Photo stick - Saibou

Japanese: 撮棒 - さいぼう

A long wooden stick believed to have the magical power to ward off evil and impurity. When made of iron and with protrusions attached, it is called a kananasaibou. Judging from its rounded, tapered end, it is assumed to be modeled after a genitalia. The sticks carried by attendant monks and priests for guarding, the sticks carried by inujin (dog gods) at the Gion Festival, the spears carried by those released as executioners, and the sticks used by non-human chief officials are all kananasaibou or variations of them. The Hōsōki and Taiheiki depict villains and evil monks making use of kananasaibou and tetsukananasaibou, but like tsubute (split stones), the kananasaibou's power to ward off evil was used as a weapon, and as its magical power waned in the late Middle Ages, the martial arts and stick-wielding tactics used in sticks, bojutsu, were born from it.

Source: Heibonsha World Encyclopedia, 2nd Edition Information

Japanese:

邪気･穢気をはらう呪力を持つとされた長い木の棒。鉄製で突起などをつけたものを鉄撮棒（かなさいぼう）という。先を丸くくびれさせた形状からみて，陽物をかたどったものと推定される。従僧･法師が警固のために担う棒，祇園会のさい犬神人（いぬじにん）が持つ棒，刑吏としての放免が担ぐ鉾，非人の長吏の突く棒など，みな撮棒あるいはその変形である。《峯相記》や《太平記》は撮棒･鉄撮棒を駆使する悪党･悪僧を描いているが，これは飛礫（つぶて）と同様，撮棒の持つ破邪の力が武器として用いられたもので，中世後期，その呪力が衰えるとともに，棒を使う兵法，棒術がそこから生まれてくる。

出典　株式会社平凡社世界大百科事典第２版について　情報

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