The publication of my book on Survival Weapons gives me the excuse to diversify a bit more on this blog, as some readers have requested.
Today's post nicely covers the aspects of both survival and marital arts and I hope will be of interest.
It
seems odd these days, but once information about ninja was hard to come
by. One of the best sources was (and still is) Donn F. Draeger's Comprehensive Asian Fighting Arts.
In
the discussion of the ninja Draeger mentions the “Six tools of
Travelling” or Shinobi-rokugu (p.127). Six items that a ninja would
never leave on a mission without.
Draeger’s
descriptions of the items were not as clear as one might wish, however.
Last night, while researching a quite different topic I was able to
clarify a few things. Items 4 to 9 in the illustration below represent
Shinobi-rokugu.
Amigasa. Amigasa was a broad brimmed straw hat, the Japanese version of what is commonly called a coolie hat.
A
hat is obviously good protection from the sun and the rain but for the
ninja has the useful property that it can also conceal the face without
the attempt being obvious.
A hat such as this can also be used as an improvised buckler to fend off an attack with a knife.
In
the movies, such hats are sometimes thrown like frisbees. While this
would not do the damage shown in such movies, it would be a useful
distraction.
Below
is a photo that is reproduced in a couple of my Japanese language
books. I originally thought that the arrows shown here were either
hand-thrown weapons or darts for a blowgun.
Hand
missiles this size made predominately from wood and feather would be
rather light, while such large fletchings on a blowpipe dart would be
unnecessary and less than efficient. Possibly these arrows were a hybrid
for both than throwing and blowgun.
I
now see these are actually arrows intended for a bow and what was
visible in my books was just the tail section of the arrow. Each extends
across the width of the hat, the rest of the shaft in a pocket of some
kind so it resembles a supporting rib.
Doubtless
other weapons were concealed in the hats. Bo-shuriken could be placed
radially like the arrows and this would be a good hiding place of a
garrotte/spare bowstring.
The floppy hats favoured by 17th
century cavalry such as the English Cavaliers often concealed a metal
structure called a “Secret” to protect from blows and it is possible
that some amigasa also had a metal cap or framework within.
Kaginawa.
A rope with a hook. Ninja were known for climbing so it is hardly
surprising that this would be an essential item. A length of cordage is
always useful anyway.
Tenugui. Draeger calls this a towel, which conjures the Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy to mind.
The
tenugui is actually made from thin cloth and is better understood as
resembling a bandanna of about three foot by one foot size.
Kendo
fighters will know the tenugui as a headscarf to be worn under the
helmet, but it was originally a multi-purpose item, used as a bandanna
in the fields and a handcloth in the home.
It could also be used as a bandage or sling, or as a mask to protect from smoke or conceal the identity.
Sekihitsu. Draeger just calls this a “stone pencil”, which does not tell us much. In fact this was a portable writing kit ("Yatate"), which was not an uncommon item for feudal Japanese to carry on their person.
Ninja were spies as well as assassins and some means to record information and leave messages was essential to their task.
One
of my Japanese language books shows this as something resembling
Popeye’s pipe. The “bowl” is in fact an inkwell and the stem contains a
brush. There is even a vent cut in the stem to allow the bristles to dry
and air. Such kits could be used to conceal various weapons, and even
the ink might be poisoned.
Even
standard yatate were sturdy enough to be passable clubbing weapons.
Underneath this item in the photo is what looks like pieces of pointed
chalk. This may be either chalk or a slate pencil. Both would be useful
and this may explain Draeger’s use of the term “stone pencil”.
Kusuri.
Medicines. Ninja are known to have produced special pills intended to
staving off the effects of thirst or hunger. Various salves, ointments
and insect repellents might also have been carried.
Doubtless the ninja also carried a few poisons and hid them in plain sight within their medicine kit.
Carrying a few medicines on your person was by no means unusual in feudal Japan.
Shown in the photo is a typical Japanese medical kit (“inro”) which
is rather neat. It has a number of small trays which act as
compartments moving up and down the cords. The whole thing can be pulled
together and hung from a belt. Quite practical and worth copying.
Uchitake. Draeger describes this as a short bamboo pole.
In
Eric Van Lustbader’s novel “The Miko”, the uchitake is described as a
long bamboo pole that can be used as a walking staff. The other five
Shinobi-rokugu items are packed into the pole, which can doubtless also
be used as a fighting staff.
The
sixth item of the rokugu is in fact a short tube of bamboo filled with
gunpowder and is mainly intended for firelighting. Since the
Shinobi-rokugu is intended as a basic survival kit some means of making
fire would be needed and this makes much more sense.
Below
is an illustration found in several of my books, but since I do not
read Japanese I am little the wiser. The C-shaped item is obviously a
striking steel but how the other items are used exactly I am unsure. The
tube it is attached to resembles a flute, but has holes evenly spaced
around it. Obviously this cannot be a container for gunpowder.
The lower item is apparently a charcoal/ char-cloth body warmer or donohi
which could provide a ready source of ignition for lighting fuses,
arson etc. Possibly the flute-like tube is the central part of the
donohi around which the char-cloth
is wrapped. This could be blown down to produce more heat when needed. A
perforated tube could alternately be used to transport a lit
slow-match.
Some
of you may note something is conspicuous by its absence. There is no
mention of a knife. It may have been considered redundant to tell a
ninja to bring a knife. In feudal societies, most people carried a knife
as a matter of routine, using it for all manner of everyday tasks. Nontheless, not even the famous bo-shuriken are mentioned.
Shinobi-rokugu in the Modern Day
A few months back I brought a new daysac. Once I had it I began to add a few useful things to it, and now that I think about it my choices did parallel the Shinobi-rokugu.
- One of the first things I added was a hat. In fact I added two. One is my much traveled broad-brimmed boonie hat. The second is a lightweight synthetic headover that can serve as a cold weather hat, neck warmer and so forth.
- I’ve not added a rope and grappling hook, but I did add a ball of string to provide useful cordage. Perhaps I should add a hank of paracord too.
- I put a bandanna in the bag too, and usually carry one in my pocket, so that is my Tenugui equivalent.
- Not yet added, but when travelling my daysac usually carries a notepad and spare pen in a plastic bag. Perhaps I should consider some chalk.
- Medicines. I will be adding a few aspirin, plasters and dicholorfenic. When I travel with this bag a bottle of insect repellent and sunscreen will doubtless be added.
- My fire kit is a spare disposable lighter and a couple of nightlight candles. The latter can be used to get a fire going and can also be used for illumination.
For
completeness, other items added to the daysac included an All-Weather
Blanket, “pak-a-mac” poncho, lever-powered torch, pair of woollen gloves
and my Platypus Water Bottle.
To see how much equipment has improved over time, have a look at the weapons and tools of the Ice Age warrior Ötzi - he was discovered frozen in the Alps.