Anshu Christa Jacobson

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Kunoichi (くノ一) is the term for a female ninja or practitioner of Ninpo. For  many years many have asked me what the meaning of Kunoichi is and what the job of the female ninja was. When I was younger in my training and people would ask me I would get slightly irritated because I knew that the y wanted me to say that they used sex or  “persuasive acts” to overcome the male counter part to obtain information. Although these ideas are sexy to think and fantasize about this was not the only skill of the Kunoichi. The term is thought to derive from the names of characters that resemble the three strokes in the kanji character for woman (女, onna); said in the order they are written: ku (く) - no (ノ) - ichi (一). The translation of the this comes to "ku" (九) for "nine," (能 "nō" = talent) and "ichi" (一) for "one," meaning "nine talents in one person."

Many different scholars and historians will tell you different theories on what this means, but look at it from what the male ninja was trained in: 8 gates which comprises of  18 skills. These 8 gates are called the Ninja Hachimon. The female ninja has one more “gate” and this gate does focus on the techniques of using sexuality as a weapon. As a female practitioner of Ninpo I see many women wanting to place this skill to the side, but every woman has to know that the sexual persuasiveness that we have is very controlling at times and is a very useful and powerful weapon. Many other Ninjutsu organizations want you to think that the female ninja was not trained the same as the male counter part. This is completely false and is probably brought about because of the male dominated world that we live in . Although their  training may have a different focus (physical strength cannot be overlooked), they were still trained in all 18 skills of the ninja as well as the 8 gates of the Hachimon. This includes the arts of stealth, espionage, assassination, hand to hand combat and weaponry. th The Kunoichi just had one more “gate,” thus making the 9 skill. It is this skill or talent alone that sets them apart from the male ninja! While women were trained in close combat, they were only to make use of this knowledge when they were caught. They would usually disguise themselves as geisha, prostitutes, entertainers, fortunetellers, and the like to get very close to the enemy. It is thought that they would generally seduce the soon-to-be victim and when they get close enough, would poison them. But it is just as  possible that they would be disguised as a household servant, allowing them many opportunities to overhear information or get close to said victim and execute them using stealth tactics. Kunoichi would hide weapons in their disguise. Poisoned needles were hid in their hair and knives were hid up their sleeves. Also, they often would turn a previously harmless item into a weapon. For example, they would learn how to break bones with their wooden shoes, put a hidden blade on their fan, or they would use an umbrella as a momentary shield.

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“  Although their training may have  a different focus physical strength cannot  be overlooked), they were still trained in all  18 skills of the ninja as well as the 8 gates  of the Hachimon. This includes the arts of   stealth, espionage, assassination, hand to  hand combat and weaponry. The Kunoichi  just had one more “gate,” thus making the  th  9 skill. It is this skill alone that sets them  apart from the male ninja!” 

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 Most people that read this article are not  going to be taking in all of the information of the words that I have written. Most that read this will   be distracted by looking at “what is shown”. This is my point!  I am arguably one of, if not the highest  ranking female ninjutsu practitioner in the world.  I am the only Kunoichi that runs a World Wide  Ninjutsu organization but the visual of a woman  taking her clothes off and using her feminine  power catches the eyes of many.  No matter how many pictures, articles or  DVDs that we do, I am still a woman in a male  dominated world of martial arts. As soon as a woman expresses her beauty people then tend to  not think that I am trained in the arts of stealth,  they are taken by other things. The ninja clans of   old knew this and capitalize on that element of   surprise!

Although the male counter part may not admit it, the female ninja had more opportunities at executing stealth missions and in many a reas were more skilled in the areas of stealth; they were more than likely already in the enemy’s stronghold executing the mission for their lord. Some ninja clans never wanted to call a female a ninja, but the fact is they were  just as integral a part of the clan, as the male counter part. Even the samurai class had women that were warriors and fought in the heat of battle. These women were called onna-bugeisha (女武芸者 ). The onna-bugeisha was a female of the buke class in feudal Japan who was trained in the use of weapons (most commonly naginata). The term consists of the word onna ("woman") and the word bugeisha ("warrior"). Use of the term "female samurai" is technically a misnomer. Samurai is a gender-specific term in Japanese, and was only used for certain males of the buke class. Likewise, "female bushi" or onna-bushi is also incorrect as bushi is a gender-specific masculine term. A woman of  the buke class may be called buke-no-onna, meaning simply "female of the buke class." This term buke-no-onna does not denote that the female in question has had any training in any martial arts. It only describes the woman's family background.

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“I see many women wanting to  place this skill to the side, but every woman  has to know that the sexual persuasiveness  that we have is very controlling at times and  is a very useful and powerful weapon.” 

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The Kunoichi were a secret sisterhood in Feudal Japan. These women were experts in deception and masters of assassination. Female shrine a ttendants, concubines and servants moved about a Feudal Lord's castle with ease. Since these women went virtually unnoticed, they were capable of committing acts of espionage with little or no interference while staying completely in the shadows. Kunoichi-jutsu revolves around the art of deception. These warrior-women base their training on surprise tactics and hidden weapons. A Kunoichi never wastes time or  energy in combative situations. Their unarmed fighting an d weaponry skills make use of  strategically placed vital attacks that are designed to incapacitate their opponents very quickly. Ever-vigilant, the Kunoichi is never a victim. Although she may appear weak  and helpless, it is a ruse. In reality, the Kunoichi uses her outward appearance and conditioned emotional responses to manipulate those who would cause her harm. In the modern day there are many different Ninjutsu schools of training. All major worldwide schools of training are run by men, except for the Budo Ryu Ninjutsu Dojo (When I speak of “major organizations” I am using numbers of students to make this assessment.) The Budo Ryu Ninjutsu Dojo has over 6,000 students worldwide in over 15 different countries. Not only is the International Budo Ryu Ninjutsu Dojo recognized as the largest Koka school of Ninjutsu it is also the only major worldwide organization that is run by a female. Even to present day the teachings of the Kunoichi still remain just as integral a part of Budo as the complete study of the 18 skills of the Shinobi. The Hachimon leads us to the understanding of the universe and is needed to completely understand the essence of these great female, shadow warriors.

This article was written by Anshu Christa Jacobson headmaster of the Budo Ryu  Ninjutsu Dojo. Outside of the martial arts school Anshu also is an artist as well as an artistic model for different photographers and companies. “ Everything that we do is an expression of   ourselves. So many look at one aspect and   then make judgment on a person, instead of  looking in their heart. Just as my martial art is an expression of who I am through  combative expression, modeling and art is a way of expressing spirit through physical   form.” 

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