, meaning "art of the spear", is the

Japanese martial art Japanese martial arts refers to the variety of martial arts native to the country of Japan. At least three Japanese terms (''budō'', ''bujutsu'', and ''bugei'') are used interchangeably with the English phrase Japanese martial arts. The usag ...

of fighting with a .

Origins

Although the spear had a profound role in early

Japanese mythology Japanese mythology is a collection of traditional stories, folktales, and beliefs that emerged in the islands of the Japanese archipelago. Shinto and Buddhist traditions are the cornerstones of Japanese mythology. The history of thousands of year ...

, where the islands of Japan themselves were said to be created by salt water dripping from the tip of the spear Ame-no-Nuhoko (Heavenly jeweled spear), as a weapon the first spear prototypes were brought from mainland Asia. These early versions were not seen as suitable by the Japanese, who later redesigned them once technology permitted.

Use and popularity

The

Yari is the term for a traditionally-made Japanese blade (日本刀; nihontō) in the form of a spear, or more specifically, the straight-headed spear. The martial art of wielding the is called . History The forerunner of the is thought to be a ...

was a popular weapon throughout the feudal period of Japan,Antony Karasulas (2004)Zaimokuza Reconsidered: The Forensic Evidence, and Classical Japanese Swordsmanship, World Archaeology, 36, 4, Debates in World Archaeology pp. 507- 518 being cheaper to produce and requiring less training than other contemporary battlefield weapons, and lending itself to close formations of

ashigaru were infantry employed by the samurai class of feudal Japan. The first known reference to ''ashigaru'' was in the 14th century, but it was during the Ashikaga shogunate (Muromachi period) that the use of ''ashigaru'' became prevalent by various ...

troops, in conjunction with firearms upon their adoption in Japan. The height of sōjutsu's popularity was immediately after the Mongol invasions of the 13th century, who themselves used spearmen in great numbers. The Japanese ultimately modified the heads of their spears into a number of different variations, leading to the use of the spear both on foot and from horseback, and for slashing as well as the primary use of attacking with thrusts.

Modern practice

Sōjutsu is typically only a single component of curriculum in comprehensive traditional ('' koryū'') schools. The still extant

Tenshin Shōden Katori Shintō-ryū Written as 天眞正傳香取神道流 before adoption (1946) of Tōyō kanji. is one of the oldest extant Japanese martial arts, and an exemplar of '' bujutsu''. The Tenshin Shōden Katori Shintō-ryū was founded by Iizasa Ienao, born in 13 ...

claims to be the first school to include sōjutsu in its formal curriculum, and another very well known school of sōjutsu is the

Hōzōin-ryū is a traditional school ('' koryū'') of Japanese martial arts that specializes in the art of spearmanship (''sōjutsu''). Hōzōin-ryū was founded by Hōzōin Kakuzenbō In'ei (宝蔵院覚禅房胤栄, 1521–1607) in c. 1560. In'ei was ...

. While today there are very few schools still teaching sōjutsu, at one time there were as many as 450.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Sojutsu Ko-ryū bujutsu Spears Japanese martial arts Ninjutsu skills

Origins

Use and popularity

Modern practice

See also

References