Origins of the Japanese Martial Arts

It is not possible to understand the traditional martial arts of Japan that we see today without studying the reasons why they developed and the times that they developed in. On this page we examine some of the fuedal martial arts and look at the circumstances which brought about their development.

From early times Japan was a divided nation, with each domain ruled over by a fuedal warlord (diamyo). The borders of these domains were dictated by force of arms, with the strong preying on the weak. Military operations in these times were the province of an elite class in Japanese society, the bushi.

The bushi, or samurai, developed arts of war that were suited to the Japanese way of making war. These arts were developed over many centuries, becomming highly sophisticated and diverse.

One of the earliest forms of combat employed was the art of horse and bow. A mounted samurai would ride towards the enemy equiped with a bow which might be up to seven feet long. On aproaching the enemy he would release an arrow and then ride back to his own ranks. Mounted archery is still practiced in Japan today, but archery practiced from a standing position is a much more popular pastime.

On completion of his studies at the shrine, Shiro travelled Japan and acted as a personal instructor to high government officials and elite military personnel. Eventually he arrived at the Nikko Toshogu Shrine and continued his studies with Tanomo Saigo, the instructor of Sokaku Takeda, the founder of Daito Ryu.