Must Kiai's be loud?

For today's post I wanted to talk about the KIAI.

Kiai is a sound emitted by martial artists when they contract their muscles and drive their KI to a specific point. That sound is usually loud. In KenDo, that sound is even louder than in other martial arts.

Feel free to ckeck WaKu's video for a how-to lesson about Kiai.

But have you ever heard a ninja doing that kiai... No, right?
In fact. As WaKu also said in his video, some martial arts do not let any sound out like boxing or wrestling.
It's the same with Bujinkan Ninpo Taijutsu, but for another reason.

Ninja's have a task to accomplish, they must infiltrate fortresses full of guards, or get someone down without being noticed. The last thing the shadow warrior wants is to be spotted before getting far away. Kiai is thus forbidden.

But the KI is still triggered, with almost the same techniques used in other martial arts, but in silence. I think it make the KI is even more powerful in that way, as sound is energy, thus, as not spoiled in that sound wave, it remains or even accumulates in the KI's energy.

If a ninja makes a sound, be sure it's on a very specific purpose :)

So, yes, I guess all martial needs it, but not all of them are so loud !

忍者