Weapons of Kuk Sool Won

Officially there are 24 weapons in the martial art of Kuk Sool Won. Most are taken from the Royal Court with additional Buddhist and Tribal weaponry. There are no known lists of the various weapons to be included when Kuk Sool Won was formed, so the number 24 could simply be a reference to the martial methods listed in the Muyedobotongji.

Weapons

1. Geom (Sword) -- Approximately a 37 inch blade
2. Jeong-geom (Sword using a normal grip)
3. Yeok-geom (Sword using an inverted grip)
4. Dahn-geom (Short Sword) -- About one-third the length of a standard sword.
5. Kal (Knife - similar to a Bowie knife)
6. Dahn-do (Knife or Short Sword)
7. Wol-do (Moon Knife - a type of halberd)
8. Do-Kki ([Battle] Axe)
9. Bu-chae (Fan) -- The fan skeleton may be made of metal or bamboo.
10. Ji-pang-i (Walking Cane)
11. Bat-jul (Rope)
12. Jeol-bong (Flail, Jointed Staff) -- Ssang-jeol-bong are more commonly known as nunchaku since "ssang" refers to the two ends being identical, whereas the sam-jeol-bong is more or less the same as a three-section staff; two joined sticks of unequal length are known as either pyeongon (in Korean) or a two-section staff (in English).
13. Dahn-bong (Short Staff)^[1]
14. Jung-bong (Middle Staff)
15. Jang-bong (Long Staff)
16. Chang (Spear - the 1st Volume of the Muyedobotongji lists the use of various types of spears)
17. Gung-si (Bow & Arrow) -- Traditional Korean archery utilizes a “thumb” draw.

• A number of weapon variations are taught, including (but not limited to):

1. Inverted long sword
2. Double long sword
3. Double short sword
4. Sword cutting (bamboo & rolled mats)
5. Sword sparring
6. Knife throwing  {tu geom sul}
7. Double short staff
8. Staff sparring

References