Beg
There are many
theories as to the beginnings of what we know as the art of ninjutsu today.
Each Japanese historian has his or her own set of facts and beliefs, and it is
difficult pinpointing a specific place, person, time, or set of circumstances
that would be acceptable to all as the birth of the art. Ninjutsu did not come
into being as a specified art at first, rather many centuries passed before
ninjutsu was established as an independent system of knowledge. The people who
were later referred to as ninja did not originally use that label themselves,
rather they considered themselves to be merely practitioners of political,
religious, and military strategies that were cultural opposites of the
conventional outlooks of the times. Ninjutsu developed as a highly illegal
culture and on an opposite pole to the ruling samurai elite, and for this
reason alone, the origins of the art are shrouded by centuries of mystery,
concealment, and deliberate confusion.
In the legends of the
founding of Japan’s Imperial Family, passed on through father-to-son
storytelling through the years before recorded history, two ninja-like
characters are credited with assisting the first emperor, Jimmu, in attaining a
decisive victory. Jimmu was in a battle against the troops of Iso Castle, and
the battle was going against him. One night in a dream, the man who would later
become an emperor had a vision in which he was told to take the clay from Mt.
Amakaga and mold it into a sacred vessel. Mt. Amakaga was a holy mountain that
lay in the middle of the territory held by the Iso forces. Obtaining the raw
clay became the symbol of Jimmu’s intention and resolve towards succeeding in
the conquest of Iso Castle. Shinetsuhiko and Otokashi two warriors, served
their lord Jimmu by disguising themselves as two old peasants, and the two
successfully slipped by the front lines into enemy territory, picked up the
clay, and returned to safety. Jimmu then molded and fired a platter and bowl
set from clay, offered them to the gods of fortune and went on to attain the
victory he so strongly believed to be his destiny. The skills of ninjutsu were
said to have been passed
Among the ancient
ninjutsu scrolls, there are some that tell of Chinese ex-patriots who fled
their native land to seek sanctuary in the islands of Japan. Chinese warriors,
scholars, and monks alike made the journey to start new lives in the wilderness
of Ise and Kii. Military strategies, religious philosophies, folklore, cultural
concepts, medical practices, and a of generally wide scope of perspective blended the wisdom of China with that of
India, Tibet, Eastern Europe, and south-east Asia. This became the gifts to
their newly-found followers in Japan. Remote and far flung from the Emperor’s
court in the capital, the cultural ancestors of the ninja lived their lives as
naturalists and mystics. While the main-stream of society became increasingly
structured, ranked, and eventually
tightly controlled, the ninjas let their creativity run wild.
As time passed, the
ninja and their ways of accomplishment, known as Ninjutsu, were always present
behind the scenes of all the eras to ensure the survival and independence of
their families and lands. In the regions of Iga and Koga, Ninjutsu became a
special skill, refined and perfected by over seventy families, each with their
own unique methods, motivations, and ideals.
Japanese history books, however, are curiously limited in their coverage and
acknowledgment of the ninja. In textbooks even as recent as one generation ago,
Hanzo Hattori, the head of one of the most influential ninja families in Iga
and Shogun Ieyasu Tokugawa’s director of ninja, was referred to as "a
bushi (samurai) from the remote province of Iga". This hesitancy to openly
acknowledge the ninja’s role in the forging of modern Japan stems perhaps from
the glorification of the samurai concept and ethic that became very popular
after the Meiji Restoration. The Meiji Restoration abolished the samurai class
and gave all citizens the right to affect social trappings that had once been
reserved for samurai only.
With this clouding of
significant historical events and people, it is difficult for today’s people to
understand the true purpose and ideals of the ninja. Exaggerated legends left
over from the Tokugawa era, in which the Shogun’s ninja secret police were
given supernatural powers such as the ability to disappear, walk across water,
and read minds, confuse the story even more. As the world became more and more
interested in the culture and then the martial arts of Japan, the distorted
stories of the ninja found new audiences in the Western world over the past
three decades in the form of movies, video games, and books.
Home
Ninjutsu is best
described as the collection of skills utilized by the Ninja while Ninpo, often
referred to as "the higher order of Ninjutsu, " implies a philosophy
for living based on the principles of Nin.
The ninja were very
competent hand-to-hand fighters. They were trained from birth to fight with
both their hands and feet. They were so skilled that they knew where and how to
hit to paralyze, or even kill when needed, a skill which is often exaggerated.
The shikan-ken is the fist of the
Ninja. It is used against hard, broad surfaces of bone structure. Fudo-ken (Clenched Fist) is the
conventional clenched fist, which can be used to strike from many different
angles. It is used against a variety of targets, but is especially effective
against areas of the body in which the edges of the bone structure are
accessible. The sword hand is an important striking weapon.
The lower outside edge of the palm is used against the structures of the limbs
and neck, as well as for striking into the joints.
The ninjas needed weapons to
perform their most basic functions. Here, I will go over the most basic, most
popular ones.
The Ashiko were spiked claws
that were worn on the feet. This helped the Ninja climb faster and more
efficiently on their missions. As well as a great climbing aid, it could also
be used in combat to deliver deadly kicks
The staff was one of
the most important weapons in the ninja's arsenal. Generally being around 6
feet, it was made of ahard wood or bamboo and was hollow. It was hollow because
it was a convenient space to hold a dart or a small knife. Another trick they
had for the bo was to conceal a chain inside it. This was called a shinobi zue,
and was easily disguised as a walking stick or staff.
The ninja sword was
different than that of the samurai. The long sword that the samurai carried was
made of high-carbon stee;. They were hand made especially for each samurai,
taking great care to make a very high quality sword. It was so sharp that it could
easily cut a man in two, even through their armor. The length of the samurai
swords averaged around 26 1/2 to 37 inches.
The ninja sword was considerably shorter, only 24 inches, and the quality of
the swords was much poorer. The reason for the poorer quality was the way they
used the sword as opposed to the way the samurai used theirs. Samurai would
swing their sword, severing limbs and slashing at the opponent. Ninja, on the
other hand, used the sword more in a stabbing motion. To use the blade of the
ninja sword effectively you would have to use a sawing motion when the blade
came in contact with the opponents flesh.
Another reason for the poor quality of the swords is that since ninja were
mostly mountain people and outlaws, they could not afford to hire expert sword
smiths like the samurai could. Also their own sword smiths did not have access
to the right resources to be able to make curved edge swords with well
constructed blades. If a Ninja could overcome a samurai he would take his
swords, simply because they are better.
Although the ninja sword was smaller and poorer quality, it still had its
advantages. The scabbard for instance was made longer than the sword, about 3
to 4 inches longer. At the end of the scabbard there was a hidden compartment
that was used to hide small weapons such as spikes, daggers or small amounts of
poisons. Because the blade was not very sharp, the ninja could also use it as a
hammer by holding onto the blade (carefully) and hitting with the handle. Also
it was common to have the tip of the scabbard come off so it could be used as a
snorkel.
Another reason for using the Ninja sword was so that the ninja would be ale to
weild it within small corridors on various missions, and actually feel and
“read” the floor thanks to special training.
The Shuriken (or
commonly known as a ninja star) is the trademark ninja weapon. The Shuriken was
simply a flat piece of metal with sharpened points that were thrown at the
enemy.
The Shuriken was not originally designed as a killing weapon. It was mostly
used to distract or deter so the ninja could escape. While in the midst of a
get-away, the Shuriken could be thrown at the samurai chasing the ninja,
possibly making the samurai think twice about continuing the chase.
Although the Shuriken was not intended to kill, it was easily later found that
by dipping the edges in poison it could kill. However, when looking for the Shuriken,
he could poison himself, thus slowing the time, an essential attribute.
The nunchakus were
used because they could be adapted for many situations. Aside from being compact
easy to carry, the nunchakus were used to defend against most any weapon from a
bo to a sword. By trapping the blade of a sword with the chain between the two
sticks, a Ninja could entangle and disarm a sword-weilding attacker and use it
for his own good.
The same concept applies to almost every other weapon. The nunchakus were not
just used for defense, they could also be effectively employed against an enemy
in an offensive way. The Ninja could strangle an opponent or simply to hit them
with one of the sticks, as well.
Stealth
Ninjutsu
is known by many as the art of stealth or the art of the shadow. Much of the
training in the ninjutsu school centers around close range combat and the art
of invisibility and espionage. Some of the special skills learned by ninjutsu
practitioners have historically given the ninja a reputation of possessing
magical powers. Climbing walls and swimming while clad in armor are two skills
that have earned this reputation. Other
skills taught to the ninja included map making, disguise, silent entry and
escape, leaping, high endurance, sabotage, and the use of available
surroundings as weapons. In many ways, the tactics employed by the ninja were
very similar to techniques adopted by the early American colonists during the
war for independence from England. Traditional British battle strategy
was to line up in open fields and fire weapons in a sequential pattern. After many brutal defeats, the heavily
under-manned colonists learned to compensate for numbers and power by using
ambush and disguise tactics (known as guerilla warfare for its
non-conventionality). This strategy was
considered to be cowardly by the British armies but, like the similar
strategies employed by the ninja, it also proved to be very effective.
Ninjutsu was banned in the 17th century but continued to exist in the underground circles. The art is still practiced today though not at widely as in the days of feudal Japan and not seriously (they are not assasins for hire or part of a killer clan)
This are the things to keep in mind as a stealth ninja:
