Chapter One
The Aikido Principle
Everyone has a spirit that can be redefined, a body that can be trained in some manner, a suitable path to follow.
You are here to realize your inner divinity and manifest your innate enlightenment.
O Sensei Morihei Ueshiba
You are here to realize your inner divinity and manifest your innate enlightenment.
O Sensei Morihei Ueshiba
Like a poetic dance the attacker (uke) moves in to take advantage. The defender (nage) awaits the collision of energy, absorbs and redirects it, placing the uke off balance. The nage presses forward and restores harmony, with the advantage of restraining their uke opponent.
In aikido, one harmonizes with the attacker so neither attacker nor defender are harmed.
Aikido means “the way of harmonizing the energy/spirit.” Ai means harmony, joining, merging. Ki is spirit, energy, force. Do means way. Ki, the internal energy/spirit, is directed with perfect timing, along with the application of the body’s strength, to take full advantage of their opponent.
Despite being an extremely lethal and effective martial art, aikido’s goal is self- improvement and compassion. O Sensei Ueshiba’s philosophy was to extend love to all, even those who sought to do harm. “When one attacks, redirect the energy so no one gets hurt.”
There are no competitive tournaments in Aikido. One needs not be physically strong. Age is not a disqualifying factor, older people are welcomed. Women train with men. Technique and internal spirit dominate. Students of aikido are called aikidokas.
80% of aikido is atemi, strikes with the aggression redirected. There are also grabs, throws, joint locks, immobilizations and pins. For safety reason one needs to learn how to fall and roll (ukemi). Dramatic flips and throws are not necessary and can lead to injury.
Many techniques in aikido originated with the Japanese samurai and the use of the sword. Akidokas are trained with the bokken wooden sword, the jo staff and the wooden knife.
In aikido, one harmonizes with the attacker so neither attacker nor defender are harmed.
Aikido means “the way of harmonizing the energy/spirit.” Ai means harmony, joining, merging. Ki is spirit, energy, force. Do means way. Ki, the internal energy/spirit, is directed with perfect timing, along with the application of the body’s strength, to take full advantage of their opponent.
Despite being an extremely lethal and effective martial art, aikido’s goal is self- improvement and compassion. O Sensei Ueshiba’s philosophy was to extend love to all, even those who sought to do harm. “When one attacks, redirect the energy so no one gets hurt.”
There are no competitive tournaments in Aikido. One needs not be physically strong. Age is not a disqualifying factor, older people are welcomed. Women train with men. Technique and internal spirit dominate. Students of aikido are called aikidokas.
80% of aikido is atemi, strikes with the aggression redirected. There are also grabs, throws, joint locks, immobilizations and pins. For safety reason one needs to learn how to fall and roll (ukemi). Dramatic flips and throws are not necessary and can lead to injury.
Many techniques in aikido originated with the Japanese samurai and the use of the sword. Akidokas are trained with the bokken wooden sword, the jo staff and the wooden knife.
Morihei Ueshiba (1883 to 1969), the founder of Aikido, is known as O Sensei, the great teacher. Only 5’2” he became a master in a variety of martial arts. As a young boy in his small farming village he witnessed gangsters beat his father. He swore he would never be taken advantage of by the strong. As a private soldier he witnessed the terrible loss of human life in China during the Russian-Japanese War. He returned to Japan and concentrated on his two passions, farming and martial arts.
In the early years he concentrated in jujitsu, judo, sumo, spear and bayonet that were quite rigorous in training and application. Later in life he meets Sokaku Takeda and started training in Daitoryu Aiki Jujitsu. O Sensei was also greatly influenced by the Omoto-kyo religion, a form of Shintoism that stressed universal love and peace. He incorporated his experience in different martial arts and his new found humanity into his new martial art, aikido.
In 1936 he opened the Aikikai Hombu Dojo in Tokyo. Disturbed by Japan’s political and militaristic direction in World War II, O Sensei Ueshiba moved from Tokyo to a small cottage in Iwama (currently Kasama City), in Ibaraki Prefecture. There he taught aikido in the dojo and encouraged the art to be popularized by students in Japan and throughout the world. He died in his home at age 82.
Later in life O Sensei favored more gentle and flowing movement than his previous, harder style of training. When he died his students established their own major styles, with some differences, but nearly all in line with O Sensei’s teachings.
The legacy of O Sensei Ueshiba was left to his son, the first Doshu, Kisshomaru Ueshiba. Upon his death in 1999, the leadership was inherited by Kisshomaru’s son, Moriteru Ueshiba, the current Doshu. It is expected the next Doshu will be his son, Mitsuteru Ueshiba.
The Ueshiba family is head of the Hombu Dojo in Tokyo. The mainstream of Aikido is Aikikai Aikido and all the Aikikai Aikido dojos are under the jurisdiction of the Aikikai Foundation, the Aikido World Headquarters of the Hombu Dojo in Tokyo Japan, under the leadership of Doshu Moriteru Ueshiba, O Sensei’s grandson.
This organization standardizes the testing requirement for advancement and instructor titles, and helps promote aikido throughout the world.
The Aikikai's goal is to follow O Sensei’s direction for universality of the art throughout the world. Currently there are 140 countries and areas worldwide that sponsor aikido, some with thousands of dojos, each with people, men and women of different ages interested learning the art of aikido.
One area open for discussion is to attract older adults into the sport. There will be instructors and dojos that favor a harder, more martial style, but this may not be appropriate for older people with more varied health concerns, more prone to injury.
More older adults, men and women over age 50, are attracted to the sport. Some fear getting injured with the harder, more martial style of some instructors. The O Sensei encouraged older, beginning aikidokas to train in aikido techniques, within their body’s limits. Research done in Russia concludes that older adults, in particularly post-menopausal women, practicing aikido can improve coordination and brain functioning. (Russian study)
Health Benefits of Aikido
- Improves balance, teaches one how to fall - Improves posture
- Increases muscle strength, stamina, flexibility - Circulates the blood
- Improves mental discipline, demeaner - Excellent aerobic exercise
- Promotes quicker reflexes, response time - Strengthens bones and joints
- Helps develop Ki, inner strength and energy - Excellent training in self defense
There are 206 bones in each human body
360 joints, bones connected to other bones
600-700 muscles, they make up 43% of body weight. 14% plus of the body is fat
60,000 miles/100,000 KM of blood vessels
90,000 miles of nerve fibers, several billion nerve cells including those in the brain
60% of the human body is made of water, including intracellular, extracellular fluid and blood. The average body has 10 pints/ 6 liters of blood.
If laid flat there are 36-59 feet/11-18 meters of skin. We shed 39.7 pounds/18 kg of skin during our average lifetime
We have more than five human senses (sight, taste, touch, smell, hearing)
Also proprioception (body position), equilibrium (balance), pain, and time
The body is complicated and takes superb coordination to function as a single unit. In this web site we will address the human body; the anatomy, the bones, muscles, the nerves, how the body moves, how to increase your rotational power, how to physically improve your aikido and your general daily health.
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POINTS TO REMEMBER:
1. Aikido, the way of harmonizing the energy/spirit, is a martial art whose goal is self improvement and compassion. Ai mean harmony, Ki means spirit and Do means the way.
2. O Sensei Morihei Ueshiba stressed "when one is attacked, redirect the energy so no one gets hurt."
3. One needs not be strong to participate; anyone, including women, young people and older adults are welcomed. What is needed is commitment and inner discipline. The challenge can be quite demanding and rewarding.
4. Aikido offers many health benefits including better balance, muscle strength, stamina, improvement of posture and development of Ki, inner strength.
1. Aikido, the way of harmonizing the energy/spirit, is a martial art whose goal is self improvement and compassion. Ai mean harmony, Ki means spirit and Do means the way.
2. O Sensei Morihei Ueshiba stressed "when one is attacked, redirect the energy so no one gets hurt."
3. One needs not be strong to participate; anyone, including women, young people and older adults are welcomed. What is needed is commitment and inner discipline. The challenge can be quite demanding and rewarding.
4. Aikido offers many health benefits including better balance, muscle strength, stamina, improvement of posture and development of Ki, inner strength.