Ninja - who is this? Ninja martial arts. Ninja: the real story of Japanese warriors

Ninja. Many people know about them, and many people like them. Raised and trained in the complex art of ninjutsu from childhood, they fought with their main rivals - the samurai. Moving like shadows in the night, these brave warriors were hired at the highest price to do their dirty work, which samurai are not capable of.

But what if all this is completely untrue? What if modern look ancient ninja was based entirely on 20th century comic books and fantasy literature?

Today we will reveal to you 25 exciting facts about real ninjas that existed in the past, and you will learn the whole truth about them. Read on and enjoy a more accurate and attractive portrayal of these Japanese warriors.

25. Ninjas weren't called "ninjas"

According to the documents, the ideograms for this word are in medieval period correctly read as “shinobi no mono”. The very word “ninja”, which means the same ideograms pronounced in Chinese reading, became popular already in the 20th century.

24. First mention of ninja

The first historical record of ninjas appeared in the military chronicle of Taiheiki, written around 1375. It says that one night ninjas were sent behind enemy lines to set fire to enemy structures.

23. Golden Age of Ninja

The heyday of the ninja occurred in the 15th-16th centuries, when Japan was engulfed in internecine wars. After 1600, when peace came to the country, the decline of the ninja began.

22. Historical records

There are negligible records of ninjas from the war period, and it was only after peace came in the 1600s that some ninjas began writing manuals about their skills.

The most famous of them is the manual on the martial art of ninjutsu, which was a kind of ninja bible and was called “Bansenshukai”. It was written in 1676.

There are approximately 400-500 ninja manuals throughout Japan, many of which are still kept secret.

21. The enemies of the samurai were not ninjas

In popular media mass media ninjas and samurai are often depicted as enemies. In fact, the term “ninja” often refers to warriors of any class in the samurai army, and the ninja themselves were something of a special forces force when compared to the modern army. Many samurai were trained in ninjutsu, a complex art mastered by ninjas, and their masters kept them close to them.

20. Ninjas weren't peasants

In popular media, ninjas are also portrayed as members of the peasant class. In fact, representatives of any class - both lower and upper class - could become ninjas.

It was only after 1600, when peace reigned in Japan, that the official position of ninja within the clan was demoted from samurai to a new social class called "doshin" - a low-ranking samurai, "half-samurai". Over time, ninjas became lower in status, but they still occupied a higher social status compared to most peasants.

19. Ninjutsu is not a form of hand-to-hand combat

It is widely believed that ninjutsu is a type of hand-to-hand combat, a set of martial arts that is still taught all over the world.

However, the idea of a specialized form of hand-to-hand combat practiced by ninjas was conceived by a Japanese man during the 1950-60s. This new fighting system became popular in America during the 1980s ninja boom, becoming one of the most popular ninja misconceptions.

To date, not a single mention of such a form of martial art has been found in ancient manuscripts.

18. “Ninja Stars”

Throwing “ninja stars” have virtually no historical connection with ninjas. Shurikens (this is the name given to these concealed throwing weapons, made in the form of various objects: stars, coins, etc.) were a secret weapon in many samurai schools, and only in the 20th century they began to be associated with ninjas thanks to comics, films and anime.

17. Ninja mask

“You will never see a ninja without a mask.” In fact, there is not a single mention of ninjas wearing masks. Surprisingly, according to the ancient ninja manuals, they did not wear masks. When the enemy was close, they had to cover their faces with their long sleeves, and when the ninja worked in groups, they wore white headbands so that they could see each other in the moonlight.

16. Ninja costume

The popular image of a ninja cannot be imagined without the iconic costume. This is a misnomer, since the ninja “suit” seems to be a uniform only for residents Western countries. It's actually just traditional Japanese clothing along with a mask.

Black Japanese clothing can be compared to the black suit in modern London. Residents of medieval Japan could wear masks on the street to remain unrecognized. So such an image looks inappropriate and stands out only in the modern world.

15. Black or blue?

A popular argument today is that ninjas didn't wear black because then in the dark they wouldn't be able to see each other at all, so they actually wore blue clothes. This is a misconception that originated from a ninja manual called Shoninki (True Path of the Ninja), written in 1861.

It states that ninjas might wear blue to blend in with the crowd since it was a popular color, implying that ninjas would not stand out among the people in the city. They were also required to wear black on a moonless night and white on a full moon.

14. Ninja-to, or ninja sword

The famous “ninja-to” or traditional ninja sword is a straight-bladed sword with a square tsuba (guard). Modern ninjas most often have a straight blade, but the original swords were slightly curved.

Swords that were almost straight (they were curved only a few millimeters) existed in medieval Japan and had a square tsuba, but they began to be associated with ninjas only in the 20th century. Ninja manuals prescribed the use of ordinary swords.

13. Secret ninja gestures

Ninjas are known for their secret gestures hands This special hand position technique called “kuji-kiri” has no real connection with the ninja.

The kuji-kiri technique, as it was called in Japan, has its roots in Taoism and Hinduism. It was brought from India to Japan by Buddhist monks, so many mistakenly perceive it as a method of causing damage.

In fact, it is a series of gestures that was used in meditation, during rituals and in Japanese martial arts. Again, they began to associate kuji-kiri with ninjas only in the 20th century.

12. Ninjas didn't use smoke bombs

The image of a ninja using a smoke bomb is a very common one. However, while completely erroneous, it is misleading.

The ninja manuals don't actually mention smoke bombs, but they do have hundreds of instructions for making "fire" weapons: land mines, hand grenades, waterproof torches, Greek fire, fire arrows, explosive shells, and poison gas.

11. Nobody knew who ninjas really were

This is a half-truth. Ninjas were divided into yang ninjas, who could be seen, and yin ninjas, invisible ninjas whose identity was always kept secret.

Since no one had ever seen a Yin Ninja, they could take part in missions without fear of being recognized by anyone. On the other hand, a group of ninja could be recruited openly: they moved with the army, they had their own barracks, they were relieved of duty during rest periods, and they were well known among their peers.

10. Ninjas are black sorcerers

Before the image of the ninja assassin, the image of the ninja sorcerer and warrior-caster was popular. In old Japanese movies, ninjas use magic to deceive their enemies.

Interestingly, among the ninja's skills and abilities there was indeed a certain amount of ritual magic: from magical hairpins that made them invisible, to sacrificing a dog to gain God's help. However, ordinary samurai skills also contained elements of magic. This was common practice at that time.

9. Ninjas weren't killers

This is more of a semantic argument. Simply put, a ninja from the very early age were not taught the art of killing so that they could be hired by other clans.

Most ninjas were trained in covert operations, espionage skills, the ability to obtain information, penetrate behind enemy lines, handle explosives, and much more. Ninjas were hired as assassins only as a last resort. Ninja manuals rarely talk about this topic. Murder was not their main profile.

8. Hattori Hanzo - a real person

Hattori Hanzo became famous in the Kill Bill films (a master swordsmith who created the best Japanese swords in the world), but in reality he was a samurai and the head of a line of ninjas. He became a famous commander, earning the nickname "Devil Hanzo" for his ferocity in battle.

He is believed to have written or inherited one of the oldest ninja manuscripts in existence.

7. Most of the false claims about ninjas appeared in the 20th century.

The era of the ninja ended in late XIX century, when Japan embarked on the path of modernization. Although speculation and fantasies about ninjas existed even during the time of the ninja, the first big boom in the popularity of ninjas in Japan began in the very early 1900s, when not much was known about historical spies and intelligence officers.

Books about ninjas were popular between 1910 and 1970, and since many of them were written by amateurs and enthusiasts, they were full of erroneous statements and falsifications, which were later translated into English language.

6. Scientific study ninja

The subject of ninjas was a laughing stock in Japanese academic circles, and for decades the study of their techniques and teachings was frowned upon as fanciful fantasy.

Dr. Stephen Turnbull of the University of Leeds (England) published several books on ninjas in the 1990s, but in a recent article he admitted that the research was flawed and he is now studying the topic in depth with the sole purpose of publishing the truth about ninjas.

Only over the last 2-3 years have serious research begun in Japan. Associate Professor Yuji Yamada leads a team of scientists at Mie Universit conducting research on ninjas.

5. Ninja manuscripts are encrypted

As stated, the ninja manuscripts were coded to remain secret. In fact, this is a misconception about the Japanese way of listing skills. Many scrolls in Japan, according to different topics These are just lists of skills.

For example, “Fox skill” or “invisible cloak skill” were passed down from generation to generation without appropriate training, so over time they true values were lost, but were never encrypted.

4. If the ninja fails the mission, he will commit suicide

In fact, this is just a Hollywood myth. There is no evidence that mission failure leads to suicide.

In fact, some manuals teach that it is better to fail a mission than to rush through it and create problems. It is better to wait for another, more suitable opportunity.

There is historical evidence that ninja could kill themselves and burn themselves alive if captured by the enemy - in order to hide their identity.

3. Superhuman strength

It is believed that ninjas have much greater physical strength, than ordinary warriors, however, in reality there were only a certain number of ninja who were trained and trained in special forces.
Many ninja led double lives, pretending to be ordinary residents in enemy provinces: they went about their daily routine, traded or traveled, which contributed to the spread of “necessary” rumors about them.

Ninjas had to be resistant to disease, have high intelligence, be able to talk quickly, and have a stupid appearance (because people ignore those who look stupid).

Fun fact: One ninja retired due to back pain.

2. Ninja no longer exists

In Japan there are people who call themselves masters of ninja schools, whose origins go back to the times of the samurai. This issue is very controversial and sensitive. To date, all those who call themselves real ninjas have not provided any evidence to convince them that they are right.

This means that there are no real ninjas left. Although the world is still waiting for proof...

1. Real ninjas are much cooler than fictional ones

While fictional ninjas have captivated people's hearts for nearly 100 years, the historical truth that is emerging is far more impressive and interesting.

With the advent of historical ninja manuals now published on English, their more realistic and unexpected image emerges. Ninjas can now be seen as part of the samurai war machine, each with a specific set of skills and abilities, trained in areas such as espionage, covert operations, lone behind enemy lines, surveillance, explosives and demolition specialists, and psychological specialists.

This new and improved take on the Japanese ninja commands greater respect for the depth and complexity of samurai warfare.

In different regions and prefectures of Japan, ninjas were known by completely different names. The most typical expressions denoting spies in those days were " kancho no mono (mawashi-mono)" And " saguri no mono"formed from verbs" mawasu" - "hang around" And " saguru" - "sniff out, follow"The words themselves" ninja" And " shinobi", which are just different ways of reading the same concept, were used only in a couple of provinces.

Naming of ninjas in different regions of feudal Japan:

Nara/Kyoto: seppa or suppa, ukami, dakko, shinobi or shinobu
Aorimi: hayamtimono, shinobi or shinobu
Myagi: kurohabaki
Kanagawa: kusa, kamari, monomi, rappa, toppa
Tokyo/Edo: onmitsu, oniwaban
Yamanashi: mitsumono, seppa or suppa, sukinami, denuki
Aichi: kyodan
Fukui: shinobi or shinobu
Nigata: nokizura, kyodo, kyodan, kikimono-yaku, kanshi or kansha
Shiga/Koga: senkunin, senku-no-mono, Koga-no-mono, Koga Shu, ongyo-no-mono
Mie/Iga: Iga no mono, Iga Shu, shinobi no mono
Okayama: Fuma Kainin
Yamashiro And Yamato: suppa, dakko, ukami or ukagami
Kai: suppa, mitsu-no-mono
Echigo And Ecchu: nokizaru, kanshi, kikimono-yaku
Mutsu/Miyagi: kuro-habaki
Mutsu/Aomori: nayamichi-no-mono, shinobi
Sagami: kusa, monomi, rappa
Echizen And Wakasa: shinobi

Word " ninja"in the form to which we are accustomed, became popular relatively recently - at the beginning of the twentieth century. Until that moment, reading was mainly used" shinobi" or " shinobi no mono" - "the one who sneaks". And if with concepts or syllabic elements " jutsu" - "technique, method of application" And " -ja" - "one who uses (something)"there are almost no problems in translation, then with the element" nin"It's more difficult now.

Most in a simple way kanji (hieroglyph) " nin"can be understood as meaning" tolerate", "carry out", "test". The next layer of semantic meaning is much closer to the activities of shinobi: " sneaking", "secret" or " invisible".

But if you break the kanji" nin"into two parts, then we get another combination of two ideograms: hieroglyph" syn" or " kokoro"meaning" spirit" or " heart"(in its spiritual, not physiological sense), is located under the hieroglyph " egg"meaning" blade"(like the blade of a sword or saber). I involuntarily remember the movie" Heart under the blade", dedicated to the Romeo-Juliet conflict among shinobi.

Nin = Kokoro + Yaiba

Some prefer to go even further, and break down the hieroglyph " egg"into two more parts -" Ha" ("sting") And " That" ("sword"), together forming the expression " sword sting", weakly joining with everything " blade"As a result, we have an unprecedented abundance of translations and variations, in which everyone tries to most accurately guess the full meaning of the kanji." nin".

In meaning, " ninja" And " ninjutsu"Of course, it is most adequately translated as " the one who sneaks" And " art of invisibility"But this does not prevent us from identifying adepts, as written in" Shoninki", How " those who put their hearts under the edge of the sword", implying both the completely non-illusory risk of a shinobi's life on missions, and also symbolically - eternal life under the hanging Sword of Damocles.

But " nin"same thing" the will that restrains the sting of the sword"transforming ninjutsu into" path of endurance", where endurance by nature manifests itself on the physical, mental and moral planes. This means the ability to endure pain and humiliation (taking the form of a crippled beggar, for example); the knowledge of how to spend hours in stillness and inconspicuousness; the ability to endure suffering, hiding the pain of wounds in the depths of his heart and hiding it from others, for the sole purpose of fulfilling his mission.

More " ninjutsu"can be understood as" the art of uniting the mind with the blade"The mind, controlling the body, which is the instrument for accomplishing the task at hand, acts with amazing clarity and infallibility, using any method. This brings ninjutsu closer to many famous Japanese martial arts that study the path (" To") absolute search for the unity of spirit and body.

And finally, paying tribute to the esoteric aspects of this phenomenon, ninjutsu can ultimately be translated as " the art of the hidden mind", "secrets of the heart" or " secret, secret knowledge".

First of all, after all shinobi, and not ninja, because the first word does not carry a touch of supernatural miracles and fantasy, that is, it more accurately describes profession- contrary, again, to fairy tales, this ordinary espionage, and murders - as "related products at the list price."
Secondly, the spy who became known is a failed spy, that is, the combination “legendary ninja” strongly sways as an oxymoron. But how do we know about those who did not fail? I don't have any other spies for you...

Top 10 Famous Shinobi

1. Kato Danzo. This shinobi became famous for his “unique trick” - magic tricks. Long before Edgar Allan Poe (in the era of Sengoku Jodai), he “cognized the Tao” - the only thing more inconspicuous than those who hide is the one who tries to get into your eyes with all his might. And therefore, on missions, Kato “worked under” Yamabito, a wandering Buddhist monk-magician who entertained the respectable public with “Chinese tricks.” And he got so crazy that some of his “numbers” could decorate the repertoire of any Akopyan or Copperfield. For example, the “absolutely mysterious” trick of going under water and completely disappearing under it...

2. Mochizuki Chiyome. The craft of shinobi differed from samurai in that women could also do it. No, they didn’t jump on the walls, didn’t kill with poisoned daggers and didn’t blow off ten heads with one blow - why? A woman trained in the fine arts, etiquette and other methods of seduction will easily get close to the most guarded secrets. This is exactly what Chiyome taught her kunoichi (female shinobi) wards, who founded the first (and only known) all-female school at the court of the daimyo Takeda.

3. Ishikawa Goemon. This representative of the shinobi profession was the first to reveal the secret - that you can spit on your masters and, possessing such and such art (he was a student of Hattori Hanzo himself!), it’s not bad to live by banal theft. Any daring theft at the kampaku court of Toyotomi Hideyoshi was declared to be Goemon's doing. Like many other Robinhoods, Ishikawa stole from the rich and did not give to the poor, but folk legends did it for him anyway. However, the Nippon people are a people with a special “ment-ali-tet”, and when Goemon was caught and executed by boiling in a vat of boiling oil, they immediately began to call the heated bath “Goemon-buro”...

4. Hattori Hanzo. If shinobi had their own kings, Hanzo would be the greatest. And not because he jumped the furthest, ran the fastest, or shot the most accurately (although he knew how to do all this quite well). No, his instrument was his head, and his sphere of activity was organizational work. Hanzo headed the secret service of the daimyo Tokugawa Ieyasu, who became shogun and ended the Sengoku Jodai period, and until his death he sent his charges to various places to collect all sorts of interesting information. As a result, he himself became a noble daimyo and founded an entire dynasty of “ninja generals.”

5. Sanada Yukimura. Sanada (who bore the name Nobushige during his lifetime - the name Yukimura was “assigned” to him by the authors of 19th-century novels) was a vassal of the Takeda house and was considered the most dexterous, cunning and skillful tactician and strategist in all of Nippon of his time. And he himself was a good warrior, who assembled the first elite special forces detachment in the history of Nippon - the “10 Braves of Sanada,” which included the famous shinobi warriors Sarutobi Sasuke and Kirigakure Saizo. True, unlike Hanzo, he served the “wrong” house, which is why he died during the defense of Osaka Castle from the Tokugawa hordes.

6. Sarutobi Sasuke. The most famous of the "10 Braves of Sanada", a shinobi warrior who has become a favorite character in folklore and various "pulp fiction literature about ninjas hiding in the darkness of the night." In which capacity he still successfully jumps into all sorts of anime and dramas (including Naruto), portraying the “ghost on the wings” and other fairy tales about ninjas. Actually, his nickname "Sarutobi" means "Jumping Monkey".

7. Kirigakure Saizo. Shinobi warrior, placed by "folk songs" in the same top squad of "10 Braves of Sanada". His image arose in popular adventure literature from a phrase in chronicles that a certain shinobi Kirigakure Saizo tried to kill Toyotomi Hideyoshi himself. Which is enough for the writers of manga, dramas and anime - Saizo jumps on them, sometimes together with Sasuke, sometimes against him, it’s like the script writer’s imagination will start working in the morning...

8. Fuma Kotaro. The specialty of this shinobi was raids, sabotage and banditry, and the detachment he led was called "rappa" ("saboteurs"). This special unit consisted of former pirates (wako) and robbers and served as the daimyo of Go-Hojo. The Rappa became famous for their night raid on the Takeda troops, when, disguised as samurai of this clan, they disrupted a major military operation with their attack. And when the Go-Hojo clan submitted to Toyotomi Hideyoshi, Fuma Kotaro returned to the “old craft” - piracy, and so annoyed the government with his exploits that Hattori Hanzo himself was sent to capture him. Captured by reward-hungry “comrades-in-arms,” the rappa commander ended his life on the chopping block.

9. Natori Masatake, aka Fujibayashi Masatake. This man “gave in” all the secrets of professional shinobi, writing in 1681 (or 1682) training manual"Shonin-ki" - "The Book of the Young Ninja", teaching the secrets of this difficult craft. Actually, it is mainly from this work that grateful, but overly fantasizing descendants draw all the information about the ways in which shinobi (and most often ninja) sneaked in the darkness of the night...

10. Nezumi Kozo. The “nugget of the people”, who had never learned anywhere “the art of being invisible” (literal translation from the Nippon word “ninjutsu”), proved that you can achieve everything in life with your own mind. His real name was Nakamura Jirokichi (and Nezumi Kozo was his nickname, literally “Messenger Rat”), and he became famous for 32 thefts from the estates of the most respected samurai in Edo. When he was caught, they found nothing at all on him, and people immediately made up stories about how the “noble swindler” distributed the loot to the poor. Therefore, the stone from his grave was broken and taken away for souvenirs, so that a new slab had to be placed on the grave.

But what if all this is completely untrue? What if the modern image of ancient ninjas was based entirely on 20th century comic books and fantasy literature?

25. Ninjas weren't called "ninjas"

According to documents, ideograms for this word in the medieval period were correctly read as "sinobi no mono". The very word “ninja”, which means the same ideograms pronounced in Chinese reading, became popular already in the 20th century.

22. Historical records

There are negligible records of ninjas from the war period, and it was only after peace came in the 1600s that some ninjas began writing manuals about their skills.

The most famous of them is the manual on the martial art of ninjutsu, which was a kind of ninja bible and was called “Bansenshukai”. It was written in 1676.

There are approximately 400-500 ninja manuals throughout Japan, many of which are still kept secret.

21. The enemies of the samurai were not ninjas

In popular media, ninjas and samurai are often depicted as enemies. In fact, the term "ninja" often refers to warriors of any class in the samurai army, and the ninja themselves were something like special forces when compared to the modern army. Many samurai were trained in ninjutsu, a complex art mastered by ninjas, and their masters kept them close to them.

20. Ninjas weren't peasants

In popular media, ninjas are also portrayed as members of the peasant class. In fact, representatives of any class - both lower and upper class - could become ninjas.

It was only after 1600, when peace reigned in Japan, that the official position of ninja within the clan was demoted from samurai to a new social class called "doshin" - a low-ranking samurai, "half-samurai". As time went on, ninjas became increasingly lower in status, but they still held a higher social position than most peasants.

19. Ninjutsu is not a form of hand-to-hand combat

It is widely believed that ninjutsu is a type of hand-to-hand combat, a set of martial arts that is still taught all over the world.

To date, not a single mention of such a form of martial art has been found in ancient manuscripts.

18. "Ninja Stars"

Throwing "ninja stars" have virtually no historical connection with ninjas. Shurikens (this is the name given to these concealed throwing weapons, made in the form of various objects: stars, coins, etc.) were a secret weapon in many samurai schools, and only in the 20th century they began to be associated with ninjas thanks to comics, films and anime.

17. Ninja mask

"You'll never see a ninja without a mask." In fact, there is not a single mention of ninjas wearing masks. Surprisingly, according to the ancient ninja manuals, they did not wear masks. When the enemy was close, they had to cover their faces with their long sleeves, and when the ninja worked in groups, they wore white headbands so that they could see each other in the moonlight.

16. Ninja costume

The popular image of a ninja cannot be imagined without the iconic costume. This is a misnomer, since the ninja "suit" seems to be a uniform only for residents of Western countries. It's actually just traditional Japanese clothing along with a mask.

14. Ninja-to, or ninja sword

The famous "ninja-to" or traditional ninja sword is a straight-bladed sword with a square tsuba (guard). Modern ninjas most often have a straight blade, but the original swords were slightly curved.

13. Secret ninja gestures

Ninjas are known for their secret hand gestures. This special hand position technique called "kuji-kiri" has no real connection with the ninja.

In fact, it is a series of gestures that was used in meditation, during rituals and in Japanese martial arts. Again, they began to associate kuji-kiri with ninjas only in the 20th century.

12. Ninjas didn't use smoke bombs

The image of a ninja using a smoke bomb is a very common one. However, while completely erroneous, it is misleading.

11. Nobody knew who ninjas really were

This is a half-truth. Ninjas were divided into yang ninjas, who could be seen, and yin ninjas, invisible ninjas whose identity was always kept secret.

Interestingly, among the skills and abilities of the ninja, there did exist a certain amount of ritual magic: from magical hairpins that make them invisible, to sacrificing a dog to receive God's help. However, ordinary samurai skills also contained elements of magic. This was common practice at that time.

9. Ninjas weren't killers

This is more of a semantic argument. Simply put, ninjas were not taught the art of killing from a very young age so that they could be hired by other clans.

He is believed to have written or inherited one of the oldest ninja manuscripts in existence.

7. Most of the false claims about ninjas appeared in the 20th century.

The era of the ninja ended at the end of the 19th century, when Japan embarked on the path of modernization. Although speculation and fantasies about ninjas existed even during the time of the ninja, the first big boom in the popularity of ninjas in Japan began in the very early 1900s, when not much was known about historical spies and intelligence officers.

6. The Scientific Study of Ninjas

The subject of ninjas was a laughing stock in Japanese academic circles, and for decades the study of their techniques and teachings was frowned upon as fanciful fantasy.

Only over the last 2-3 years have serious research begun in Japan. Associate Professor Yuji Yamada leads a team of scientists at Mie Universit conducting research on ninjas.

For example, “Fox Mastery” or “Invisible Cloak Skill” were passed down from generation to generation without proper training, so over time their true meanings were lost, but they were never encrypted.

4. If the ninja fails the mission, he will commit suicide

In fact, this is just a Hollywood myth. There is no evidence that mission failure leads to suicide.

In fact, some manuals teach that it is better to fail a mission than to rush through it and create problems. It is better to wait for another, more suitable opportunity.

There is historical evidence that ninja could kill themselves and burn themselves alive if captured by the enemy - in order to hide their identity.

3. Superhuman strength

Ninjas are believed to have much greater physical strength than regular warriors, but in reality there were only a certain number of ninjas who trained and trained as special forces.
Many ninja led double lives, pretending to be ordinary residents in enemy provinces: they went about their daily routine, traded or traveled, which contributed to the spread of “necessary” rumors about them.

Ninjas had to be resistant to disease, have high intelligence, be able to talk quickly, and have a stupid appearance (because people ignore those who look stupid).

Fun fact: One ninja retired due to back pain.

2. Ninja no longer exists

In Japan there are people who call themselves school masters, whose origins go back to the times of the samurai. This issue is very controversial and sensitive. To date, all those who call themselves real ninjas have not provided any evidence to convince them that they are right.

This means that there are no real ninjas left. Although the world is still waiting for proof...

With the advent of historical ninja manuals now being published in English, a more realistic and unexpected image of them is emerging. Ninjas can now be seen as part of the samurai war machine, each with a specific set of skills and abilities, trained in areas such as espionage, covert operations, lone behind enemy lines, surveillance, explosives and demolition specialists, and psychological specialists.

This new and improved take on the Japanese ninja commands greater respect for the depth and complexity of samurai warfare.

The fundamental mistake of adherents, researchers and historians of ninjutsu today is that the ancient phenomenon is considered as a type of martial art. This is completely false, because in themselves military equipment were only a small part in an extensive training program for spies, while much more attention was paid to the issues of camouflage and covert movement, methods of entering houses and castles, methods of breaking, digging and jumping, swimming and running, the ability to remain motionless for hours in the most unimaginable position (for example, hanging on a branch ), and many other skills.

In addition to pure “physics,” mental aspects were also thoroughly studied - hypnosis and self-hypnosis, the ability to memorize colossal amounts of information, methods of concentrating attention, heightening the senses, mobilizing energy, and so on. As follows from their other name - shinobi (sneakers), the practice of night werewolves was built primarily on the observance of absolute stealth, noiselessness and facelessness.

Therefore, a very beautiful story by Victor Popenko on the pages of his book "Ancient Weapons of the East" about how ninjas, proud of their profession, painted their sword blades in different bright colors for greater glory (and the color corresponded to one or another specific school), makes one imagine Standartenführer Stirlitz with a full set of Soviet orders and medals, right down to the badge of graduation from the Red Army Academy. It is impossible to agree with such fictions, if we take into account the custom of spies even to disfigure their faces if caught, in order to deprive the enemy of the possibility of any identification. At the same time, it is strange to have with you a blade on which, so to speak, “in blue and white” it is written about involvement in Kotto-ryu. If we also take into account that another indicator of the reliability of such information is the author’s statement about chrome-plating blades (in the 17th century!) to shoot bunnies into the eyes of the enemy, then you shouldn’t take all this seriously at all.

The most that ninjas could do with their weapons was smoking them in the flame of a candle or fire to destroy them. the slightest possibility light glare, each of which could lead to detection, death and, what is incomparably more important, to the failure of the entire operation. To date, the first and so far the only reliable work on the history of espionage in Japan has been published in our country - these are two books by Alexei Gorbylev: "Path of the Invisible" and "Claws of the Invisible". Only in it will those interested in the real picture of the emergence and development of ninjutsu find answers to almost all questions.

We are interested in cunning weasels only insofar as all their incredible skill and fantastic deeds directly depended on the ability to handle a diverse arsenal of special devices, from the simplest to the very complex and ingenious.

Today, from light hand writers and screenwriters, the general public had the impression that ninjas did nothing but kill left and right, and exclusively with the help of swords, sickles and shuriken. Meanwhile, this ominous image has about the same relation to the real practice of ninjas as the brilliant James Bond has to the activities of real British intelligence. As noted above, a true shinobi was primarily a master of stealth, infiltration and abduction, and not at all in hand-to-hand combat. Nowadays, from this point of view, an experienced burglar or pickpocket has a much greater right to identify himself with a ninja than all those members of clubs and sections who dress in black clothes, throw “stars” and swing straight swords of Taiwanese manufacture, not being able to even snatch a passerby's wallet. I do not glorify or justify theft, but the fact remains - a good ninja is first and foremost a good rogue.

A huge number of fascinating stories tell us about the tests of skill that their employers or teachers inflicted on spies. Almost all such tasks were sophisticated thefts of objects (a sword, a scroll, a pillow from under the head) from an owner who had been warned in advance and was prepared to rebuff. Even when it came to military exploits in the enemy's disposition, the clash of steel was always preceded by unnoticed penetration into carefully guarded territory.

One ninja - one weapon

The selection was carried out in full accordance with the theme of the work aids, and each item could simultaneously serve multiple purposes, and weapons in pure form almost never used - even the notorious shinobi-ken with a square tsuba represented a whole arsenal, providing tasks that were very far from each other. “The Invisible Man” simply could not afford to be hung with a pile of heavy, bulky equipment, like Arnold Schwarzenegger in the movie “Commando,” so compactness and versatility were the first and decisive criteria in the selection of equipment. Even when the employer longed for the death of his opponent, the matter was most often done without sickles and swords. A true master of his dark craft, as historical documents testify, he used incredible tricks and inventions - again with the goal of stealth and 100% effectiveness of the action.

After all, the target was, as a rule, not an ordinary warrior, but a commander, a prince, that is, an always extraordinary person, experienced in all the subtleties of battles, and, moreover, carefully guarded. Such a person had developed intuition and the famous goku-i (“sixth sense”). Everyone is well aware of the textbook episode with (presumably) Yagyu Munenori and his servant (student?), when the sleeping master instantly caught the thought that flashed through him about his defenselessness, and the next second he was already standing with a sword in his hands. Therefore, it was very difficult to simply hack or stab the intended victim - most likely, he would have sensed the enemy in advance, no matter what the famous Eric Lustbader wrote about the ninja’s skill in hiding the emanations of his brain in the series about the adventures of the tanjian Nicholas Linner. In addition, one should not attribute absolute perfection in absolutely all types of martial arts to night passes. A generalist will always lose to a specialist in his favorite field, and the average samurai was certainly superior to the average spy in the technique of sword and spear. You should not focus on outstanding representatives of the profession from either side. In any business there are unique ones, and we are not talking about them.

Ninja sword

Just as today a normal intelligence officer in a foreign country does not sneak through the dark streets with a pistol in his hand, so three hundred years ago ninjas preferred to do without a sword until the very last limit, when security or pursuit fell upon him. And usually the result of such a fight was a foregone conclusion. Some advantage was the use of unconventional, little-known fighting techniques, attacks from unexpected angles, an abundance of acrobatic elements, and so on. All this brought victory in a quick skirmish, but only if there was a factor of surprise. In those cases when the scoundrel was forced to grapple openly, using his shorter and lighter sword, the result, I repeat, was known in advance. In addition, the wonderful blades of samurai katanas and tachis most often surpassed spy weapons in their characteristics. This is easily explained, since the samurai sword was made for a long time and for centuries, often being a family treasure.

The ninja sword (in those cases when he preferred a “special product”) was just a working tool, one of many and far from the main one, which he didn’t mind throwing away if something happened. This does not mean that the blade was extremely bad. It fully provided the range of its tasks, but did not possess any outstanding properties. Of course, again, there is no need to talk about exceptions. And by the way, only movie ninjas are everywhere equipped with their straight sword, which is constantly attached to their back. In reality there is none historical evidence the existence of direct spy swords - no records, no surviving copies. Real spies most often used the most ordinary samurai blades, and wore them, as expected, on the side.

Strictly speaking, there was no clear boundary between samurai and ninja, since samurai were a class, and ninja were a profession, and nothing other than the Bushido code prevented a poor servant from making a living in the field of espionage and contract killings. Most famous ninja clans are samurai.

Many samurai actually devoted themselves to the “yin craft,” and the famous schools of bujutsu had their roots in monastic fighting techniques, which also gave rise to excellent espionage systems. The ninjas themselves also did not reinvent the wheel, adopting in full the excellent, time-tested methods of samurai training.

Taking into account all of the above, it can be argued that in normal working conditions, our crafty people preferred quiet and incomparably more effective tools - poisoned needles, throwing objects, poisonous fumes, powders, liquids and other devilish things - to the sword and chopping. How about Vladimir Vysotsky:

He was a good fellow

Got the witch grandmother drunk

He accomplished a feat of arms -

The house burned down!

Ninja is a modern spy

Truly a spy action! It is not for nothing that the ninjas were the first to appreciate and use all the advantages of gunpowder in business, and in general tried to stay on top scientific and technological progress those years, turning any invention to their advantage. That is why the range of their available means was extremely wide, although it was not weapons that dominated it, but means of penetration and camouflage, eavesdropping and delivering information, overcoming obstacles, and the like. All those who are interested in specific descriptions and illustrations of spy equipment can turn to numerous publications on this fertile topic - from brochures of home-grown experts to the mentioned two-volume work by A. Gorbylev.

I deliberately do not want to touch here on the frankly infernal techniques of psycho-energetic training of “invisibles,” since this is certainly in no way included in the topic of our conversation. All their favorite cinematic “fingers” and black magic fit perfectly into the familiar lines of the same Vysotsky:

They drank the potion in the turtles, ate the broths,

They danced on the coffins, blasphemers...

Ninja must improvise

It is much more remarkable that ninjas were outstanding masters of improvisation, real professors in the use of any auxiliary objects, since the changing kaleidoscope of emergency situations required lightning-fast decisions and precise actions. Whatever gets into experienced hands, could turn into a weapon, a master key, or anything else. No matter how extensive the list of wearable equipment is, it is impossible to provide for everything.

Unexpected factors could always appear, forcing us to invent and construct something new on the fly from existing or found nearby. It is difficult to imagine a spy going out on a mission empty-handed. Reconnaissance and sabotage always involve working with certain objects, the skill of handling which directly determines the success or failure of the business, and this is where ninjutsu and kobudo meet.