Jo-dō (the Way of the Stick) is a Japanese martial art that uses the jō, a wooden staff approximately 128 cm long. It is traditionally linked to the legendary encounter between Miyamoto Musashi and the samurai Musō Gonnosuke.According to tradition, Gonnosuke was defeated by Musashi. After a period of retreat and intense training, he developed new techniques with the jō and is said to have later defeated Musashi. From this legend emerged the school of Shinto Muso-ryu, one of the oldest formal traditions of jo-dō.For centuries, jo-dō was preserved within classical martial schools (koryū). One of the most influential and ancient martial traditions in Japan is Tenshin Shoden Katori Shinto-ryu, associated with the Katori Shrine. This tradition is regarded as a living cultural heritage of Japan and has influenced many classical weapon systems.After World War II, Donn F. Draeger traveled to Japan to study classical martial traditions. He trained in schools such as Shinto Muso-ryu and Tenshin Shoden Katori Shinto-ryu and became one of the first Westerners deeply involved in traditional budō and koryū.His books, including:
introduced many Western practitioners to the philosophical and historical depth behind Japanese martial arts.Jo-dō is not merely about techniques. It teaches timing, distance, posture, and mental composure. Power is secondary; precision and intention are central.Swiss master Pascal Krieger beautifully explains this in his book:
In his writing, the practice of the stick becomes more than physical training — it becomes a path of inner development. The jō is not a weapon to defeat others, but a tool to refine oneself.At its core, Jo-dō is not about overcoming an opponent, but about finding balance between attack and defense, action and stillness, strength and control.As in every form of Do,
technique ultimately becomes character.