The history of Hojojutsu or Baku-jutsu goes back to schools of martial arts practiced by the Samurais in the dark epoch of medieval Japan.

In yoroi kumi-uchi, as well as other forms of grappling, the victor did not necessarily wish to kill his victim. Under certain circumstances it was desirable to take the foe alive. Thus, closely allied to close-quarter grappling methods were systems of tying an adversary so the he could not escape.

Later under the Tokugawa Government rope use was highly ritualized. Methods of binding an enemy did not consist solely of wrapping layers of cord around the victim in a haphazard fashion. Great care was taken to apply certain patterns of binding to each social class. But recognition of the victim's social status was a minor reason for this custom. The costumes, tools, weapons, personal habits, and skills of each social class differed, and these factors played a decisive role in the manner in which different people were tied. The noble, the warrior, the farmer, the merchant, the artisan, the monk and the beggar were each tied in a different way.

Hojo-jutsu, or cord-tying art, comprises all methods used to tie and immobilize a captive. The warrior was trained to develop te no uchi, the finesse of hand that alone can guarantee efficient tying. Simply trussing the victim securely was not the only requirement of hojo-jutsu. Tying had to be done quickly, often while the victim was still struggling to escape.

When the Shinkoku Period drew to an end and the peaceful times of the Edo Period began, the leaders of the time wanted to put behind the violent years of the War Period. The tradition of passing the methods from master to student was stopped and its images were destroyed. Hobaku-jutsu slowly died out. Everyone forgot about the barbaric violent methods of times past. - Almost. This group is dedicated to the study of this martial art.