Weapon

Kama

Info: Kama are generally though of as an elusive weapon with little to no practical purpose in todays martial arena. While they may lack the practicallity of other weapons such as knifes or tonfas they should be used as a gage for ones ability to adapt to what is available. If one truely understands motion than learning to use the kama should not be difficult. The kama, impractical as they may be, are none the less an impressive weapon in the right hands that can show ones skill more so than other weapons.

Parts: The Kama are nothing more than a long handle with a blade, though the length of both handle and blade can vary considerably from on manufacture to the next. Most commercial Kamas are not sharpened or even capable of taking an edge. If you should come across a pair with sharpened edges take extra care as the edges of these weapons are generally far sharper than most edges weapons. Some Kama may also have a cord to wrap around the wrist. Occasionally a ball, often spiked, will be attached to the bottom of each Kamas by a chain or rope. This turns the Kama into weapons called Kursari-gama, in which the ball also used to strike an opponent and sometimes to aid in manipulation of the Kama.

Concepts: Depending on the system Kama generally employ the same motions and attack angles of Kali and other edged weapons. The primary difference is that extra attention must be taken to bring the sharpened edge of the blade (the inner edge) to bare on the target. The Kama are also used more in a "slicing" manner rahter than a deep cutting manner as with a sword.

Cursory List of Techniques

Basic Concepts
Basic Drills
Kata