The « eight cutting swords » form (butterfly swords) or Baat Zaam Dou constitutes the most advanced technical sequence in the Wing Tsun Kung Fu system. The appearance of the Wing Tsun Kung Fu sword could be compared with that of the broad-bladed sword with one exception: it is shorter. They can be used equally well for cutting or chopping (slicing) and stabbing.
Owing to their relatively short length, the swords are used at speed and with accuracy in close combat against all kinds of bladed weapons.As its name suggests, the Baat Zaam Dou form is composed of eight series of techniques that associate various attack combinations. The eight sequences of techniques are composed of predetermined combinations of techniques trained on with the aim of making use of them in attacks performed from different angles and directions and from different distances.
In a confrontation with a bladed weapon, the first strike delivered may already be decisive and put the opponent out of action or kill him. Bearing this in mind, the idea will always be to perform the weapons techniques as fast and as accurately as possible.
Comme déjà mentionné, le but du WING TSUN KUNG FU n’est pas de parer les attaques (en particulier celles avec les armes), mais toujours de répondre directement par une contre-attaque. Bien entendu, cela se fait en recourant à la technique préventive correspondante à l’attaque. Cela implique que l’utilisateur des doubles couteaux possède un sens affirmé de l’évaluation des distances, une capacité de réaction visuelle particulièrement prononcée ainsi qu’une bonne capacité d’anticipation.
As we have already said, the aim of Wing Tsun Kung Fu is not to parry attacks (particularly armed attacks), but always to respond directly with a counter-attack. This is done, of course, by falling back on the preventive technique that corresponds to the attack.
This means that the butterfly swords user possesses a keen sense of estimating distances, particularly pronounced visual acuity and excellent anticipation. Given that, in a real combat situation, no attacks and no attack combinations are identical or predictable, the user of the Baat Zaam Dou technique must at all times be capable of employing the predefined weapons techniques in each sequence, learned and worked upon in training while purposely mixing them up with each other.