Surujin
Also known as: suruchin
Okinawan rope or chain with a weight at the end; the weight was thrown at an opponent or his weapon, and the length was used to pull him off balance or bind him.
Quick Facts
JapanAbout the weapon
The surujin, also spelled suruchin, is an Okinawan weapon from the broad group of chain weapons and was historically very widespread. Its original form was a rope with a weight tied at each end. In the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries a light chain developed from it, with a weight at one end and a metal point at the other. Sources differ on its length. According to an article on the surujin, both the rope and the later chain measured 2 to 3 metres. A survey of Okinawan kobudō distinguishes a short tan suruchin about 150 to 152 cm long and a long naga suruchin 230 to 240 cm long, and gives as material a weighted chain or a leather cord. The weight could be thrown at an opponent or used to catch his weapon. With the length of the chain the opponent was either pulled off balance or bound using techniques similar to hōjōjutsu, the Japanese art of binding; the point served to finish off the opponent. The surujin is one of the nine standard weapons of the Ryūkyū Kobudō Hozon Shinkōkai. A survey of Okinawan kobudō lists the kata Nagai Kusari and Mijikai Kusari, and in Matayoshi kobudō the kata Suruchin no Toseki.
Parts of the weapon
- Chain or rope
- Weight
- Spike