What is "yawara"

The yawara (also called pasak or dulodulo in Filipino martial arts) is a Japanese weapon used in various martial arts.

The Yawara originated from the use of Kongou, a Buddhist symbolic object, by monks in Feudal Japan. The Yawara takes the form of one or two small, thick sticks that protrude about an inch from each side of the hand. They are usually used in pairs to initiate throws, bone breaks, and pressure point strikes.

The yawara stick was popularized for police officers in the 1940s by Frank A. Matsuyama who made his own version in 1937 or earlier.

Yawara can refer to:

• Yawara, a Japanese martial arts weapon
  • Yawarajutsu, a traditional martial arts form using this weapon
• Yawara, an obsolete term for jujutsu (based on an alternate pronunciation of the 柔 kanji)
• Yawara!, a manga series, as well as the anime and live-action series based on the manga
• "Yawara-chan", the nickname of Ryoko Tani, after the main character in the Yawara! manga
• Yawara, Ibaraki, a village in Ibaraki Prefecture, Japan