Shidoshi Mark Murdock
Shidoshi Murdock is a 5th Dan in Budo Taijutsu
Rivers Edge Bujinkan Dojo
Bujinkan Budo Taijutsu, Ninjutsu
(with Bujinkan Ninpo Taijutsu and Modernized Ninjutsu techniques and variations)
Traditional Bujinkan Ninpo/Budo Taijutsu class Teusdays and Thursdays 7:00pm to 7:45pm.
We are an IBDA dojo. Shidoshi Murdock has trained with Doshi Richard Van Donk for 30 years. Kyu Ranking can be from Doshi Van Donk or can be from the Homu Dojo in Japan. The student must pay extra for a Doshi Van Donk rank, or a Japanese rank when they are available. This is in additon to the Dojo's test price.
Rivers Edge Bujinkan Dojo Official Homepage
Bujinkan Budo Taijutsu, (Ninjutsu)
Shidoshi Murdock's Godan certification
Shidoshi Murdock is officially Japan certified as a 5th Dan Bujinkan Shidoshi. Shidoshi Murdock has over 25 years in Bujinkan Budo Taijutsu (Ninjutsu).
Truth about Shinobi (Ninja)
What image comes to mind when you hear the word “ninja”? Perhaps you imagine figures “dressed in black, sneaking into enemy castles,” “throwing shuriken,” “walking on water and vanishing in a puff of smoke after weaving mysterious hand signs,” or the legendary “ninjas of Iga and Kōka.” These images are familiar, shaped by kabuki theater, woodblock prints, novels, and modern media. Yet, while some aspects reflect reality, many are exaggerations or outright misconceptions (Turnbull, Ninja: Unmasking the Myth, 2017).
Historically, the existence of ninja, referred to more commonly in older texts as shinobi, can be traced in written records as early as the Nanboku-chō period (1336–1392). At this time, they served local warlords as specialists in infiltration, espionage, arson, and night raids (Seiryōin, Nihon no Shinobi, 2004). Their ultimate mission, however, was not simply sabotage but survival. To live, to return, and to report intelligence to one’s lord was the highest duty of the shinobi.
Far from the romanticized assassins of popular culture, the ninja were primarily intelligence operatives. In the Sengoku period (1467–1603), an era when even the smallest fragment of information could tip the balance between victory and defeat, the role of the shinobi became invaluable. For this reason, they avoided unnecessary combat, as death meant failure. Their training emphasized cunning, adaptation, and discretion over open displays of martial prowess (Friday, Samurai, Warfare and the State in Early Medieval Japan, 2004).
The arts of the shinobi, collectively called ninjutsu, can be understood in two broad categories:
• Yō-ninjutsu (陽忍術): overt intelligence gathering, which relied on communication, persuasion, and blending into society to extract information.
• In-ninjutsu (陰忍術): covert intelligence gathering, which involved stealth, disguise, infiltration, and clandestine operations.
Although the popular imagination often focuses on in-ninjutsu, the shadowy night raids and scaling of castle walls, historical studies show that yō-ninjutsu was considered the primary and most reliable approach. Covert methods were auxiliary, reserved only for situations when open intelligence gathering was impossible (Sasaki, Ninjutsu no Rekishi, 1968).
A telling example comes from the Kōka Shinobi no Den Miraiki, written by Chikamatsu Shigenori, a strategist of the Owari domain (present-day western Aichi Prefecture). He observes that while disguises and wall-scaling were indeed part of ninjutsu, they were “trivial and impractical.” He warned that if one were to rely solely on such techniques, no great success as a shinobi could be expected (Chikamatsu, Miraiki, 1655). His words overturn the popular, romanticized image of the ninja and point us toward their true essence as practical and highly adaptable intelligence specialists.
This lineage of survival and intelligence work did not vanish with the end of the Sengoku wars. In the late Edo period, Toda Hisajirō, later known by his teaching name, Toda Shinryūken Masamitsu, played a crucial role in preserving and transmitting shinobi-related martial traditions. Toda was a swordsman and falconer with ties to the Tokugawa shogunate, and he taught martial arts at the Kobushō, the shogunate’s military academy (Hatsumi, Essence of Ninjutsu, 1988). His position placed him within networks of intelligence and security services that retained knowledge inherited from Iga and Kōka shinobi families.
According to the Bugei Ryūha Daijiten (Watatani & Yamada, 1978), Toda was a key figure in the transmission of the Togakure-ryū Ninpō Taijutsu, one of the few ninjutsu lineages that survived into the modern era. This tradition was handed down through Takamatsu Toshitsugu (1889–1972), who in turn taught Masaaki Hatsumi, founder of the Bujinkan Dōjō.
The Bujinkan preserves nine classical martial schools (ryūha), of which Togakure-ryū is the best known for its direct shinobi heritage. In his writings, Hatsumi emphasizes that ninjutsu is not a collection of battlefield tricks but a holistic system of survival, adaptability, and strategy. The heart of the art lies not in theatrical combat but in the will to endure, to protect one’s community, and to harmonize with changing circumstances (Ninjutsu: History and Tradition, Hatsumi, 1981).
So, while the word “ninja” may conjure images of black-clad warriors and mystical powers, the historical and living legacy of the shinobi tells a different story. They were highly skilled intelligence agents, survivalists, and martial artists whose primary goal was not theatrical displays or assassination but endurance, adaptability, and service to their communities.
Through figures like Toda Hisajirō and the traditions safeguarded in the Bujinkan Dōjō, we can glimpse the true essence of ninjutsu, a discipline rooted not in fantasy, but in the timeless art of survival.
Sean Askew
導冬・龍隠 Dōtō・Ryū-In
Bujinkan Daishihan – Koto Ryu Menkyo Kaiden
9/30/2025
Sources
• Chikamatsu Shigenori, Kōka Shinobi no Den Miraiki (1655).
• Friday, Karl. Samurai, Warfare and the State in Early Medieval Japan. Routledge, 2004.
• Hatsumi, Masaaki. Ninjutsu: History and Tradition. 1981.
• Hatsumi, Masaaki. Essence of Ninjutsu. 1988.
• Sasaki, Ginichi. Ninjutsu no Rekishi. Tokyo: Jinbutsu Ōraisha, 1968.
• Seiryōin, Ryūsui. Nihon no Shinobi. Tokyo: Shakai Shisōsha, 2004.
• Turnbull, Stephen. Ninja: Unmasking the Myth. Frontline, 2017.
• Watatani, Kiyoshi & Yamada, Tadashi. Bugei Ryūha Daijiten. 1978.
