Legend has it that ninjas date back to 6th century Japan, when poor farmers had to travel as mercenaries to make a living. The most prominent schools – Iga and Koka – were located in the mountainous region near the ancient capital, Kyoto. To escape ongoing civil wars, many samurai and aristocrats passed through these mountains only to be ambushed by Iga and Koka...
THE NINJA’S GREATEST ENEMY: NOT ENOUGH NINJA! JAPAN IS FULL OF entertainment spots geared toward tourists. One of the most popular of them all is a place that puts on the Ninja Show, where veteran ninjas perform and show off their skills. During the last few years, however, the show has grown so much that it is bumping up against the problem of a...
THE TRUE STORY BEHIND Japan’s beloved spies SO, YOU THINK YOU KNOW NINJA? THINK AGAIN CLAD IN ALL BLACK with an air of mystery about them, ninjas are a global phenomenon. Much of their popular appeal has a lot to do with their depiction in movies as possessing super-human powers. They seem to appear out of nowhere and take down multiple enemies with the...
The Ninja Museum If you want to know more about ninjas, take a trip to the Ninja Museum in Igaryu, Mie Prefecture. The museum is made to resemble a ninja house, where the ninjas had meetings, made weapons, and prepared gunpowder. From the outside, it looks like a nondescript farmhouse, but inside, the house is an ingenious mix of hidden pathways and defense systems...
The Iga school is the biggest ninja group. Iga, in current-day Mie Prefecture near Kyoto, saw many conflicts between its lords. Even civilians in this area were trained in guerilla warfare to be able to defend themselves. This is how the Iga Ninjas got their start. Eventually, the Iga Ninjas were governed by three ninja leaders called the Jyonin Gosanke. Iga is in a...
Ready to become a ninja? Ok, first we need to dispel a few myths. Becoming a ninja doesn’t mean you will fly through the air, disappear from view at will, or defeat your foes with shurikens. These images of the ninja come from movies and comic books. Let’s learn about what life was really like for a ninja. During the late 14th century, temples...
