Hojo Jutsu

Art or Style: Hojo Jutsu - The Japanese art of Roping and Binding

Fig 1 Samurai in battle binding a prisoner

Among the ropes and belts carried as part of the Samurai armour, are Koshi Nawa of the Chinese type *(Kara Uchi No Himo) which the Samurai fastened to his belt. Figure 1 shows a Samurai in battle tying his prisoner using Tori Nawa techniques. The rope or cord was multi-functional and was used for e.g.Securing a saddle (Kura Gatame), Tethering a horse* (*Shiba Tsunagi) and Binding prisoners* (*Tori Nawa) Other ropes used by the Samurai came complete with hoops, spikes or grappling irons attached to the end and they would also be used for a variety of reasons such as Climbing a wall* Securing a boat Hanging up armour etc. In this section we will be looking at the skills relating to binding a prisoner or securing a person. It was the *Takenouchi Ryu* that first formalised the art. Later in its development the 17^th century classical bujutsu of the Itatsu Ryu formed the basics of the system used by Japans modern Police Force. This took the form of: 5 Kihon techniques. *3 techniques of Tote Nawa* (Hoshu Nawa) or tying to the front 4 Techniques of Inchi Nawa (Goso Nawa) or tying to the rear. Of significant note was the rule that the operator must keep his prisoner under control at all times particularly while tying him. Practice will no doubt heighten manual dexterity and speed is of the essence. There are a variety of methods to secure a prisoner and they offer various degrees of control. These include restricting the use of the arms but allowing use of the arms for eating etc. Restricting the use of the legs, whether that be to allow walking but not running etc while other methods completely immobilise the prisoner. These methods would include patterns to produce pain or loss of consciousness if the prisoner struggles. When securing the hands the wrists must be crossed to prevent any possibility of escape through flexion and extension of the wrists. The legs can be secured either separately or together with the upper body but when securing the legs it is important to secure both legs otherwise escape will be imminent. When binding the following must be considered: should the prisoner be secured totally? should he be allowed to stand? should he be allowed of walk about but not run? should he be restricted in the distance he can walk?**	Fig 2. *Goso Nawa* from Takenouchi Ryu
	Fig 3 The Lobster
	Fig. 4 - A bound prisoner hung from a beam
Some of the patterns can be physically very severe, while others very effective restraint. A very famous pattern of roping is the Lobster (see fig. 3) and undoubtedly this required a great degree of flexibility in the prisoner or indeed excessive brutality to secure someone in this positions. It has been known of the Japanese to torture their prisoners by binding their hands and arms and hanging them by the arms from a branch of a tree or a beam (see fig. 4)
Hojo in Modern Times	Fig 5 - Roping prionsers together
It may appear strange to some that the almost primitive art of roping a prisoner has a practical use in modern days. Simple cord tying is considered to be a more efficient and economical system than metal handcuffs, particularly when dealing with multiple prisoners. In 1927 a Police Technical Commission examined the techniques of *Hojojutsu* and during this exercise Shimizu Takaji demonstrated the techniques of restraining and immobilising an aggressor through the use of tying a cord. There was great interest in these techniques and Shimizu recommended the adoption of several techniques into the Police system for controlling prisoners. The formal training of these techniques continued until 1931 when Shimizu became the Jojustu teacher to the Tokyo Police. He then organised formal instruction in *Hojojutsu* for all patrolmen and they remained in use until after the defeat of Japan in World War 2. (see figs. 6 & 7).	Fig. 6 Japanese Police in training
The subsequent ban on all classical martial arts did not included Hojo Jutsu as this art was considered an essential and integral part of training Japanese policemen. Between 1949 and 1968 Shimizu modified the original methods to make them more suited to the situations that are more likely to arise today. Though the classical art is distinguishable as a separate formal system of combat, it is in reality only the final stage of action in the classical art of *Torite* – the art of seizing and restraining an aggressor. The aggressor must be first brought under control before he can be rendered helpless by binding his limbs etc. This makes for a happy marriage of *Jujitsu* and Hojojutsu techniques without impingement, dilution or loss of any of the two systems technical effectiveness. They are complementary just as the art of *Kuzushi* is within *Jujitsu*.	Fig. 7 Controlling a prisoner while binding.
Acknowledgement to D. Draeger for Figures 2, 4, 6, & 7. above	Fig. 7 Controlling a prisoner while binding.