offensive manner to kill or subdu ...

make use of a small rod, made of wood, that extends somewhat from both ends of a person's fist which is known as a ''yawara''. The ''yawara'' likely originated from the use of the tokkosho, a Buddhist symbolic object, by monks in feudal Japan. The tokkosho was used during the

Edo period The or is the period between 1603 and 1867 in the history of Japan, when Japan was under the rule of the Tokugawa shogunate and the country's 300 regional '' daimyo''. Emerging from the chaos of the Sengoku period, the Edo period was characte ...

and it was made of brass. Sometimes a short rope or cord would be looped around the user's wrist to distract someone else while in combat. The methods of using a ''yawara'' may have been created by

samurai were the hereditary military nobility and officer caste of medieval and early-modern Japan from the late 12th century until their abolition in 1876. They were the well-paid retainers of the '' daimyo'' (the great feudal landholders). They h ...

that used

tantojutsu Tantōjutsu (短刀術) is a Japanese term for a variety of traditional Japanese knife fighting systems that used the tantō (短刀), a knife or dagger. Historically, many women used a version of the tantō, called the kaiken, for self-defense, ...

, which was combat that made use of a short knife. According to another theory, a samurai might have fought with the scabbard "when a more deadly weapon was not necessary". The ''yawara'' stick was popularized for police officers in the 1940s by Frank A. Matsuyama, who made his own version in 1937 or earlier. The upgraded ''yawara'' was made of Bakelite plastic and had golf shoe metal spikes on both ends. A ''yawara'' can be used by the general public for self-defense. A variation of the ''yawara'' is a kubotan which is about six inches long, made of plastic, weighs about two ounces, and has no sharp edges. The kubotan is used by police officers and the general public. It is considered to be a modern version of a ''yawara'', which is "a little shorter and broader". In the United States, ''yawaras'' are not intrinsically illegal in any jurisdiction.

History

Numerous types of

make use of a small rod, made of wood, that extends somewhat from both ends of a person's fist which is known as a ''yawara''. The shaft of a ''yawara'' is often "carved to fit a user's fingers and to improve grip". The ''yawara'' is around 15 cm to 25 cm long. Either end of the ''yawara'' can "be used to strike or apply pressure to sensitive vital points on an opponent's body". Pressure points that can be easily struck with a ''yawara'' are "the forehead, bridge of nose, upper lip, chin, temple, jaw, bicep, solar plexus, elbow, forearm, kidney, wrist, hypocondrium, genitalia, testicles, and knee". When a ''yawara'' is "held across the palm", it can "be used to block strikes of blows, even knife and sword slashes". Sometimes a wielder would add a short "rope or cord" that would be looped around the user's wrist, allowing the ''yawara'' to be propelled as a distraction while in combat. With the cord setup, the user can easily retrieve the ''yawara'' and the cord itself can be used to capture the other person's "limb or weapon as well as to restrain an attacker after they had been subdued". The cord or hook were sometimes called ''torihimo'' or "bird rope". It is believed by some historians that methods of using a ''yawara'' were created by

that used

, which was combat with a short knife. A theory states that the

scabbard A scabbard is a sheath for holding a sword, knife, or other large blade. As well, rifles may be stored in a scabbard by horse riders. Military cavalry and cowboys had scabbards for their saddle ring carbine rifles and lever-action rifles on the ...

of a short blade may have swelled from water, resulting in it being hard for a samurai to "draw the blade" from its scabbard. When that happened, the samurai started using the scabbard as a weapon. According to another theory, a samurai might have fought with the scabbard "when a more deadly weapon was not necessary". It is likely that the ''yawara'' was based on the tokkosho which was used by

Buddhist Buddhism ( , ), also known as Buddha Dharma and Dharmavinaya (), is an Indian religion or philosophical tradition based on teachings attributed to the Buddha. It originated in northern India as a -movement in the 5th century BCE, and ...

priests, monks, and pilgrims for incantations and prayers. A tokkosho symbolized the

Buddha Siddhartha Gautama, most commonly referred to as the Buddha, was a wandering ascetic and religious teacher who lived in South Asia during the 6th or 5th century BCE and founded Buddhism. According to Buddhist tradition, he was born in L ...

's ability to destroy evil, but it could also be used in self-defense "as a hand-held weapon". A takkosho was used during the

and it was made of brass. It was an object that was used in rituals. Due to metal being expensive and requiring forging by tools, wood (of any type) was used to create a ''yawara''. Because it is easy to carve and use a ''yawara'', it has been used as part of multiple self-defense styles in the western world. In feudal Japan, some ''yawara'' included miniature claws on one end, allowing someone to "hook the opponent's clothing to pull the attacker off-balance and throw him". The claws could also be used to attack an opponent's face.

Police use

Assistants of the Japanese police force created various ways to capture a criminal with the rope of the ''yawara''. Japanese immigrant Frank Matsuyama taught the

Berkeley, California Berkeley ( ) is a city on the eastern shore of San Francisco Bay in northern Alameda County, California, United States. It is named after the 18th-century Irish bishop and philosopher George Berkeley. It borders the cities of Oakland and E ...

, police department how to use the ''yawara'' in the 1930s. Matsuyama later wrote the book ''How to Use the Yawara Stick for Police'', which details the use of an upgraded ''yawara'' that he created in 1937 or earlier for police officers. The upgraded ''yawara'' was made of Bakelite plastic and had golf shoe spikes on both ends. The spikes, which were made of metal, were to dishearten someone from taking the ''yawara'' from the police officer or to cause pain in order to stop a criminal. Matsuyama stated in his book of his upgrade of the ''yawara'', "The ''Yawara'' stick is very effective, easy to carry, easy to learn how to use, and easy to remember. It is hard – in fact, almost impossible – for anyone to wrest it from an Officer's grasp. The ''Yawara'' stick is better appearing, very inconspicuous, and is not ojectionable to the public – even when it is being used". While some ''yawara'' have ball bearings on each end, that version has been banned for most police officer usage due to how easily it can penetrate both flesh and bone. A 1985 manual by the

University of Illinois The University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign (U of I, Illinois, University of Illinois, or UIUC) is a public land-grant research university in Illinois in the twin cities of Champaign and Urbana. It is the flagship institution of the Univer ...

titled ''Police Yawara Stick Techniques, Second Edition'' details "the advantages and disadvantages of the ''yawara'' stick as a weapon". The manual states how police officers can effectively use the ''yawara'' and it includes illustrations for each method of use.

General public use

The ''yawara'' has also been created by using hard nylon and aircraft-grade aluminum for use by the general public. Depending on the company, the ''yawara'' can be built as either hollow or solid. For self-defense, the ''yawara'' can be aimed at the neck, throat, temple, eyes, or nose. A ''yawabara'' is easy to hide and might also have an attachment for a

keychain A keychain (also key fob or keyring) is a small ring or chain of metal to which several keys can be attached. The length of a keychain allows an item to be used more easily than if connected directly to a keyring. Some keychains allow one or b ...

. For use by the general public, a ''yawabara'' is inexpensive. Martial artist Miguel Ibarra stated of a ''yawara'', "It can give a person who might lack physical size, strength or highly developed technique an edge against an attacker". Martial artist Roy Goldberg said, "Stay away from the types of ''yawara'' that have knives or blades concealed inside them. If you practice right, you be very effective with the plain stick; you don't need the blade." Goldberg also said that "there is more risk of being prosecuted for carrying a concealed weapon if you have a ''yawara'' with a blade inside". The senior black belt demonstration division of the

American Jujitsu Association The American Ju-Jitsu Association (AJA) is a national, non-profit amateur athletic association founded in 1972 to support the martial art of traditional Japanese ju-jitsu. It is registered with both the state of California and the U.S. governm ...

can demonstrate how to use a ''yawara'' among other weapons. A variation of the ''yawara'' is a kubotan which is "about six inches long, made of plastic, weighs about two ounces, and has no sharp edges. The kubotan is used by police officers and the general public. It is considered to be a modern version of a ''yawara'', which is "a little shorter and broader".

Etymology

The kanji for ''yawara'' and ju in jujutsu or judo is the same (柔). The kanji also translates to "flexibility" or "giving way". Another term for ''yawara'' is ''tenouchi'' which translates to "inside the hand".

Legality

In the United States, ''yawaras'' are not intrinsically illegal in any jurisdiction.

References