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The Secret Traditions of the Shinobi: Hattori Hanzo's Shinobi Hiden and Other Ninja Scrolls
The shinobi, or ninja, is one of the most widely recognized figures in the world of espionage—and also one of the most misrepresented. What do we really know about the historical shinobi, his tactics, and his role in medieval Japanese society? In Secret Traditions of the Shinobi, these questions—and many more—are answered. Translated into English for the very first time, this widely sought-after collection of historical documents brings to light the secret practices, techniques, philosophies, and lifestyles of the shinobi.
Included are:
• the Shinobi Hiden, or "Secret Ninja Tradition," a documentation of techniques commonly attributed to one of the best-known ninja masters, Hattori Hanzo;
• the Koka Ryu Ninjutsu Densho, a small but important work from the Edo period that reveals the realm of ninja magic and spells;
• the three shinobi scrolls of the Gunpo Jiyoshu, a manual enthusiastically promoted by Tokugawa Ieyasu, the first Tokugawa shogun of Japan;
• one hundred poems written between the twelfth and fifteenth centuries—making them the oldest collection of written ninjutsu information in the world; and
• seventy historical black-and-white illustrations depicting ninja tools and weapons.
Secret Traditions of the Shinobi will enthrall martial artists eager to learn the real skills of the shinobi, as well as anyone interested in this exciting period of Japanese history and espionage.
Included are:
• the Shinobi Hiden, or "Secret Ninja Tradition," a documentation of techniques commonly attributed to one of the best-known ninja masters, Hattori Hanzo;
• the Koka Ryu Ninjutsu Densho, a small but important work from the Edo period that reveals the realm of ninja magic and spells;
• the three shinobi scrolls of the Gunpo Jiyoshu, a manual enthusiastically promoted by Tokugawa Ieyasu, the first Tokugawa shogun of Japan;
• one hundred poems written between the twelfth and fifteenth centuries—making them the oldest collection of written ninjutsu information in the world; and
• seventy historical black-and-white illustrations depicting ninja tools and weapons.
Secret Traditions of the Shinobi will enthrall martial artists eager to learn the real skills of the shinobi, as well as anyone interested in this exciting period of Japanese history and espionage.
216 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 2012
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224 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews
January 18, 2014
I enjoyed “The Secret Traditions Of The Shinobi: Hattori Hanzo's Shinobi Hiden And Other Ninja Scrolls” edited and translated by Antony Cummins and Yoshie Minami for the historical significance of reading older texts on the arts. You won't learn how to “be a ninja” by reading this book, especially when many lessons from that period were stated to be transmitted orally. However, this book does enlighten the reader as to what kinds of skills were being studied and practiced, and points the modern student of martial arts toward elements to include in one's training.
There are several older texts included in this volume, including: the Shinobi Hiden attributed to Hattori Hanzo; the Koka Ryu Ninjutsu Densho from the Edo period; the three shinobi scrolls of the Gunpo Jiyoshu promoted by Tokugawa Ieyasu; and one hundred medieval poems about the shinobi dating to somewhere between the twelfth and seventeenth centuries. Also included are seventy black-and-white drawings from the scrolls.
Throughout the book, there are plenty of notes and descriptions to help the reader understand the translations better. These definitely helped me gain a deeper understanding of the texts, as well as the significance of the texts as related to the history of ninjutsu. I'm sure anyone wanting to learn more about the skills studied by the ancient ninja, as well as those with an interest in this period of Japanese history will enjoy this book.
I think the last section of the book, the Yoshimori Hyakushu, or the 100 poems or waka (also known as tanka) is my favorite section of the book. The poems themselves are very short, but there is also a paragraph of explanation after each of them. Some hardly needed much explanation, and the advice is still practical, as this one illustrates, “While traveling, you should never let you guard down with anything. It is said you are likely to make a blunder if you do.” Pretty good advice today as well, stay alert while traveling. The Japanese text of these short waka is also included for those that can read Japanese. (There are a few other places in the book where the Japanese is included as well.)
I enjoy training with modern weapons and training procedures, but I also like to study history of fighting and warfare and see where we have come from with the different martial arts and ways of warriorship. I thoroughly enjoyed reading these older texts and learning more about the historical shinobi, his tactics, skills studied, and his role in medieval Japan. If you're also a martial art history buff, I think you'll really enjoy it too.
There are several older texts included in this volume, including: the Shinobi Hiden attributed to Hattori Hanzo; the Koka Ryu Ninjutsu Densho from the Edo period; the three shinobi scrolls of the Gunpo Jiyoshu promoted by Tokugawa Ieyasu; and one hundred medieval poems about the shinobi dating to somewhere between the twelfth and seventeenth centuries. Also included are seventy black-and-white drawings from the scrolls.
Throughout the book, there are plenty of notes and descriptions to help the reader understand the translations better. These definitely helped me gain a deeper understanding of the texts, as well as the significance of the texts as related to the history of ninjutsu. I'm sure anyone wanting to learn more about the skills studied by the ancient ninja, as well as those with an interest in this period of Japanese history will enjoy this book.
I think the last section of the book, the Yoshimori Hyakushu, or the 100 poems or waka (also known as tanka) is my favorite section of the book. The poems themselves are very short, but there is also a paragraph of explanation after each of them. Some hardly needed much explanation, and the advice is still practical, as this one illustrates, “While traveling, you should never let you guard down with anything. It is said you are likely to make a blunder if you do.” Pretty good advice today as well, stay alert while traveling. The Japanese text of these short waka is also included for those that can read Japanese. (There are a few other places in the book where the Japanese is included as well.)
I enjoy training with modern weapons and training procedures, but I also like to study history of fighting and warfare and see where we have come from with the different martial arts and ways of warriorship. I thoroughly enjoyed reading these older texts and learning more about the historical shinobi, his tactics, skills studied, and his role in medieval Japan. If you're also a martial art history buff, I think you'll really enjoy it too.
March 27, 2023
This book is not about the specific fighting skills of the Ninja/Shinobi. It is a collection of historical texts written to pass down knowledge from on one generation to another. Some sections are written as an outline of things to remember with a few important points mentioned or precautions to take. There are a entries containing formulas or sizes of gadgets or supplies to make or carry that have technical value, but this is mostly a book about when and what to deploy in a clandestine way.
From an historical context, I think this collection does a great job providing an understanding how Shinobi/ninja were used. Some of scrolls are written from a commanding samurai's perspective about using shinobi and what to be wary of. As a reader, I learned more about where shinobi rolls were leveraged in scouting, espionage and infiltration. They weren't necessarily deployed as stealthy killers, but more as scouts. There are several passages describing the use of other clothing than the traditional black-ninja outfits.
The last section of the book, the Yoshimori Hyakushu contains 100 poems that are older than the other scrolls. The editor does a good job with translation and commentary to aid in the understanding. I think this section is the most interesting and perhaps could have been read first.
From an historical context, I think this collection does a great job providing an understanding how Shinobi/ninja were used. Some of scrolls are written from a commanding samurai's perspective about using shinobi and what to be wary of. As a reader, I learned more about where shinobi rolls were leveraged in scouting, espionage and infiltration. They weren't necessarily deployed as stealthy killers, but more as scouts. There are several passages describing the use of other clothing than the traditional black-ninja outfits.
The last section of the book, the Yoshimori Hyakushu contains 100 poems that are older than the other scrolls. The editor does a good job with translation and commentary to aid in the understanding. I think this section is the most interesting and perhaps could have been read first.
December 31, 2021
This was interesting in its explanation of shinobi tools (primitive technology), including illustrations. Many of the passages were difficult to fully understand in context because the reader is presumed to have knowledge not explained here. The use of tactics, deception, stealth, and subterfuge are briefly explained. There was lots of discussion about the "Night Attack." I remember a night attack scene in the mini-series Shogun. Everyone was running around yelling, "NINJA!" It sounds like being a shinobi was a tough business.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
July 7, 2020
It's more of an academic work than anything else. I wish it were better cross-referenced to focus on measurement terms, and investing some time in some more useful illustrations to put side-by-side with the "original" illustrations would have helped. Considering it's dependence on other works, I feel like it was not very substantial. Like all ancient scrolls, it has some interesting insights, but I was mostly bored. Recommended by a friend.
August 10, 2014
Its interesting because you get to read an ACTUAL historical ninjutsu text but, it can be incredibly daunting considering it is an ACTUAL historical ninjutsu text. A lot, if not all of the information is more implied than anything else, and its clear that this was meant for trained ninjas and not anyone else. Especially not future ninja enthusiasts. Read it if you like historical texts about what ninjas actually did, but if you're trying to learn more about ninjutsu directly(instead of contextually which is what this book does well) than pass.
Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews
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