In the early days of the modern Ninjutsu when Dr.
Hatsumi was first beginning to teach persons who were not Japanese,
movements were very much exaggerated. Those same techniques today are very
concise and require very little movement. The rather obvious conclusion is
that in the beginning we were being shown "how to learn the art" not how
to do the art.The same is true of the important parts of this art of
Ninjutsu. The Sanshin teaches movement and we learn five forms of this
which are all separate movements. These are ways to learn the essence of
movement. They are "kata" in which the principles are contained. It is
these principles that must be learned. Eventually any strike can exist
alone and any "block" can precede any strike. The important aspect to
learn is how the body flows as one to create the most "power" at a given
point. As in all of this art, relaxed movement is the key to power. Each
part of the body moves in coordination with all other parts, nothing moves
in isolation from the remainder of the body.
The kihon happo is another way to learn Ninjutsu, it is
not how you "fight" with it. You "fight" with the information contained in
the kihon happo. For example there are three kamae, ichimonji, jumonji,
and hicho. Each of these teach a separate principle. Ichimonji
teaches how to "get out of the way" by moving off line at the 45 degree
angle. Eventually the 45 degree angle no longer becomes a limiting factor
because the principle of "off line" has been learned and any angle that
gets you clear is what is used. Jumonji teaches a shifting of
weight and a twisting of the body with hips and shoulders aligned to "get
you out of the way". This is the type of movement that must be used in
close where there isn't time to step. It also permits one to prevent a
second attack by being already in the attacker's space. Hicho
teaches how to "get out of the way" by single weighting. This is shifting
all your weight to one foot freeing the other to both attack and defend. A
kamae is simply the most effective posture for the situation you are in at
that instant of time. It is the most effective both defensively and
offensively.
The next part of the kihon happo are joint locks. These teach how to
lock the wrist, the elbow and shoulder. In so doing they also teach how to
lock the ankle, knee, and hip as these joints work the same as those on
the arm. The realization that both the arm and leg can be used to acquire
these locks expands the possibilities. When understood the student will be
able to use that knowledge when an opportunity presents itself during the
course of a fight. One does not "fight" with these joint locks, one uses
them when an opponent gives you the chance. It is an accepting of his
gift. Only by completely understanding the "locking" principles taught in
these joint locks will the student be able to take full advantage of
opportunities presented by the opponent.
The last technique of the kihon happo is Ganseki. This is a throw. What
it teaches is much more important. It teaches balance, how to retain your
own balance while taking your opponents balance. If you do not understand
balance, if you cannot control your opponents balance, you will not be
able to throw your opponent. The other side of the coin is there too. If
you do understand balance, you can throw from many positions.
In short the kihon happo is a way to learn the principles that are
critical to learning the art of Ninjutsu. This is why every time the
student goes back to the kihon they will gain a new insight.
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