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How to hide our presence

In any circumstance, the most effective way to hide our presence (as Ninjutsu teaches us) is to:

Get in harmony with nature, with the surrounding environment
Abandon our human form and become “nothing” (nothing relevant)

Note – This article has been asked by one of our Core Course practitioners on Patreon (see how to attend our home study classes here Learn Kung Fu online: a beginner-to-expert course).

To become invisible, we do not necessarily have to not be seen, heard (etc.): we must rather leave the times and spaces that (sensitively and logically) can identify our essence as an object of attention.

A note by Master Kongling – Invisibility is a matter of patience (read Patience), exercise and cunning (discipline, preparation and concentration).

What makes a human recognizable even in low-light conditions

To learn how to hide in the shadows, we must first understand what uniquely describes a human being, even in conditions of low illumination (read Invisibility: the best night stealth color). In this regard, let’s see some of the most common traces and happenings that can reveal our presence:

Poses and positions – The vision (active or passive, read The overall view: see everything, do not look at anything) of a figure in a pose / location common to mankind (eg. flattened against a wall) easily catches even the attention of the more distracted observer; the mind tends to convert even animal / inanimate forms to human figures (eg. some road signs during the night)
Mimic and movements – The perception of articulation’s movement that we are extremely accustomed to (eg. walking) makes us identifiable even in limited visibility scenarios (or from a shadow, a reflection, etc.); especially the cyclical motions are very easy to be identified (eg. breathing)
Contrasts – The chromatic, auditive and / or logical contrasts in relation to the environment / context in which we are, attracts inevitably the mind of those we are hiding from (eg. a few centimeters of a green mimetic t-shirt in an office, read Create a custom mimetic suit: colors and realization); in each scenario there are wearings, attitudes (etc.) common, acceptable, unusual and some other that are simply impossible
Paths and passages – Even only the space-time logic of the habitual / forced passages of a human being, combined with the suspicion of a possible presence, can in many cases be decisive in making us discovered; to make an example, in the presence of a bridge over a swirling stream, those who have no tactical preparation, expect that a human being will pass over it and not under it (or through the water, the surrounding trees, etc.)
Audio flows – The regular cadence of similar sounds (footsteps, breaths, etc.) commonly associated with a human being (or anyway, to an animal being able to harm) quickly identify us as a threat with a high degree of certainty (read Invisibility: how to hide heavy breathing)
Smells – At a short distance and / or in the presence of particularly trained / sensitive persons, an intense smell (sweat, perfume, tobacco, etc.) may inevitably be an attraction for attention; the more the stimulus is strong and particular the more it will attract the attention
Routine interruptions – The interruption of a routine (eg. standing still in a place where everyone is walking) or an irregular variation of the environment (eg. footsteps of feet on the snow, a curved shape in a context where all shapes are straight) can also be the cause of a great logical alarm (read Avert dangers: the concept of constant attention)
Logics – In a lot of cases, the motive is what causes people to be discovered (we look for water because we are thirsty, we cross the exit because we want to leave a place, etc.); as long as our actions are connected to what others expect from us (or those like us), there will always be the possibility of being expected rather than discovered
The random factor – Last but not least, we can be noticed for (apparently) irrational reasons (sometimes, we took all the possible precautions but they were useless); if it is true that everything has a logic it is at the same time true that not always we have time, knowledge and intelligence to understand and prevent it; the point is that any stealth strategy / technique can fail and we must be prepared to adapt / react
…

Naturally, to these examples, of course, must be added the combination (even partial) of several elements, which, connected together, produce a precise identification of our presence / displacement.

The consequences of an error

In stealth terms, when we make an error, there can be 2 types of reactions:

To cause a dub – We have drawn attention but we have not yet been discovered (eg. we have caused a single suspect sound); in this case, we have to carefully assess the situation and choose whether to move away or maintain the position (eg. waiting for the necessary time to lower the alert level again)
To cause a certainty – It is what we do not want, giving the certainty of being in our position will cause a direct reaction related to us; in this situation, we have to leave or directly face the persons we are hiding from

A note by Master Kongling – To cause an intentional dub (eg. in the wrong direction) can be a good way to induce the people we want to hide from leaving a position or carrying out a specific action favorable to us.

In the next article of this series, we will see how to overcome these problems and how to not be identified.

In-depth video courses

Basic stealth techniques – Practical explanations of the fundamental stealth techniques of 6 Dragons Kung Fu
Basic 6 Dragons Kung Fu Exercises – The core training to build real martial skills

In-depth articles

Be invisible in the crowd: preparation and clothing – How to not be noticed and disappear in the crowd
Stealth walking: Technique 1 – How to walk without getting caught

Questions

Reply in the comments and share your experience:

Have you ever tried to hide your presence from other people?

Author: Master Kongling

Founder of 6 Dragons Kung Fu.

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