Enter the Fascinating World of Ninjutsu and Ninja Weapons
The ninjas have always been fascinating figures right from the start and their discipline of ninjutsu actually means the art of stealth when translated from the Japanese language. That is an accurate description for the ninja and what has given them a sense of mystery. However, ninja weapons are also fascinating for many reasons. First of all, there are many different kinds of ninja weapons and secondly, they differ from what the normal perception of a weapon is. Nunchuks, throwing stars and shuriken are also famous ninja weapons. The throwing weapons were not used to cause bodily harm, but meant as distractions or a way of poisoning an opponent. Just like the mysterious ninja, the ninja weapons are just as specialized, concealable and creative.
There is virtually no end as to what could be used as a ninja weapon. Many used a form of a bomb, known as metsubushi, which was basically something filled with something like sand in order to block the vision of an opponent and temporarily blind them. There are groups of ninjas with their own disciplines that even have recipes for landmines and gunpowder mixtures for all sorts of purposes. Another not so obvious weapon used by the ninja is a ring. Of course upon closer inspection the ring has a sharp point which is a very effective weapon if you understand the pressure points of the human body, since they can actually cause short-lived bouts with paralysis.
One of the main categories of ninja weapons, however, is something more obvious and well known and that is the ninja sword. There were three different sizes of swords used by ninjas that can be broken down into three categories – the wakizashi, ninjato and katana. Since ninjas were often spies, assassins and thieves, they also had a shikoroken which is a sword that has saw teeth on one edge. This was great not only as a weapon, but also for a way of breaking into places. When buying one of these swords it is important the length be right for the type, that it is lightweight and has a high carbon steel blade and have a sheath and handle with black coloring. The wrapping needs to be done either with silk or leather, because other materials are hard to keep a good grip on and unwrap more easily.