, sometimes used interchangeably with the modern term , is the

martial art Martial arts are codified systems and traditions of combat practiced for a number of reasons such as self-defense; military and law enforcement applications; competition; physical, mental, and spiritual development; entertainment; and the preserv ...

strategy and

tactics Tactic(s) or Tactical may refer to: * Tactic (method), a conceptual action implemented as one or more specific tasks ** Military tactics, the disposition and maneuver of units on a particular sea or battlefield ** Chess tactics ** Political tact ...

unconventional warfare Unconventional warfare (UW) is broadly defined as "military and quasi-military operations other than conventional warfare" and may use covert forces, subversion, or guerrilla warfare. This is typically done to avoid escalation into conventional ...

, guerrilla warfare and

espionage Espionage, spying, or intelligence gathering is the act of obtaining secret or confidential information (intelligence) from non-disclosed sources or divulging of the same without the permission of the holder of the information for a tangib ...

purportedly practised by the

ninja A or was a covert agent or mercenary in feudal Japan. The functions of a ninja included reconnaissance, espionage, infiltration, deception, ambush, bodyguarding and their fighting skills in martial arts, including ninjutsu.Kawakami, pp. 2 ...

. ''Ninjutsu'' was a separate discipline in some traditional Japanese schools, which integrated study of more conventional

s (''taijutsu'') along with ''

shurikenjutsu is a general term describing the traditional Japanese martial arts of throwing ''shuriken'', which are small, hand-held weapons used primarily by the Samurai in feudal Japan, such as metal spikes ''bō shuriken'', circular plates of metal known a ...

'', '' kenjutsu'', '' sōjutsu'', '' bōjutsu'' and others. While there is an international martial arts organization representing several modern styles of ''ninjutsu'', the historical lineage of these styles is disputed. Some schools claim to be the only legitimate heir of the art, but ''ninjutsu'' is not centralized like modernized martial arts such as

judo is an unarmed modern Japanese martial art, Olympic sport (since 1964), and the most prominent form of jacket wrestling competed internationally.『日本大百科全書』電子版【柔道】(CD-ROM version of Encyclopedia Nipponica, "Judo"). ...

or karate.

Togakure-ryū is a historical tradition of ''ninjutsu'' known as the "School of the Hidden Door", allegedly founded during the Oho period (1161–1162) by ( ), who learned his original fighting techniques from a Chinese monk named Kain Dōshi. However, the h ...

claims to be the oldest recorded form of ninjutsu, and claims to have survived past the 16th century.

History

Spying in Japan dates as far back as

Prince Shōtoku , also known as or , was a semi-legendary regent and a politician of the Asuka period in Japan who served under Empress Suiko. He was the son of Emperor Yōmei and his consort, Princess Anahobe no Hashihito, who was also Yōmei's younger half- ...

(572–622). According to

Shōninki The ''Shōninki'' ( Japanese 正忍記) is a medieval ninja document from Kishū province. Written by Natori Masatake in 1681 it describes the espionage strategies of the shinobi from Kishū. Together with the Bansenshukai and Ninpiden it is ...

, the first open usage of ''ninjutsu'' during a military campaign was in the Genpei War, when Minamoto no Kuro Yoshitsune chose warriors to serve as ''shinobi'' during a battle. This manuscript goes on to say that during the Kenmu era,

Kusunoki Masashige was a Japanese samurai of the Kamakura period remembered as the ideal of samurai loyalty. Kusunoki fought for Emperor Go-Daigo in the Genkō War to overthrow the Kamakura shogunate and restore power in Japan to the Imperial Court. Kusunoki ...

frequently used ''ninjutsu''. According to footnotes in this manuscript, the Genpei War lasted from 1180 to 1185, and the Kenmu Restoration occurred between 1333 and 1336. ''Ninjutsu'' was developed by the samurai of the Nanboku-cho period, and further refined by groups of samurai mainly from Kōka and the Iga Province of Japan in later periods. Throughout history, the ''

shinobi A or was a covert agent or mercenary in feudal Japan. The functions of a ninja included reconnaissance, espionage, infiltration, deception, ambush, bodyguarding and their fighting skills in martial arts, including ninjutsu.Kawakami, pp. 21� ...

'' were

assassin Assassination is the murder of a prominent or important person, such as a head of state, head of government, politician, world leader, member of a royal family or CEO. The murder of a celebrity, activist, or artist, though they may not have a ...

s, scouts, and spies who were hired mostly by territorial lords known as ''

daimyō were powerful Japanese magnates, feudal lords who, from the 10th century to the early Meiji period in the middle 19th century, ruled most of Japan from their vast, hereditary land holdings. They were subordinate to the shogun and nominal ...

''. Despite being able to assassinate in stealth, the primary role was as spies and scouts. ''Shinobi'' are mainly noted for their use of stealth and deception. They would use this to avoid direct confrontation if possible, which enabled them to escape large groups of opposition. Many different schools ('' ryū'') have taught their unique versions of ''ninjutsu''. An example of these is the Togakure-ryū, which claims to have been developed after a defeated samurai warrior called Daisuke Togakure escaped to the region of Iga. He later came in contact with the warrior-monk Kain Doshi, who taught him a new way of viewing life and the means of survival (''ninjutsu''). ''Ninjutsu'' was developed as a collection of fundamental survivalist techniques in the warring state of

feudal Japan The first human inhabitants of the Japanese archipelago have been traced to prehistoric times around 30,000 BC. The Jōmon period, named after its cord-marked pottery, was followed by the Yayoi period in the first millennium BC when new inve ...

. The ''ninja'' used their art to ensure their survival in a time of violent political turmoil. ''Ninjutsu'' included methods of gathering information and techniques of non-detection, avoidance, and misdirection. ''Ninjutsu'' involved training in disguise, escape, concealment, archery, and medicine. Skills relating to espionage and assassination were highly useful to warring factions in feudal Japan. At some point, the skills of espionage became known collectively as ''ninjutsu'', and the people who specialized in these tasks were called ''shinobi no mono''.

References

External links

''Ninjutsu'' techniques
– ''ninjutsu'' kata and techniques in the AKBAN wiki
''Ninjutsu'' history
– history of ''Ninjutsu'' and its evolution {{Authority control Japanese martial arts

History

See also

References

Further reading

External links