Kusarigama

The researcher Nawa Yumio believes that the kusarigama was based on the jingama, a tool that resembles a sickle, which was used to cut through a horse's ropes in the case of a fire.

Another theory is that the kusarigama is based on the tobiguchi (ja:鳶口), which is a type of axe that had a "stout haft and a short pick-like blade".

One of these fighters was Yamada Shinryukan, a man who defeated many swordsmen; he was trapped in a bamboo grove by Araki Mataemon and killed.

[4] The kusarigama has also been used as a "plaything for warriors with time on their hands, and a means of attracting rural students who wished to do something unique in their local festivals".

[5] The schools of kenjutsu, jūjutsu, and naginatajutsu taught kusarigamajutsu, the art of handling the kusarigama.

[7][1] A handle of a kusarigama is surrounded by raden, which is a lacquer wood inlay that contains pieces of mother-of-pearl.

[8] Ellis Amdur’s book Old School: Essays on Japanese Martial Traditions retells a myth about the origin of the kusarigama.

[1] However, Donn F. Draeger mentions in his book Comprehensive Asian Fighting Arts that the sickle, referring to the kama, was originally used for agriculture and later became used as a weapon.

[1] Issue 9 of This Is Japan by The Asahi Shimbun stated, "Maybe, the most unusual Japanese martial art is that which employs the kusarigama.

"[11] A book by Tadashi Yamashita that teaches people how to use the Okinawan kusarigama was advertised in the magazine Black Belt in the 1980s.