Archive for April 30th, 2013

Ninja: Traditional Medicine 1

Tuesday, April 30th, 2013

I had a lot of questions on my last post on Emergency medical preparations, especially in regards to what would you do if you had to treat basic wounds and you were living off the land or behind enemy lines. Well, the ancient(and modern) ninjutsu practitioners were(and should be) very familiar with herbal or traditional medicine. From the Shindenfudu ryu we learn to be and train in nature, so why would one not learn to utilize all that is around them as part of the personal protection training?  I am not going to give you a list of herbs and cures(more on this is coming in the updates next month in the Online Training Center) , but here are a few simple and common plants that you should learn to identify and use in treating superficial cuts and scratches:

Comfrey: Comfrey salves, ointments and teas are best known for the topical treatment of burns and just about any skin irritation.

Goldenseal: Goldenseal is a folk medicine staple widely used in many herbal salves and ointments as a contact disinfectant.

Plantain: The macerated fresh plantain leaves are put on bee stings and used for skin irritations, malignant ulcers,and burns, and to stop bleeding in minor cuts.

 

I have only listed three basic plants here that are quite common and each can be utilized to help clean and treat minor cuts, burns and scratches. For your homework research 2 additional plants native to your area that you can use to help treat minor wounds or burns.

Bufu Ikkan!