9781422286661

J U J U T S U

but any judo- or jujutsu-like grappling would only invite a dagger into the ribs or into other such gaps in this light armor. In the twilight of feudalism, some far-sighted budo-ka (people who practiced budo) realized that, in a fast-changing world, if Japanese “war- rior ways” were to survive, they would have to be broadened in scope. This meant that the warrior ways would need to move away from clan loyalty, and become open to commoners and nobles alike. (The samu- rai still held the right of kirisute-gomen, however, which allowed them to cut down, without question, any member of the lower classes who This photograph, while convincing, was actually posed for by models during the late 19th century. It shows a group of three samurai warriors carrying a variety of classical Japanese weapons. The principal weapon of the samurai was the curved bladed sword, or katana.

12