Wanchuanjihai
"Wanchuanjihai" - an encyclopedia of ninjas. This is a collection of books about two ninja families, Iga and Koga. Historical ninja authorities believe that the knowledge and themes preserved in this work are extremely systematic and reasonable. The book was compiled by Fegibbons in the summer of 1676 during the reign of Emperor Tokugawa IV. Fegibbons himself is a member of the ninja family.
Iga and Koga's greatest contribution to the cause of ninjas was to systematize the theoretical basis and skills of ninjutsu, and compile a ninja training manual - "Manchuan Gathering Sea". Although the schools are different, the classic book for ninja training is "Manchuan Jihai". The content of this book is to teach ninjas all the theoretical basis and skill guidance on how to perform ninjutsu.
In the 4th year of Enho (1676) in the era of Tokugawa Ietsuna, the fourth shogun of the Tokugawa family, the hermit Fujibayashi Yasutake of Koga combined the essence of the thoughts and martial arts of famous generals from China and Japan. With reference to the content of "Six Secrets" and "Sun Tzu's Art of War", this is the ultimate ninja training guide that integrates nindo, ninjutsu, and ninja weapons. With reference to the idea of ??"all rivers and factions return to the sea and converge" in the ancient Chinese book "Selected Works·Zuo Si·Wu Du Fu", the book was named "Wanchuan Gathering the Sea". As the title of the book indicates, "Wanchuan Gathering the Sea" means embracing all rivers and taking the essence of various schools.
"Wanchuan Jihai" consists of six parts: Zhengxin, General Zhi, Yinren, Yangren, Tianshi, and Ninja. This book became a must-read textbook for ninja training. "Six Tao" and "Sun Tzu's Art of War" are two ancient works that have a profound influence on "Wanchuan Jihai" and the overall development of ninjutsu. From this, it can also be seen that these ancient Chinese military martial arts ideas provided the basis for future Japanese ninjutsu. The development and growth of Ninjutsu has laid a solid theoretical foundation. This is clear evidence that Ninjutsu did originate from China. It can be said that "Wanchuan Jihai" is a summary of the Japanese learning the essence of ancient Chinese military and esoteric metaphysics. .
"Wanchuan Jihai" has ten volumes. The first volume is an introduction to ninjas, historical review, content index and questions and answers. It embodies the purpose of ninjas and warns them to remember When a leader can truly guide the psychology of his subordinates, no matter how many enemies there are, they can be defeated. If his subordinates do not agree with his ideas, he will definitely lose. (The embodiment of Sun Tzu's art of war, that is, a low-level discussion of the art of war) "Wanchuan Jihai" also emphasizes that ninjutsu is the most effective method in military strategy.
The second volume mainly discusses the sincerity, motivation, and morality that ninjas must possess. Because many moves in ninjutsu are considered immoral, it is necessary to emphasize the professional ethics of ninjas. A real ninja only acts according to his own will and never requires collective action. Therefore, ninjas pay attention to fighting one against a hundred and giving full play to their individual abilities. Maximum potential.
Volume 3 summarizes various methods of managing ninja organizations and functioning as ninjas. He mentioned that he should consider preventing hostile organizations from infiltrating his own organization, talked about some counter-reconnaissance content, and emphasized that ninjas should not interact with each other. Only the leader can bring everyone together.
The fourth volume is mainly about the "light side" of ninjutsu, that is, the bright part of ninja energy. If a ninja uses the power of his intellect and creative thinking, he can gain information without physical exertion. A ninja can know the enemy's intentions without joining the battle. His methods include: 1. Having a relatively comprehensive understanding of the enemy forces (know yourself and the enemy in Sun Tzu's Art of War). 2. Before the war begins, it is necessary to understand the strategy of the enemy forces. 3 Have a full understanding of the geographical conditions of the hostile forces. 4. Conduct reconnaissance on enemy numbers, equipment and other information. 5. Have a clear understanding of the enemy's movements.
Volume five, six, and seven are all about the "dark side" of ninjutsu, that is, the dark side of ninja skills. Ninjas can use deception, confusion tactics, intimidation and other means to cause confusion in their enemies.
These methods were despised by samurai of that era. They considered them to be despicable and cowardly, but ninjas relied on disguises, night attacks, sneaking inside and capturing enemy leaders or instigating key enemy figures to betray to achieve their victory. These three volumes] The story is about how ninjas use this method to win.
The eighth volume describes how ninjas take advantage of the surrounding environment. This information includes weather forecasts, high and low tides, and the waxing and waning of the moon. Use constellations to determine orientation, etc.
The ninth volume describes the ninja's tools in detail, including a series of tools that allow the ninja to move around steep walls, trees, cliffs, and boats. Some tools provide convenience for crossing rivers or moving underwater, while others are specially designed for ninjas to secretly enter buildings, warehouses, etc. There are tools for opening locks and breaking through walls.
The last volume is the use of gunpowder. It explains how to make bombs, smoke bombs, medicines, ecstasy, poisons, etc., but these records are written in regional Japanese dialects, making translating it complicated and difficult even for anyone familiar with ancient Japanese languages. thing. For example, local plants are called by local nicknames, which makes it impossible to understand what they are literally.