Uploaded by MILITARY HISTORY 2015. The Military History of Ancient Shaolin Monks and Ancient Ninja Shinobi. As warrior-monks, their philosophy and teachings reflected the perfect blend of rigorous martial training and strict Buddhist asceticism. Their martial training was based on both the movements of animals and a system of weaponry.
The Ninja, respected for their stealth and cunning manners, were considered the most devious and feared warriors in ancient Japan.
Shaolin Kung Fu starts at 00:10
Shaolin Kung Fu refers to a collection of Chinese martial arts that claim affiliation with the Shaolin Monastery.
Ninja starts at 23:39
A ninja or shinobi was a covert agent or mercenary in feudal Japan. The functions of the ninja included espionage, sabotage, infiltration, and assassination, and open combat in certain situations.
Much of what we know of ancient history is the history of militaries: their conquests, their movements, and their technological innovations. There are many reasons for this. Kingdoms and empires, the central units of control in the ancient world, could only be maintained through military force. Due to limited agricultural ability, there were relatively few areas that could support large communities, so fighting was common.
Weapons and armor, designed to be sturdy, tended to last longer than other artifacts, and thus a great deal of surviving artifacts recovered tend to fall in this category as they are more likely to survive. Weapons and armor were also mass-produced to a scale that makes them quite plentiful throughout history, and thus more likely to be found in archaeological digs. .