Were martial arts ever banned in feudal Japan?

Patiently waiting

People desire to have the "underdog" tale of people less fortunate rising up. This way, a forceful, mean ol government can be blamed and then crushed

 

As I recall the only thing MacArthur didn't ban was Karate.

oh yeah-Hardball, gunpowder- invented in the 800s.

 

But the cannon - invented around 1320.

 

Rather earlier than that. They had already found there way into western use at Crecy by 1346. It's believed that hand cannon were used in 1260 at the Battle of Ain Jalut. I think the first documented use of gunpowder powered weapons in battle was 1132 in China.

 

Then why does so much of the kobudo focus on converted agricultural weapons? If there wasn't a ban you would expect it to focus on purpose built weapons vs. ad hoc weapons, I believe I have rarely seen spear and sword in demos, but very very rarely.

 

Possibly because they were cheap and readily available as opposed to commissioning a swordsmith to forge you a katana. Significantly the "agricultural" weapons (and some of these have a dubious provenance in that regard) are also found across countries where such "bans" were NOT rumored to have occured - probably for the same reason I postulate above

 

Hannibal is pretty much on the money with this.

There's also the class element involved both in terms of who would have access to different weapon types, and who would be expected to be able to turn anything to hand to a weapon, plus who would have the time (and energy) to train.

There's no suggestion that Okinawan martial artists from the 19th century like Matsumura and Azato, both known for their swordsmanship, had no swords.

 

Karate is not nearly that ancient compared to the likes of jujutsu (18th century versus 16th). Swords were outlawed in Japan during the Meiji Period which began around 1900 (late 1800s/early 1900s). Gun powder was created by the Chinese around the 9th century BCE. It was introduced to Japan in the 16th century.

 

European firearms were introduced about then but gun powder had been around for a while.

Also grappling like arts are mentioned in the likes of the Kojiki which dates back to about the 8th century, IIRC.

I'll see if I can dig out one of my books.

 

In English medieval armies the infantry were frequently equipped with bills, an unmodified agricultural tool.

 

And we still see plenty of tools in the weapon arts today....

 

State sources

 

I'd need time to list them all, but for a brief bibliography of some of the relevant material you could try reading Cook's Shotokan Karate: A Precise History, or reading any of the history/provenance/application threads on Iain Abernethy's forum for lists of sources and evidence.

I'm sure I read something that was going through classes in Okinawa and training within the last week but I can't recall whether it was here or on IA's forum.

 

Not the source I was thinking of young man, but it does give you an idea as to the known 'class' status of karateka in Okinawa in the 18th and 19thC.

As for it being a private activity, Funakoshi is one source I can think of straight off the top of my head.

Edit: sorry, forgot the link: http://www.karatebyjesse.com/karate-myth-busting-the-secret-truth-about-peasants-and-karate/

 

It's a little known fact that these men were often called Ben. :Angel:

 

So was my dog.

 

So that's my Uke sorted out for June then....

 

You'll have a job, he's been dead for years.

 

Right. Thanks.

Good short explanation here.

http://ejmas.com/jcs/jcsart_svinth_1202.htm



And boys,best big hound I ever had was named Ben.