Tantojutsu

The Art of Japanese Knifefighting is a sort of "holy grail" among martial artists. I myself, have spent a fair chunk of change on information regarding this esoteric sub-discipline of bujutsu.

One reason there is such interest in this art is that it seems readily applicable to modern day needs. Take a look around the next time your're out and about and check out how many folks have folding knives clipped to their pockets or waistbands. Other types of knife-based martial arts -- Sayoc Kali, escrima, arnis, etc. -- from elsewhere in the world have gained popularity, but little has been forthcoming about the Japanese arts. This has lead some to believe that tantojutsu is a super-secret, unbeatable art. As always, there have been those willing to fraudulantly pass on the "secrets" of fictitious techniques. Others have claimed that tantojutsu is a disreputable art inextricably linked with the shadow world of the Japanese Yakuza.

The truth is, as usual, different. Tantojutsu certainly does exist as part of the teachings of various ryu, but not necessarily in the fashion many non-Japanese expect. We can tell from contemporary art that the ability to use the large fighting knife was very important to Samurai in earlier periods of history. There are a number of paintings, screens and the like showing samurai wrestling Mongol invaders to the ground and finishing them off with the stout tanto. It even appears that the knife was a preferred weapon in these close encounters, even over the sword. The clue to the truth lying in this evidence is the wrestling actions of the warriors involved. Rather than being a distinct, stand-alone art (think archery versus swordsmanship), many knife-fighting techniques were taught as an adjunct to jujutsu skills. Takenouchi Ryu, one of the oldest jujutsu schools, incorporates knife and short-sword techniques. Curiously, many formal techniques are actually defensive in nature and take for granted a certain knowledge of knife use. In fact, the knife technique was probably given a short side description by the teacher so that the "proper" technique would be appled for the defender to counter. Many modern martial artists usually think the "defender" in a given kata is the sole focus of the technique, but in traditional martial arts, both sides have important lessons for the participants to digest. The Bujinkan does not have specific tantojutsu techniques, but teaches practioners to use knives in conjunction with their unarmed fighting techniques. This was quite likely the common practice throughout history. The knife adds to the effectiveness of martial arts techniques, and is especially useful if snuck into an encounter.

Tanto techniques were also taught in conjunction with sword techniques. Swordsman quickly learn that the secret of their art is timing and distancing, which is dictated by the length of their blade. The traditional Tanto was a purpose made fighting knife, not a tool, and was considered the smallest size true sword. So the distinction between using the sword and using the knife was not quite so great for swordsman. Many schools of the sword did teach specific techniques for short swords to better use the unique qualities of the length of the blade. Many schools teach that short weapons, even knives, are in fact the best way to counter long weapons, such as spears.

I have a video tape of the Yanagi Ryu Tantojutsu techniques, which appear to be as demonstrative of general knife techniques as any martial art can be. The knife techniques do seem to bridge a gap between Kenjutsu (swords) and jujutsu. The Yanagi Ryu techniques also seem to share a common pattern. The defender first uses the knife against the attacking limb (usually at the joints), then targets a vital area. After careful examination, you can see that the vital target areas -- throat, kidneys, subclavian artery, femoral artery, Achilles Tendon, etc. -- were also exposed through gaps in the Samurai armor. This is fairly typical of Japanes martial arts techniques, which often are designed to be used against armored and un-armored opponents. These characteristics match with a handful of other tanto techniques I have cataloged in other sources.

It isn't so much that tantojutsu is a deliberately hidden art. It isn't that it doesn't exist at all. And tantojutsu is not part of a secret underground. It is simply that "tantojutsu" is part of several different Japanese martial arts traditions, and not generally a separate and discrete martial art. The information that is out there about the remaining tanto techniques is often unrecognized and misapplied.