my sensei taught me that the tachi was originally worn blade down, but in times of peace the tachi was worn blade up, thus confirming what you are saying about wearing the swords.
This dead and life wearing is true. Wearing the blade up it runs the risk of hurting yourself by cutting the thumb. Internalize. But with blade down you can pull the blade with a back hand pull and strike with full force from a sheathed position. The way you pull the sword changes too. From an under hand pull to an over hand pull.
Yup, curve down katana (blade down) is only when WAR mode on. Curve up (blade up) is when in normal day, it's give a peace sense and non aggressive for other people on the street.
It was always weird to me that they wore their swords blade up. All the explanations I saw saying how it's more comfortable to draw like that made no sense. You can easily do unsheathe slashing attacks with blade down probably even more efficiently with less awkward movements. The explanation that blade up is for peace time, meaning you're not supposed to draw it, and blade down for war makes a lot of sense.
@0:50 _"...we may be wearing samurai swords slightly... _*_not wrong._*_ "'Wrong" is not the right word, but we may not..."_ ~Looks at video title: "Wearing Samurai Swords the *Wrong* Way"~ :P
I thought that too. I dont practice japanese swordsplay long time, but what i understood, its hard to unsheat sword when blade is worn with sharp edge up when you are in samurai armor (even if impossible), but i am still in phase of theories or "what i hear". I never wore samurai armor.
Hey Antony I think I've come up with an interesting theory about this. Please read the whole post. So the tachi's real strength in the draw may not be in the orientation of the blade as the blade would naturally want to hang blade down but is in it's ability to be drawn single-handed. Giving as a Samurai would likely be armed with another, usually longer weapon, like a yumi, yari, etc. or even the reins; being able to draw single handed would allow a samurai to hold his long weapon in his left and draw the tachi with his right. More over the tachi's mounting, which hang it at the hip, give it a longer draw compared to the katana which is placed at the waist; making the draw much more forgiving in technique. Drawing a katana single handed can be quite a fiddly mess even without armor in the equation as the katana no saya, being placed through the obi, tends to want to be pulled out of its placement with the sword proper on the draw, which is why the noto is usually a two handed affair. More over in the blade up fashion the kurikata is on the outside of the body placing the sageo in a position only useful for tying the saya to the obi at best and turning the blade down and the kurikata will press into the side at worst and be useless at best. However with armor on one doesn't have to worry about the kurikata causing any displeasure as the armor would prevent it rubbing or pressing. More over by turning the katana down, it will allow the wearer to use the sageo to tie the saya directly to the waist, thereby feeding into the tachi's second biggest strength on a one handed draw, being that the saya is attached directly to the body anchoring into position so that the sword can be drawn effortlessly without having to hold or otherwise tamper with it. By tying the saya to the waist it will be held in place, allowing the katana to be drawn with one hand more efficiently. Now the question may come up as why not tie the saya to the obi like many styles do. My answer is simple; the obi shifts and that leads to the previous problem of the saya wanting to go with the katana on the draw. That is just my theory and I plan on testing it in a few weeks. In the mean time, let me know what you think?
HELLO TO ALL NINJA AND SAMURAI ENTHUSIASTS!!! ON BEHALF OF ANTONY CUMMINS I WOULD LIKE TO INFORM YOU THAT HE DOESN'T RECEIVE NOTIFICATIONS FOR REPLIES TO HIS REPLIES. IF YOU ARE NEW TO THE CHANNEL ANTONY WOULD LIKE YOU TO START BY WATCHING HIS 2020 DOCUMENTARY.
My theory (and it really is just a theory cause I have no proof) is that society used to be much less rigid in those times so different schools or even individuals had their own way of wearing them. Regardless I like this video, it's always ok to ask questions.
Worn WITH or worn THROUGH. The sageo on a katana saya can double as tachi ashi (hanger) and the katana can be suspended from the obi like a tachi which I hypothesized may have been the original intent
So you believe the original purpose of the sageo is a hanger. I never heard this before? I heard many theories such as securing the katana, using it to keep clothing out of the way, as a method to secure an opponent, or choke them but never as a hanger. What do you base this on?
but your told when you display your sword on a rack it is looking at the rack handel letf side blade up in time of war.. When times of piece blade down ... To display a more aggressively display handle to the right blade up and exposed was the most threatening way to display the katana that i was shown.. but could be wrong on the body??
Sounds reasonable. Doesn't Iaido often teach peace time draws which often include a rotation of the saya? Reminds me of a safety on a gun. Purposely slowing the draw time.
Funny I noticed something fun withbnco gunto. The Tsukamaki is reversed so the omote side while in the "traditional" style is on the side facing out. I thought maybe it was done just to keep the omote on the omote side but Inamncurious as the nco gunto was worn with the blade down/ forward like a tachi. This makes total sense!
Looking in history of artwork of samurais that are at wartime after 1600s I see tons of examples of what you're saying so it seems you are right kudos to you big man! Check out some of the pictures I got of the artwork just to back up your theory.
Sorry I tried to add the images of the artwork but it seems it doesn't allow pictures or images to post if so I couldn't figure out how to do it either way I have 20 of them right here that was easily found within 5 minutes long as I Googled the right parameters
yeah there are a few descriptions of Sengoku/early Edo period generals wearing katana tachi style. It wasn't super common though. Wearing them edge up is very much the standard and standard sword fittings only allow them to be worn one way.
I'll have to look, I'm sure it's talked about in a book I own but I don't know which one off the top of my head. It's also worth noting that some samurai wore Tachi into the Edo period as well, and the contemporary terminology isn't always as straightforward in usage as the modern terminology.
I can't find the book, but doing some googling I found out that what I'm talking about is called koshitae mounting as is done when wearing certain types of armor, that should send you in the right direction.
@@kidthorazine Hello there! Antony doesn't receive notifications for replies to his replies so he wasn't able to see your follow up comments. Just a heads up for future reference ok!
Hello Mr.Cummins! I have a couple questions I would like to ask you (and anyone else) about Ninjutsu. I apologize if you’ve answered these a thousand times in the past lol but did the ninjas have a hand to hand combat and weapons system as taught and claimed by Bujinkan, Genbukan, and Christa Jacobson? If you ask me it would make sense they would since they were assassins and spies. Also is the shuriken, smoke bombs, kusarigama and all the other stuff that’s portrayed in popular media weapons ninjas used? Thanks for your time!
@@GHOSTofYOSHIMITSU if a ninja used it, it’s a ninja fighting style because they used it. Yes I’ve been known samurai were ninja and vice versa since middle school dude, I didn’t graduate middle school, high school, and college with honors for nothing. That’s like saying Fiore longsword isn’t a knight martial art when in fact Liberi was a knight. The Bujinkan, To-Shin Do, etc. are not saying they do martial arts that the ninja created and was only known to them, they’re saying they teach the same fighting styles they used. That is why we said we practice ninjutsu (the Bujinkan used to teach the espionage etc. so using Cummin’s definition they did in fact teach Ninjutsu). Hell there’s even books on one or two of the 3 ninja schools from the Bujinkan, I have PDF’s of them, so the ninja material IS there one way or the other. Go to a HEMA school and tell them they don’t actually practice historical swordsmanship because they’re not fighting on horseback or whatever bs specifics you can come up with (like what Cummins does with Ninjutsu) and see if you don’t get laughed at or thrown out like Jazzy Jeff.
I know this video is not related, but can you please give me some directions? I started ninjutso classes a few weeks ago, but after watching some of your videos I have doubts about it, what am I learning? Is it effective? Or it is just fantasy?
start by watching his 2020 documentary; you can also start by getting certain books of his related to the shinobi such as the bansenshukai among others, just have to do a little research because he has a few books on the subject... he also has other books not related to the shinobi hence why you will need to do a little research and find the books related to your path of study. Best of luck on your journey!
Nobutoshi Sensei said (through a translator for full disclosure) that in and yo pertained to different sides of the body, so you could wear a katana left and/or right. After this video I am questioning whether what he said was translated correctly. He also was talking about swords horizontally in stands. So in time of war the katana is the sword on top, and shoto the sword on the bottom (because if you need to act fast you want a decent weapon). But in peace the shoto is the sword on top and the katana on bottom (because you put your shoto in the obi first). He also said the bushi would have the handle to the right and the bureaucrats would have the handles to the left. as you look at the stand The one thing I do remember him saying was you would never carry a sword blade down in a wooden saya, as the small movements as you moved around could cause the blade to cut through the saya. Of course, as I said this was a while ago, translated and 'oral tradition', so there could be any number of mistakes between what he said and I recorded.
I heard they wear it facing down in war times because face down allows you to draw easier on horseback---something Samurai spent a lot of time on. There's also the fact that face down requires less action to draw with one hand which is beneficial on the battlefield. It's actually the same way with some flags. They turn a certain color upwars during war or peace times.
The katana was an infantry weapon, so I doubt it had anything to do with drawing from horseback. Also it is not possible to draw a katana one handed, because you need to perform sayabiki during nukitsuke.
Dimitron and yes, you will have to draw one handed if you're holding the reins for the horse----or else you'd fall off. That's why they face downwards, so you don't have to change angle when you draw.
The tachi was the cavalary sword, which was a one handed weapon. The reason you can draw a tachi one handed is because it hangs on your side. The katana was specifically for infantry. You cannot draw it one handed because it is tucked in your obi. The spear was both used on horseback as well as by infantry, the same applies to the naginata. The infantry versions were longer than the ones for horseback. The comparison to a luger is a false one, since the katana is an umbrella term for different styles of blades with some common features. If you are convinced that the katana can be drawn one handed from your obi, then upload a video of you doing it, either with iaito or shinken, not a bokuto.
Dimitron uh, wrong. The infantry used Uchigatana which was a variant of the Tachi. Conscripted peasants weren't even skilled enough to use blades at the beginning to start with, so the idea that they exclusively used katanas was downright insulting. Only after they became "competent" with weapons were they allowed to use the Uchigatana, which was still hard to come by given the fact that peasants cannot afford to buy swords... Another thing to remember is that Ashigaru spear units were much more prevalent, which proved that spears and not swords were better suited to Ashigaru, both economically and practically. Like you said, katana was an umbrella term. The Samurai were after all known to use several type blades for different uses. However, the Samurai had the opportunity of using all Tachi, Uchigatana and Katana on warfare situations.
Hello Mr. Cummins I I'm a Fan of your Channel. I'm German and my english is not so good, so sorry when I make Mistakes in writing. I read Brooks about the Arab History. After their Prophet died, many Years later, they had Big Fights about who would be his next Follower. Their were for Example the Ummayaden-Wars. Or the Killing of the Son in Law of the Prophet called Ali. The Arab had Indian swords (made of Indian Steel) . They had also Assassin's (their Leader was called the old man from the Mountain). What is so interesting about it, like the Samurai their Warriors believed to neutralize the Ego. It's in their Religion Like in the Buddhist Philosoohy. They never had Something Like Seppuku, but the believe in Honour was very High. Also Punishement was very Cruel, like cooking a man in a Big Pott, or curting the Head or other Body-Parts. What I man is how can their be such a Similarity. I Hope you dont misunderstand me. I read the Hagakure and it's very interesting. I know the Samurai was not Always so Honourfull, so wasnt the Arabs. Could their be a Context? Did Arabs ever travel to Japan or had contact with Them? I know it's a very strange Question but maybe you know more? I know their was a Silk- raid from arabia to China. But In dont know If Arabs in that time had Contact to japan, or this Region. Is their any book that gives information about it? for my Bad english.
Top Lobster that's true,but this sword is real,this actually was around back in ancient Japan, even though the animie isn't right,he an his group traveled all throughout koto an Japan helping people an defend those in need,when he quit being an assassin an chose not to kill anymore thus,the reverse blade came into play. I'm still practicing on drawing the sword an have gotten much faster an have been working on my techniques an cut tests.
Top Lobster ,ok,I get what your saying, I so,an ty for sharing, I take this into consideration and always into learning more about even if I'm wrong, this all just intrigues me as ancient japan's history, also yes I've heard of mushasi, I have the movie as well as he killed a guy on a beach with stick not a bokken though but still it was badass to watch, an again ty for sharing,this has been most helpful an also I have seen mushasi swords online made of 1060 carbon steel that I plan on purchasing.
There's a very practical reason for that, you store it that way so any moisture trapped in the saya falls towards the spine of the sword, since it's relatively trivial to remove surface rust from the spine, but rust on the edge can basically render the sword permanently nonfuctional. Tachi where stored vertically point down most of the time for the same reason.
I have one question, I think I once saw you in two documentries, one on ninja, and another on samurai, Their names were ninja shadow warriors, and samurai headhunters, is this true?
@@matteozambetti4373 Antony doesn't receive notifications for replies to replies so he wasn't able to see your follow up comment here. I recommend asking him on his most current video. I notice he's pretty good at responding to people on his most current videos. best of luck hopefully he is able to answer your question!
God dam i need help do i need an obi to over my kendo pants after everything on to hold my sword in i wrapped it on my ties on my kendo pants and the hole thing ripped after the night was over i must know it that big belt an obi no one on youtube tells you i wrap my ties on my samurai sword on the obi is that an obi and the obi gos on over your wraps on the kendo pants ?
Interesting thought. I do like the logic and I do hope you can find something to help back you up, get that final proof you're after. I know what that's like. There's a part of me that wants to argue, however, I think HEMA faces its own similar issues. We have texts, images, tapestries, arrases, trying to link said piece of art, to a particular phrasing, event, study, master, teacher. Working out what the missing from the written record. If we can recover that knowledge. This idea that the sword of being worn down, well, makes sense for war. It sets up the first, drawing motion to also be a strike. It present an offensive stance from the first step. If my understanding of Samurai logic, philosophy is anyway accurate, how you move and the intent of your actions matter. A clarity of purpose, objective, rationale. To not walk into war, without immediately being able to strike a foe, seems counter intuitive. Even illogical. To not have your sword ready to strike? It lakes that clarity, certainty of action, I would expect.
I can see that kenjitsu and co made it about ritual, yet I guess from a sense of..... wholeness of, of being completely and totally in the mind of, it is deliberate action. It is a deliberate footing, preparedness for war. Of not just being ready to take life mentally, but physically too. I believe Musashi had a comment, line, about acting with wholeness of thought, focus. It could also be a form of advertising as well. If he's wearing it that way, he must be going to war. We should be careful.
@@LionofCaliban just a heads up Antony doesn't receive notifications for replies to his replies so he didn't see your follow up comment ok? just for future reference!
As much as I disagree with your taking of natori ryu this is an interesting video. I saw in kochi castle a chosokabe ashigaru statue with an edge down katana.
The tradition changed to edge up because peace had been won and if you think about it, wearing a sword in edge up position, nowadays, is offensive because of all the struggle Japan went trought to win this peace.
my sensei taught me that the tachi was originally worn blade down, but in times of peace the tachi was worn blade up, thus confirming what you are saying about wearing the swords.
This dead and life wearing is true. Wearing the blade up it runs the risk of hurting yourself by cutting the thumb. Internalize. But with blade down you can pull the blade with a back hand pull and strike with full force from a sheathed position. The way you pull the sword changes too. From an under hand pull to an over hand pull.
Yup, curve down katana (blade down) is only when WAR mode on. Curve up (blade up) is when in normal day, it's give a peace sense and non aggressive for other people on the street.
Very interesting. We always carry our katana in the peace way but upon drawing always turn blade downwards instantly before drawing
It was always weird to me that they wore their swords blade up. All the explanations I saw saying how it's more comfortable to draw like that made no sense. You can easily do unsheathe slashing attacks with blade down probably even more efficiently with less awkward movements. The explanation that blade up is for peace time, meaning you're not supposed to draw it, and blade down for war makes a lot of sense.
@0:50 _"...we may be wearing samurai swords slightly... _*_not wrong._*_ "'Wrong" is not the right word, but we may not..."_
~Looks at video title: "Wearing Samurai Swords the *Wrong* Way"~ :P
Love some good clickbait 😋
imagine which way will be more practical if people still wear swords in the modern world
I always thought that when out of armor, the katana was worn sharp edge up but when in armor, it was sharp edge down.
I thought that too. I dont practice japanese swordsplay long time, but what i understood, its hard to unsheat sword when blade is worn with sharp edge up when you are in samurai armor (even if impossible), but i am still in phase of theories or "what i hear". I never wore samurai armor.
Hey Antony I think I've come up with an interesting theory about this. Please read the whole post.
So the tachi's real strength in the draw may not be in the orientation of the blade as the blade would naturally want to hang blade down but is in it's ability to be drawn single-handed. Giving as a Samurai would likely be armed with another, usually longer weapon, like a yumi, yari, etc. or even the reins; being able to draw single handed would allow a samurai to hold his long weapon in his left and draw the tachi with his right.
More over the tachi's mounting, which hang it at the hip, give it a longer draw compared to the katana which is placed at the waist; making the draw much more forgiving in technique. Drawing a katana single handed can be quite a fiddly mess even without armor in the equation as the katana no saya, being placed through the obi, tends to want to be pulled out of its placement with the sword proper on the draw, which is why the noto is usually a two handed affair. More over in the blade up fashion the kurikata is on the outside of the body placing the sageo in a position only useful for tying the saya to the obi at best and turning the blade down and the kurikata will press into the side at worst and be useless at best.
However with armor on one doesn't have to worry about the kurikata causing any displeasure as the armor would prevent it rubbing or pressing. More over by turning the katana down, it will allow the wearer to use the sageo to tie the saya directly to the waist, thereby feeding into the tachi's second biggest strength on a one handed draw, being that the saya is attached directly to the body anchoring into position so that the sword can be drawn effortlessly without having to hold or otherwise tamper with it. By tying the saya to the waist it will be held in place, allowing the katana to be drawn with one hand more efficiently.
Now the question may come up as why not tie the saya to the obi like many styles do. My answer is simple; the obi shifts and that leads to the previous problem of the saya wanting to go with the katana on the draw.
That is just my theory and I plan on testing it in a few weeks. In the mean time, let me know what you think?
HELLO TO ALL NINJA AND SAMURAI ENTHUSIASTS!!! ON BEHALF OF ANTONY CUMMINS I WOULD LIKE TO INFORM YOU THAT HE DOESN'T RECEIVE NOTIFICATIONS FOR REPLIES TO HIS REPLIES. IF YOU ARE NEW TO THE CHANNEL ANTONY WOULD LIKE YOU TO START BY WATCHING HIS 2020 DOCUMENTARY.
So there is a possibility that tachi is always negative.
Yes in an obi, maybe blade down.
Yes in an obi, maybe blade down.
Maybe always blade down, even in obi
My theory (and it really is just a theory cause I have no proof) is that society used to be much less rigid in those times so different schools or even individuals had their own way of wearing them.
Regardless I like this video, it's always ok to ask questions.
Bruh litterally the first thing we see is an ad
It’s an ad for my work
Worn WITH or worn THROUGH. The sageo on a katana saya can double as tachi ashi (hanger) and the katana can be suspended from the obi like a tachi which I hypothesized may have been the original intent
I have seen art as through, also as in image in this video. But your point is good. This is the more research needed.
So you believe the original purpose of the sageo is a hanger. I never heard this before? I heard many theories such as securing the katana, using it to keep clothing out of the way, as a method to secure an opponent, or choke them but never as a hanger. What do you base this on?
but your told when you display your sword on a rack it is looking at the rack handel letf side blade up in time of war.. When times of piece blade down ... To display a more aggressively display handle to the right blade up and exposed was the most threatening way to display the katana that i was shown.. but could be wrong on the body??
That could be the more modern way. I’m looking for old ways
Sounds reasonable. Doesn't Iaido often teach peace time draws which often include a rotation of the saya? Reminds me of a safety on a gun. Purposely slowing the draw time.
Funny I noticed something fun withbnco gunto. The Tsukamaki is reversed so the omote side while in the "traditional" style is on the side facing out. I thought maybe it was done just to keep the omote on the omote side but Inamncurious as the nco gunto was worn with the blade down/ forward like a tachi. This makes total sense!
Looking in history of artwork of samurais that are at wartime after 1600s I see tons of examples of what you're saying so it seems you are right kudos to you big man! Check out some of the pictures I got of the artwork just to back up your theory.
Sorry I tried to add the images of the artwork but it seems it doesn't allow pictures or images to post if so I couldn't figure out how to do it either way I have 20 of them right here that was easily found within 5 minutes long as I Googled the right parameters
Email it to me through website
Relax max you are stressful.
Favourite history channel on TH-cam I subscribe
Also I should mention kodachi were worn like tachi too.
yeah there are a few descriptions of Sengoku/early Edo period generals wearing katana tachi style. It wasn't super common though. Wearing them edge up is very much the standard and standard sword fittings only allow them to be worn one way.
Email me the descriptions if you can.
I'll have to look, I'm sure it's talked about in a book I own but I don't know which one off the top of my head. It's also worth noting that some samurai wore Tachi into the Edo period as well, and the contemporary terminology isn't always as straightforward in usage as the modern terminology.
I can't find the book, but doing some googling I found out that what I'm talking about is called koshitae mounting as is done when wearing certain types of armor, that should send you in the right direction.
@@kidthorazine Hello there! Antony doesn't receive notifications for replies to his replies so he wasn't able to see your follow up comments. Just a heads up for future reference ok!
Hello Mr.Cummins! I have a couple questions I would like to ask you (and anyone else) about Ninjutsu. I apologize if you’ve answered these a thousand times in the past lol but did the ninjas have a hand to hand combat and weapons system as taught and claimed by Bujinkan, Genbukan, and Christa Jacobson? If you ask me it would make sense they would since they were assassins and spies. Also is the shuriken, smoke bombs, kusarigama and all the other stuff that’s portrayed in popular media weapons ninjas used? Thanks for your time!
@@GHOSTofYOSHIMITSU if a ninja used it, it’s a ninja fighting style because they used it. Yes I’ve been known samurai were ninja and vice versa since middle school dude, I didn’t graduate middle school, high school, and college with honors for nothing. That’s like saying Fiore longsword isn’t a knight martial art when in fact Liberi was a knight. The Bujinkan, To-Shin Do, etc. are not saying they do martial arts that the ninja created and was only known to them, they’re saying they teach the same fighting styles they used. That is why we said we practice ninjutsu (the Bujinkan used to teach the espionage etc. so using Cummin’s definition they did in fact teach Ninjutsu). Hell there’s even books on one or two of the 3 ninja schools from the Bujinkan, I have PDF’s of them, so the ninja material IS there one way or the other. Go to a HEMA school and tell them they don’t actually practice historical swordsmanship because they’re not fighting on horseback or whatever bs specifics you can come up with (like what Cummins does with Ninjutsu) and see if you don’t get laughed at or thrown out like Jazzy Jeff.
What about the myth that shinobi wore their sword on the back? Any truth to this?
Hello Antony, great channel! Do yoiu know any modern Ninja films that are authentic?
Blade up is way more practical and if being attacked its the more suitable
I know this video is not related, but can you please give me some directions? I started ninjutso classes a few weeks ago, but after watching some of your videos I have doubts about it, what am I learning? Is it effective? Or it is just fantasy?
start by watching his 2020 documentary; you can also start by getting certain books of his related to the shinobi such as the bansenshukai among others, just have to do a little research because he has a few books on the subject... he also has other books not related to the shinobi hence why you will need to do a little research and find the books related to your path of study. Best of luck on your journey!
Nobutoshi Sensei said (through a translator for full disclosure) that in and yo pertained to different sides of the body, so you could wear a katana left and/or right. After this video I am questioning whether what he said was translated correctly. He also was talking about swords horizontally in stands. So in time of war the katana is the sword on top, and shoto the sword on the bottom (because if you need to act fast you want a decent weapon). But in peace the shoto is the sword on top and the katana on bottom (because you put your shoto in the obi first). He also said the bushi would have the handle to the right and the bureaucrats would have the handles to the left. as you look at the stand
The one thing I do remember him saying was you would never carry a sword blade down in a wooden saya, as the small movements as you moved around could cause the blade to cut through the saya.
Of course, as I said this was a while ago, translated and 'oral tradition', so there could be any number of mistakes between what he said and I recorded.
Let me know asap plz i am trying to buy new kendo pants and belt if that what i need ⬇⬇
How would the tanto be mounted?
Interesting fact, I practice muso jikiden eishin ryu iaijutsu and in our ryu were wear the tachi with the blade upward too.
If this is in an Obi then email me details please. If on a belt, its ok. But thank you for info.
Do you mean yin and yang
I heard they wear it facing down in war times because face down allows you to draw easier on horseback---something Samurai spent a lot of time on.
There's also the fact that face down requires less action to draw with one hand which is beneficial on the battlefield.
It's actually the same way with some flags. They turn a certain color upwars during war or peace times.
The katana was an infantry weapon, so I doubt it had anything to do with drawing from horseback. Also it is not possible to draw a katana one handed, because you need to perform sayabiki during nukitsuke.
Dimitron uh, no it's not. The spear is the infantry weapon.
It's like saying every german had a Luger in ww2.
Dimitron and yes, you will have to draw one handed if you're holding the reins for the horse----or else you'd fall off.
That's why they face downwards, so you don't have to change angle when you draw.
The tachi was the cavalary sword, which was a one handed weapon. The reason you can draw a tachi one handed is because it hangs on your side. The katana was specifically for infantry. You cannot draw it one handed because it is tucked in your obi. The spear was both used on horseback as well as by infantry, the same applies to the naginata. The infantry versions were longer than the ones for horseback. The comparison to a luger is a false one, since the katana is an umbrella term for different styles of blades with some common features. If you are convinced that the katana can be drawn one handed from your obi, then upload a video of you doing it, either with iaito or shinken, not a bokuto.
Dimitron uh, wrong. The infantry used Uchigatana which was a variant of the Tachi.
Conscripted peasants weren't even skilled enough to use blades at the beginning to start with, so the idea that they exclusively used katanas was downright insulting. Only after they became "competent" with weapons were they allowed to use the Uchigatana, which was still hard to come by given the fact that peasants cannot afford to buy swords...
Another thing to remember is that Ashigaru spear units were much more prevalent, which proved that spears and not swords were better suited to Ashigaru, both economically and practically.
Like you said, katana was an umbrella term. The Samurai were after all known to use several type blades for different uses. However, the Samurai had the opportunity of using all Tachi, Uchigatana and Katana on warfare situations.
Hello Mr. Cummins I I'm a Fan of your Channel. I'm German and my english is not so good, so sorry when I make Mistakes in writing. I read Brooks about the Arab History. After their Prophet died, many Years later, they had Big Fights about who would be his next Follower. Their were for Example the Ummayaden-Wars. Or the Killing of the Son in Law of the Prophet called Ali. The Arab had Indian swords (made of Indian Steel) . They had also Assassin's (their Leader was called the old man from the Mountain). What is so interesting about it, like the Samurai their Warriors believed to neutralize the Ego. It's in their Religion Like in the Buddhist Philosoohy. They never had Something Like Seppuku, but the believe in Honour was very High. Also Punishement was very Cruel, like cooking a man in a Big Pott, or curting the Head or other Body-Parts. What I man is how can their be such a Similarity. I Hope you dont misunderstand me. I read the Hagakure and it's very interesting. I know the Samurai was not Always so Honourfull, so wasnt the Arabs. Could their be a Context? Did Arabs ever travel to Japan or had contact with Them? I know it's a very strange Question but maybe you know more? I know their was a Silk- raid from arabia to China. But In dont know If Arabs in that time had Contact to japan, or this Region. Is their any book that gives information about it? for my Bad english.
How does that fit into if you have a reverse blade katana like ruroni kenshin. I have a reverse blade called a sakabato.
Top Lobster that's true,but this sword is real,this actually was around back in ancient Japan, even though the animie isn't right,he an his group traveled all throughout koto an Japan helping people an defend those in need,when he quit being an assassin an chose not to kill anymore thus,the reverse blade came into play. I'm still practicing on drawing the sword an have gotten much faster an have been working on my techniques an cut tests.
Top Lobster ,ok,I get what your saying, I so,an ty for sharing, I take this into consideration and always into learning more about even if I'm wrong, this all just intrigues me as ancient japan's history, also yes I've heard of mushasi, I have the movie as well as he killed a guy on a beach with stick not a bokken though but still it was badass to watch, an again ty for sharing,this has been most helpful an also I have seen mushasi swords online made of 1060 carbon steel that I plan on purchasing.
Nice job! Does this change any of your thoughts on how swords are displayed on a stand (katanagake)?
That is one of the things i want to check. When that system started.
There's a very practical reason for that, you store it that way so any moisture trapped in the saya falls towards the spine of the sword, since it's relatively trivial to remove surface rust from the spine, but rust on the edge can basically render the sword permanently nonfuctional. Tachi where stored vertically point down most of the time for the same reason.
thank you for this info
Also, would you be able to look for examples from the boshin war? Maybe from the satsuma rebellion?
Mind Blown!
Mine too! I enjoyed doing this one.
I have one question, I think I once saw you in two documentries, one on ninja, and another on samurai, Their names were ninja shadow warriors, and samurai headhunters, is this true?
@@matteozambetti4373 Antony doesn't receive notifications for replies to replies so he wasn't able to see your follow up comment here. I recommend asking him on his most current video. I notice he's pretty good at responding to people on his most current videos. best of luck hopefully he is able to answer your question!
blade down war blade up paces kenjutsu either way nice you back
Thank you. I will keep researching.
Maybe it is worn edge down in war because the armor limits your mobility making it awkward to draw it from edge up.
This was more about ritual i think. But practicality must come into it.
Historically, I think when it comes to military arts, practicality tends to inform ritual/fashion, rather than the reverse.
When in doubt, ask your sensei. If you're lucky, he'll teach you how to pronounce "obi" correctly as well. lol
God dam i need help do i need an obi to over my kendo pants after everything on to hold my sword in i wrapped it on my ties on my kendo pants and the hole thing ripped after the night was over i must know it that big belt an obi no one on youtube tells you i wrap my ties on my samurai sword on the obi is that an obi and the obi gos on over your wraps on the kendo pants ?
some of the words in your comment make it hard to understand what you are asking. I do hope you resolved this issue!
I wounder why the swords were the wrong way... Thank you for this.
i will keep looking.
Ying and yang is not from japenese right
It doesn't originate in Japan but that idea did spread there.
Interesting thought. I do like the logic and I do hope you can find something to help back you up, get that final proof you're after. I know what that's like.
There's a part of me that wants to argue, however, I think HEMA faces its own similar issues. We have texts, images, tapestries, arrases, trying to link said piece of art, to a particular phrasing, event, study, master, teacher. Working out what the missing from the written record. If we can recover that knowledge.
This idea that the sword of being worn down, well, makes sense for war. It sets up the first, drawing motion to also be a strike. It present an offensive stance from the first step. If my understanding of Samurai logic, philosophy is anyway accurate, how you move and the intent of your actions matter. A clarity of purpose, objective, rationale. To not walk into war, without immediately being able to strike a foe, seems counter intuitive. Even illogical. To not have your sword ready to strike? It lakes that clarity, certainty of action, I would expect.
You can draw both ways, we know this, tachi and traditional katana style. Also this is not quick draw. It is war. So more about ritual i think.
I can see that kenjitsu and co made it about ritual, yet I guess from a sense of..... wholeness of, of being completely and totally in the mind of, it is deliberate action. It is a deliberate footing, preparedness for war. Of not just being ready to take life mentally, but physically too.
I believe Musashi had a comment, line, about acting with wholeness of thought, focus.
It could also be a form of advertising as well. If he's wearing it that way, he must be going to war. We should be careful.
@@LionofCaliban just a heads up Antony doesn't receive notifications for replies to his replies so he didn't see your follow up comment ok? just for future reference!
Interesting
Wow
What do yu think of for honor combat system
I think it faded out as the sengoku period grew
As much as I disagree with your taking of natori ryu this is an interesting video. I saw in kochi castle a chosokabe ashigaru statue with an edge down katana.
Interesante...
The tradition changed to edge up because peace had been won and if you think about it, wearing a sword in edge up position, nowadays, is offensive because of all the struggle Japan went trought to win this peace.
what a joke.