Japan's Ultimate Martial Art: Jujitsu Before 1882 the Classical Japanese Art of Self-Defense [Paperback]

Darrell Max Craig (Author)

Product Details

• Paperback: 167 pages
• Publisher: Tuttle Publishing (June 15, 1995)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0804830274
• ISBN-13: 978-0804830270
• Product Dimensions: 10.5 x 8.1 x 0.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.1 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.2 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (18 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #528,915 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Discover books, learn about writers, read author blogs, and more.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

18 of 21 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Excellent history and discussion, March 10, 2004

By 

magellan (Santa Clara, CA) - See all my reviews
(HALL OF FAME REVIEWER)    (COMMUNITY FORUM 04)    (TOP 1000 REVIEWER)   

This review is from: Japan's Ultimate Martial Art: Jujitsu Before 1882 the Classical Japanese Art of Self-Defense (Paperback)

I'm surprised I'm the first person to review this book. This book discusses classical Japanese jiu-jitsu, presenting the history of the art as it can best be reconstructed, along with many illustrations and discussions of the techniques. Just as with the approximately 200-300 schools of swordsmanship that existed between 1000 A.D. and the mid-1800's, when they went into decline (with only about 15 surviving today), there were many styles also of jiu-jitsu, often associated with a particular martial art tradition that included training in the yari (spear), naginata (halberd), the bow, and various other weapons, but most importantly, the sword, as in the famous Kashima-Shinryu style that Karl Friday has capably discussed in his scholarly book, Legacies of the Sword.

Here Craig attempts to do the same thing for jiu-jitsu and I think succeeds very well. Except for articles in various martial arts journals, there is no book accessible to the general reader that deals with this important topic. Overall, a fine book with much valuable information that should be of interest to martial artists with an interest in the old school or koryu Japanese arts.

8 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Very good, December 8, 2002

By 

"rcrh" (Tucson, AZ United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Japan's Ultimate Martial Art: Jujitsu Before 1882 the Classical Japanese Art of Self-Defense (Paperback)

This book has an excellent historical perspective of Japanese jujitsu. Like many other books on martial arts, it can not be used alone to learn actual techniques. However it describes a variety of ancient techniques that are still used today by the Japanese police, including some lesser known methods such as rope tying. Although I understand that the author was probably attempting a specific "historical" look with the somewhat crude drawings, I would have preferred more modern illustrations.

7 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Jujitsu in an historical perspective., June 16, 1999

By A Customer

This review is from: Japan's Ultimate Martial Art: Jujitsu Before 1882 the Classical Japanese Art of Self-Defense (Paperback)

Craig Sensei has provided the jujitsu community with a look at their roots. An honest, well documented study of the golden age of traditional jujitsu with a brief discussion and illustration of many of the lesser known techniques of jujitsu.