Japanese Jujitsu » Munshinai http://www.japanesejujitsu.org Tue, 16 Mar 2010 13:26:23 +0000 http://wordpress.org/?v=abc en hourly 1 A Brief History of the Jutte http://www.japanesejujitsu.org/a-brief-history-of-the-jutte http://www.japanesejujitsu.org/a-brief-history-of-the-jutte#comments Sat, 02 May 2009 10:29:43 +0000 admin http://www.japanesejujitsu.org/?p=381 Post image for A Brief History of the Jutte

The Jutte is a weapon from the Japanese Edo period, used by law enforcement offers of the era. The weapon is said to have “the power of ten hands.” It is a baton that features a one-pronged tine.

There is no cutting edge, but the cylindrical jutte measures approximately 45cm from end-to-end and only 5cm long above the handle towards the tip. The weapon is heavily associated with those practicing the martial art of jujitsu and other Japanese kobudo.

Originally, historians believed that the tine itself was used to stop swords in the midst of battle or in the line of duty for law enforcement. However, while it would be possible for a user to enable the tine to perform this function, most likely this was not the case since the tine is so close to the hand. The potential damage to the defender is high. Most users of the jutte believe that during the Japanese Edo period, a person facing a swordsman would only capture the blade after evading its danger.

A much more common use for the jutte’s tine is to hook into clothing or body parts such as the mouth or nose for better control of the enemy. It can also be pushed into joints or weak points in the body to cause heavy amounts of pain. On the battlefield, ancient warriors used the jutte to trap an enemy in concert with a lasso or a grapple.

Most historians believe the jutte helped influence the development of the sai. In jujitsu, like most other batons and stick weapons, it can easily be used to strike the enemy on muscle tissue and manipulate joint connections.

It is believed that the jutte was first designed by Japanese swordmaker Masamune. It is unknown of the exact date of the creation or indeed when Masamune existed, although most believe it was sometime in the late 13th and early 14th centuries. He lived and worked in the Sagami Province where, in addition to the jutte, he developed tachi swords and the tanto daggers in the Soshu tradition. Other legends claim that the jutte was developed by his father, Munshinai.

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