Monday, April 22, 2013

Special forces: Ancient to Modern

This week were gonna cover the next special forces group not in Europe, but in Japan. The ninjas were a highly secretive group of individuals that evolved during the feudal ages of medieval Japan when ruthless warlords roamed the country sides with large armies each seeking to destroy his enemy and gain power. Contrary to poplar belief, ninjas were not the samurai's mortal enemy, in fact several samurai were secretly ninjas. In reality, ninjas were worked as mercenaries and sell-swords for the highest bidder while dually striving to further the goals and ambitions of their own clans. In feudal Japan this was important because Japanese culture was centered around samurai who were extremely overt and pompous in their battles and military displays while following a strict code of honor that made them incapable of doing "evil" instead to get around this they would hire a ninja to poison a rival, sneak into his castle and open the gates or do any other manner of secretive things whisper the samurai code wrote off as despicable, and dishonorable. to this day their irradicable, but mysterious history is only beginning to be revealed and sheds some light on the mystique of the ninja.

The Training of a ninja to this day is not fully documented, but we have enough evidence to prove that it was extremely difficult especially in today's world of combat training. Rigorous physical exercises that strengthened the entire body involved running for hours at a time, climbing mountains bare handed with near vertical inclines, Martial arts was the core of their training learning everything from lethal hand to hand combat, to the naginata, the sword, spear, sickle and all manners of lethal weaponry. They were trained to walk in complete silence and spend hours meditating in order to clam their minds in preparation for a mission. Spying was one of their key uses so their sense ps were heightened as well. From birth to about 18-20 they were trained as spies and assassins so by the time they reached those ages they were lethal killing machines being brought up In a society of assassins. Most of their history has been erased from record or simply jot recorded which is good for them, bad for us because although most historians believe ninjas were behind major power upheavals in Japan, we have no proof because they were simply too good at what they did.

Here is a list however Of The specialities in which ninjas would branch off and train at after receiving their standard training:
Angou: Signaling
Bajutsu: Horsemanship art
Bōjutsu: Staff art
Boryaku: Military strategy
Chimon: Geography
Choho: Espionage
Gokui atemi sakkatsuho zukai: Secret killing strikes art
Goton-no-jutsu: Five elements escape methods
Hensōjutsu: Camouflage art
Hichojutsu: Jumping art
Hojōjutsu: Rope tying art
Hojutsu: Gunpowder and fire art
Kusarigamajutsu: Kusarigama art
Kyushojutsu: Vital points art
Iaijutsu: Sword drawing art
Intonjutsu: Escaping and concealment art
Jōjutsu: Short staff art
Jouhou kaishuu: Information gathering
Karumijutsu: Body lightening art
Kenjutsu: Sword art
Kukushi bukijutsu: Hidden weapons art
Kyuba: Mounted archery
Kyujutsu: Archery art
Naginatajutsu: Naginata art
Shinobi-iri: Stealth and entering methods art
Seishinteki kyōyō: Spiritual refinement
Shurikenjutsu: Throwing weapon art
Sojutsu: Spear art
Suijutsu: Swimming art
Suirenjutsu: Water survival art
Taihenjutsu: Body moving art
Taijutsu: Body fighting art
Tenmon: Meteorology
Zanshin: Clear mental awareness
taijutsu unarmed combat

Most trained and specialized in about 3-4 of these making them highly useful and expensive agents of destruction although more myth than truth surrounds the ninjas, we can still safely assume that they are among the most elite group of assassins and warriors to ever come into history.

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