FIRST NATIONS FIGHTING ARTS
Article by Barron Shepherd
The following article is written with my Sensei Samuel Lonewolf's input and blessing. Sensei Lonewolf is an 8th degree black belt and practices Native American weaponry such as the knife and tomahawk.
According to Andrew Adams in
his book Ninja Invisible Assassins, “ In many ways the ninja bore a remarkable
resemblance to the American Indian. They were stoical by nature and Spartan in
their habits, both breeds developed great strength and endurance. They both
learned to walk noiselessly and cover long distances in an amazingly short span
of time. They could also detect the sound of approaching danger by putting one
ear to the ground. Both were not only excellent horseman, but were also skilled
with a knife as well as bow and arrow.
The American Indian used
flaming arrows to set enemy camps on fire and communicated with smoke signals
by day, animal and bird calls by night. They dug sand pits in the desert that
were disguised and lay in wait for hours. They submerged themselves in swamp
water and rivers and breathed thru hollow cane and reeds. They scaled vertical
mountains to hide from the enemy. They prided themselves on their personal
courage, preferring death to surrender or capture. The Eastern Ninja did many
of the same as well. You could drop the American Indian and Eastern Ninja any
place in the world and they would no doubt adapt and survive.”Adding to the legend of their fierce combat skills, was the writings of Karl May. In Germany, American Indians were popularized in his fictional writings. This may have backfired a bit; The American Indian were so revered as invincible warriors in Karl May’s books that German troops were spooked by the notion they might be in the American ranks for 2 World Wars. There are stories about how during WW I and WWII, the Germans were utterly TERRIFIED of the possibility about coming up against American Indians in battle. Adolf Hitler himself is said to have had a very distinct fear of Native American soldiers.
To begin to understand the American Indian way of fighting, one must realize that there was no army for the Indians. Warriors would band together as a tribe, but forming ranks and armies was alien to them. Warriors would work together loosely, but battle lines were not a tactic. Fighting was an intensely personal experience, and aside from the immediate protection of family and friends, the idea of fighting as a nation was not a conception that the American Indian could grasp. Each warrior ultimately answered to himself. Each warrior would look out for their own best interest and also for any opportunity to kill or "count coup" on an enemy.
There was an emphasis on the individual warrior and his exploits rather than the group as a whole. If a warrior could charge headlong into a group of enemies, then escape back to his comrades, he was considered twice as brave and honored much more. By exposing himself to danger and escaping while making the enemy look foolish, he had achieved the highest form of bravery in the American Indian culture.
The Native American tactics for battle were carefully planned by the leaders, and when faithfully carried out often resulted in success. The tactics were those of stealth, surprise, and maneuver. If the enemy was alerted, they withdraw and tried another time. Their hit-and-run techniques proved the most successful way to inflict damage without exposing and reducing their numbers to the bloody consequences of a direct engagement.
By being stealthy and attacking quickly with great force, and then withdrawing, it was possible to stun and confuse the enemy, giving Indians a greater advantage. This “guerrilla warfare” style of combat of engaging an enemy briefly and dissolving into the forests like ghosts, was highly effective and not to mention frustrating and unnerving to their enemies. A French missionary wrote of them at war: "They approach like foxes, fight like lions, and disappear like birds."
Native American warriors were not just highly effective in combat, they were warriors in the truest since who had many responsibilities and duties. They were not only responsible for the protection of their people but also had the responsibility for providing the basic material needs of their people such as food. This was an ongoing responsibility and one which fell directly on the shoulders of the warrior. If the warrior did not or could not provide these needs, his family, his people, did without.
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| Sam Lonewolf 8th degree black Belt Kajukenbo Kenpo Karate |
According to Sensei Lonewolf, "The warrior stood in the fire for his people
regardless of the type of hardship or task they endured. His many tasks and responsibilities included
taking care of the elderly, the defenseless; those who could not provide for
themselves, and above all, the children, quite simply the children were the
future. He had an
intense and absorbing respect for life, enriching faith in a Supreme Power, and
principles of truth, honesty, generosity, equity, and brotherhood as a guide to
mundane relations. This was all a part
of Native American warriorship."
Barron Shepherd is a 7th degree black belt in Kajukenbo Kenpo Karate under Sam Lonewolf, 8th Dan Oyate Tokaheya Wokicize Wakagapi First Nations Fighting Arts (Kajukenbo).
