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Saijutsu, the art of the sai, is one of the martial arts that make up Ryukyu Kobudo. Ryukyu Kobudo is the collective term for the ancient martial arts of Okinawa that make use of old-style weapons. The roots and time of origin of saijutsu are about the same as those of karatedo and the other martial arts among Ryukyu Kobudo, including bojutsu (the art of the staff), tonfajutsu (the art of utilizing the wooden handles of a rice-grinding tool), nichogamajutsu (the art of using two farming sickles), and so forth.

In brief, the civil measures of Okinawan King Sho Hashi, and later the policies of the Satsuma rulers included a hasty confiscation of swords and spears and other weapons. These actions caused Okinawan people to earnestly study and train in the various martial arts left to them.

Past and present, great masters of saijutsu included Bushi Matsumura, Tsuken Shitahaku, Hama Higa, Chatan Yara, Tawada, lshikawa-Guwa no Kekere-Ou, and Kaneko Ufuchiku, among others.

Saijutsu uses a weapon similar to the jitte used by the torigata of the Japanese mainland. The torigata were the equivalent of today’s police. In Ryukyu, however, it seems that the torigata used the sai. The jitte had a fork on one side and could be used to deal with a sword or staff by stopping it with a scissoring action of the fork. The sai was different in that each had two forks. Saijutsu uses a pair of sai which are handled with both hands. They can be handled with perfect freedom for both offense and defense.