Unarmed Fighting Techniques of the Samurai by Masaaki Hatsumi
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Book Reviews of Unarmed Fighting Techniques of the Samurai
Book Review: This book is amazing! You need it.
Summary: 5 Stars
This book is amazing. If you are a member of the Bujinkan or any student of real martial arts, you need this book. You will stare and ponder for hours.Book Review: Great book
Summary: 4 Stars
Everyone's been buzzing about Hatsumi sensei's new book, which focuses on ryuha, and it's been worth the wait. Like many other reviewers have posted, it's hardly a training manual, but rather a list of kata. It's a great way of keeping things straight for your personal training notes, but will not be helpful without personal instruction. It's definately meant for someone who's been training ninpo for a while, but don't let that stop you from getting it.
Like the other Kodansha books I've reviewed, fantastic photos and artwork, although some sketchy translations. Overall, a great read.
Book Review: Terrific Reference Guide.
Summary: 4 Stars
The first thing to remember is that you can not learn martial arts from a book--period. However, if you want to augment your ninjutsu training with a great reference, this is it. It is not, however for students who are not already familiar with the terminology. Otherwise, many of the scrolls are useless to you. You will never find a complete ninjutsu text. Most, if not all ninjutsu schools adhere to the principle of kuden, or oral transmission from teacher to student. However, this book creates a great framework for you, and a qualified instructor to fill in with personal training.Book Review: The Importance of Floating in a Shop of Crystal
Summary: 3 Stars
The anticipation on the various forums for this book has been enormous. A common theme for this anticipation has been the book's capacity as a 'reference manual' for the Bujinkan. Suffice as to say, there is only one reference manual in the Bujinkan and that is Hatsumi-sensei himself.
Everything that Hatsumi-sensei says in his books, DVDs and in person goes against the commonly perceived notion of 'reference manuals'. This art, in Hatsumi-sensei's own words, can only be learnt by the heart, directly with a person who has the feeling of Budo. In the Bujinkan, this person is Hatsumi-sensei.
In terms of the book itself, despite the efforts of the translators, I feel that large swathes of the English translation fail to capture the beauty of the original Japanese text. The Japanese text included in the book is a work of art and it seems to me that it would take another artist to be able to bring out the sense of Hatsumi-sensei's art. A lot of the text refers to the nature of the individual learning this art and the relationship of such an individual with a master of the art.
The photos included in the book, in my opinion, do more to help the reader understand Hatsumi-sensei's teachings than any text ever could. There are some lovely shots of Soke and his teacher Takamatsu-sensei. In terms of budo and art, the spaces inherent in these photos are stunning.
On the back cover of this book, there is a quote, "You should not just read the records of Budo and think you have understood it. Budo only has substance in a world of great dignity."
If the reader bears this warning in mind, the true value of the book will become evident.
Book Review: More insights.. same tired practices.
Summary: 3 Stars
* -I keep books like this for reference material, since I write a lot of articles and personal materials on certain traditional systems. The more friends I have training in certain arts, or the more personal interest I have in that art, the more reference books/ vids I have. In this case, I keep a row of books --and a box of vids-- just on ninjutsu and related arts.
* -In recent years, I've noticed that it is getting harder to find fresh info on arts like ninjutsu. After almost 30 years of English publications on the art, it's still vague and mysterious. Hatsumi, as much as I respect him, seems to be putting out nothing more than the same old thing over and over, with more and more diversionary tales or folklore, but less and less real quality information.
* -I need this kind of material to find the truth in our arts, something I've sought since I first joined the military 20 years ago. Unfortunately, the last decade has me gaining more truth of martial tactics and such from various history books --with exception to those that simply spout what others say without detailed realistic analysis, like Turnbull-- than from so-called MA experts. Sad, but true.