Why Ninjutsu?

[Doneal7]

It seems to me that people have set aside Ninjutsu as the "Ultimate Martial Art" in various forums it has recieved the highest votes and has had the general consensus as the best.

It isn't totally taken to pieces like TKD, it isn't as seemingly and I said seemingly weak as Aikido. It recieves no criticism and is often treated with a bit of awe by everyone.

What sets Ninjutsu out from other martial arts for you? I haven't seen much, but it seems a little bit like, Aikido or Judo mixed with some fancy sword stuff.



If you could explain what sets this martial art from all the rest and maybe post a video of some sparring or training that'd be great.

Or if you stand on the opposite end and say that this is a non-applicable martial art that will end with you dying if you tried it in a certain street scenario, why and what is in your opinion the better art.

Or even if you stand on the neutral side, why does this martial art have the mystique it has and the supposed (and this is a joke) power of a ninja.

Or any other thing for that matter, as long as it is Ninjutsu related.

[Chapel]

I think that, on some level, every martial artist who has been training for 10 years or fewer at one point was really interested in ninja movies where ninjas are the nigh invincible demon assassins of the night. Most martial artists mature past this stage, but plenty of people in general don't manage to move on. It gets further fueled by the fact that the general romanticizing and secrecy surrounding the art makes it much less out in the open.

TKD on the other hand gets ripped to shreds by the common person because everyone knows someone who knows someone who bought their black belt.

If there were more schools out there for Ninjitsu, people would simply be less interested in it because it would be less unique.

[JackG]

chapels right as normal, its the mystery they allure to the people whom read about it the idea of being a "ninja" seems attractive, people who vote on those polls and talk the forums often have just seen films of ninjas and think thats is ninjitsu which is wrong because if jet li's wushu was as effetive as it is in the films we wold all be doing it!

[Doneal7]

So people do Ninjutsu because of the media... never saw it that way.

[Shinobi_Kokujin]

people do ninjutsu for various reasons. in the ninjutsu world, its split up into different camps. these are examples but not limited to this

you have the LARPers who do it to fill Naruto-esque fantasies

some do it as just a Hobby

some train seriously

media isnt the sole influence. but it does have a very large influence.

[sannin227]

Originally Posted by Hajilee

It seems to me that people have set aside Ninjutsu as the "Ultimate Martial Art" in various forums it has recieved the highest votes and has had the general consensus as the best.

It isn't totally taken to pieces like TKD, it isn't as seemingly and I said seemingly weak as Aikido. It recieves no criticism and is often treated with a bit of awe by everyone.

What sets Ninjutsu out from other martial arts for you? I haven't seen much, but it seems a little bit like, Aikido or Judo mixed with some fancy sword stuff.



If you could explain what sets this martial art from all the rest and maybe post a video of some sparring or training that'd be great.

Or if you stand on the opposite end and say that this is a non-applicable martial art that will end with you dying if you tried it in a certain street scenario, why and what is in your opinion the better art.

Or even if you stand on the neutral side, why does this martial art have the mystique it has and the supposed (and this is a joke) power of a ninja.

Or any other thing for that matter, as long as it is Ninjutsu related.

As previously stated, there are many factors that cause the general public view of ninjutsu as being "The Ultimate martial". There is the use in media (tv, movies, anime, comics, books, video games) that makes the "ninjas" seem like the most powerful people in the world. Some are trying to fill some childhood fantasy.

I think those are just minor reasons compared to the underlying cause, people dont see "ninjutsu", they see "ninjas". They then connect one to the other. In other words, they dont see just the martial aspect of the art, they see the smoke bombs, the running on walls, they see the throwing knives. Though when people see other martial arts they only see the breaking bones martial aspect. People dont see Bruce Lee throwing a tiny round knife 200 feet and killing someone. Ninjutsu seems like more than a martial art to people, it seems like a way to become invincible.
Also, you may want to see another thread on the aspects of being a ninja (even though ninja is a western-made word)

http://www.martial-forums.com/forums...tsu-guide.html

Originally Posted by Shinobi_Kokujin

people do ninjutsu for various reasons. in the ninjutsu world, its split up into different camps. these are examples but not limited to this

you have the LARPers who do it to fill Naruto-esque fantasies

some do it as just a Hobby

some train seriously

media isnt the sole influence. but it does have a very large influence.

Could you explain what "LARPer" means, because that may relate to me lol.

[Shinobi_Kokujin]

LARP= live action role playing. it originated from the dungeons an dragons type crowd

and expands into things like....civil war re-enactments which could be an example of military/ historical larp.

or dressing up in fatigues while playing gi-joe in the woods with paintball and airsoft.

nothing really wrong with Larping but it can lead to fraudulence an self destructiveness

in the case of martial arts. some ninjutsu people have larp tendencies regarding thier agendas for training.

[sannin227]

Originally Posted by Shinobi_Kokujin

LARP= live action role playing. it originated from the dungeons an dragons type crowd

and expands into things like....civil war re-enactments which could be an example of military/ historical larp.

or dressing up in fatigues while playing gi-joe in the woods with paintball and airsoft.

nothing really wrong with Larping but it can lead to fraudulence an self destructiveness

in the case of martial arts. some ninjutsu people have larp tendencies regarding thier agendas for training.

Then nvm lol, has nothing to do with me.

[Militis]

IMHO, Ninjutsu is considered the ultimate, because it is the most devoted to what "martial arts" even is. As far as I know, Ninjutsu hasn't become a sport, and is still practiced for the same reason it was when it was created. To fight, and kill. The ninja of today don't have the same motives as the ones centuries ago, but the art and its techniques, are all swift and violent, meant for a quick and silent kill. I thought my art was violent, until many of my instructors were talking about ninjutsu. They said that when doing a technique, if you screwed up, the master would whack you in the head with his bokken. It was a quick way to teach the student, that they did not want to be hit with a sword, and the student started paying much more attention after this had happened. Anyways, the ninja had to do their work under the hardest conditions. Unlike the samurai, the ninja were usually poor farming families, and they learned defense with what would seem the most impractical weapons.

I agree that movies and legends have had their toll, and that is part of it. But I think it is more about how real of a martial art ninjutsu is.

[Shinobi_Kokujin]

the motives of today still remain about the same as centuries before like developing and honing mind, body,spirit as with any other art.

techniques range in different areas from swift an violent to soft an fluid or subtle. ninjutsu is comprised of different arts that focus on specific aspects of fighting

the curriculum is broken up into different schools or ryuha that focus on specific aspects of fighting. Togakure-ryu for example

is a part of ninjutsu whose purpose is to disable an take down an oponent so that you can make a quick escape. this is part of where the myth came from

"master, i apologize for my incompetence...but one minute he was in front of me, then the next moment he...disappeared"

some ninja came from poor families. some came from noble, merchant or other family classes.

some were employed in positions where thier sole purpose was to be undercover an thier kills would be mostly assassination

while you would have some ninja who were right there on the battle fields dressed up in armor fighting alongside thier comrades an thats all they did.....depends on what mission was assigned

all these different aspects of combat are compounded today by schools such as Bujinkan, Genbukan, Jinenkan, Toshindo,Otomo Kouga, Fuma-ryu, etc.

[sannin227]

Originally Posted by Shinobi_Kokujin

the motives of today still remain about the same as centuries before like developing and honing mind, body,spirit as with any other art.

techniques range in different areas from swift an violent to soft an fluid or subtle. ninjutsu is comprised of different arts that focus on specific aspects of fighting

the curriculum is broken up into different schools or ryuha that focus on specific aspects of fighting. Togakure-ryu for example

is a part of ninjutsu whose purpose is to disable an take down an oponent so that you can make a quick escape. this is part of where the myth came from

"master, i apologize for my incompetence...but one minute he was in front of me, then the next moment he...disappeared"

some ninja came from poor families. some came from noble, merchant or other family classes.

some were employed in positions where thier sole purpose was to be undercover an thier kills would be mostly assassination

while you would have some ninja who were right there on the battle fields dressed up in armor fighting alongside thier comrades an thats all they did.....depends on what mission was assigned

all these different aspects of combat are compounded today by schools such as Bujinkan, Genbukan, Jinenkan, Toshindo,Otomo Kouga, Fuma-ryu, etc.

Yes, but most people dont know anything about ninjutsu except for what they see in the movies, so that stuff isnt really much of a factor.

[Shinobi_Kokujin]

Originally Posted by sannin227

Yes, but most people dont know anything about ninjutsu except for what they see in the movies, so that stuff isnt really much of a factor.

i guess. most people feel the same way about styles like kung fu also

that its the ultimate martial art an that every other art came from kung fu based on what they see in movies.

[sannin227]

Originally Posted by Shinobi_Kokujin

i guess. most people feel the same way about styles like kung fu also

that its the ultimate martial art an that every other art came from kung fu based on what they see in movies.

Exactly, they assume that it was the original just because it is so old, they then connect that and assume it is the best.

[Chapel]

Something I should explain about my previous post.

Seeing ninja movies it what drives a lot of people to start martial arts, not just Ninjitsu. If they don't do Ninjitsu, there might be a left over feeling of "I wish I could do Ninjitsu," which in a dedicated artist eventually fades away as he/she learns the importance of the art he/she did take. For those who are able to learn Ninjitsu, even in the original and traditional sense, they soon learn that Ninjitsu is not just about "flipping out and killing people."

[sannin227]

Originally Posted by Chapel

Something I should explain about my previous post.

Seeing ninja movies it what drives a lot of people to start martial arts, not just Ninjitsu. If they don't do Ninjitsu, there might be a left over feeling of "I wish I could do Ninjitsu," which in a dedicated artist eventually fades away as he/she learns the importance of the art he/she did take. For those who are able to learn Ninjitsu, even in the original and traditional sense, they soon learn that Ninjitsu is not just about "flipping out and killing people."

That is sort of what i am saying, im saying people see ninjas on screen then learn "ninjas" practice ninjitsu, and immediately think ninjitsu is as amazing as it is shown on the screen...