the historical origin of japanese martial arts can be found in the warrior traditions of the samurai and the caste system that restricted the use of weapons by members of the non-warrior classes. originally, samurai were expected to be proficient in many weapons, as well as unarmed combat, and attain the highest possible mastery of combat skills, for the purpose of glorifying either themselves or their liege. a large number of schools evolved to teach these skills with those existing before the meiji restoration classed as or old stream. over time there was a trend away from the traditional purpose to a philosophy of coupling spiritual goals with the striving to perfect their martial skills.