Jodo (杖道), meaning “Way of the Stick”, is the art of using the short staff, a Jo, against a Katana.

 

This martial art was first developed by a Samurai named Muso Gonnosuke around the early 17th century based on his training in various martial styles such as Tenshin Shoden Katori Shinto Ryu and Kashima Shinto Ryu.

 

The legend states that Muso Gonnosuke met with the famous swordsman Miyamoto Musashi and engaged in a duel with him and the former lost.

 

The duel was non-lethal though and Gonnosuke retreated to reflect on the encounter and after a period of meditation, he developed a way of using a stick to counter the techniques of Musashi. He then fought a second duel against Musashi using the Jo and defeated him while sparring his life as well. Gonnosuke then became the martial instructor for the Kuroda Clan samurai in present day Fukuoka and taught his new system of Jodo there called the Shinto Muso Ryu (神道夢想流).

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The Jo has the advantage of being longer than the Katana and can be used in both ends front and back and used to sweep like the naginata, thrust like a spear and cut like a sword. Training in Jodo helps develop mental focus, agility and the ability to read an opponent’s intentions while cultivating an individual sense of dignity and situational awareness known as Zanshin.