traditional and current mind-manipulation strategies and techniques should not stem simply from our healthy paranoia about out-of-control government agencies constantly on the prowl for new ways to control people. Studying these techniques will help us guard ourselves and our loved ones against an endless array of criminal con men, crazed cult leaders, and opportunistic politicians.
Any realistic modern survival and self-defense training must include strategies for defending our own mind castles against intrusion. Thus, it is vital we master the art of mind-dancing for both defense and offense—before our enemies do.
Perhaps you believe yourself to be one of the favored few who don’t have any enemies. Someone once said that Satan’s greatest trick was convincing the world he doesn’t exist. Perhaps the enemy you don’t have has already mastered the techniques in this book!
“To subdue an enemy without fighting is the greatest of skills.”
—Sun Tzu
“Ethereal and subtle, the master strategist passes by without leaving a trace. Mysterious, like the way of Heaven, he passes by without a sound. In this way master an enemy’s fate.”
—Sun Tzu
Of all the various cadres down through history to use mind manipulation as a weapon, hands down the most adept were the ninja of Japan.
Drawing on ancient texts and tactics from East Indian strategists and Chinese spies, medieval Japanese ninja further refined these techniques of mind manipulation before passing them down to us today.
THE ASIAN MIND
Experts disagree as to when and where the craft of Japanese ninjutsu (art of the ninja) actually began.
It is known that many Japanese ninja practices, including their mind-manipulation tactics and techniques, can be found with the mysterious Thuggee cult of India.1
Ancient India, the “mother” of civilization, produced many classics of military strategy, most of which contained at least passing reference to the importance of discerning—and then destroying—an enemy’s mind-set. For example, the ancient Hindu text Arthasastra contained advice on the art of espionage and mind manipulation, as did the writings of Indian strategist Kautilya.
Other portions of Japanese ninja strategy can be traced back to ancient China’s Warring States Period (453-221 BCE) when ruthless rival princes routinely employed subterfuge, spies, and mind manipulation to further their ambitions.
It was during this tumultuous period that the greatest of Asian strategists Sun Tzu wrote his Ping Fa (Art of War).
Sun Tzu’s treatise is one of the first military books to carry a chapter devoted specifically to the use of secret agents. This masterpiece covers all aspects of warfare and includes extensive comments on how to gain insights into the strengths and weaknesses of an enemy’s mind and how to wield those revelations during psychological warfare.
Sun Tzu understood that discerning the mind-set and motivations of an enemy was the first step in overcoming that enemy:
“Know the enemy and know yourself and in a hundred battles you will never be in danger.”
So insightful were Sun Tzu’s observations that Art ofWar is more popular today than ever and has been applied to a wide variety of fields, not the least of which are Asian politics and finance.
China’s Warring States Period also saw the emergence of several groups of specialized secret agents and assassins, the most feared of which were magician-like spies known as moshuh nanren (often referred to in hindsight as “the ninja of China”).
Moshuh nanren were masters of espionage, assassination, and mind manipulation.
For example, moshuh nanren purposely cultivated an atmosphere of superstition and fear around themselves and their skullduggery. They did this through use of intimidation—their enemies disappearing in the middle of the night or found dead from the dim-mak (death touch) without any marks on them—and through encouraging the belief that moshuh nanren were descended from mythical lin kuei (forest demons).
Centuries later, Japanese ninja would use this same tactic, encouraging the belief that they were descended from mythical tengu demons.
Sun Tzu’s Art ofWar was first “officially” introduced into Japan in the 8th century CE.
However, many moshuh nanren espionage techniques filtered into Japan between the 1st and 5th centuries, a period that saw a large influx of Chinese Buddhists into Japan. Undoubtedly, Sun Tzu’s Art ofWar came along for the ride.
In addition to Sun Tzu, early Japanese strategists may have also studied other notable Chinese writers, for example Wu Ch’i (430-381 BCE):
“One man willing to throw away his life is enough to terrorize a thousand.”
Another influential Chinese strategist was Tu Mu (803-852 CE), who wrote extensively on the proper recruitment and employment of spies and double agents, especially individuals gleaned from an enemy’s own country. Tu Mu’s keen insight into the workings of the human mind detailed various ways disgruntled and disaffected individuals could be seduced into becoming traitors and double agents.
We can only speculate to what degree each of these Chinese, and to a lesser extent East Indian strategists, had on the development of the mind-manipulation tactics and techniques of medieval Japanese ninja. We do know for certain that, in short order, the ninja of Japan become quite adept at employing a myriad of mind-manipulation strategies, most of which remain valid today.
THE NINJA MIND
“A keen insight into human psychology and predictability has always proven the ninja’s greatest weapon. This remains true today.”
—Dirk Skinner
Japanese “ninja” techniques did not come into their own until the 6th century when Prince Shotoku, contestant for the imperial throne, recruited a yamabushi (mountain warrior-monk) by the name of Otomo-No-Saijin as a spy.
Where Otomo acquired his espionage skills and insight into human nature is not known. What is known is that Otomo was certainly adept at his craft, and instrumental in helping Shotoku outthink his enemies. Otomo’s alias was Shinobi (one who sneaks in). The word ninja comes from the Japanese written character for shinobi and refers generically to anyone who uses stealth and subterfuge techniques (e.g. mind-manipulation) to accomplish his goals.
Over the next few centuries, Japanese techniques of espionage, subterfuge, and psychological warfare continued to be refined. In the 14th century, Japan was ripped end-to-end by savage internecine warfare between rival samurai clans. The savagery of this period stimulated an increase in “ninja” activity, as “ninja” criminal bands took advantage of the chaos to rob and plunder, and every freelance “ninja” spy peddled information on opposing forces. Any act of savagery or subterfuge occurring during this time was attributed to “ninja,” a catchall term not indicative of the later great organized ninja clans. However, the 14th century did see the scattering of seeds that would eventually grow into true ninja clans in central Japan.
Eventually more than
