"Ninjutsu is not hand to hand combat" Of course it's not, that's Taijutusu. Ninjutsu is when you use your chakra to create clones of yourself. Everyone knows that.
But seriously ninjas did use genjutsu, tai jutsu and genjutsu. The thing is that a quarter of this information is correct (well it is an old video so shad probably found more information. And ninjas did fight at the beginning as fist they were farmers then became spys then the Japanese army.
spies in general, and warriors/soldiers..and politics, and...well pretty much any activities where knowledge isn't crystal clear will spark rumors and intrigue the less that is known about a given activity and the more difficult it seems to the average person the more it will be blown out of proportion to something it isn't
@@death299 i was just making a joke about it, but the thing is that the standard view of a ninja/shinobi as an assassin type figure did exist in some form too it's not like the view is 100% wrong
@@Spike2276 not really, they were always employed as information gatherers with killing someone being the occasional feat being ordered to kill someone doesn't make one's job that of killing.spies around the world are employed for such duties when the need arises which is rare because no military or political group has ever fallen with one man information is vastly more valuable
Camouflage is not the same thing as a disguise, and vice versa. Sometimes you want to look like a normal civilian, but if you're, say, sneaking into a castle in the dead of night, you need to not be seen in the first place. In which case, maybe you'd want to wear something dark-colored so you're harder to spot.
The modern ninja costume was chosen because it was what Japanese stage hands wore in the theater in order to reduce their visible presents during a play. Now they would all wear solid green or blue to blend in with the green screens.
@@glyrr And what solidified it as the "ninja outfit" was a brilliant bit of stagecraft: Having one of those stage hands be the ninja who assassinated a lord. Since audiences had long become used to ignoring those stage hands, having one of them actually do something within the play was like him appearing from nowhere and then vanishing.
The kanji for ninja actually translate as "one who sneaks" and for ninjutsu as "way of sneaking." That fits the real definition a lot better than the pop culture cliche.
Ninja is "One who hides" or "man who hides himself. According to what I read, Ninjutsu translates roughly to "The Art of Perseverance"...which, given a lot of leeway for dialect and dilution in language, could mean anything from "Doing whatever it takes to achieve your objective" which would be accurate, to "going a great distance by yourself", or "being self sufficent" which could also be very accurate in any context.
@@Cryogenius333 Another interpretation is "The art/technique of survival" or "to endure and survive". It was always about surviving no matter what. (Also depends on if it's "Ninjitsu" or "Ninjutsu". With "jitsu" being basically "the art of" and "jutsu" being "technique of", so it would be the Shinobi way as a whole, and various techniques within it, respectively.)
Dark colours will always stand out against a light background. Camouflage should always match the surroundings, whether it is light or dark has NO meaning whatsoever. Ever seen military "night camo"? Guess why not.
Just for future reference, it's good to mention that the pronunciation of vowels in japanese is *always* the same. The a, e, i, o, and u, sounds never change. Also those are the only 5 vowels which exist in Japanese, too.
I'm honestly not very upset about this. I pretty much already considered the ninja to be a semi-fantasy concept, that may or may not have been loosely based in history. When I hear "ninja", I never really thought about history, so much as I thought about the modern pop-idea of the ninja. So it mostly remains what it has always been to me.
Japanese has the easiest phonology of any language, every vowel is always pronounced exactly the same. Good information in the video, but it is kind of ruined by his inability to pronounce certain Japanese words. Anyone who has seen a few animes quickly understands how Japanese pronunciation works.
@@sharilshahed6106 buddy, Japanese has 15 consonant phonemes and 5 vowel phonemes. Compare that to English which has 24 consonant phonemes and over 20 vowel phonomes. Objectively it is easier to pronounce than most languages because of the simplified vowel sounds.
This info is pretty common knowledge to weebs these days. Kind of on par with "Thanksgiving is about killing Indians" that every edgy teen thinks he just discovered.
Hello. My name is Antony Cummins, i am the man mentioned in the video. Thank you so, so much for such an outstanding video, i was both honoured and shocked to see it. great stuff and lots of effort gone in. If anyone would like to see more, see my website www.natori.co.uk - but above all just enjoy this video. Thank you.
Hey Antony, what an honour it is to have you visit. Thank you for all the hard work and research you have done which made this video possible. Of course if I got anything wrong or out of context please feel free to let me know. I'm sure my viewers would like to know as well so if you make a video or anything I'll link it through an annotation in this one and in the description. Also if you have time you might like my truth about the katana series, I'd love to know what you think. I particularly loved your video on the Katana, spiritual weapon or tool. Thanks again for your work and best of luck in the future mate!
Assassination is in the arts of ninja, in is mentioned a few times. But we have to get away from the idea that the ninja are purely assassins only. They are not like the middle eastern Assassins. It is more of a small side task only performed by a limited few.
Ninjas in Movies: Skilled and Deadly assassins honed through years of ruthless training. Ninjas in real life: Farmer rebels using guerilla tactics and makeshift tools to ward off invaders.
i'd like to see a game and/or a movie about an actual ninja.. think about it.. would involve stealing, gathering info, blending in (in crowds as well as in shadows, snow, woods.. etc), maybe one assassination mission, some sabotage/guerrilla things.. Could even be something like hitman but less killing probably.
There's no such thing as a ninja samurai. Every thing that the ninja held as they're art and way of life flew counter the samurai's beliefs in honor and the way of bushido. They employed ninja because they had use for them. But the values held by the two separate ways of life are opposed to each other and could not both be upheld in the same human being. It's kinda like saying atheists have no faith in God, but I bet a true Christian atheist has an abundance of faith. Lol it just doesn't work.
It's worth noting that dark grey blends in better at night during certain phases of the moon. Figured I would throw that in. PS. Shades of blue work during other times. And when I say grey I mean very dark grey
LMAO oh, yeah we already know that from Togakure Ryu Ninjutsu. The Ninja were primarily Shinobi, but they also served other functions, including occasional assassination and guerrilla warfare. I'll Trust Japan over some European alien about what authentic Ninjutsu is any day. A lot of that goes because what I learned from togakure ryu ninjutsu proved very real while I was serving in the US Army; it worked and saved my butt more than once.
There used to be a meme circulating on the internet back in the old days, when it was just a series of tubes, of a totally empty street. It was titled the Annual Modesto, CA Ninja Parade. I still think of that pic every day; couldn't tell you why for the life of me though...
This argument, for me, has always began and ended with "in old Japanese ninja translates to scout" that plus ALL recorded evidence of the ninja have to do with scouting, spying, espionage, sabotage, and stealth.
Am I really the only one who ever put together just as a matter of common sense that pop culture "ninjas" were probably at least as hyperbolic as comparing modern-day intelligence agents with James Bond?
My views on a ninja is a group of person who specialise in stealth be it being quiet,infiltrating a group or sneaking into castles. While I never thought of ninjutsu as a fighting style it was just a means of teaching to help one in stealth or training their body.
My father was stationed in Japan and Okinawa back in the 1950's and he studied for a few years in the different martial arts there. Along the way learned that the Ninja were like you said basically spy's. That's why the majority of the weapons are thrown, as a distraction so they can escape and evade. He once said that most were samurai because if caught they needed to be able to fight their way out.
Or perhaps the ninjas want you to think that that is what they want you to think that they want you to think. Also the ninjas are waiting for you to take a bath, in which case you may put the shotgun down, in which case you will blink lift your eye lids and see them pointing your own shotgun at you.
Well, nunchaku is used in some of the classic karate styles, so at the very least it was an okinawan weapon. Okinawa being a group of islands in the southern part of current day Japan, wich long was its own separate kingdom.
It was not a weapon a ninja would typically use though. There is very little versatility in a wooden flail after all. Ironically, the grappling hook that Michelangelo got for censorship reasons is a more accurate weapon!
@@RokuroCarisu True. Karate was somthing specificly okinawan until modern day, and nunchaku was, like most weapons used in karate (the sai being a notable exeption), originaly a farming tool. The occupying japanese army had at one point put up a weapon ban for anyone who was not a japanese samurai, so the okinwan people adapted. On main land Japan, there was no such ban, so fighting with sticks, handscythes and nunchaku was unnecessary.
@@torbjornlekberg7756 nunchaku has nothing to do with farming tools. I don't know of any farming tool that would be similar to the nunchaku. It just sounds too impractical for farming since its reach is so short. Gardening as its own separate job probably didn't exist back then either, so no tool similar to a nunchaku would be useful with plants. However, it is said that the Nunchaku itself might have been used to shave banana tree bark. Even as a weapon the Nunchaku was impractical against most weapons and against experienced fighters. It was more commonly used against hooligans and robbers since they'd be more likely be lightly armed and since the Nunchaku was small and easy to conceal. Also, farmers did not know anything about fighting or martial arts; the nobles did. However, certain events took place that led to many nobles becoming impoverished and having to resort to farming. But they weren't welcomed by other farmers and found themselves getting into fights and thus made weapons out of the simplest things they could find. The most useful weapons would probably be ones closer to a wooden staff because of their longer reach. They'd also even be somewhat effective against swords. Nunchakus on the other hand, would only be useful against knives.
@@aikslf Here: www.bookmartialarts.com/news/nunchaku-history There was also a similar tool in Europe. Look at the "Flail" part: www.lostkingdom.net/agricultural-medieval-tools-agriculture/
I always heard the mask and black clothes came from theater hands wearing that when they move scenery in the background. So in the plays if someone was supposed to be REALLY sneaky, they would just dress up like a theater hand so the audience wouldn't recognize them as one of the actors. And it just became a tradition that went over to movies and eventually got associated with Ninja through cultural mutation.
It worked particularly well if the character in question was supposed to be an assassin - all of a sudden, one of your favorite characters is offed by a stagehand you weren't even looking at, which would be a very effective plot device. It would be as ridiculous as having a character killed by the narrator, or vice versa (thanks, Sondheim!).
Chris Bradshaw Yes! While nightfighting and camouflage were not unknown to the spies, saboteurs, and combatants that were ninja, the common theory is that the image of the all-black-clad ninja was in fact the costume of a noh stagehand, who the audience was trained to ignore, who was meant to represent the myth of ninja being capable of invisibility.
Good observation. Especially if you consider that black is actually awful as means of camouflage. Notice that black-wearing soldiers are usually special forcers trained for close quarters combat, and the black outfits are for psychological shock, since camouflage would be less than useful in that situation. Black gives away your sillouette in any lightning condition other than pitch black. www.quora.com/Why-dont-special-forces-wear-black-cammies-during-night-missions
but black is atrocious camouflage, you stand out like a silhouette in any light where you would have been seen in the first place. And nobody "snuck into a theater", actors who were supposed to be hidden would dress up as stage hands before doing certain scenes because audience eyes were trained not to notice them.
Fantastic job mate, very well made. I totally agree. The only thing the pronunciation of the word "Ninjutsu" shouldn't have a "ʌ" sound in ninjʌtsu like you pronounce it, but that "u" should be pronounced like the "u" in "moon" ninjuːtsu without extending the sound though. If I wasn't clear I'll just send you a vocal note on facebook xD
Nikola, they were allowed to carry swords or any weapons (only the two swords (regular sized katana and kodachi) was only allowed to samurais). Only during the Meiji era (when there were no samurais anymore) that the swords were forbidden to civilians to carry on the street. The kama and kusarigana were very specific weapons that became more famous during the Edo period as a dueling weapon for peacetime (Miyamoto Musashi defeated a famous guy who used one). Ninjas (as in the legend of Sasuke) were largelly employed by Tokugawa Ieyasu to gather intelligence and were employed in the siege of 大阪城 (castle of Osaka). They were regular soldiers that would dress in black during the night and assaulted the castle by climbing the walls stealthly. The same tactic was common, just the stealth part was a little newer. Because of that Tokugawa got the fame of being the master of ninjas. They use a katana as it was the best weapon to carry as you climb a wall. There are many accounts of that. I'm a historian speciallized in japanese history and I also speak japanese. Although the concept of being a spy is correct (忍者 meaning hidden person and 忍び meaning travel in secret) they were largely used to assassination and sabotage. Of course they would be regular People that would be called a ninja for doing that. That concept does not involve having any skills at all or dressing in some kind of uniform. In fact many women would be hired to kill someone pretending to go have sex with the victim and stabbing when alone, they were called kunoichi (くノ一, female ninja, that is actually a play with the kanji for woman 女 in which the stroke order forms first a letter ku in hiragana く, then a letter no in katakana ノ and finally the word one (ichi) 一 in kanji, therefore kunoichi. Many tips on the true meaning of things about Japan lies within the language itself.
I thought everybody knew this already, I found out that a long time ago. Doesn't take away my enjoyment for how they are depicted now a days though, I still like enjoy Naruto :)
Same. I feel one should be able to enjoy each in their own way. I find historical ninja's such as the Iga and Koga to be really cool, but I still love me some crazy over the top video game/anime ninja.
@@sonuva2003 I'm just throwing shade on the fact in one of the James Bond movies is what popularized Ninja stereotypes, not that James himself is a bad spy or anything
In other words the definition of a ninja could vary from spy to assassin to terrorists, depending on the mission objective. Some missions could require extensive fighting if the ninja was exposed so a a well trained individual should take on that challenge. I almost like this definition better. 😎
No they were farmers they learn how to infiltrate the castles of the warlords to gather Intel or assassinate the warlords. They were more like a thieves guild.
In the modern day the term "ninja" as defined here includes scouting infantry units, every function of the NSA and CIA, and influencing public opinion through information control/distribution (including false information). Are CNN and Fox News ninja organizations?
the bujinkan, which ive been a part of for almost 3 decades, trains in 9 schools. 6 are traditional samurai schools, 3 are ninpo. its no secret to anyone in the organization that "ninjutsu" is the intelligence gathering/ spying/ espionage version. the hand to hand fighting version is taijutsu/ dakentaijutsu/ jutaijutsu/ budotaijutsu. outsiders give the bujinkan a bad rap, but its their own ignorance thats the problem. the bujinkan is very transparent as to whats what and what we train in. we dispell the mainstream/ hollywood version of what people believe the ninja to be, yet outsiders continue to blame us for the historical inaccuracies.
All of these myths were talked about and dispelled in my first year training in the Bujinkan. My instructor said day one 'if you're looking for Ninja cosplay go home'. Most Bujinkan practitioners I know are fiercely trying to fight these same misconceptions. Always glad for some myth-busting though! Thanks Shad!
Bujinkan is openly built behind 7 or 9 schools, 3 of which the back to ninjutsu, the rest are samurai. That's why in bujinkan, u actually learn Taijutsu. Which they say. Much later you learn ninpo, which links to the ninjutsu legacy.
I have ben told that Ninjutsu is no longer taught to anyone outside of a few select students (I am guessing some of the senior dai shihan), and what is taught (to majority of people) is just bits taken here and there
Actual ninjutsu is basically survival, espianage, counter intelligence, guerilla warfare, etc. If a ninja wanted to learn hand to hand combat they would go to the same sources as anyone else. The closest to thing to a ninja fighting style are techniques tied to specific weapons (particularly improvised ones) not used by warrior monks or samurai.
1:50 Nunchaku are traditional, but seldom used, Okinawan weapon, but not popular until Bruce Lee. Their ineffectiveness made them more of an improvised weapon than a killing implement. Better than a bare hand, and easy to explain why you are carrying it around when you aren't supposed to have weapons. 11:30 This is what I have understood a ninja to be for 20 years now (since I was 14). How is this anything new?
I dont think they are as good as barehand. Maybe to use in defense against something sharp. They look cool, but actually using them is a bit of a joke.
@@Ratbout lol. Shad has made more than 1 video explaining how bad nunchaku are compared to basically any other weapon. Even the solid stick that you chopped in half to string together and make nunchaku, would have been a better weapon than the nunchaku you made from it. It's not like a retractable staff.
Thanks for clearing lots of misinformation -- something sorely needed these days I noticed 1 flub though: Nunchaku started as a cereal beating flail in OKINAWA.
These kind of videos always make me want to revisit Total War: Shogun 2. Great game. You deploy ninjas and other agents in addition to the regular battles and strategy. Then there is a less known gem of a game called Shadow Tactics: Blades of the Shogun. This one is basically a shinobi version of the Commandos tactical puzzle game series. The graphics are actually gorgeous for what they are. Isometric POV with a classic hand drawn 2D look, but still fully 3D allowing the camera to be rotated. You command 2 or 3 characters who have different skills, stay hidden and complete your objectives. Sometimes guards need to be stealthily killed and the bodies hidden. A must try for someone interested in the stealth puzzle type of games. My question is, what other games do people recommend for some ninja gameplay and appropriate atmosphere? I never tried the Tenchu series but those games seem quite outdated now. Mark of the Ninja is a very fun stealth platformer, but I wouldn't quite count it for what I have in mind.
Classical depictions also show ninja wearing greens and browns for obvious reasons. Yeah black is impractical at night if people are actually looking for you. When I was a kid we had a black lab who didn't want to go in his crate (when he still had one) and would hide deep in the yard and we could always see him because he was darker than his surroundings.
Dark blue and dark purple colors where and are used at night for concealment and camouflage. This is because that the night sky is not pure black. The dark blue based colors provide less of a silhouette against the background night sky and darkness. Also a dark blue, purple and black mix camouflage patterned outfit is a very good choice for low light concealment.
Black was a very common color with peasants and thus very effective at night or day, during those days. Blue and purple cloth would very expensive to purchase just to get them dirty, so that is nonsense. Peace!
When you wear something that's black it stands out more than something that's just a very dark blue brown or green . Even a slightly faded black is better partially because if you were just in a dark shadow wearing something like that blends in with his black does not.
Batman is not a ninja Batman is THE ninja stealth, tools, critical thinking, detective work, espionage, the ability to distract senses so it seems he disappears as well as using disguises he does it all plus he he has the bonus of knowing every martial art
They rarely sneak in to gather information, though. Mostly they just leave minor enemies behind to attack a main target as quick and smooth as possible. So they're not really shinobi, just teenage mutant sneaky turtle warriors adept at armed and unarmed martial arts. (On the other hand, the whole history of ninjutsu in their universe was different according to 2003 series, it's an art brought to Earth by aliens, so term may be correct from their perspective.)
Im actually surprised to hear that this was from 2013 because read a novel series called young Samurai when I was younger in like 2008 and the way the ninja were described and their function was authentically portrayed. They basically were regular samurai who secretly went to train in ninjutsu where they learned about deception, stealth, and a few things like poisons and devices for the role they played as assassins. Despite the fact that ninjutsu did not have to do with combat, when you take someone who’s skilled at killing and teach them espionage they turn into the perfect assassin which is likely where the whole ninja assassin thing came from, it just kind of makes sense to pair ninjutsu with other jitsu combat schools. My favorite part involving ninjas was when the main character was being stalked by one and he heard him slip on a shingle but couldn’t see him in the dark in the rain and the ninja threw these steel balls shaped like raindrops that would balance with the spike pointed upward because of the raindrop shape and then those would be laced with poison and thrown during a rainstorm so that their impact would be masked by the sound of the rain and the victims feet would be punctured by the spikes they didn’t see on the ground, poisoning them. If that’s not a real weapon it damn well should be but thanks to those books I’ve always kind of known the truths and falsities of modern depictions of older Japanese culture. Really great read even for a young adult title, has a lot to teach you about traditional Japanese culture because I guess the author Chris Bradford really did his research to know those ninja facts before shads source found them. -Young Samurai (Chris Bradford)
Also, you brought up Overwatch later. By historical definitions, the best ninja in Overwatch is Sombra! Turning invisible, teleporting with a hand-thrown device, and hacking are far greater for espionage than killing people with shurikens and swords or deflecting bullets! Though Hanzo's sonar arrow and wall-climbing gives him Shinobi (scout) qualities.
This still sounds like what I thought ninjas were. I mean, you'd never see lines of ninjas marching into battle. They were always closely associated with stealth. But I guess this makes them more like spies than assassins.
You destroyed my childhood 😭... Fun aside. Great Video. I already knew, that there were no black cloaked super-assassins in the old eras of Japan and that the true Ninja was more kind of a spy or scout. But it was really new to me, that the "traditional" Ninjaschools in Japan are not so traditional as they would like to be. So all in all a great video with a lot of Information.
I read somewhere before that the ninja clans such as kouga and iga (could've been otherd), began as ronin samurai who fled to the hills and mountains to live in peace. They were forced into using guerilla tactics to defend their families, homes, towns from invading forces and then becoming so renound for their skills later in time, were sought out and were paid handsomely their services by lords all over Japan. Are those lies too? Sounded pretty legit and made sense.
(9:36) When he finally gets to the point about what a ninja really is. For the first 9 minutes, he goes on and on about why our perception of a ninja is wrong. I almost got bored waiting for him to get to the actual truth about ninja.
He should have just said "Ninjas were secret agents of Japan. Look up what secret agents are/were historically in Europe, Americas or anywhere else, and you'll get a good picture of what they were in Japan, because they existed for the same reasons and had to do pretty much the same things." Also, we sort of have to accept the fact that getting any historically accurate info on spies of any period is going to be hard if at all possible, because... where could you find a person who: a) Knows espionage first-hand, either being a spy or a counter-spy, or the like... b) Is an honest person willing to document the truth rather than propaganda. (or craft false documents to mislead enemy spies) c) Is willing to make this info public? If those three conditions aren't met, then any documents will be either misinformed, false-by-design, or simply destroyed in case they could fall into the wrong hands. Like historically most documents about secret agents were.
Spies usually had to message about their findings to their boss (for example some ninjas worked under warlord, clan leader or similar). Some of those letters have been found and for example one said something along the lines "yes, we have found a way to kill enemy general" that is one of the rare proofs that ninjas did some assassinations while spying, stealing and gathering information. (I also believe that they did some guerrilla missions at least on some periods.. those ninjas probably were samurais or had some role in armies)
He also is wrong. Ninjas weren't simply people who practiced espionage. They regarded stealth as one of the most important parts of their arsenal. Ninjas also did appear on the battlefield. When he said ninjutsu is bullshit, that made me want to use it to kill him. I did ninjutsu for a month. I was taught a lot of its history. I read a lot about it. Ninjutsu was the official unarmed martial art of the ninja. He is fucking stupid to think it only recently existed. He can't even fucking say it right.
Dude, 70% of this is BS tbh... Ninjutsu is and was never claimed to be a martial arts, actually the Martial Arts all have specific names, as Kenjutsu\Taijutsu\Bojutsu\Sojutsu\etc.... each of each aim to teach a diferent martial art, ninjutsu as you state correctly was a "profession" of sort, and actually every fighting style or art tought the jutsu's were targeted at training to fight and/or use everyday items, for assasination and other tasks. Anw if you want to really learn something about it please drop me a message Shadiversity or search the name Masaaki Hatsumi
I recall back when I was doing a Japanese Sword Art (Shin Shin Sekiguchiryu (I think it was renamed) my sensei said that they did have some ninja-esque techniques, but also joked that in Japanese (according to his sensei who lived in Japan) that all teenage boys were ninjas since one of their "techniques" was peeing on a door hinge to avoid it making a squeaking sound :P
Thank you but I can guarantee there will be another world I'll get wrong. I'm Australian, we're experts at butchering languages, I mean just look at what we've done to English ^_^
Oh, jeez, no... Good effort, though! I like your enthusiasm! Depending on your dialect, the pronunciation in Japanese could be either NEEN-joots, neen-joo-tsoo (no syllable emphasis), or neen-JOO-tsoo. For most English speakers, though, neen-JOO-tsoo gives you the best accuracy to ease-of-use ratio.
Interesting video :D I always thought that Ninjutsu wasn't an established offensive fighting style. But a collection of skills of stealth, evasion, distraction etc. So all forms of combat were aimed towards running away and surviving after they have infiltrated their target and need to escape with information. Thus caltrops and shuriken or things like eggshells filled with powders to irritate the eyes if crushed and thrown, along with other supposed 'ninja' weapons, which always seemed like their purpose was defensive and a means of distraction and delay. I wonder if there is any truth to the 'Assassin' idea, as Nightingale boards were invented to prevent anyone sneaking about important places. Though I have no idea when they were actually invented and there is contention as to whether their invention was intentional or not lol. As for the 'Ninjato' or whatever it was really called, it made sense to me because of its size. It occurred to me that it would be quite difficult to climb up a Japanese castle with a full Katana hanging on your side or on your back. The smaller sword was probably something of convenience that enabled them to carry a blade without overburdening themselves and making their task more difficult. Granted there are many other blades which would serve the purpose, but if these swords were readily available to a large portion of soldiers, then it is likely just what was available.
First of all: I was a student of Ninjutsu with the Bujinkan (the image of the old man surrounded by his students), and he is the grand master Masaaki Hatsumi, and his tokagure knowledge cannot be prooved historicly, because his master was the last one of a traditional family clan, last heir of his ninjutsu school. Ninjas was secret clans, they had no records, data (scrolls and all those pop colture things), because IT WAS A SECRET CLAN. Ninjas was near entirely exterminated by a shogun's order, and was forced to mantain the secretism even more. And now the truth macht: the last member of the tokagure school, he was already old and with no sons, nor heirs, so he show all he knows to Masaaki Hatsumi, and refuses to talk with no other one about his clan history, so now all the martial arts comunity say they are fake, because is not historical prooves about it (and i understand), but whats would you expect? This kind of things worked like that, from heir to heir, its already hard with the martial arts old schools, imagine that now with a shinobi last survival clan member...
I'm also agree about the pop culture had reinforced incorrect things about the shinnobi really was, but the bujinkan school are not soooo pop culture, we trained some stealth techniques, stabbing forms, rope techniques, sword, bo, jo, and disarmed combat, but not flying kicks and kinda shit, you know xD The most "fantastic" thing the school teach, are som kind of "spiritual final test" called 'the sakki test', when you have to detect the -Killer Instinct- of someone with a katana behind of you, and dodge the hit on your head on the last moment. All the martial arts comunity thinks that is really bullshit and laugh about it (i dont really think on the hability of detecting the killing instinct, more about hear the breathing or the foot movements before the attack, but meh). So, its not so easy all this, but its up to each one about whats learn, i personally thing the bujinkan have real historicly content, but a lot of freaks like me letting his hype mess up with our crittical senses about it :P
Also, ninjutsu is not a martial art, thats true, but its som KIND of schools wich teach about infiltration, weapon building, stealth and those things, and in Bujinkan Budo Taijutsu school, the masters show ELEVEN martial art schools, three of those are about ninjutsu and the other just about combat and weapon styles, like: katana, bo, jo, mounted combat, under water combat, kicks combat, spear combat, disarmed combat, stealth and rope techniques.
You are so wrong, Shad. Ninja wear kevlar, comment a lot when they are fighting with other ninja and dye their hair. Also, most importantly, they have a theme song.
Everything you need to know about historically accurate ninjas: 1) 'Ninjas" is a wrong term. The actual plural term for a ninja is Ninja. 2) They weren't even refered to as "Ninja." In feudal Japan, they called Shinobi (Shinobi no mono), Monomi (spies or something), Rappa (bullies or ruffians) and Iga-mono (The ones from Iga). 3) "Ninjas" rarely used robed suits-because they had more missions in broad daylight. Nighttime missions were rare and only few ever dared to dress like a thief and undergo the risky mission. 4) Their robed suits weren't even black-they were actually dark blue in color. 5) They didn't have fancy swords-"Ninjas" used improvised weapons or stolen ones. Mainly farming tools. (Tba)
The controversy with AC comes from the fact that he is an "expert" on a subject pertaining to Japanese history but does not speak or read Japanese, let alone Kanbun; he has lied extensively about his experience in both training and academical education; has posted photos of himself presented as in an environment of training classical martial arts, photos later proven to be photoshoped. If such a man can be seen as a reference on the subject, then i have to question your critical thinking sir, or if you did not know about the things i wrote prior, then i question your ability to do any valid internet research.
I feel like my view of ninjas isn’t being challenged much. The end goal was to avoid combat, but if you’re stealth-based, that’s what you want to do anyways.
Great video! Though I would say that most people with interest in Japanese culture that goes beyond superficial are aware that they are not exempt from pop culture, and quite possibly even more susceptible to it. I even remember one Halloween I didn't dress up, but I was telling people, "I'm dressed up like a ninja." They would respond with something along the lines of 'looking normal', and I would say, "Exactly".
Thanks for opening my eyes shad. As a practitioner for Bujinkan I was thinking that everything that I knew about the Ninjas would be validated. But no, you have changed my opinion. I now know that some people fight against the notion that ninjustsu is no martial art, because it would say that they, including me, have wasted their time. It's hard for me, but I am able to accept that and continue anyways. I always knew that Ninjas were so cool to me because they were stealthy and I love stealth myself. I hope that people get that someday. Even the thing about masks and the Ninjato was surprising and it makes me kind of sad that no one knows if shuriken were used, because they are useful distractions. So there I am, knowing that I have been wrong. But that is good, because I still love ninjas and my martial art, even if they are seperate from each other. Cheers Shad
You sir, are a legend! You've honestly displayed a quality that I truly admire. It's not that you've agreed with me, heck I might be wrong about a lot of things in this video, I don't think I am, but I know it's always possible. What is truly admirable is that you're willing to accept what you currently see to be true regardless of your previous allegiances. This is something very few people are willing to do. You're a legend. Also on a side note, I still love the pop culture version of the ninja too as well as modern Ninjutsu. There's certainly still a place for it and I still love to see ninja warriors in movies and anime, just as long as we know that they're modern interpretation and what the historical accuracy is.
+Shadiversity Yes, you are absolutely right. But then again, it is also great that some fictional media stay close to the historical ninja and Mark of the Ninja, for instance, does a fantastic job.
I was sad that light sabers didn't exist, I was sad when I found out Bruce Lee is dead, But I still today practice martial arts, and currently sword and medieval combat, and thus I fell deeply in love with the history, culture, everything lol, I even dream of being in that timeline (with a dose of fantasy since I'm a nerd) I love my nerdy passion, and it's always heart warming to see someone so passionate.
I'm entirely too late, but cheer up friend! Anthony Cummins (who was mentioned in the video) himself said that Bujinkan martial arts aren't necessarily "fake". Simply because ninja were primarily spies doesn't mean that a ninja would not learn martial arts. It's only that "Ninjutsu" is not a martial art. The martial arts the Bujinkan teaches would, as Anthony said, most likely be old family styles of Jujutsu (also kenjutsu ect. for weapon arts), while the Ninjutsu those clans learned would be a totally separate thing. It checks out, especially because as the video mentioned "ninja" and "samurai" were not mutually exclusive terms. Your archetypal "ninja clans" would actually be samurai clans that owned and worked their own land (typically in v rural areas), called "jizamurai", and one cannot be a samurai without learning martial arts. Unless you learned lockpicking and the like, you didn't learn "Ninjutsu", but you did learn "ninja's martial arts", and I think that's still pretty cool. It might seem like there are too many stylistic differences from other forms of Jujutsu (kicking and punching) to the uninitiated, but Jujutsu being grappling only is actually fairly modern.
BlueSaryu That makes sense and was the big unanswered question I had - what is the origin of the material arts that claim to be ninjitsu ? So apparently a pragmatic mix of jujitsu and other Japanese combat arts with the stealth training that actually is ninjitsu ? What would be interesting is a breakdown of the techniques comparing them to other fighting styles. And a analysis of the effectiveness, is it a effective martial art from a fighting perspective ? Could it be that some historical 'ninjas' decided to incorporate the fighting styles they had learnt and mixed them with the training they had in stealth. And after a while the two became indistinguishable, or did some clever coun artist/ self promoter with a lot of jujitsu and maybe some karate training decide to pull a swifty to get students and notoriety and never got found out?
I'm not sure about some other people, but I always saw "ninja" and "shinobi" as being spies and assassins rather than actual fighters. Especially the stuff about dressing to blend in to their environments rather than being dressed in all black all the time. Glad you also covered the whole "Ninjato" fiasco thing, too. I've seen historical examples of straight-bladed Japanese swords at the Tokyo Sword Museum. So people claiming they never existed at all was kind of ludicrous. Great video, Shad.
Good afternoon Shad. I am a huge fan of your meticulously well researched content...though this response is about 2 or 3 years late lol, I am responding anyway. I am 50 years old and have have studied in many martial arts; for most of my life, "traditional styles", including Budjikan Ninjitsu (Masaaki Hatsumi's "interpretation" of Togakure Ryu, 34th Grandmaster, as he is so called). Being a practical combat application pragmatist, I learned early on that though some of their techniques (mostly taken from traditional Jujitsu; i.e. Karate, Judo and Jujitsu, that I also studied...which were once a single combat martial art system known simply as Jujitsu) most were ridiculously ineffective in actual fighting. Though situations, technologies, methodologies and tactics change, from a fighting perspective, I have long since learned why. From a historical perspective, you have brought it all full circle. Thank you again sir for your scholarly work and perspective. History DOES matter!
Hmmm.... Anthony fells like the usual "biased" side of an arguement that intentionally antagonizing both himself and the thing he aims to debunk with exaggeration of facts for more controversy which results in more attention. Taking it with a grain of salt and proper reasonable skepticism is recommended. As far as I know from the kinda small amount of old japanese stories I have read "YET" ninja is depicted either as a cheap mercenary/bountyhunter, and professional assassin/spy which means yes, if you are doing dirty stuff in a mask you are a ninja. In some historical records they were used as spies, scouts and assassins. The organized clans under that term definitely had knowledge in martial arts but it is not known for certain if it is a unique martial art or a specific mixture of several other ones. People took keeping secrets seriously back then and had the tendency to carry them to the grave so obviously not many thing is left from their knowledge. Another nice example of well guarded secrets is the damascus steel. No one has any idea how it's made. the mastery died with the masters.
*"The organized clans under that term definitely had knowledge in martial arts but it is not known for certain if it is a unique martial art or a specific mixture of several other ones."* There isn't any evidence to suggest that they had any signature martial arts so we can only assume that they practiced things that were available to everyone else.
The trouble is, those documents have been around long before he translated and they have been understood by some. Whether they used bits of it to misrepresent certain points, i don't know.
What you’re saying absolutely makes sense, but I find it hard to believe that people with espionage skills were not also used for assassination. If you’re a ruler with a ninja skilled in infiltrating a secure location and steal information, why wouldn’t you use that same person to infiltrate a secure location and stab a guy? That’s a lot of skill overlap, why have two different sneaky guys, one for information and one for stabbing when one could do both? It’s not like you need a special martial art to kill someone in their sleep.
By way of pedantry; black is a terrible colour for night camouflage. Greens and browns work much better and seem more likely to have been used for night work. (black tends to silhouette and stand out).
Kinda depends on where you try to infiltrate. The super deep black camouflage in movies are stupid, but for buildings and cities where spying would usually take space grey-blackish camouflage would probably work better.
Nunchaku are a traditional karate weapon, most likely Okinawan in origin. Also, probably adapted from Chinese weaponry. Bruce Lee may have introduced them into modern pop culture but they existed long before him. In fact I believe Lee used the longer handled Chinese version, Japanese nunchaku are a bit shorter. He learned them from Dan Inosanto if I remember correctly. The most famous karate practicioner known for being adept with nunchaku was probably Fumio Demura. Look up a demo of his on here. Good stuff...
I was taught by my father that they farming tools for trashing grain adopted as weapons because they work well as defencive weapons and as tools they are essential for the farmer to have. But to defend their home from bandits, most people would have a spear or something similar, if they were allowed to.
Karate originaly means China Hand, but this was not popular in nationalist japan. Until the 30´s they used 唐手 as form of writing, later 空手 which means empty hand, but both are read as Kara. The Nunchaku derived, like many other Okinawan weapons, from farming tools, because it was forbidden for ordinary people to own any weapons.
The word "Ninja" is written with two characters. The second, "sha" or (in combination) "ja" means a person. The first character, Shinobi (Nin when combined with another character) means to conceal or steal into. So a shinobi (ninja) is a person who steal in and lies hidden. He might be very competent as a fighter, but if he uses those skills he's doing a bad job as a ninja. And I hope you learn some pronunciations before your next video on Japanese arts. You're setting my teeth on edge.
@Ian Boss That's interesting. Could you give me a source? I'd like to know more. I have the Japanese Character Dictionary from Cheng and Tsui Company, who gives the character as Nin in the on'yomi pronunciation, with Shinobu as the kun'yomi. It can alternately mean bear, endure, hide or lie hidden. For combinations they include shinobikomu (to sneak into) and shinobiwarai (stifled laughter or snicker). The Rose-Innes Beginners Dictionary of Chinese-Japanese Characters gives the readings as Nin and Shinobu again, and defines it as "To endure: bear with patience." The examples they give are Nintai (patience or endurance) and Ninniku (forebearance; stoicism) Nin is used in the word "Zan'nin", which means cruel or brutal and is oddly formed with the characters for "remain hidden." I suspect these are phonetic substitutes for more complex characters that have fallen out of use. It would be interesting to see more about the history of such words.
oh Jesus, this is just as bad as that shit "why a katana has a curve" video. First off your sources, starting with Cummins, while having some legitimate facts behind it and being decent research, the man is highly biased towards the bujinkan schools. mostly because he got kicked out, part of the reason being him misrepresenting his level of skill and partially for demanding to be shown "ura" teachings without having any rank to be allowed to do so. Most of the bujinkan schools (there are nine schools taught in that group) come from the Kuki family, which has absolutely been verified and are included as a koryu schools (meaning 6 of nine schools are absolutely verified by Japanese academia). The Kuki family arts do have a curriculum which included ninjutsu. If you look at togakure ryu you will see that most of it is things like traps, espionage, distractions and other similar things. Cummins is a guy who once tried to argue that the ninja-to existed because of poorly drawn artistic representations, the fact you defend this is ridiculous. The closest thing you have is that some swords in the 14th century were virtually straight, but those were a fashion statement more than anything else and fell out of vogue in only a couple of years because they were simply not as effective for the Japanese form of combat at the time. The works Antony cites are completely unreliable in this regards and if you have any legitimacy as a researcher you would know that. I could go on about Antony and where he is wrong, but I suggest waiting for research by Don Roley who is currently translating works by well known Japanese academics who consider bujinkan schools such as togakure as koryu schools. As far as Turnbull goes, he once claimed that a specific type of arrow, widely known among Asian researchers as a type of hunting arrow, was used to cut rope among numerous other examples of blatant disregard for the work of Asian researchers far more qualified than him to speak in favor of his own fictitious opinions. Another issue I have with this is the fact you don't do ANY of your own research, you basically take anyone at their word when if you knew more about the subject you would know that many of the translated manuals he presents DO include martial arts, an examples being a specific type of draw cut which you can find an example of in Antony's videos. If ninjutsu has NOTHING to do with martial arts, why include that draw cut? if it has NOTHING to do with combat why advocate using a nata (specific type of wood working tool) as a weapon? this comes down to "ura" and "omote", the public and private teachings of any school. if you just dig a little deeper you might find that some ninjutsu schools primarily dealt with scouting out resources. you might find that some dealt with specific strategies of combat and troop movement. you will find others which specialized in a variety of other things such as ritual magic or navel warfare. Ninjutsu was hardly limited to only spying, and they didn't just write up every secret they had but being a guy who doesn't understand omote (public teachings) and ura (secret teachings, generally only passed between high ranking students and leaders of schools and which are RARELY written down) I guess I can't really expect you to know that. Not everything is preserved in scrolls in Japan, especially the ura teachings. the simple fact comes down to this. Neither you, Antony, me or just about anyone else outside of Japan and even in japan can make such sweeping generalizations about something you have only begun to scratch the surface of.
I'm happy to offer you this single reply, but judging by your tone, emotion, and especially the evidence of your comment which I will shortly point out, you’re not interested in challenging your own beliefs and are more concerned about protecting your feelings that I have offended by disagreeing with the precious pre-conceived notion of the subjects you personally identify with. I have little patience for people like this. First of all, a person absolutely can make sweeping generalizations about a subject, one that you claim that I have only begun to scratch the surface of, because I just did it. What you should have said is that a person shouldn't make sweeping observations, not that they can’t because the very existence of my video disproves that. The fact that you think anyone outside of Japan is disqualified to make intelligent enquiry on something that originated in Japan is ridiculous. I mean really, come on. I know this view is based on the fact that someone who grew up in Japan has far more opportunity to learn through practical experience of their culture. But that doesn't disqualify a Japanese person from bias, or even idiocy and not being born in Japan doesn't automatically disqualify a person of being able to assess the credibility of things from that culture. The very fact that I need to explain this says a lot about your own bias here. Now, you've made many statements trying to explain why Antony has no credibility but in regard to these I don’t care. I don’t care if Antony never even practised any type of Ninjutsu or anything about his history or credentials, they don’t actually prove if he is wrong or not, the logic and evidence behind his opinions do, so instead of making character attacks, why don’t you address the evidence he proposes in his arguments. All you have said is that Antony is wrong because ‘reasons’ offering no actual evidence and stating what you think is right, again offering no evidence. Showing a legitimate Japanese source (which you haven’t done, all you've said is that manuals talk about draw cuts) wouldn't even disprove my point as I never said ninjas didn't know how to fight, I said they didn't need to know how to fight to be a legitimate ninja. Fighting was never a qualifying requirement to be a ninja. Did ninja know how to fight? I'm sure many did and so far your statements haven’t said anything different. Just because some ninja knew how to fight doesn't mean they all did or that the historical Japanese people of the Edo period wouldn’t call a person a ninja unless the ninja knew how to fight. I’m perfectly open to being disproven, in fact I prefer it. I’d much rather I know I'm wrong when I'm wrong, but to do this you need to prove what you’re saying with evidence and logic, which you haven’t done, but Antony has. So at this point Antony has far more evidence to validate his opinions that you. Sir, you have failed. The greatest evidence that you’re not interested in challenging your own beliefs and are more concerned about protecting your feelings that I have offended by disagreeing with the precious pre-conceived notion of the subjects you personally identify with, is you’re statements regarding Turnbull. It’s amazing, you haven’t addressed a single thing that Turnbull has said on the matter. Instead you've said he was wrong about this one unrelated thing which proves that he is wrong about the ninja. Wow, that doesn't prove anything! An honest person would only dismiss an argument after proving the specific assertions it makes with direct correlating logic and evidence, otherwise you're a weak coward who rather vainly tries to discredit and vilify a person than confront the evidence that you’re so scared of because you're too insecure in your own opinions that you can't counter logic and evidence with logic and evidence. It’s amazing that you think that I said ninjutsu was limited to spying, proving that you really didn't pay attention to what I was saying in my video. I said the thing that qualified a person to be a ninja was acting like a spy. I NEVER excluded assassination or being able to fight, I even said ninja could be fully fledged samurai, directly implying that ninjutsu wasn't limited to spying but that a ninja could also use a sword and fight, but that using a sword or fighting wasn't what made them a ninja. Pay attention sir! I know my tone might seem antagonising here but I'm not trying to bait you. I've just been using forceful language to prove my point. So rather than getting offended by the fact that I've trashed your weak attempt to disprove me, perhaps you might actually consider that you’re too emotionally invested in this topic to think about it objectively, especially if you misunderstood what I've said in my video so much to think that I said Ninjutsu was limited to nothing but spying. Calm down and watch it again and then if you still disagree, offer some proper evidence because in that case I would be more than happy to consider your opinions. I have given you more time than you deserve in response to your comment, which was riddled with personal bias and misunderstandings, and now your time is up. I shall not reply to you again as I have much better things to do, like play some fallout 4. I honestly wish you all the best in the future. Feel free to hate me, I don’t hate you. Have a wonderful life.
Shad...I'm actually a tad surprised how weak your retort here is. This guy isn't the only one pointing out that Antony Cummins has credibility issues. You aren't really reinforcing your research's sources...more you're making an appeal to ignorance. I like your work, but the way you defend Cummins is damaging to your credibility.
@@shadiversity Yup, totally agree here with Duke Tigerghost and with gunraptor's replies, you actually have failed Sir, by not doing your own research and training on Ninjutsu, I shall now unsubscribe, thank you.
Not sure I agree with shad on this one, If ninja "shinobi" were taught how to "spy, infiltrate castles, burn down building, etc.." I would assume that although they weren't taught to fight at the "shinobi school" that they would have been already warriors before that. A civilian who report information would be more of an informant in my mind, it doesn't mean that all full-fledged spy knew how to fight but I would assume most of them did and that they would have more exotic weapons that can be more easily concealed under everyday clothing. I could be totally wrong but if I'm right is it that far from the Hollywood version of today ninja? Yes, today's version is super flashy and usually portrayed as Assasin more than anything else but they do that with everything they put on screen. The way I see it, they made ninja fighters for the show but the core is still stealth, spying, infiltration only sup up to the super hero hollywood standard. I mean I was bracing for something else to end up with "they were scout and spy" which is pretty much what I always saw them as.
Ninja is a word for shinobi, it means One who seeks in. Remember their language is in characters. Think of one ninja as a shinobi. A spiritually in tune warrior in complete control of his (or her) own mind. Ninja are all of those intune people on the planet, and right behind you L. O. O. K. O. U. T ! ! 🍢👹
I actually had my thoughts of Ninjas specifically meant for infiltration or spying. I wasn’t spot on, but that was my idea, Ooo time to implement true historical concepts into my stories. Time to spread the news! Though In a way, if Ninjas were basically just spy’s or people who practiced certain skills... then if they were masters of hand to hand combat and etc they would still be a ninja, but they can never be a “true” ninja. Though if they were just sent out to gather info and such, learning extra skills so that they won’t get caught are essential in some situations right?
watch this video. ruclips.net/video/Sk8POUhLwM8/видео.html Ninja sometimes have to fight back. and they also carry out assassination missions. They learn how to kill. The guy who made this video is incorrect.
My first introduction into the "cinema Ninja" came in the 1967 James Bond movie, You Only Live Twice...where they were portrayed as the Japanese equivalent of a Navy Seal. Not a single operative, but a member of a highly trained "combat" unit. (Not the reality, where ninja duties only marginally involved combat.)
When it come to shuriken, the moon star is the best. You can easily curve them around corners to hit targets while remaining hidden. My best friend and I bought "Ninja training" videos from the AWMA catalog back in the late 80s. It showed how to throw them around objects to hit a target behind the object. It was pretty cool. All in all the video series was pretty neat. It showed basic stealth and hiding techniques, some combat techniques, climbing techniques, and how to do flips and crap like that. I wish I could remember the name of the videos.
Well you're not the only one. I grew up in the ninja craze and even bought some books that weren't any near as authentic as this video. I think you have to see this like the notion that Vikings had horns on their helmets, which they never did. It is something that got lost in time, got hyped then over hyped, and utterly transformed by the media.
I learned about ninja from my ju jitsu (edit Brazilian ju jitsu)sensei and I was told they are mercenaries that were trained extremely well in the most basic sense
Honestly this historically accurate description of a ninja is actually way cooler than the modern conception that a ninja is a simple physical combatant
Little correction: NO, nunchakus WERE NOT introduced by bruce lee, in fact, bruce lee was introduced to nunchakus by a japanese master: Fumio Demura. In terms of where nunchakus came from, nobody can really tell exactly. There is a general missconception that nunchakus where farming implements, but there are a few things that contradict that... besides, there is evidency of nunchakus beeing used as weapons far far back in time, at china. Nunchakus where introduces to japan through okinawa, and that was the main place where they has been used.
@@Newsand uuummm... no, some historians believe that was the chinese emperor zhao kuang yin who designed nunchakus as a weapon, others think nunchakus were originated in okinawa, others believe that nunchakus were originally farming tools, but the reality is that the design of the nunchaku has several concept differences with the farming tools that people think are the origin of nunchakus, making pretty hard to get to the conclusion that they were actually farming tools.
Definitely checking Antony out immediately - always super keen to learn more about the ninja and their ways as I, too, have been an enthusiast - perhaps even a fanatic - since my early childhood. I have attempted research before, but there are, as you said, just way too many false leads, which mostly come from misconceptions spawned by pop culture. But I can still understand the struggle of knowing how distorted the image of the shinobi has become. Anyway, thank you, Shad. I definitely learned something today, as always. Your channel is great. Keep up the good work! :D
This explains why Hatsumi has toned down the ninja image of the Bujinkan over the years, renaming it from ninjutsu to ninpo-taijutsu to simply, taijutsu. He also doesn't talk about or teach much from the Togakure and Kumogakure schools. Almost 100% of the training is in the six jujutsu/samurai schools of the Bujinkan. Seems like he used the ninja image as a marketing ploy back in the early 70s to attract lots of foreign students. Also, in all the photos of him training under Takamatsu, they're wearing normal white gis and not the black ones with the tabi that he's known for.
It was always ninpo taijutsu. The word "Ninjutsu" doesn't even refere to combat. Its is formed from the "Nin" meaning to enter or infiltrate without being observed and "jutsu" a system or or way of doing something. Thus Ninjutsu is literaly the art of sneaking and infiltrating. Ninpo taijutsu pretty much means "ninja taijutsu" Taijutsu was the standard martial art practiced by samurai. Thus Ninpo Taijutsu is an adapted form of the normal Samurai martial art that was designed to better suit the purpose of stealth and retreat. This is probably why Ninpo Taijutsu has so many throws and take downs. When you oppnent is on his arse, he cannot effectively chase you.
@Fuxwit Chu ..intersting isn't it. I was one of the first four Bujinkan Shodans trained and graded in Australia in the early 80's, and founded the Sydney Bujinkan Dojo. On my wall was only one framed portrait, that of Toshitsugu Takamatsu. I always thought there was something off about Hatsumi, now i understand why. Something just didn't ring true. I was raised in a family of four generations of boxers, my Great Grandfather was a world contender, and my father was a street fighter by necessity growing up and then a decorated Vietnam Vet and professional soldier. I started learning to fight from the time i could stand up and hold up my fists. So i had a good idea about how to engage in combat before i started training in the Bujinkan, and most of what i was taught seemed not that effective, nice as a movement Art Form though. I was permanently injured playing Rugby aged 17 and switched to Martial Arts, and when i was looking for one to study, I chose Ninjutsu, probably influenced by the TV show i watched growing up called The Samurai, which was chocked full of these Ninja myths, it seemed exotic and mysterious. Had i known all this back then i probably would have studied something else. I left the Bujinkan in 87 after a run in over money with my instructor, and was accepted into the Chinatown school of Cheung Leung, a Master of Yau Kun Mun (Hidden White Eyebrow) and became one of the few non-chinese to be accepted into that school, and became a personal student of his. This school had the World Heavy Weight Full Contact Kung Fu Champion as one of it's students, as well as several Australian Full Contact Champions. It was traditional Hard Kung Fu, straight out of Shao'lin temple. I went to live in Tokyo in 1990 and attended a Bujinkan training while i was there where some of my former students were now training in the dojo of Toshiro Nagato (supposedly Hatsumi's heir). But after training in Cheung Leung's school, i was decidedly unimpressed with their abillities. A similar impression struck me last year when i went to a local school here to see where the Bujinkan was at. The instructor was a 10th Dan. He would be barely a Shodan in any other form. Hatsumi's skill is in marketing. His vast organisation now brings in a healthy profit. In 1998, because of my background and skill set, i was asked to come and run the door crew (security) of Australia's most notorious and infamous Bar/Nightclub/Restaurant/Gambling venue, open 24/7. It wasn't Ninjutsu that helped me survive the nightly round of street fights and curly situations with underworld types, gangs and other punters, it was the boxing, kung fu and advice and training from my father. I realised after the first few nights that what i learnt in the Bujikan dojo would get me killed if i tried to use it on the street, in real life. Myths might be nice to study in the dojo, but in the real world out on the street with acutal people trying to take you out, the probability is you will go down, just like i saw happen to many such dojo trained doormen when i first started that job... If his legend is to be believed, Takamatsu, at 4 foot tall, was one tough little mother, like my Grandfathers, Father and the Vets i grew up with. A i guess i kind of knew that back then, and that's why i only put him up on my wall as inspiration.
"Ninjutsu is not hand to hand combat"
Of course it's not, that's Taijutusu. Ninjutsu is when you use your chakra to create clones of yourself. Everyone knows that.
Hahahaha, nice...
Of course, lets not mix ninjutsu up with genjutsu, that is creating illusions and mental trauma
Your getting paperbomb in the mail soon.
But seriously ninjas did use genjutsu, tai jutsu and genjutsu. The thing is that a quarter of this information is correct (well it is an old video so shad probably found more information. And ninjas did fight at the beginning as fist they were farmers then became spys then the Japanese army.
That is the best and obvius reference
so the ninjas were so damn good at being spies that we took centuries to get an accurate description of them
Nah, the evidence was just in front of our faces, but we were scammed by some rando who existed in the 20th century
spies in general, and warriors/soldiers..and politics, and...well
pretty much any activities where knowledge isn't crystal clear will spark rumors and intrigue
the less that is known about a given activity and the more difficult it seems to the average person the more it will be blown out of proportion to something it isn't
@@death299 i was just making a joke about it, but the thing is that the standard view of a ninja/shinobi as an assassin type figure did exist in some form too it's not like the view is 100% wrong
@@Spike2276 not really, they were always employed as information gatherers with killing someone being the occasional feat
being ordered to kill someone doesn't make one's job that of killing.spies around the world are employed for such duties when the need arises
which is rare because no military or political group has ever fallen with one man information is vastly more valuable
and probably centuries more to realized that the modern spies we have today are the modern ninjas
Me: just stealthly walks downstairs to check if parents are still awake to take food at 3 am.
*You know, im quite a ninja myself.*
Too true, hahah. I remember those day
lol really made me laugh :D
Same
Eww max fan
i mean technically you could be considered a ninja since you did gather intelligence as to whether or not your parents were awake
"I'm a ninja, a spy who wants to go unnoticed, so of course I'm going to wear a distinctive uniform that tells people that I'm a ninja."
Camouflage is not the same thing as a disguise, and vice versa. Sometimes you want to look like a normal civilian, but if you're, say, sneaking into a castle in the dead of night, you need to not be seen in the first place. In which case, maybe you'd want to wear something dark-colored so you're harder to spot.
The modern ninja costume was chosen because it was what Japanese stage hands wore in the theater in order to reduce their visible presents during a play. Now they would all wear solid green or blue to blend in with the green screens.
@@glyrr And what solidified it as the "ninja outfit" was a brilliant bit of stagecraft: Having one of those stage hands be the ninja who assassinated a lord. Since audiences had long become used to ignoring those stage hands, having one of them actually do something within the play was like him appearing from nowhere and then vanishing.
Of course! Noone would give a second thought to the guy who actually LOOKED suspicious! :-D
(Who REALLY trusts stage hands ;-)?)
so there was never a giant rat that knew ninja skills?
Yup XD
dont beleive their lies we must fin our master and ninjakill them allä
Squeak, squeak, squeak... SQEAK!!!
*Rough translation* WORSHIP THE CHEESE!!!
I know right, who would of guessed?
lage viklund and how will you do that?
The kanji for ninja actually translate as "one who sneaks" and for ninjutsu as "way of sneaking." That fits the real definition a lot better than the pop culture cliche.
and Togakure ryu is the school of hidden door.. which teach tecniches of infiltration and spying =)
Ninja is "One who hides" or "man who hides himself.
According to what I read, Ninjutsu translates roughly to "The Art of Perseverance"...which, given a lot of leeway for dialect and dilution in language, could mean anything from "Doing whatever it takes to achieve your objective" which would be accurate, to "going a great distance by yourself", or "being self sufficent" which could also be very accurate in any context.
@@Cryogenius333 Another interpretation is "The art/technique of survival" or "to endure and survive". It was always about surviving no matter what.
(Also depends on if it's "Ninjitsu" or "Ninjutsu". With "jitsu" being basically "the art of" and "jutsu" being "technique of", so it would be the Shinobi way as a whole, and various techniques within it, respectively.)
@Lux Umbra what?
Shinobi is more accurate.
Wear dark blue in the dark. Black is easier to differentiate from any slightly lighter background.
ruclips.net/video/-wZr9aphD7w/видео.html
or dark grey
Dark colours will always stand out against a light background. Camouflage should always match the surroundings, whether it is light or dark has NO meaning whatsoever. Ever seen military "night camo"? Guess why not.
very true this is why camouflage is usually different shades of green or blue as wearing black would create almost too dark of a shadow to look normal
Wearing Black would be detrimental at Night since a Black figure would stand out against the Night sky than one in dark blue, specifically Navy Blue
If you're busy looking out for black clad warriors that command magic, you won't notice the guy in servant dress taking notes.
My god shad, I found this video very interesting. But as a Japanese born native, some of the pronunciation gave me cringe attacks
Yep! I'm Australian, we're experts at butchering languages, I mean just look at what we've done to English ^_^
Just for future reference, it's good to mention that the pronunciation of vowels in japanese is *always* the same. The a, e, i, o, and u, sounds never change. Also those are the only 5 vowels which exist in Japanese, too.
i'm australian and even i found it a little hard to deal with, lol.
You mean Ninjatsu?
Daniel Arief Ninjutsu being pronounced like "ninjatsu" I think was the main thing that triggered everyone. lol
I'm honestly not very upset about this. I pretty much already considered the ninja to be a semi-fantasy concept, that may or may not have been loosely based in history. When I hear "ninja", I never really thought about history, so much as I thought about the modern pop-idea of the ninja. So it mostly remains what it has always been to me.
The Shinsengumi corner a suspected spy:
Hey, are you a ninja?
No! Of course not!
What's that sword?
THAT'S MY NINJA SWORD
LOL
He caught you too...
Every time I hear "jut-soo" I die.
shoo-REEE-ken
Japanese has the easiest phonology of any language, every vowel is always pronounced exactly the same. Good information in the video, but it is kind of ruined by his inability to pronounce certain Japanese words. Anyone who has seen a few animes quickly understands how Japanese pronunciation works.
@@JoeOG i hope you're sarcastic cause that is weeb bs.
@@sharilshahed6106 buddy, Japanese has 15 consonant phonemes and 5 vowel phonemes. Compare that to English which has 24 consonant phonemes and over 20 vowel phonomes. Objectively it is easier to pronounce than most languages because of the simplified vowel sounds.
@@sharilshahed6106 knowing a language has nothing to do with being "a weeb."
I can hear the death cries of a thousand weabos
The way he says ninjutsu... it hurts...
My mind is telling me no, but my body... my body says YES!
This info is pretty common knowledge to weebs these days. Kind of on par with "Thanksgiving is about killing Indians" that every edgy teen thinks he just discovered.
Weaboo sepuku.
Sepuku, sapuki, blah blah blah. Something about Japanese suicide with honour.
Aussie Assassin harakiri
Hello. My name is Antony Cummins, i am the man mentioned in the video. Thank you so, so much for such an outstanding video, i was both honoured and shocked to see it. great stuff and lots of effort gone in. If anyone would like to see more, see my website www.natori.co.uk - but above all just enjoy this video. Thank you.
Hey Antony, what an honour it is to have you visit. Thank you for all the hard work and research you have done which made this video possible. Of course if I got anything wrong or out of context please feel free to let me know. I'm sure my viewers would like to know as well so if you make a video or anything I'll link it through an annotation in this one and in the description.
Also if you have time you might like my truth about the katana series, I'd love to know what you think. I particularly loved your video on the Katana, spiritual weapon or tool.
Thanks again for your work and best of luck in the future mate!
Hi
I have sent you a message on facebook, check your "other" messages folder. :)
+Shadiversity A question, if you wouldn't mind. To me, it would seem likely that assassination could be considered a form of espionage. Any thoughts?
Assassination is in the arts of ninja, in is mentioned a few times. But we have to get away from the idea that the ninja are purely assassins only. They are not like the middle eastern Assassins. It is more of a small side task only performed by a limited few.
So no Assasins Creed: Japan? :(
The Ninja was just the medieval Japanese version of a Ghost operative in the CIA.
Most of it is basically boring paper work talking and rarely stalking and evesdroping than the smoke bomb bonanza we tend to think of today.
@@forickgrimaldus8301 where did you get that information and what makes it factual and not a self biased personal opinions/thought/beliefs
@@teeng6940 read any story of real life spys, they mostly just sit next to high ranking officers and just give what they know to the otherside
Ninjas in Movies: Skilled and Deadly assassins honed through years of ruthless training.
Ninjas in real life: Farmer rebels using guerilla tactics and makeshift tools to ward off invaders.
Both equally badass!
Not all of them, you cannot say guerrillas when they worked for the government at a times, that is another missconception.
Even though they weren't as cool as people think I reckon some of the ninjas that were samurais, ronin, soldiers etc would have been pretty bad ass.
Totally ^_^
Dario Skrytek I thought they were way cooler then their pop culture counterparts
Dario Skrytek I thought they were way cooler then their pop culture counterparts
i'd like to see a game and/or a movie about an actual ninja.. think about it.. would involve stealing, gathering info, blending in (in crowds as well as in shadows, snow, woods.. etc), maybe one assassination mission, some sabotage/guerrilla things..
Could even be something like hitman but less killing probably.
There's no such thing as a ninja samurai. Every thing that the ninja held as they're art and way of life flew counter the samurai's beliefs in honor and the way of bushido. They employed ninja because they had use for them. But the values held by the two separate ways of life are opposed to each other and could not both be upheld in the same human being. It's kinda like saying atheists have no faith in God, but I bet a true Christian atheist has an abundance of faith. Lol it just doesn't work.
This makes ninjas cooler in my opinion
Mark Wiedeman a super spy kind of cool
Onyxx Drako yeah.... a super spy that doesn't do cool flipping kicks and has gloves with demon claws :-:
Yeah, spies have to be brave and intelligent. I should imagine you'd lose your life if you were caught, or your subject found out what you were doing.
Japanese James Bonds
Pretty much secret agents of the middle ages. That makes em way badass
~8:20 So, what you're saying is…
Ninja were so good at hiding in plain sight, that universities managed to not study them for decades :P
It's worth noting that dark grey blends in better at night during certain phases of the moon. Figured I would throw that in.
PS. Shades of blue work during other times. And when I say grey I mean very dark grey
LMAO oh, yeah we already know that from Togakure Ryu Ninjutsu. The Ninja were primarily Shinobi, but they also served other functions, including occasional assassination and guerrilla warfare. I'll Trust Japan over some European alien about what authentic Ninjutsu is any day.
A lot of that goes because what I learned from togakure ryu ninjutsu proved very real while I was serving in the US Army; it worked and saved my butt more than once.
The greatest trick the Ninjas ever did was creating the myth that they never existed.
Exactly...
I understand that reference...... Keyser Söze😉
They don't exist till today.
I say this rarely: well said.
There used to be a meme circulating on the internet back in the old days, when it was just a series of tubes, of a totally empty street. It was titled the Annual Modesto, CA Ninja Parade. I still think of that pic every day; couldn't tell you why for the life of me though...
This argument, for me, has always began and ended with "in old Japanese ninja translates to scout" that plus ALL recorded evidence of the ninja have to do with scouting, spying, espionage, sabotage, and stealth.
Most modern special forces do the same thing...remain undetected and gather intelligence.
Dirty Pete I've always brought Special Forces and Government Spies together and that's basically a ninja.
Scout would be an inaccurate term. Reconnaissance would be more accurate.
Southern Knight for ninja, scout is accurate. The infiltration recon expert is the shinobi.
Am I really the only one who ever put together just as a matter of common sense that pop culture "ninjas" were probably at least as hyperbolic as comparing modern-day intelligence agents with James Bond?
My views on a ninja is a group of person who specialise in stealth be it being quiet,infiltrating a group or sneaking into castles.
While I never thought of ninjutsu as a fighting style it was just a means of teaching to help one in stealth or training their body.
My father was stationed in Japan and Okinawa back in the 1950's and he studied for a few years in the different martial arts there. Along the way learned that the Ninja were like you said basically spy's. That's why the majority of the weapons are thrown, as a distraction so they can escape and evade. He once said that most were samurai because if caught they needed to be able to fight their way out.
10:32 "... the term shinobi most accurately translates into scout, okay?"
And now I'm picturing ninja with baseball bats and headsets.
It's funny, I wonder if a ninja walks up to a samurai and says "This is a bucket", the samurai would say "Dear God!"
This crap is just what ninjas WANT us to think. It's all to throw us off their trail! Don't you see? :P
RtDK Oh. My. GOD! I know that a joke but I'm gonna make myself believe that just to restore my love of ninjas. Ignorance is bliss 👍
No ninja is a match for my shotgun.
Or perhaps the ninjas want you to think that that is what they want you to think that they want you to think.
Also the ninjas are waiting for you to take a bath, in which case you may put the shotgun down, in which case you will blink lift your eye lids and see them pointing your own shotgun at you.
Scott Radcliffe XDXDXD
#Shotgun4TheWin
RtDK, yes, that is what we want you to believe! You are right! But this means off course that unfortunately, you now too much...!
Well, nunchaku is used in some of the classic karate styles, so at the very least it was an okinawan weapon. Okinawa being a group of islands in the southern part of current day Japan, wich long was its own separate kingdom.
It was not a weapon a ninja would typically use though. There is very little versatility in a wooden flail after all.
Ironically, the grappling hook that Michelangelo got for censorship reasons is a more accurate weapon!
@@RokuroCarisu True. Karate was somthing specificly okinawan until modern day, and nunchaku was, like most weapons used in karate (the sai being a notable exeption), originaly a farming tool. The occupying japanese army had at one point put up a weapon ban for anyone who was not a japanese samurai, so the okinwan people adapted.
On main land Japan, there was no such ban, so fighting with sticks, handscythes and nunchaku was unnecessary.
Exactly. Kobudo to be specific. And Bruce Lee got it from his friend Dan Inosanto who learned to use it from Filipino Martial Arts.
@@torbjornlekberg7756 nunchaku has nothing to do with farming tools. I don't know of any farming tool that would be similar to the nunchaku. It just sounds too impractical for farming since its reach is so short. Gardening as its own separate job probably didn't exist back then either, so no tool similar to a nunchaku would be useful with plants. However, it is said that the Nunchaku itself might have been used to shave banana tree bark.
Even as a weapon the Nunchaku was impractical against most weapons and against experienced fighters. It was more commonly used against hooligans and robbers since they'd be more likely be lightly armed and since the Nunchaku was small and easy to conceal.
Also, farmers did not know anything about fighting or martial arts; the nobles did. However, certain events took place that led to many nobles becoming impoverished and having to resort to farming. But they weren't welcomed by other farmers and found themselves getting into fights and thus made weapons out of the simplest things they could find. The most useful weapons would probably be ones closer to a wooden staff because of their longer reach. They'd also even be somewhat effective against swords. Nunchakus on the other hand, would only be useful against knives.
@@aikslf Here: www.bookmartialarts.com/news/nunchaku-history
There was also a similar tool in Europe. Look at the "Flail" part: www.lostkingdom.net/agricultural-medieval-tools-agriculture/
"The term shinobi most accurately translates, into "scat"- Wait what??! Ohhhh, scout!
I always heard the mask and black clothes came from theater hands wearing that when they move scenery in the background. So in the plays if someone was supposed to be REALLY sneaky, they would just dress up like a theater hand so the audience wouldn't recognize them as one of the actors. And it just became a tradition that went over to movies and eventually got associated with Ninja through cultural mutation.
It worked particularly well if the character in question was supposed to be an assassin - all of a sudden, one of your favorite characters is offed by a stagehand you weren't even looking at, which would be a very effective plot device. It would be as ridiculous as having a character killed by the narrator, or vice versa (thanks, Sondheim!).
Chris Bradshaw Yes! While nightfighting and camouflage were not unknown to the spies, saboteurs, and combatants that were ninja, the common theory is that the image of the all-black-clad ninja was in fact the costume of a noh stagehand, who the audience was trained to ignore, who was meant to represent the myth of ninja being capable of invisibility.
Good observation. Especially if you consider that black is actually awful as means of camouflage. Notice that black-wearing soldiers are usually special forcers trained for close quarters combat, and the black outfits are for psychological shock, since camouflage would be less than useful in that situation. Black gives away your sillouette in any lightning condition other than pitch black.
www.quora.com/Why-dont-special-forces-wear-black-cammies-during-night-missions
but black is atrocious camouflage, you stand out like a silhouette in any light where you would have been seen in the first place. And nobody "snuck into a theater", actors who were supposed to be hidden would dress up as stage hands before doing certain scenes because audience eyes were trained not to notice them.
Fantastic job mate, very well made. I totally agree. The only thing the pronunciation of the word "Ninjutsu" shouldn't have a "ʌ" sound in ninjʌtsu like you pronounce it, but that "u" should be pronounced like the "u" in "moon" ninjuːtsu without extending the sound though. If I wasn't clear I'll just send you a vocal note on facebook xD
Thanks heaps for clearing that up mate, I'm honoured you liked the video!
Oh hey there Metatron!
It's like he was saying it as many times as he could and I can't not hear it every time.
Nikola, they were allowed to carry swords or any weapons (only the two swords (regular sized katana and kodachi) was only allowed to samurais). Only during the Meiji era (when there were no samurais anymore) that the swords were forbidden to civilians to carry on the street.
The kama and kusarigana were very specific weapons that became more famous during the Edo period as a dueling weapon for peacetime (Miyamoto Musashi defeated a famous guy who used one).
Ninjas (as in the legend of Sasuke) were largelly employed by Tokugawa Ieyasu to gather intelligence and were employed in the siege of 大阪城 (castle of Osaka). They were regular soldiers that would dress in black during the night and assaulted the castle by climbing the walls stealthly. The same tactic was common, just the stealth part was a little newer. Because of that Tokugawa got the fame of being the master of ninjas.
They use a katana as it was the best weapon to carry as you climb a wall. There are many accounts of that. I'm a historian speciallized in japanese history and I also speak japanese. Although the concept of being a spy is correct (忍者 meaning hidden person and 忍び meaning travel in secret) they were largely used to assassination and sabotage. Of course they would be regular People that would be called a ninja for doing that. That concept does not involve having any skills at all or dressing in some kind of uniform. In fact many women would be hired to kill someone pretending to go have sex with the victim and stabbing when alone, they were called kunoichi (くノ一, female ninja, that is actually a play with the kanji for woman 女 in which the stroke order forms first a letter ku in hiragana く, then a letter no in katakana ノ and finally the word one (ichi) 一 in kanji, therefore kunoichi.
Many tips on the true meaning of things about Japan lies within the language itself.
Revan The "nin" part should be pronounced にん.
I thought everybody knew this already, I found out that a long time ago. Doesn't take away my enjoyment for how they are depicted now a days though, I still like enjoy Naruto :)
Same. I feel one should be able to enjoy each in their own way. I find historical ninja's such as the Iga and Koga to be really cool, but I still love me some crazy over the top video game/anime ninja.
teacher:What do you wanna be when you grow up?
me: a ninja
I've said that as a joke, teacher took it seriously and thought I was going to be a fucking assasin .
So the European name, "Teenage Mutant Hero Turtles", is more accurate?
Given that their reason for being was to carry out a revenge murder on behalf of their teacher, not really.
In europ ninja are ban for a reasons so the change the name to teenage mutant hero turtles
@@ibrahim5463 not in all of europe, only a few countries
Actually, in that tv show the TMNT were more like super heroes than later incarnations. So the name technically fits.
From what I understand (pre-video), James Bond is the closest thing to a ninja we have in movies ^^
Yup. :)
No.
How so?@@zeroninja44
@@sonuva2003 I'm just throwing shade on the fact in one of the James Bond movies is what popularized Ninja stereotypes, not that James himself is a bad spy or anything
I think Batman is more of a Ninja guy
Bro I thought everyone knew this ten years ago
In other words the definition of a ninja could vary from spy to assassin to terrorists, depending on the mission objective. Some missions could require extensive fighting if the ninja was exposed so a a well trained individual should take on that challenge. I almost like this definition better. 😎
So in a way, the ninja was kind of like a 'special forces' operative...
No they were farmers they learn how to infiltrate the castles of the warlords to gather Intel or assassinate the warlords.
They were more like a thieves guild.
@@ladydragon7777 they not were farmers they were ninjas
Nope more spy and agent than spec ops.
In the modern day the term "ninja" as defined here includes scouting infantry units, every function of the NSA and CIA, and influencing public opinion through information control/distribution (including false information). Are CNN and Fox News ninja organizations?
@@ladydragon7777 no. Ninja is a job. Samurai is a class. Ninja. Can. Be. Samurai. Fucking hell man
For God's Sake I can resume the whole video in two words "Ninja=Spy".
'Resume' doesn't mean what you think it means.
@@30noir I'm sure that guy first language is a latin one.
Resume = summarize, in latin languages.
Equals scout, spy, and in one period cop working 3rd shift
the bujinkan, which ive been a part of for almost 3 decades, trains in 9 schools. 6 are traditional samurai schools, 3 are ninpo. its no secret to anyone in the organization that "ninjutsu" is the intelligence gathering/ spying/ espionage version. the hand to hand fighting version is taijutsu/ dakentaijutsu/ jutaijutsu/ budotaijutsu. outsiders give the bujinkan a bad rap, but its their own ignorance thats the problem. the bujinkan is very transparent as to whats what and what we train in. we dispell the mainstream/ hollywood version of what people believe the ninja to be, yet outsiders continue to blame us for the historical inaccuracies.
You sure the 3 are actually Ninpo? Lol
All of these myths were talked about and dispelled in my first year training in the Bujinkan. My instructor said day one 'if you're looking for Ninja cosplay go home'. Most Bujinkan practitioners I know are fiercely trying to fight these same misconceptions. Always glad for some myth-busting though! Thanks Shad!
Simply this. Maybe we've been lucky finding the right home instead of a McDojo
Bujinkan is openly built behind 7 or 9 schools, 3 of which the back to ninjutsu, the rest are samurai. That's why in bujinkan, u actually learn Taijutsu. Which they say. Much later you learn ninpo, which links to the ninjutsu legacy.
Thank you!
I have ben told that Ninjutsu is no longer taught to anyone outside of a few select students (I am guessing some of the senior dai shihan), and what is taught (to majority of people) is just bits taken here and there
@Drake ICN that's the thing, 99% of people who train under bujinkan dont learn actual ninjutsu but rather just bujutsu
I study ninpo which is part of the genbukan
Actual ninjutsu is basically survival, espianage, counter intelligence, guerilla warfare, etc. If a ninja wanted to learn hand to hand combat they would go to the same sources as anyone else.
The closest to thing to a ninja fighting style are techniques tied to specific weapons (particularly improvised ones) not used by warrior monks or samurai.
1:50 Nunchaku are traditional, but seldom used, Okinawan weapon, but not popular until Bruce Lee. Their ineffectiveness made them more of an improvised weapon than a killing implement. Better than a bare hand, and easy to explain why you are carrying it around when you aren't supposed to have weapons.
11:30 This is what I have understood a ninja to be for 20 years now (since I was 14). How is this anything new?
Ineffectiveness? Have you ever trained with them? Their range is enormous, it's like a retractable staff.
Right nothing new...even some people i kno who say they study ninjutsu will tell u..its the idea that they practice.
I dont think they are as good as barehand. Maybe to use in defense against something sharp. They look cool, but actually using them is a bit of a joke.
@@Ratbout lol. Shad has made more than 1 video explaining how bad nunchaku are compared to basically any other weapon. Even the solid stick that you chopped in half to string together and make nunchaku, would have been a better weapon than the nunchaku you made from it. It's not like a retractable staff.
Thanks for clearing lots of misinformation -- something sorely needed these days
I noticed 1 flub though: Nunchaku started as a cereal beating flail in OKINAWA.
These kind of videos always make me want to revisit Total War: Shogun 2. Great game. You deploy ninjas and other agents in addition to the regular battles and strategy. Then there is a less known gem of a game called Shadow Tactics: Blades of the Shogun. This one is basically a shinobi version of the Commandos tactical puzzle game series. The graphics are actually gorgeous for what they are. Isometric POV with a classic hand drawn 2D look, but still fully 3D allowing the camera to be rotated. You command 2 or 3 characters who have different skills, stay hidden and complete your objectives. Sometimes guards need to be stealthily killed and the bodies hidden. A must try for someone interested in the stealth puzzle type of games.
My question is, what other games do people recommend for some ninja gameplay and appropriate atmosphere? I never tried the Tenchu series but those games seem quite outdated now. Mark of the Ninja is a very fun stealth platformer, but I wouldn't quite count it for what I have in mind.
I've heard that ninja used dark blue more than black for night time blending in since it blended in better with more than just the pitch black night.
Classical depictions also show ninja wearing greens and browns for obvious reasons. Yeah black is impractical at night if people are actually looking for you. When I was a kid we had a black lab who didn't want to go in his crate (when he still had one) and would hide deep in the yard and we could always see him because he was darker than his surroundings.
Dark blue and dark purple colors where and are used at night for concealment and camouflage. This is because that the night sky is not pure black. The dark blue based colors provide less of a silhouette against the background night sky and darkness. Also a dark blue, purple and black mix camouflage patterned outfit is a very good choice for low light concealment.
Yeah, the black costumes came from stagehands camouflaging themselves with the backdrop.
Black was a very common color with peasants and thus very effective at night or day, during those days.
Blue and purple cloth would very expensive to purchase just to get them dirty, so that is nonsense. Peace!
When you wear something that's black it stands out more than something that's just a very dark blue brown or green . Even a slightly faded black is better partially because if you were just in a dark shadow wearing something like that blends in with his black does not.
I'm still gonna refer to Batman as a Ninja...
This video has no bearing on the fact that Batman is a ninja. Stealth, lintel, infiltration are some of his main things.
He is the best detective the World has
Batman is not a ninja
Batman is THE ninja
stealth, tools, critical thinking, detective work, espionage, the ability to distract senses so it seems he disappears as well as using disguises he does it all plus he he has the bonus of knowing every martial art
And the ninja turtles ARE still ninjas as they commonly do sneak and do espionage, they were just also trained in fighting as well
They rarely sneak in to gather information, though. Mostly they just leave minor enemies behind to attack a main target as quick and smooth as possible. So they're not really shinobi, just teenage mutant sneaky turtle warriors adept at armed and unarmed martial arts. (On the other hand, the whole history of ninjutsu in their universe was different according to 2003 series, it's an art brought to Earth by aliens, so term may be correct from their perspective.)
Hiding at night with specific clothes - black.
No.
They mostly used dark blue, because it perfectly done the job, and black dye wasn't widespread.
Im actually surprised to hear that this was from 2013 because read a novel series called young Samurai when I was younger in like 2008 and the way the ninja were described and their function was authentically portrayed. They basically were regular samurai who secretly went to train in ninjutsu where they learned about deception, stealth, and a few things like poisons and devices for the role they played as assassins. Despite the fact that ninjutsu did not have to do with combat, when you take someone who’s skilled at killing and teach them espionage they turn into the perfect assassin which is likely where the whole ninja assassin thing came from, it just kind of makes sense to pair ninjutsu with other jitsu combat schools. My favorite part involving ninjas was when the main character was being stalked by one and he heard him slip on a shingle but couldn’t see him in the dark in the rain and the ninja threw these steel balls shaped like raindrops that would balance with the spike pointed upward because of the raindrop shape and then those would be laced with poison and thrown during a rainstorm so that their impact would be masked by the sound of the rain and the victims feet would be punctured by the spikes they didn’t see on the ground, poisoning them. If that’s not a real weapon it damn well should be but thanks to those books I’ve always kind of known the truths and falsities of modern depictions of older Japanese culture.
Really great read even for a young adult title, has a lot to teach you about traditional Japanese culture because I guess the author Chris Bradford really did his research to know those ninja facts before shads source found them.
-Young Samurai (Chris Bradford)
Also, you brought up Overwatch later. By historical definitions, the best ninja in Overwatch is Sombra! Turning invisible, teleporting with a hand-thrown device, and hacking are far greater for espionage than killing people with shurikens and swords or deflecting bullets! Though Hanzo's sonar arrow and wall-climbing gives him Shinobi (scout) qualities.
Hanzo gang where we at?
This still sounds like what I thought ninjas were. I mean, you'd never see lines of ninjas marching into battle. They were always closely associated with stealth. But I guess this makes them more like spies than assassins.
You destroyed my childhood 😭... Fun aside. Great Video. I already knew, that there were no black cloaked super-assassins in the old eras of Japan and that the true Ninja was more kind of a spy or scout. But it was really new to me, that the "traditional" Ninjaschools in Japan are not so traditional as they would like to be. So all in all a great video with a lot of Information.
I read somewhere before that the ninja clans such as kouga and iga (could've been otherd), began as ronin samurai who fled to the hills and mountains to live in peace. They were forced into using guerilla tactics to defend their families, homes, towns from invading forces and then becoming so renound for their skills later in time, were sought out and were paid handsomely their services by lords all over Japan. Are those lies too? Sounded pretty legit and made sense.
basically youre correct. its just guerilla warfare. honor goes outthe window and you fight to win at any cost.
So FBI and CIA can be considered Ninja AWESOME
Yeah, If you want to be a modern ninja, work for intelligence agencies.
more CIA than FBI.
(9:36) When he finally gets to the point about what a ninja really is. For the first 9 minutes, he goes on and on about why our perception of a ninja is wrong.
I almost got bored waiting for him to get to the actual truth about ninja.
Chris Collins thanks. I was starting to get bored too.
He should have just said "Ninjas were secret agents of Japan. Look up what secret agents are/were historically in Europe, Americas or anywhere else, and you'll get a good picture of what they were in Japan, because they existed for the same reasons and had to do pretty much the same things."
Also, we sort of have to accept the fact that getting any historically accurate info on spies of any period is going to be hard if at all possible, because... where could you find a person who:
a) Knows espionage first-hand, either being a spy or a counter-spy, or the like...
b) Is an honest person willing to document the truth rather than propaganda. (or craft false documents to mislead enemy spies)
c) Is willing to make this info public?
If those three conditions aren't met, then any documents will be either misinformed, false-by-design, or simply destroyed in case they could fall into the wrong hands. Like historically most documents about secret agents were.
Spies usually had to message about their findings to their boss (for example some ninjas worked under warlord, clan leader or similar). Some of those letters have been found and for example one said something along the lines "yes, we have found a way to kill enemy general" that is one of the rare proofs that ninjas did some assassinations while spying, stealing and gathering information.
(I also believe that they did some guerrilla missions at least on some periods.. those ninjas probably were samurais or had some role in armies)
He also is wrong. Ninjas weren't simply people who practiced espionage. They regarded stealth as one of the most important parts of their arsenal. Ninjas also did appear on the battlefield. When he said ninjutsu is bullshit, that made me want to use it to kill him. I did ninjutsu for a month. I was taught a lot of its history. I read a lot about it. Ninjutsu was the official unarmed martial art of the ninja. He is fucking stupid to think it only recently existed. He can't even fucking say it right.
Interesting. Could you link the book you researched from?
Dude, 70% of this is BS tbh... Ninjutsu is and was never claimed to be a martial arts, actually the Martial Arts all have specific names, as Kenjutsu\Taijutsu\Bojutsu\Sojutsu\etc.... each of each aim to teach a diferent martial art, ninjutsu as you state correctly was a "profession" of sort, and actually every fighting style or art tought the jutsu's were targeted at training to fight and/or use everyday items, for assasination and other tasks.
Anw if you want to really learn something about it please drop me a message Shadiversity or search the name Masaaki Hatsumi
And... He probably didn't even look at that. He'd much rather listen to the fraudulent brit
I recall back when I was doing a Japanese Sword Art (Shin Shin Sekiguchiryu (I think it was renamed) my sensei said that they did have some ninja-esque techniques, but also joked that in Japanese (according to his sensei who lived in Japan) that all teenage boys were ninjas since one of their "techniques" was peeing on a door hinge to avoid it making a squeaking sound :P
the mispronunciation of ninjutsu is distracting
Indeed. Shad, if you're reading this, it's pronounced NEEN jute zoo (emphasis on the first syllable)
Thank you but I can guarantee there will be another world I'll get wrong. I'm Australian, we're experts at butchering languages, I mean just look at what we've done to English ^_^
also navy blue is the ideal cover for night, nature doesn't have a 100% pure black on this planet
Oh, jeez, no... Good effort, though! I like your enthusiasm!
Depending on your dialect, the pronunciation in Japanese could be either NEEN-joots, neen-joo-tsoo (no syllable emphasis), or neen-JOO-tsoo. For most English speakers, though, neen-JOO-tsoo gives you the best accuracy to ease-of-use ratio.
I would go NAvy blue or possibly heather gray If it was winter time
Sees live-action ninja turtles, grabs replica phaser, sets it to kill, and doesn't stop firing.
The Mediocre Collector look at the new ones
Interesting video :D
I always thought that Ninjutsu wasn't an established offensive fighting style. But a collection of skills of stealth, evasion, distraction etc. So all forms of combat were aimed towards running away and surviving after they have infiltrated their target and need to escape with information. Thus caltrops and shuriken or things like eggshells filled with powders to irritate the eyes if crushed and thrown, along with other supposed 'ninja' weapons, which always seemed like their purpose was defensive and a means of distraction and delay.
I wonder if there is any truth to the 'Assassin' idea, as Nightingale boards were invented to prevent anyone sneaking about important places. Though I have no idea when they were actually invented and there is contention as to whether their invention was intentional or not lol.
As for the 'Ninjato' or whatever it was really called, it made sense to me because of its size. It occurred to me that it would be quite difficult to climb up a Japanese castle with a full Katana hanging on your side or on your back. The smaller sword was probably something of convenience that enabled them to carry a blade without overburdening themselves and making their task more difficult. Granted there are many other blades which would serve the purpose, but if these swords were readily available to a large portion of soldiers, then it is likely just what was available.
First of all: I was a student of Ninjutsu with the Bujinkan (the image of the old man surrounded by his students), and he is the grand master Masaaki Hatsumi, and his tokagure knowledge cannot be prooved historicly, because his master was the last one of a traditional family clan, last heir of his ninjutsu school. Ninjas was secret clans, they had no records, data (scrolls and all those pop colture things), because IT WAS A SECRET CLAN. Ninjas was near entirely exterminated by a shogun's order, and was forced to mantain the secretism even more.
And now the truth macht: the last member of the tokagure school, he was already old and with no sons, nor heirs, so he show all he knows to Masaaki Hatsumi, and refuses to talk with no other one about his clan history, so now all the martial arts comunity say they are fake, because is not historical prooves about it (and i understand), but whats would you expect? This kind of things worked like that, from heir to heir, its already hard with the martial arts old schools, imagine that now with a shinobi last survival clan member...
I'm also agree about the pop culture had reinforced incorrect things about the shinnobi really was, but the bujinkan school are not soooo pop culture, we trained some stealth techniques, stabbing forms, rope techniques, sword, bo, jo, and disarmed combat, but not flying kicks and kinda shit, you know xD
The most "fantastic" thing the school teach, are som kind of "spiritual final test" called 'the sakki test', when you have to detect the -Killer Instinct- of someone with a katana behind of you, and dodge the hit on your head on the last moment. All the martial arts comunity thinks that is really bullshit and laugh about it (i dont really think on the hability of detecting the killing instinct, more about hear the breathing or the foot movements before the attack, but meh). So, its not so easy all this, but its up to each one about whats learn, i personally thing the bujinkan have real historicly content, but a lot of freaks like me letting his hype mess up with our crittical senses about it :P
Also, ninjutsu is not a martial art, thats true, but its som KIND of schools wich teach about infiltration, weapon building, stealth and those things, and in Bujinkan Budo Taijutsu school, the masters show ELEVEN martial art schools, three of those are about ninjutsu and the other just about combat and weapon styles, like: katana, bo, jo, mounted combat, under water combat, kicks combat, spear combat, disarmed combat, stealth and rope techniques.
You are so wrong, Shad. Ninja wear kevlar, comment a lot when they are fighting with other ninja and dye their hair. Also, most importantly, they have a theme song.
Varys is the greatest ninja of Westeros!!! :D
just as long as someone hold the door XD
and he has little bird ninjas!
Yeah, the ninjas would be his little birds
NO IT'S JAQEN H'GAR GIT UR FACTS RIGHT
Thanks homie.... you've helped me out, quite a bit, and guided me down the right rabbit hole. Huge writing project owes you a debt of gratitude.
Everything you need to know about historically accurate ninjas:
1) 'Ninjas" is a wrong term. The actual plural term for a ninja is Ninja.
2) They weren't even refered to as "Ninja." In feudal Japan, they called Shinobi (Shinobi no mono), Monomi (spies or something), Rappa (bullies or ruffians) and Iga-mono (The ones from Iga).
3) "Ninjas" rarely used robed suits-because they had more missions in broad daylight. Nighttime missions were rare and only few ever dared to dress like a thief and undergo the risky mission.
4) Their robed suits weren't even black-they were actually dark blue in color.
5) They didn't have fancy swords-"Ninjas" used improvised weapons or stolen ones. Mainly farming tools.
(Tba)
7:22 Forget ninjas, this is the true mind-blower.
The controversy with AC comes from the fact that he is an "expert" on a subject pertaining to Japanese history but does not speak or read Japanese, let alone Kanbun; he has lied extensively about his experience in both training and academical education; has posted photos of himself presented as in an environment of training classical martial arts, photos later proven to be photoshoped. If such a man can be seen as a reference on the subject, then i have to question your critical thinking sir, or if you did not know about the things i wrote prior, then i question your ability to do any valid internet research.
AT T agree
I feel like my view of ninjas isn’t being challenged much. The end goal was to avoid combat, but if you’re stealth-based, that’s what you want to do anyways.
Great video! Though I would say that most people with interest in Japanese culture that goes beyond superficial are aware that they are not exempt from pop culture, and quite possibly even more susceptible to it. I even remember one Halloween I didn't dress up, but I was telling people, "I'm dressed up like a ninja." They would respond with something along the lines of 'looking normal', and I would say, "Exactly".
Thanks for opening my eyes shad. As a practitioner for Bujinkan I was thinking that everything that I knew about the Ninjas would be validated. But no, you have changed my opinion. I now know that some people fight against the notion that ninjustsu is no martial art, because it would say that they, including me, have wasted their time. It's hard for me, but I am able to accept that and continue anyways.
I always knew that Ninjas were so cool to me because they were stealthy and I love stealth myself. I hope that people get that someday.
Even the thing about masks and the Ninjato was surprising and it makes me kind of sad that no one knows if shuriken were used, because they are useful distractions.
So there I am, knowing that I have been wrong. But that is good, because I still love ninjas and my martial art, even if they are seperate from each other. Cheers Shad
You sir, are a legend! You've honestly displayed a quality that I truly admire. It's not that you've agreed with me, heck I might be wrong about a lot of things in this video, I don't think I am, but I know it's always possible. What is truly admirable is that you're willing to accept what you currently see to be true regardless of your previous allegiances. This is something very few people are willing to do. You're a legend.
Also on a side note, I still love the pop culture version of the ninja too as well as modern Ninjutsu. There's certainly still a place for it and I still love to see ninja warriors in movies and anime, just as long as we know that they're modern interpretation and what the historical accuracy is.
+Shadiversity Yes, you are absolutely right. But then again, it is also great that some fictional media stay close to the historical ninja and Mark of the Ninja, for instance, does a fantastic job.
I was sad that light sabers didn't exist, I was sad when I found out Bruce Lee is dead, But I still today practice martial arts, and currently sword and medieval combat, and thus I fell deeply in love with the history, culture, everything lol, I even dream of being in that timeline (with a dose of fantasy since I'm a nerd) I love my nerdy passion, and it's always heart warming to see someone so passionate.
I'm entirely too late, but cheer up friend! Anthony Cummins (who was mentioned in the video) himself said that Bujinkan martial arts aren't necessarily "fake". Simply because ninja were primarily spies doesn't mean that a ninja would not learn martial arts. It's only that "Ninjutsu" is not a martial art. The martial arts the Bujinkan teaches would, as Anthony said, most likely be old family styles of Jujutsu (also kenjutsu ect. for weapon arts), while the Ninjutsu those clans learned would be a totally separate thing. It checks out, especially because as the video mentioned "ninja" and "samurai" were not mutually exclusive terms. Your archetypal "ninja clans" would actually be samurai clans that owned and worked their own land (typically in v rural areas), called "jizamurai", and one cannot be a samurai without learning martial arts.
Unless you learned lockpicking and the like, you didn't learn "Ninjutsu", but you did learn "ninja's martial arts", and I think that's still pretty cool. It might seem like there are too many stylistic differences from other forms of Jujutsu (kicking and punching) to the uninitiated, but Jujutsu being grappling only is actually fairly modern.
BlueSaryu That makes sense and was the big unanswered question I had - what is the origin of the material arts that claim to be ninjitsu ?
So apparently a pragmatic mix of jujitsu and other Japanese combat arts with the stealth training that actually is ninjitsu ?
What would be interesting is a breakdown of the techniques comparing them to other fighting styles. And a analysis of the effectiveness, is it a effective martial art from a fighting perspective ?
Could it be that some historical 'ninjas' decided to incorporate the fighting styles they had learnt and mixed them with the training they had in stealth. And after a while the two became indistinguishable, or did some clever coun artist/ self promoter with a lot of jujitsu and maybe some karate training decide to pull a swifty to get students and notoriety and never got found out?
I'm not sure about some other people, but I always saw "ninja" and "shinobi" as being spies and assassins rather than actual fighters. Especially the stuff about dressing to blend in to their environments rather than being dressed in all black all the time.
Glad you also covered the whole "Ninjato" fiasco thing, too. I've seen historical examples of straight-bladed Japanese swords at the Tokyo Sword Museum. So people claiming they never existed at all was kind of ludicrous.
Great video, Shad.
Good afternoon Shad. I am a huge fan of your meticulously well researched content...though this response is about 2 or 3 years late lol, I am responding anyway. I am 50 years old and have have studied in many martial arts; for most of my life, "traditional styles", including Budjikan Ninjitsu (Masaaki Hatsumi's "interpretation" of Togakure Ryu, 34th Grandmaster, as he is so called). Being a practical combat application pragmatist, I learned early on that though some of their techniques (mostly taken from traditional Jujitsu; i.e. Karate, Judo and Jujitsu, that I also studied...which were once a single combat martial art system known simply as Jujitsu) most were ridiculously ineffective in actual fighting. Though situations, technologies, methodologies and tactics change, from a fighting perspective, I have long since learned why. From a historical perspective, you have brought it all full circle. Thank you again sir for your scholarly work and perspective. History DOES matter!
Nice video, very enjoyable to watch. And it was great that you have given credits to Antony Cummins.
Hmmm.... Anthony fells like the usual "biased" side of an arguement that intentionally antagonizing both himself and the thing he aims to debunk with exaggeration of facts for more controversy which results in more attention. Taking it with a grain of salt and proper reasonable skepticism is recommended.
As far as I know from the kinda small amount of old japanese stories I have read "YET" ninja is depicted either as a cheap mercenary/bountyhunter, and professional assassin/spy which means yes, if you are doing dirty stuff in a mask you are a ninja.
In some historical records they were used as spies, scouts and assassins.
The organized clans under that term definitely had knowledge in martial arts but it is not known for certain if it is a unique martial art or a specific mixture of several other ones. People took keeping secrets seriously back then and had the tendency to carry them to the grave so obviously not many thing is left from their knowledge.
Another nice example of well guarded secrets is the damascus steel. No one has any idea how it's made. the mastery died with the masters.
*"The organized clans under that term definitely had knowledge in martial
arts but it is not known for certain if it is a unique martial art or a
specific mixture of several other ones."*
There isn't any evidence to suggest that they had any signature martial arts so we can only assume that they practiced things that were available to everyone else.
The trouble is, those documents have been around long before he translated and they have been understood by some. Whether they used bits of it to misrepresent certain points, i don't know.
+Naru The thing about Damascus steel is yes we do know how it was made. We just don´t know the specific recipe hence why its called a lost technology.
I really want to like the video, but every time you pronounce ninjutsu wrong, it makes me cringe.
I cannot agree more.
He's pronouncing it properly, though.
What's wrong? You don't like ninJATsu?
@@richardjamesbenoit6387 Nobody likes ninJATsu. Everyone likes NINjuhTSU.
What you’re saying absolutely makes sense, but I find it hard to believe that people with espionage skills were not also used for assassination. If you’re a ruler with a ninja skilled in infiltrating a secure location and steal information, why wouldn’t you use that same person to infiltrate a secure location and stab a guy? That’s a lot of skill overlap, why have two different sneaky guys, one for information and one for stabbing when one could do both? It’s not like you need a special martial art to kill someone in their sleep.
When I was a kid, AWMA was the biggest magazine. I spent a lot of money on nunchucks, sai, and ninja-to from that magazine.
By way of pedantry; black is a terrible colour for night camouflage. Greens and browns work much better and seem more likely to have been used for night work. (black tends to silhouette and stand out).
Which means it's the perfect color for movie ninjas.
Kinda depends on where you try to infiltrate. The super deep black camouflage in movies are stupid, but for buildings and cities where spying would usually take space grey-blackish camouflage would probably work better.
MysticHero Didn't you miss the point?Not standing out as one of the main characters in a movie would be terrible.
Nunchaku are a traditional karate weapon, most likely Okinawan in origin. Also, probably adapted from Chinese weaponry. Bruce Lee may have introduced them into modern pop culture but they existed long before him.
In fact I believe Lee used the longer handled Chinese version, Japanese nunchaku are a bit shorter. He learned them from Dan Inosanto if I remember correctly. The most famous karate practicioner known for being adept with nunchaku was probably Fumio Demura. Look up a demo of his on here. Good stuff...
Thanks mate, this is great to know!
I was taught by my father that they farming tools for trashing grain adopted as weapons because they work well as defencive weapons and as tools they are essential for the farmer to have. But to defend their home from bandits, most people would have a spear or something similar, if they were allowed to.
Well, karate does not use weapons, the meaning of karate is "empty hands" in fact it is a kobujutsu weapon.
Karate originaly means China Hand, but this was not popular in nationalist japan. Until the 30´s they used 唐手 as form of writing, later 空手 which means empty hand, but both are read as Kara. The Nunchaku derived, like many other Okinawan weapons, from farming tools, because it was forbidden for ordinary people to own any weapons.
+HeiniSauerkraut yes, pretty much all kobujutsu weapons are derrived from farming tools: kama, sai etc.
my personal opinion, ninjas were basically hit men or spies for hire.
also from what i got from the video is james bond is a ninja
The word "Ninja" is written with two characters. The second, "sha" or (in combination) "ja" means a person. The first character, Shinobi (Nin when combined with another character) means to conceal or steal into.
So a shinobi (ninja) is a person who steal in and lies hidden. He might be very competent as a fighter, but if he uses those skills he's doing a bad job as a ninja.
And I hope you learn some pronunciations before your next video on Japanese arts. You're setting my teeth on edge.
_Shinobikomu_ => to sneak into a place. Common japanee expression.
@Ian Boss That's interesting. Could you give me a source? I'd like to know more.
I have the Japanese Character Dictionary from Cheng and Tsui Company, who gives the character as Nin in the on'yomi pronunciation, with Shinobu as the kun'yomi. It can alternately mean bear, endure, hide or lie hidden.
For combinations they include shinobikomu (to sneak into) and shinobiwarai (stifled laughter or snicker).
The Rose-Innes Beginners Dictionary of Chinese-Japanese Characters gives the readings as Nin and Shinobu again, and defines it as "To endure: bear with patience."
The examples they give are Nintai (patience or endurance) and Ninniku (forebearance; stoicism)
Nin is used in the word "Zan'nin", which means cruel or brutal and is oddly formed with the characters for "remain hidden." I suspect these are phonetic substitutes for more complex characters that have fallen out of use.
It would be interesting to see more about the history of such words.
This Shad obviously loves the sound of his own voice. Is there anything in this video he does not repeat at least three times?
Horrible voice.
oh Jesus, this is just as bad as that shit "why a katana has a curve" video.
First off your sources, starting with Cummins, while having some legitimate facts behind it and being decent research, the man is highly biased towards the bujinkan schools. mostly because he got kicked out, part of the reason being him misrepresenting his level of skill and partially for demanding to be shown "ura" teachings without having any rank to be allowed to do so. Most of the bujinkan schools (there are nine schools taught in that group) come from the Kuki family, which has absolutely been verified and are included as a koryu schools (meaning 6 of nine schools are absolutely verified by Japanese academia). The Kuki family arts do have a curriculum which included ninjutsu. If you look at togakure ryu you will see that most of it is things like traps, espionage, distractions and other similar things.
Cummins is a guy who once tried to argue that the ninja-to existed because of poorly drawn artistic representations, the fact you defend this is ridiculous. The closest thing you have is that some swords in the 14th century were virtually straight, but those were a fashion statement more than anything else and fell out of vogue in only a couple of years because they were simply not as effective for the Japanese form of combat at the time. The works Antony cites are completely unreliable in this regards and if you have any legitimacy as a researcher you would know that. I could go on about Antony and where he is wrong, but I suggest waiting for research by Don Roley who is currently translating works by well known Japanese academics who consider bujinkan schools such as togakure as koryu schools.
As far as Turnbull goes, he once claimed that a specific type of arrow, widely known among Asian researchers as a type of hunting arrow, was used to cut rope among numerous other examples of blatant disregard for the work of Asian researchers far more qualified than him to speak in favor of his own fictitious opinions.
Another issue I have with this is the fact you don't do ANY of your own research, you basically take anyone at their word when if you knew more about the subject you would know that many of the translated manuals he presents DO include martial arts, an examples being a specific type of draw cut which you can find an example of in Antony's videos. If ninjutsu has NOTHING to do with martial arts, why include that draw cut? if it has NOTHING to do with combat why advocate using a nata (specific type of wood working tool) as a weapon? this comes down to "ura" and "omote", the public and private teachings of any school.
if you just dig a little deeper you might find that some ninjutsu schools primarily dealt with scouting out resources. you might find that some dealt with specific strategies of combat and troop movement. you will find others which specialized in a variety of other things such as ritual magic or navel warfare. Ninjutsu was hardly limited to only spying, and they didn't just write up every secret they had but being a guy who doesn't understand omote (public teachings) and ura (secret teachings, generally only passed between high ranking students and leaders of schools and which are RARELY written down) I guess I can't really expect you to know that. Not everything is preserved in scrolls in Japan, especially the ura teachings.
the simple fact comes down to this. Neither you, Antony, me or just about anyone else outside of Japan and even in japan can make such sweeping generalizations about something you have only begun to scratch the surface of.
I'm happy to offer you this single reply, but judging by your tone, emotion, and especially the evidence of your comment which I will shortly point out, you’re not interested in challenging your own beliefs and are more concerned about protecting your feelings that I have offended by disagreeing with the precious pre-conceived notion of the subjects you personally identify with. I have little patience for people like this.
First of all, a person absolutely can make sweeping generalizations about a subject, one that you claim that I have only begun to scratch the surface of, because I just did it. What you should have said is that a person shouldn't make sweeping observations, not that they can’t because the very existence of my video disproves that.
The fact that you think anyone outside of Japan is disqualified to make intelligent enquiry on something that originated in Japan is ridiculous. I mean really, come on. I know this view is based on the fact that someone who grew up in Japan has far more opportunity to learn through practical experience of their culture. But that doesn't disqualify a Japanese person from bias, or even idiocy and not being born in Japan doesn't automatically disqualify a person of being able to assess the credibility of things from that culture.
The very fact that I need to explain this says a lot about your own bias here.
Now, you've made many statements trying to explain why Antony has no credibility but in regard to these I don’t care. I don’t care if Antony never even practised any type of Ninjutsu or anything about his history or credentials, they don’t actually prove if he is wrong or not, the logic and evidence behind his opinions do, so instead of making character attacks, why don’t you address the evidence he proposes in his arguments.
All you have said is that Antony is wrong because ‘reasons’ offering no actual evidence and stating what you think is right, again offering no evidence. Showing a legitimate Japanese source (which you haven’t done, all you've said is that manuals talk about draw cuts) wouldn't even disprove my point as I never said ninjas didn't know how to fight, I said they didn't need to know how to fight to be a legitimate ninja. Fighting was never a qualifying requirement to be a ninja. Did ninja know how to fight? I'm sure many did and so far your statements haven’t said anything different. Just because some ninja knew how to fight doesn't mean they all did or that the historical Japanese people of the Edo period wouldn’t call a person a ninja unless the ninja knew how to fight.
I’m perfectly open to being disproven, in fact I prefer it. I’d much rather I know I'm wrong when I'm wrong, but to do this you need to prove what you’re saying with evidence and logic, which you haven’t done, but Antony has. So at this point Antony has far more evidence to validate his opinions that you.
Sir, you have failed.
The greatest evidence that you’re not interested in challenging your own beliefs and are more concerned about protecting your feelings that I have offended by disagreeing with the precious pre-conceived notion of the subjects you personally identify with, is you’re statements regarding Turnbull.
It’s amazing, you haven’t addressed a single thing that Turnbull has said on the matter. Instead you've said he was wrong about this one unrelated thing which proves that he is wrong about the ninja. Wow, that doesn't prove anything!
An honest person would only dismiss an argument after proving the specific assertions it makes with direct correlating logic and evidence, otherwise you're a weak coward who rather vainly tries to discredit and vilify a person than confront the evidence that you’re so scared of because you're too insecure in your own opinions that you can't counter logic and evidence with logic and evidence.
It’s amazing that you think that I said ninjutsu was limited to spying, proving that you really didn't pay attention to what I was saying in my video. I said the thing that qualified a person to be a ninja was acting like a spy. I NEVER excluded assassination or being able to fight, I even said ninja could be fully fledged samurai, directly implying that ninjutsu wasn't limited to spying but that a ninja could also use a sword and fight, but that using a sword or fighting wasn't what made them a ninja. Pay attention sir!
I know my tone might seem antagonising here but I'm not trying to bait you. I've just been using forceful language to prove my point. So rather than getting offended by the fact that I've trashed your weak attempt to disprove me, perhaps you might actually consider that you’re too emotionally invested in this topic to think about it objectively, especially if you misunderstood what I've said in my video so much to think that I said Ninjutsu was limited to nothing but spying. Calm down and watch it again and then if you still disagree, offer some proper evidence because in that case I would be more than happy to consider your opinions.
I have given you more time than you deserve in response to your comment, which was riddled with personal bias and misunderstandings, and now your time is up. I shall not reply to you again as I have much better things to do, like play some fallout 4.
I honestly wish you all the best in the future. Feel free to hate me, I don’t hate you. Have a wonderful life.
Shad...I'm actually a tad surprised how weak your retort here is. This guy isn't the only one pointing out that Antony Cummins has credibility issues. You aren't really reinforcing your research's sources...more you're making an appeal to ignorance. I like your work, but the way you defend Cummins is damaging to your credibility.
@@shadiversity Yup, totally agree here with Duke Tigerghost and with gunraptor's replies, you actually have failed Sir, by not doing your own research and training on Ninjutsu, I shall now unsubscribe, thank you.
Most of the taijitsu is samurai based
Not sure I agree with shad on this one, If ninja "shinobi" were taught how to "spy, infiltrate castles, burn down building, etc.." I would assume that although they weren't taught to fight at the "shinobi school" that they would have been already warriors before that. A civilian who report information would be more of an informant in my mind, it doesn't mean that all full-fledged spy knew how to fight but I would assume most of them did and that they would have more exotic weapons that can be more easily concealed under everyday clothing.
I could be totally wrong but if I'm right is it that far from the Hollywood version of today ninja? Yes, today's version is super flashy and usually portrayed as Assasin more than anything else but they do that with everything they put on screen. The way I see it, they made ninja fighters for the show but the core is still stealth, spying, infiltration only sup up to the super hero hollywood standard. I mean I was bracing for something else to end up with "they were scout and spy" which is pretty much what I always saw them as.
So Ninja is just a word for "Spy"? So, like, the Japanese word for Spy is practically Ninja or used to be?
Ninja is a word for shinobi, it means One who seeks in. Remember their language is in characters.
Think of one ninja as a shinobi. A spiritually in tune warrior in complete control of his (or her) own mind.
Ninja are all of those intune people on the planet,
and right behind you
L. O. O. K. O. U. T ! !
🍢👹
I know all about ninjas from 'ask a ninja!!!'
I AM NINJA YOU ARE NINJA WE ARE NINJA TOO !!!
I actually had my thoughts of Ninjas specifically meant for infiltration or spying. I wasn’t spot on, but that was my idea, Ooo time to implement true historical concepts into my stories. Time to spread the news!
Though In a way, if Ninjas were basically just spy’s or people who practiced certain skills... then if they were masters of hand to hand combat and etc they would still be a ninja, but they can never be a “true” ninja. Though if they were just sent out to gather info and such, learning extra skills so that they won’t get caught are essential in some situations right?
watch this video. ruclips.net/video/Sk8POUhLwM8/видео.html
Ninja sometimes have to fight back.
and they also carry out assassination missions.
They learn how to kill.
The guy who made this video is incorrect.
My first introduction into the "cinema Ninja" came in the 1967 James Bond movie, You Only Live Twice...where they were portrayed as the Japanese equivalent of a Navy Seal. Not a single operative, but a member of a highly trained "combat" unit. (Not the reality, where ninja duties only marginally involved combat.)
When it come to shuriken, the moon star is the best. You can easily curve them around corners to hit targets while remaining hidden. My best friend and I bought "Ninja training" videos from the AWMA catalog back in the late 80s. It showed how to throw them around objects to hit a target behind the object. It was pretty cool.
All in all the video series was pretty neat. It showed basic stealth and hiding techniques, some combat techniques, climbing techniques, and how to do flips and crap like that. I wish I could remember the name of the videos.
My childhood and fanboyism got ruined so much since i found Shad, Metatron and Skallagrim...
Thanks I guess :P
Well you're not the only one. I grew up in the ninja craze and even bought some books that weren't any near as authentic as this video. I think you have to see this like the notion that Vikings had horns on their helmets, which they never did. It is something that got lost in time, got hyped then over hyped, and utterly transformed by the media.
You took far too long to get your message across.
I learned about ninja from my
ju jitsu (edit Brazilian
ju jitsu)sensei and I was told they are mercenaries that were trained extremely well in the most basic sense
Honestly this historically accurate description of a ninja is actually way cooler than the modern conception that a ninja is a simple physical combatant
What happened to the Ninja can be compared to what happened to the Vikings. Popular belief is 90% wrong...
Some of those beliefs have sufficient antiquity because the ninja themselves stoked the flames of fanciful disinformation.
Ninja can teleport 2 inches in any direction, and fart fire.
Little correction: NO, nunchakus WERE NOT introduced by bruce lee, in fact, bruce lee was introduced to nunchakus by a japanese master: Fumio Demura. In terms of where nunchakus came from, nobody can really tell exactly. There is a general missconception that nunchakus where farming implements, but there are a few things that contradict that... besides, there is evidency of nunchakus beeing used as weapons far far back in time, at china. Nunchakus where introduces to japan through okinawa, and that was the main place where they has been used.
nunchuks are basicly oriental flails used for separating grains from their husks
@@Newsand uuummm... no, some historians believe that was the chinese emperor zhao kuang yin who designed nunchakus as a weapon, others think nunchakus were originated in okinawa, others believe that nunchakus were originally farming tools, but the reality is that the design of the nunchaku has several concept differences with the farming tools that people think are the origin of nunchakus, making pretty hard to get to the conclusion that they were actually farming tools.
Definitely checking Antony out immediately - always super keen to learn more about the ninja and their ways as I, too, have been an enthusiast - perhaps even a fanatic - since my early childhood.
I have attempted research before, but there are, as you said, just way too many false leads, which mostly come from misconceptions spawned by pop culture. But I can still understand the struggle of knowing how distorted the image of the shinobi has become.
Anyway, thank you, Shad. I definitely learned something today, as always. Your channel is great. Keep up the good work! :D
This explains why Hatsumi has toned down the ninja image of the Bujinkan over the years, renaming it from ninjutsu to ninpo-taijutsu to simply, taijutsu.
He also doesn't talk about or teach much from the Togakure and Kumogakure schools. Almost 100% of the training is in the six jujutsu/samurai schools of the Bujinkan. Seems like he used the ninja image as a marketing ploy back in the early 70s to attract lots of foreign students.
Also, in all the photos of him training under Takamatsu, they're wearing normal white gis and not the black ones with the tabi that he's known for.
It was always ninpo taijutsu. The word "Ninjutsu" doesn't even refere to combat. Its is formed from the "Nin" meaning to enter or infiltrate without being observed and "jutsu" a system or or way of doing something. Thus Ninjutsu is literaly the art of sneaking and infiltrating. Ninpo taijutsu pretty much means "ninja taijutsu" Taijutsu was the standard martial art practiced by samurai. Thus Ninpo Taijutsu is an adapted form of the normal Samurai martial art that was designed to better suit the purpose of stealth and retreat. This is probably why Ninpo Taijutsu has so many throws and take downs. When you oppnent is on his arse, he cannot effectively chase you.
@Fuxwit Chu ..intersting isn't it. I was one of the first four Bujinkan Shodans trained and graded in Australia in the early 80's, and founded the Sydney Bujinkan Dojo. On my wall was only one framed portrait, that of Toshitsugu Takamatsu. I always thought there was something off about Hatsumi, now i understand why. Something just didn't ring true. I was raised in a family of four generations of boxers, my Great Grandfather was a world contender, and my father was a street fighter by necessity growing up and then a decorated Vietnam Vet and professional soldier. I started learning to fight from the time i could stand up and hold up my fists. So i had a good idea about how to engage in combat before i started training in the Bujinkan, and most of what i was taught seemed not that effective, nice as a movement Art Form though. I was permanently injured playing Rugby aged 17 and switched to Martial Arts, and when i was looking for one to study, I chose Ninjutsu, probably influenced by the TV show i watched growing up called The Samurai, which was chocked full of these Ninja myths, it seemed exotic and mysterious. Had i known all this back then i probably would have studied something else. I left the Bujinkan in 87 after a run in over money with my instructor, and was accepted into the Chinatown school of Cheung Leung, a Master of Yau Kun Mun (Hidden White Eyebrow) and became one of the few non-chinese to be accepted into that school, and became a personal student of his. This school had the World Heavy Weight Full Contact Kung Fu Champion as one of it's students, as well as several Australian Full Contact Champions. It was traditional Hard Kung Fu, straight out of Shao'lin temple. I went to live in Tokyo in 1990 and attended a Bujinkan training while i was there where some of my former students were now training in the dojo of Toshiro Nagato (supposedly Hatsumi's heir). But after training in Cheung Leung's school, i was decidedly unimpressed with their abillities. A similar impression struck me last year when i went to a local school here to see where the Bujinkan was at. The instructor was a 10th Dan. He would be barely a Shodan in any other form. Hatsumi's skill is in marketing. His vast organisation now brings in a healthy profit. In 1998, because of my background and skill set, i was asked to come and run the door crew (security) of Australia's most notorious and infamous Bar/Nightclub/Restaurant/Gambling venue, open 24/7. It wasn't Ninjutsu that helped me survive the nightly round of street fights and curly situations with underworld types, gangs and other punters, it was the boxing, kung fu and advice and training from my father. I realised after the first few nights that what i learnt in the Bujikan dojo would get me killed if i tried to use it on the street, in real life. Myths might be nice to study in the dojo, but in the real world out on the street with acutal people trying to take you out, the probability is you will go down, just like i saw happen to many such dojo trained doormen when i first started that job... If his legend is to be believed, Takamatsu, at 4 foot tall, was one tough little mother, like my Grandfathers, Father and the Vets i grew up with. A i guess i kind of knew that back then, and that's why i only put him up on my wall as inspiration.
Hatsumi is a total fraud.
"The Truth About"... I thought it was a Stefan Molyneux video on my feed!
THE TRUTH ABOUT ONE DOLLA.
lol IKR. That guy is a total shill
Not an argument!
I know this is two years late but didn't Antony Cummins also cover a clans of ninja as well as a legend among there ranks tanba.
Nice! Appreciate this being my first research on ninjas.