History: Ninjutsu

Himeji Castle, Hyogo Japan

   No one actually exactly knows about the true origin of Ninjutsu. There are several stories and folklores. Some say that Ninjutsu was taught to humans by a creature half human, half crow or goat like. Others relate similar stories. It is an art more than thousand years old to which very few written records exist; most of the art is transmitted orally. Then several things are lost and added through every transmission. Thus it's difficult to sail exactly over the true history of Ninja and Ninjutsu. The only way is to discover from whatever record exists. For this purpose, I will relate from several shinobi traditions here:

   Iga Traditions say:
            "In the Age of Gods, Susanō no Mikoto Arashi no Kami turned Kushinada-hime and put her into his hair to protect her from Yamata no Orochi, who was an eight headed giant serpent. Then He drunken Orochi by offering him Sake. After it went asleep, he then killed him. This was the origin of our shinobi no jutsu".
       I about this say that it's completely based upon myths from shinto Bhuddism, only to prove that their family tradition is something very old and of divine origin.

   Koka Traditions say that their family tradition too has originated from the Age of Gods but with a different story:
            "Takamimusuhi turned a nameless peasant into a bird to investigate the matters on Earth. This was the origin of the Shinobi".
       Both Traditions compete with each other to prove their way more divine and older tradition. However both are myths based on partial reality.

   Fujibayashi Masatake of Kishu-ryu, author of the Shoninki, one of the three great treasures about the knowledge of Shinobi-no-jutsu has to say:
            "Shinobi have existed in land of Nihon (Japan) since ancient times but their existence noticed at these following points: the Genpei War (1180-1185), a conflict that occurred between the Heishi and Genji clans that resulted in the Heike clan’s defeat and the establishment of the Kamakura shogunate, when Minamoto no Kurō Yoshitsune picked up and utilized brave men like Ise no Saburō Yoshimori and also in the Kenmu Period, Kusunoki Masashige used shinobi several times.
              Later generations, Hojo Ujiyasu employed a nusubito (generally means a theif but was name given to shinobi) named Kazama by giving him land rights, sent him along with his associates to investigate the situation in various places and provinces around. Later, the people of Koga, next to Iga adopted this path of ninjutsu...".
       About this, there are other records exist and thus it's a great evidence to the use of shinobi by generals and that Shinobi had existed more than thousands years before. This also indicates that Koka Tradition is the true tradition and Iga may have learned from them.

   Fujibayashi Yasutake, author of Bansenshukai, relates ninjutsu to the history of China and answers:
            "Originally the art of war, including ninjutsu, appeared in the period of Emperor Fu Xi (some 2700 years B.C) and afterwards became more prosperous in the period of the Yellow Emperor (. ... Even though it existed in the periods of Fu Xi and the Yellow Emperor, there is no mention of it as ninjutsu, directly in any written documents. Only its essence was there. In this manner you can find it in some ancient writings."
       This is also true since the art of spying is very old and teachings of ninjutsu had indeed come from China to Japan; other traditions agree on this. Though it is just one aspect of ninjutsu that is found this old; others came later.

   The famous Devil, Hattori Hanzō, in his book Shinobihiden/Ninpiden says:
            "The shinobi were founded in the period of the Emperor Gao (ruled 202-195 B.C) of the Han dynasty of ancient China. At that time, both the arts of war and the shinobi were initiated, and the shinobi were called kan. In the Zuo Zhuan period,  they were called chō, and after that, ryosaku".
       There were periods to the development of different aspects of ninjutsu and every tradition had a different perception of ninjutsu thus there are differences between dates as each tradition looks to a different period as the true start. To me, the true start occurred in the period when Sun Tzu, lived some 500 B.C, wrote his Bingfa (Art of War) or somewhat before it, as he actively talks about the Five Types of Spies in the last chapter of his book.

   The Togakure-ryu shares an interesting story. It also relates the origin of Ninjutsu to China:
            It goes that somewhere in the south-eastern region of China, a group of 5-6 Taoist monks dedicated themselves to the practice of attaining oneness with the Great Principle (Mikkyō). They were able to achieve greater skills. They had disconnected themselves from the outer world and practiced in secrecy in the forest mountains and setup barriers so no one could disturb them. Further several rumors were spread among people. Close to the mountains were plains and a village existed at some distance.
            One day a farmer working in the near fields got injured by tool of a fellow man or poisoned by a snake. The village was a bit far and his condition was worsening. Thus the fellows decided to take him to the place where the ascetics were supposedly living so if they could find any help. They were initially reluctant because of many fearful stories they had heard but it couldn't be helped. They went and through many difficulties, reached a place where they found a hut, inside was one of the mystic who agreed to help them, looking at the condition of the wounded. He quickly prepared a medicine for him from some herbs around and healed him in an instant. The farmers were greatly moved by the healing abilities of the mystic and also the patience he offered which was very unlike what they had heard of.
            They went back to the village and told others about the event. The priestess of the nearby village felt jealous of the increasing popularity of the mystics and spread several more stories about the mystics but still failed. She started giving life threats to the mystics to leave the place but since they had built a stronger connection to the place and it was ideal for their purpose, they refused. Thinking her position is in danger as people will look to mystics for spiritual help and understanding, she contacted the nearby warlord whom she had good relations with and persuaded him that if mystics' popularity go on increasing, his own control over the region may be in danger so he must sent an army to neutralize it. He ignored but upon continuous persuading of the priestess and hearing stories from more people around, agreed to sent an army of three thousand to invade the village and eliminate the ascetics of the mountain. One of the villager who worked for him heard this and sent the word to the village. Some villagers quickly went to the mystics to let them know about this, who were surprisingly already knowing of the coming threat. They devised a wise strategy and told them to stay patient until the army arrives close, thinking if matters may settle otherwise but once the army arrived, they understood that fate is decided.
           Most of the villagers refused to side with the mystics upon seeing such a huge army and only about two hundred were brave enough to decide otherwise. They received the training from the mountain mystics, who had become very enlightened through their practices, and (villagers) were also able to steal some armour from the army, by following guidelines from the mystics.
           Some two hundred common villagers fighting with few armor and common tools, along with mystics whose number had grown up to 25 by now, as other monks from around too had joined in their practice, had to fight an army of three thousand. Upon conflict which happened outside the village, one third of the army was instantly wiped out by the fighting villagers. Much other ran away upon realizing that they must be fighting against inhuman forces. The remaining of the soldiers were able to resist and get close to the village, to which the villagers residing at homes came to defend against, as they had got motivated by the bravery and great work of the fighting. The end result was that the Army was defeated, almost all of the fighting villagers got killed and only 8 of the mystics remained.
           The mystics remained went to several parts of China carrying with them the teachings out of enlightenment and experience they had earned. These were the teachings that later became the base of shugendo and their practitioners came to be know as Yamabushi -Mountain Warriors.
            Centuries later, a samurai prince lost his battle but instead of committing seppuku, escaped the battle field to the forests of Iga. He started living there. One day when in search for water or fish, he came to meet a mountain ascetic there who said that there meeting was destined. He introduced and taught him the practices of ninjutsu that changed his life. He went back to teach others which gave birth to Togakure-ryu Ninpō. The man was named Daisuke Nishina while the monk was Kain Doshi. end.
   I say, this is true since these were the warriors used in Genpei War by Minamoto Clan, which helped them change the tide of battle and lead them to a great win over their adversaries, thus giving birth to Kamakura Shogunate. The event of Daisuke Nishina happened in such a time too.


   This is the history I have explained through different traditions of the Ninja. Now it's upto the reader to decide which one is better based upon his own knowledge and sense of reasoning. The main purpose of explaining this History is to let the reader understand the true purpose of Ninja and the True Way of Ninjutsu. If you need to ask anything or add something, you can write it in comments section.