Cheers for the video. Have seen some of his weapons work before but not his empty hand stuff. Seems a great guy and would love to train with him if he is on the UK seminar circuit. Osu! Dan93
Sorry not literally what we refer to as "ninjutsu" today and being honest, I don't know which aspects specifically. Just what I've been taught and this is something that many other ninjers from the other organizations will attest to as well. I vaguely remember something about guerilla tactics that the Chinese eventually adopted from India, but not limited just to that. Perhaps someone else more qualified may be able to answer that for you?
SO! Historical Context! Remember when I'm referring to the Sikh Gurus, the stuff did actually happen as the history of Sikhism was A). quite recent and B). written down by more Muslim fellows than Sikh. Shastar Vidiya is a sanskrit term translating roughly to Knowledge/Science of the Sword/Warfare It's technically North West Indian in origin descending from the rajput kingdoms of Punjab and later later became a part of the Sikh tradition and has little to do with kalaripattayu or whatever (which is south indian). It is basically North Indian Koryu with tracking, horse back riding and all that warfare stuff in there too. It did have some to do with kushti and pehlwani (a mix of mughal wrestling and kushti) as many of the guru's and their disciples set up Wrestling akharas (training centres) that still exist and are in use. During the Mughal invasion into Punjab, many rajput clans and warrior castes (as well as many non warrior castes like my family who are carpenters from local tribes and villages) sent sons to join the Sikh militia which later became the Khalsa army. Sons came from every area that wanted protecting. They would send their sons to the Sikh ranks and in return be protected from raids and fighting of mughals and rajputs. Due to the many different styles, traditions on warfare and regional variations coming together in one place, there was lot's of diversity and knowledge. The Sikh guru's were previously of a distinct warrior caste and carried on those traditions as well as presumably learnt other ones. This idea of "warrior saint" became the ethos of Sikhism. As Mr. Singh said in the video - India is a big place, it was better to learn the styles of warfare developed for mountains that carry on using your native desert tracking skills. These traditions have been pretty much destroyed in Sikh communities due to modern technology, genocide and the corruption of the central Sikh governing body that made sure that people could always know how to defend themselves. However we have been ignoring the fact that Shastar Vidiya persisted in Vedic warrior castes up until (from what i can gather) the 1950's. Please download and look through the later half of this book for much awesomeness http://rosstraining.com/blog/2012/04/20/the-encyclopedia-of-indian-physical-culture/ I'm not going into Gatka etc. unless anyone has any questions but I have a couple theories on that...
I've attended a few seminars where Niddar Singh presented his material to a diverse range of martial practitioners, many of whom were proficient in other systems. I found him to be a very charismatic and knowledgeable individual, and his physical skill (in terms of precision, rather than flowery acrobatics) is both consistent and well developed. Indeed, i was interested to see there were a lot of "names" at the Meeting of Masters seminar last year, and their opinion seemed very similar to the above. My personal position is that, from a technical standpoint, there is actually very little i can learn from seminars. My own style is so developed now that the only way i can further advance it is through sparring, scenario training, pressure testing, and bespoke training. Seminar techniques generally have to be kept basic in order to make the material accessible to everyone, regardless of their experience. Therefore, though i have a great deal of respect for Niddar Singh as an accomplished martial technician, the fact is that on a stylistic level, i did not absorb any specific techniques. What i did absorb though, was a greater understanding of what i already do, and the limitations of my existing methods. These limitations - most of which are unavoidable at times - are things that, if one is ignorant of, will possibly get one killed. Also, Niddar is very open about his history, culture, and combative material. There are no mystical secrets or overly sensitive topics: If you have an honest question, he has an honest answer. People like this are crucial for developing one's perspective. Hence why i have returned more than once. Here are the top 3 reasons why i personally get a lot out of his tuition:- 1./ Emphasis on superior position Rather than just carrying out preset drills from a static position, Niddar always presents the techniques right from the beginning of the contact. Contrary to what is often taught in martial arts, contact does not actually begin from the moment a person tries to touch you physically, or from the moment he enters a certain radius. Rather, it begins from the moment you perceive there to be a specific threat. Hence, whenever Niddar is demonstrating technique, i have always taken care to inspect how he approaches the target, rather than just the technique itself. What i found was that his approach is designed not just to establish superior position in relation to the target, but also to mislead his target with subtle gestures, and prepare a contingency should the target react unexpectedly. I firmly believe that where combat is concerned, it's very much a case of tactics first, techniques second. 2./ Emphasis on superior skill at arms Niddar demonstrates his techniques with real weapons, and blades that are really sharp. Therefore, when watching from the sidelines, it is easy to dismiss his technical demonstrations as "some dude in a costume waving around a sword in a load of incomplete half-techniques." On the other hand, if you are on the receiving end, or you know your bladework, you know pretty damn well what is being demonstrated: Niddar is an expert in manoeuvring his blade into a position where he is one movement away from killing or crippling his target. Rather than freezing the demo at checkmate, he'll actually flow from one checkmate position to the next, keeping the demonstration flowing dynamically. This is a particularly important behaviour to emphasise, given the unpredictability of battle (multiple opponents, weapon failures, armour, and loss of footing make it important for you to be able to transition to contingencies seamlessly). Also, Niddar almost always demonstrates the draw. This is, i feel, the one aspect that is often criminally omitted from a weapon practitioner's training regime, and it was the one thing that - during a recent job abroad - actually saved my life. Niddar's draw follows the same fundamental principles as the rest of his material. There is no division between the approach, the draw, and the application of technique. Which is, in my opinion, the way it should be. The fact that other seasoned blade practitioners have also commented positively on his weapon skills would indicate that he is worth checking out for this reason alone! 3./ Emphasis on unit tactics I would argue that - certainly here in the UK - many of today's martial arts instructors do actually acknowledge the fact that most assaults in public places will likely involve multiple attackers. Some of these instructors actually teach multiple opponent applications to their students, and some of these instructors will actually prepare their students for the scenarios they will face and the tactics that a gang might use to ambush them. What the vast majority of instructors do not do is teach effective formation work - instead, they always operate on the principle that the student will be alone. Due to the battlefield nature of what Niddar Singh teaches, it is a must that effective small unit tactics (ie. formations) are taught - whether it's moving through a crowd of people, extracting a high value target, or performing a room entry, it is vital that everyone immediately adopts a role that facilitates a safe and rapid completion of the objective at hand. Just last week i was instructing students on how to effectively watch each other's backs when an engagement threatens to escalate, and what to do should the engagement turn physical. What they found was that, through effective positioning of one's resources, a threat could be easily controlled and neutralised if necessary. Additionally, it also gave them was an insight into how the same tactics could be used on them by attackers. From both a personal and professional standpoint, i have a great deal of respect for Niddar Singh, and would urge anyone to check him out. Like i said, i doubt you will come away with any fancy drills or heart-stopping secret techniques. However, you will certainly develop a much finer understanding of tactics and how they work. Certainly for those of us who are primarily concerned with combative applications, i'd say this is an area we can't afford to miss.
This probably belongs in a different forum; however if you don't know which aspects specifically why make a statement like "Ninjutsu has its original origins in India too"? I'm not saying it is or it isn't but IMHO you would have to be able to speak to a specific ryu ha and it's lineage instead of using the wonderfully ambiguous "ninjutsu".
