Kaiten-bojutsu, handed down since the 1260s AD, originated as a self-defense technique for farmers in a Ryukyu village (present Maeda district, Urasoe City, Okinawa Prefecture) to protect their rice paddies and rice crops. It is said that the basic movements of the art originated from the farming operation of removing azuki bean husks. Later, kaiten-bojutsu evolved and systematized day by day, and was treated as an important sign of a village family. The kaiten-bojutsu was not only a self-defense technique but was also performed once a year in a ceremony to pray to the gods for a bountiful harvest and safety.

This art of kaiten-bojutsu, a treasure of the village, was a secret art that could only be learned by those who lived in the village and was not allowed to be taught to outsiders.

In the world of kaiten-bojutsu, there was an honored bougashira chosen by the entire village from each successive generation. My teacher told me that one of the great stickmasters moved his stick so fast that the only sound he could hear was the sharp swish of the stick, like the wind of a typhoon. It is said that he was also a great stickman who was so good at empty hand surgery (tee) that even when he was surrounded and attacked by several people, those who were watching could only see him fall and could not understand what he was doing because his limbs moved so fast…