is the art of using the

Japan Japan is an island country in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean off the northeast coast of the Asia, Asian mainland, it is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan and extends from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea ...

ese weapon

kusarigama A is a traditional Japanese weapon that consists of a '' kama'' (the Japanese equivalent of a sickle or billhook) on a kusari-fundo – a type of metal chain (''kusari'') with a heavy iron weight (''fundo'') at the end. The ''kusarigama'' is s ...

. Kusarigamajutsu is featured in several separate martial arts such as Tendō-ryū,

Suiō-ryū is a style of classical Japanese swordsmanship. It was founded by Mima Yoichizaemon Kagenobu at the end of the Sengoku period. The style specialises in iaijutsu but other arts, such as jōjutsu, naginatajutsu and kusarigamajutsu are practised as ...

and Shintō Musō-ryū. The kusarigama is made up of three parts: the ''

kama ''Kama'' (Sanskrit: काम, ) is the concept of pleasure, enjoyment and desire in Hinduism, Buddhism, Jainism, and Sikhism. It can also refer to "desire, wish, longing" in Hindu, Buddhist, Jain, and Sikh literature.Monier Williamsका� ...

'' (a wooden handle with a curved blade (traditionally straight) protruding at a right-angle on one end, and a small loop at the other), and the ''kusari'' (a chain attached to the kama) and a weight at the end of the chain. In a confrontation the kusari is swung in wide sweeping arcs to distract and entangle the opponent and the kama is used to deliver a fatal strike.Kusarigamajutsu
Martialartsaus.com. Accessed June 2, 2012.

Popular culture

* ''

Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles ''Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles'' (''TMNT'') is an American media franchise created by comic book artists Kevin Eastman and Peter Laird. It follows Leonardo (Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles), Leonardo, Donatello (Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles), D ...

'' features kusarigamajutsu being used by Michaelangelo and Shini in the 2012 version. It was also used by Karai, the

boar The wild boar (''Sus scrofa''), also known as the wild swine, common wild pig, Eurasian wild pig, or simply wild pig, is a Suidae, suid native to much of Eurasia and North Africa, and has been introduced to the Americas and Oceania. The speci ...

assassin Assassination is the willful killing, by a sudden, secret, or planned attack, of a personespecially if prominent or important. It may be prompted by political, ideological, religious, financial, or military motives. Assassinations are orde ...

Kojima, one of the Triceraton All-Stars, and some of the Foot Ninjas as well as some Karai Bots in the 2003 version.

Sources

* Pascal Krieger: ''Jodô – la voie du bâton / The way of the stick'' (bilingual French/English), Geneva (CH) 1989, Japanese martial arts Ninjutsu Ninjutsu skills {{martialart-stub

Popular culture

See also

Sources