Hanbo: The Aiki Way

Rating:
Summary: Excellent book in the right hands.
Review: Hanbo: the Aiki Way is a manual for the basics in the use of a staff as a defensive weapon, in this case a three foot staff, but it can be adapted to any variety of similar weapons including, as is demonstrated in the book, an umbrella or cane. As such, it is one of the best examples of this sort of work I have seen. The pictures, which comprise the backbone of the manual, are exact and detailed, and the sequence makes the applications extremely easy to follow. There is enough written supplementation to put the photos, which are of good quality, into perspective. Because the techniques in this book appear to be easy to learn, in fact, they are also subtle and so there is the need for a caveat or two which the book seems to assume (given that there are spaces for seminar and practice notes at the end of each chapter) but which I feel required to state.

For one thing, even the most simple techniques require extensive practice under the supervision of a qualified instructor. "Extensive practice ," because even though the techniques are simple in themselves, each situation is slightly different and the practitioner must develop a "feeling" for the activity, more than an intellectual understanding (i.e. each aspect thought out in progression) of a memorized sequence. That would be too slow and ineffective, not to mention clumsy, to be practical. Also, practice requires an opponent, and that opponent must know how to fall, not something which is accomplished within a short period of time.

"Qualified instructor," because, although Aikido, which is the art under which this weapon use falls, is designed to be the least harmful to the attacker, nevertheless, it can cause serious injury. No matter how much practice one does, if it is both inconsistent and incorrect, which, without an instructor it generally is, it yields nothing useful. Moreover, as with any use of weapons, even a slight miscalculation in the grip of a weapon, the placement, or the timing, can result in serious injury to either the defender or the attacker. Only a qualified instructor can appraise the situation and correct or prevent mistakes.

Therefore, I would say that this is an excellent book for an instructor in any of the martial arts who wishes to expand his knowledge to include the staff or bo, or to an advanced student who has already mastered the basics of the weaponless aspects of his or her art. It is not a book, however, for the self-taught beginner.

With those caveats in mind, I wholeheartedly recommend this book as being a clear and precise manual. It does not overextend itself, it does not add superfluous embellishments, but it thoroughly covers, as it states, the basic aspects of the short staff. In other words, it is fluid, effective, and has the conservation of expression which reflects an excellent teacher.

Michael Zwerdling, Godan, Shihan, Uechi-Ryu Karate-Do.

Rating:
Summary: Excellent book in the right hands.
Review: Hanbo: the Aiki Way is a manual for the basics in the use of a staff as a defensive weapon, in this case a three foot staff, but it can be adapted to any variety of similar weapons including, as is demonstrated in the book, an umbrella or cane. As such, it is one of the best examples of this sort of work I have seen. The pictures, which comprise the backbone of the manual, are exact and detailed, and the sequence makes the applications extremely easy to follow. There is enough written supplementation to put the photos, which are of good quality, into perspective. Because the techniques in this book appear to be easy to learn, in fact, they are also subtle and so there is the need for a caveat or two which the book seems to assume (given that there are spaces for seminar and practice notes at the end of each chapter) but which I feel required to state.

For one thing, even the most simple techniques require extensive practice under the supervision of a qualified instructor. "Extensive practice ," because even though the techniques are simple in themselves, each situation is slightly different and the practitioner must develop a "feeling" for the activity, more than an intellectual understanding (i.e. each aspect thought out in progression) of a memorized sequence. That would be too slow and ineffective, not to mention clumsy, to be practical. Also, practice requires an opponent, and that opponent must know how to fall, not something which is accomplished within a short period of time.

"Qualified instructor," because, although Aikido, which is the art under which this weapon use falls, is designed to be the least harmful to the attacker, nevertheless, it can cause serious injury. No matter how much practice one does, if it is both inconsistent and incorrect, which, without an instructor it generally is, it yields nothing useful. Moreover, as with any use of weapons, even a slight miscalculation in the grip of a weapon, the placement, or the timing, can result in serious injury to either the defender or the attacker. Only a qualified instructor can appraise the situation and correct or prevent mistakes.

Therefore, I would say that this is an excellent book for an instructor in any of the martial arts who wishes to expand his knowledge to include the staff or bo, or to an advanced student who has already mastered the basics of the weaponless aspects of his or her art. It is not a book, however, for the self-taught beginner.

With those caveats in mind, I wholeheartedly recommend this book as being a clear and precise manual. It does not overextend itself, it does not add superfluous embellishments, but it thoroughly covers, as it states, the basic aspects of the short staff. In other words, it is fluid, effective, and has the conservation of expression which reflects an excellent teacher.

Michael Zwerdling, Godan, Shihan, Uechi-Ryu Karate-Do.

Rating:
Summary: a worthy seminar notebook
Review: My first return to Amazon ever. John Goss sensei is a worthy practitioner but the book fails to do his hanbo work justice. It would be excellent at half the price as a notebook for his personal training but on its own it is overpriced and under informative. It is nearly impossible to convey the aiki way of anything on the printed page since harmony of movement and timing are so crucial. Even more so when no real effort is made to illustrate fundamental principles of hanbo (nor aiki). Nor does the flat exposure of the photos even make the book interesting to look at. (I would not hesitate to try a video of his hanbo work. What he has to teach is not in question.)

As an aikido yudansha, I expected to see some relationship illustrated between empty handed aikido principles and Goss's aiki-hanbo, especially since hanbo is not a traditional aikido weapon. I think the potential for the book is huge since the short stick is the most likely and most easily obtained "weapon" a practioner is likely to find himself in ready possession of in today's world. That potential is just not delivered in this package. Goss sensei certainly has the know-how, and he can surely teach, it just doesn't come through in this book.

In his next edition I would hope for a little more verbal explication, a bit more systematic selection of techniques, and a slightly sharper use of photography capturing the flow of the techniques.

Rating:
Summary: a disappointment, even for a martial arts book
Review: There is very little text to explain any of the techniques, merely a series of photographs for each, and a page wasted (left blank) for "seminar/practice notes" after each technique is presented. Hard to believe an editor actually let this go to press, but maybe these are sold at discount during workshops.

Secondly, there are only sixteen techniques in the book. Nineteen bucks for sixteen waza is pretty steep, especially when the waza are not really covered in depth.

Anyone interested in hanbo should not waste any time on this book, but instead get Hatsumi's Stick Fighting manual, which covers over 50 techniques and contains text a whole lot more informative, even translated from the original Japanese.

Rating:
Summary: A Great Tool!!
Review: This book is an excellent guide for anyone interested in learning the cane defense. It is easy to follow and the pictures are great! I highly recommend this book to all!

Rating:
Summary: A tiny few Hanbo techniques for the experinced Aikidoka
Review: This is a tiny book in size and content and covers a scant 16 techniques. The techniques themselves are fine, but as the title says -- or should say -- it is "Using the Hanbo in the Aiki Way". That is, it presumes that you will have some knowledge of Aikido and its ways of using the attacker's force. I doubt that many of the techniques shown will be successful if you haven't mastered some Aikido. If you are looking for an exposition on Aikido, this is not the book. And indeed if you have never handled a hanbo before, then this may not be the book either. The photos are not especially high resolution, but give you an idea of the technique. However, they are certainly not enough on their own. Nevertheless, if you have some knowledge of Aikido and some familiarity with the hanbo, then this book will add a few extra techniques to your repertoire.
The weak points of the book lie in the presentation. It seems to desperately look for ways to bulk up the lack of content. Around 20% of the book is blank pages. That's 25 pages out of the 122 pages -- the other 10 are publishing and advertising information (as to be expected). In a few places, essentially the same picture is shown twice. Still, if it were any smaller, you'd lose it in your bookshelf. And making it any smaller wouldn't change the price.
Overall, an ok, but not essential, book for the experienced practitioner.