Notes on Aikido

Notes on Aikido

Bjorn Säw

Morihei Ueshiba (1883-1969)

Compiled Notes on Aikido 2012-2020

The Importance of Response When I first traveled to practice Aikido in Japan I needed a written note of introduction from my teacher back home. Only with that could I enter the dojo and train under the guidance of Morihiro Saito Sensei in Iwama. Yet even with that note it was not guaranteed that I could stay. I remember being late due to unforeseen circumstances and being told over the phone I could not come as the date had passed of my listed arrival. With sheer desperation in my voice and pleading with the help of a translator I was at last admitted.

I had been fortunate to acquire work in Tokyo prior to traveling to Iwama and it was to last for two months. I looked for a dojo to practice at while there and I found and enlisted in Shiseikan dojo in the Meiji Jingu park. I was welcomed to attend all classes but one. It was

the class of Inaba Sensei, a well known sword master of the Kashima Shin Ryu school. I had seen his classes and was duly impressed by his skill. I approached him and asked if I could train in his class. He bluntly refused my request. The following week I asked if I could simply watch his class. He agreed. I spent the week attending his classes with keen interest, sitting by the side of the dojo watching intently everything going on. I mustered up the courage to ask once again if I could join the practice. He answered he wasn't ready to take responsibility for me and so declined me a second time. I continued watching the classes and as my presence in the dojo was now getting generally known as I was there every evening training every class on the schedule Inaba Sensei became used to having me around. Finally I asked again if I could participate in his class and he asked me why, what was my reason for being in japan and what my intentions where? With the help of an interpreter I explained my reasons and at last he agreed to let me in. This Eastern approach to learning and to a teacher/student relationship is somewhat different from what

many of us are used to in the West. I always ask my students to respond as soon as possible to information given or questions asked. Not to delay more than necessary. In order to establish a report, to establish a relationship. In Aikido, instant feedback prompts blending in order not to get stuck.

Likewise, in communication, appropriate and timely response is essential in the continuation of a dialogue. In Aikido, in relationships and in communication, active participation and mindful observance of what's needed is required. The duty and the responsibility in a closer relationship, whether work, family or teacher/student related, demands a certain skill of observance, of etiquette. This not something brought on by mere adherence to culture or form, but by a natural positive order that exists between people in various levels of engagement. Taking into account the discipline inherent in a student/teacher relationship we come to see the importance of mutual respect.

Let's not take for granted the relationships we have but inquire into the dynamics involved and the responsibility inherent in keeping them alive.

Creating Space If we think of our practice of Aikido as a process we can begin to appreciate how we step by step are lead into a subtle change of perspectives. Beginning from what's at hand, in front of our eyes, the gross material seen world, to the inner feeling realm of sensation, and even deeper into the defining context of a widened perspective, or open view. This heart opening means getting in touch with our feelings, sensing deeper than usual, and listening to the contact connection we have with our partner. We move step by step in order to see the subtle differences and feel the different attitudes related to each level. As we expand our consciousness to include more information we leave a merely personal view point to broaden and deepen our experience, feeling into the other, becoming an integral part of a combined relationship that will be the forerunner of merging completely with our activity. We create space as we move into a subjective inter-personal relationship that best can be described as a oneness, a unity, and a

shared mutual experience. This process goes from a divided world view to a holistic unitary perspective, enabling us to respond accurately, spontaneously and intuitively from a place that includes and transcends all participants. This process is one of greater and greater intimacy and therefore demands a lot of courage and integrity. We need to dare to come close to each other, to be near, and feel the other as ourselves. Love is a natural outpouring of coming together in this way. Joy and thrill replace fear and hesitation. Now we come to share a space that is all around us. We learn to recognise this space sooner and handle our relationships accordingly. Aikido takes you by the hand and leads you from a divided relationship to a unitary consciousness. This we can manage to do in an hour and a half in the dojo every night. Welcome to our space.

Control or no control?

In Aikido much emphases is laid at the point of contact. The moment we engage, the point where we blend. Whether we enact it from a kihon/basic static position, or from a moving awase/blend interaction, we want to infuse our ki/energy, merge our meeting, so to become one unit. Some now wants to take control.

Excellent mastery demonstrates this beautifully. From point to point, from one movement to another throughout an execution of the technique, control is established immediately upon contact. Uke is never allowed to escape (unless through being projected or thrown). The schools of some Shihans teach very much in this way. Excellent control and beautiful dynamic technique. We can't fault the mastery of this approach. Yet I find myself wanting. I have come to term this kind of Aikido "execution Aikido". Many schools of Aikido follows this martial way. Some Sensei have spoken of the points of two diamonds meeting, as the pivot point, where balance and control is crucial. Centred, grounded, with good

kokyu extension, hanmi stance and angles direct movement. All of which are faultless Aikido principles which we must all learn and establish in our own body/mind system through years of training. Yet I'm looking for something more..

There is a way of meeting when you allow in, allow the grip/attack to be as it is, where you do not contend with the force applied to you.

We melt, we accommodate, we blend without establishing control as one over the other. We merge, we disappear, in the receiving of an attack or confrontation. Instead of having two sharp points of contact pivoting around each other, we give up the opposing reference. We want to move as one. Even long before the interaction comes close enough to touch we want to establish a unified field where we all move together as one. From this vantage point, from this perspective, we do not contend with an "other", we do not hold a dualistic viewpoint. Instead we see it as One Body, extending beyond my own personal self to include the other. This totally nullifies any aggression or contention. The "me" and "you" disappears and only our engagement remain.

In this scenario there is no need to establish control, since there is no other to control. Now we blend beautifully into a wonderful ki-nonagare, flowing back and forth, allowing joy and intuition to lead you. No more enemy to vanquish, no more striving to control. No more need to execute our opponent.

So what do you prefer? Control or no control?

One Breath Kokyu; in and out breath, the essence of life, and the essence of Aiki. As you enter the dojo, align your breathing to that of the room.

Synchronise it with the tempo of the dojo. Take a close listen and tune in to the rhythm of the pulse. If you listen deeply, attentively, you'll find a resonance that exist. If you find it difficult to intuitively and spontaneously pick it up, take a look at your teacher, and follow his or her breath. Slow down, ease yourself into it.

Immerse yourself into the sea of Kokyu, riding the waves of breath, heaving, undulating, in its

in and out flow of Ki. Breathe easy, feel it inside, find a common note, and pay attention.

Try the same when you walk in nature. Listen to the breath of the wind in the trees, listen to the heat of the ground, tune in and merge with the whole. There is one breath running through it all. Different pace at different places, adapt and change accordingly. As you feel this more and more, add your own kokyu, sync and match, and add more. Just as one more violin will add to the music of the orchestra as it join in. Now let the music play you. Let the kokyu of the dojo move you. Aiki is born from this breath.

Domination and execution in Aikido Mainstream Aikido today is propagated by former students of well known Shihans, many now passed away. Despite O Sensei's spiritual emphases on the development and evolution of his art; as a way of love and peace, many branches of Aikido still adhere to an ‘old

school’ style of Aikido where one man is pitted against another where domination and execution dictate the interaction. Skilfully and with mastery the opponent is subdued and controlled. Technical ability with agility and strength wins the day every time. This is quite impressive and when uke is compliant it makes for good viewing. Some of these old school teachers have little or no understanding of the idea of sharing a relationship in a partnership that extends beyond duality. To give up winning and loosing means nothing to them. Even O Sensei's spiritual insights declaring Nothingness or Oneness is misused for personal justification to manipulate and control the other. Martial prowess is the mark that puts you on the hierarchy board.

How can we say goodbye to an Aikido that still rewards the domination and execution approach? Not by becoming weak in technique nor by lacking in principles for sure but by taking the fight out of the relationship. By treating the other as oneself. To care and to match any encounter as it is a training ground for sensitivity. To blend and to join without

opposition. Not to use kokyu power to subdue but to bind together, to unify.

Old school teachers teach by blocking. They grab and resist with solid kokyu, inhibiting your movement. Then they make their point and ease of their hold allowing you to proceed, thinking they've improved your Aikido. Little do they understand how inherent in their well meant approach exists the very duality true Aikido abhors.

There is a sign in Iwama that prohibits the use of force to block a technique. This points to the understanding that the teaching and training of Aikido always must happen in a relationship, in partnership with the other. It's a mutual engagement, a shared event. It upholds the notion of unity and ultimate oneness. Both uke and nage must change to conform to each other. It's no good if one remains aloof, practicing his one-mans-aikido without considering his partner. Aikido is not a fight and we do not compete. So why train in that way?

Because many of the old Shihan’s never understood what it means to train without an ego. They came to be masters of the art; invincible and untouchable. So their students

of today, now big teachers themselves, still uphold this old school attitude and still teach a domination and execution Aikido to impress.

How sad to see that the spiritual ideal and realisation of O Sensei has been lost on much of the Aikido world today.

There is no need to drive a technique home.

There is no point to be made by enforcing a principle. Treating Aikido as a practice of duality will never result in harmony. Using spiritual principles of nothingness and emptiness can never be used to justify insensitive behaviour to your partner. Oneness does not exclude humanness. Love is the total engagement covering all aspects in a relationship, on or off the mat. Kannon, the bodhisattva of compassion, will use all her arms to save, heal and protect in all and every instance.

Awakened Aikido When we realise who we are, when we come to see our true Self, we won't feel right to drive

a technique home anymore. It feels wrong to dominate and to execute our uke. To inflict pain and suffering now becomes impossible. Our real conscience has been awakened and we realise what we do to others we do to ourselves. Love is active in everything we do.

To suppress and to control is seen for what it is and we hesitate to over-power our partner.

Rather, a mutual relationship ensues where we care for the other and a natural blend will create a combined movement.

Our engagement naturally adjusts to the conditions at hand, never wanting to enforce a specific outcome. The egos instinct to win and to survive is no longer the ruling objective. We rather give up and surrender its will to control and to dominate. Now it feels ugly and wrong to use it to gain advantage. Love always remain the one standard that we hold ourselves to. This awakened heart shows right and wrong immediately and our conscience won't let us overstep the mark. If and when we do, we will feel nauseas and bad about it.

Shame over what we did is the real sign and remorse is fitting and an apology is in place.

Non-dual Aikido 'There is no other'. That does not mean that only you exist. It means that both of you are one. It means that all things are one. Some take the statement to mean that if you realise that you are the only one, or its equivalent; that there is no one, you can get away with murder.

But far away is the true meaning of such a profound statement. There being no one means you are not two. One with the universe, though a very personal experience, includes all beings and all things. This means in reality not two. Then you must include the other in your oneness or nothingness; whichever you prefer.

Non-dual means no other, not two nor three.

We are one. So in every encounter it is not enough to view your own experience as one of unity or one of nothingness; you must awaken this quality between you. It's not enough to take for granted that oneness is a fact; you must enliven it in the relationship. You must imbue the non-dual quality in your interaction.

There is no one there but you must make that real between you. It will never be enough to

live only your own understanding or even your own experience. You must make it so together.

You must make the non-dual real for both of you. If you do not, it is still just glorified onemans-aikido; the egos spin on personal oneness. This means your relationship becomes super real; flesh and blood embodied existence. The formless quality of Sunyata, the Buddhists concept of nothingness, takes on form and becomes a living breathing reality.

One breath comes to mind. Kokyu is the link from the unseen to the seen. Oneness no more a profound statement and mental ego fantasy but a living breathing manifestation of no separation, of no duality.

A Two Way Street In the end, one way traffic runs out of momentum and we lose interest. The teacher/ student relationship may suffer this outcome.

Friendships becomes untenable if not sustained from both parties. But it's not a tit for tat kind of deal. It's not a you scratch my back

and I'll scratch yours. Neither is it a business arrangement where we exchange goods and services of equal value. True friendships base their relationship on care and love, on affection and trust, with no need to wait for the other to make the first move. Not counting scores nor holding grudges.

Aikido practice works in the same way. We give and we receive freely, not holding back.

We offer ourselves gladly to the other. We don't protect and act miserly. We receive and welcome, taking care of what is given, handle it with care and return the favour. A two way street where we exchange information and experience, enriching our lives as we meet half way.

Path Rider Aikido; the way of aiki. Sometimes we refer to the path of Aikido as our chosen way of practice and O Sensei would say that it would be our misogi, our purification or preparation of our soul. To make it strong in the spirit, to

realise our mission on this earth. Essentially a spiritual path of awakening, Aikido educates both body, mind and heart. A student will benefit from its teaching whether or not he or she are conscious of it at the start. Once an interest has arisen and the student takes on the task of pursuing their own spiritual awakening the road broadens. Now their whole life is considered and put under the lamp.

Aikido will still serve a purpose but the main drive and focus has now slightly shifted; from a martial perspective to a spiritual holistic context. This is actually what needs to happen if the Aikido of O Sensei is going to reveal its heart. It must become a personal mission to see it through to the end. It's not an easy choice but nothing is more rewarding.

Once you see that really you have no choice but to follow this way, you'll realise that time itself is the essence of this path. You'll ride your own destiny into the future. Time never stops and such is the way. Never ending forward motion. Aikido teaches us to yield when confronted. Surrender then and flow around.

Like water that never stops. When time is seen

as your path you'll ride it with ease, learning and educating yourself along the way.

Educating Uke Taking ukemi is the hardest thing for many. It's not easy to teach our body to roll. To receive with the body; the literal meaning of ukemi might not make it any easier but it gives us a direction of how to appreciate the way of handling an attack. To absorb and to accommodate, to match and to blend with any incoming force. It teaches us to adjust, to become pliant. Educating uke is the most important lesson we can learn. If not learnt before reaching black belt many will neglect its study in favour of perfecting their technique and execution as nage. Now a Shodan pride gets the better of them and they close up, hindering anyone to access their core. For many this is a goal to be achieved, to become strong enough that no one is able to penetrate their defence. So the hierarchical dance

continues, cementing its structure of strong mans aikido rules.

Educating uke is about opening up, allowing in, finding balance in receiving. By third kyu this should be well understood and practised on a daily basis.

Lion Guardians The two fierce-looking lion-dogs that guard the entrance to the Shinto shrines in Japan always slightly unsettled me. Who are they? Where did they come from and why are they there?

Guardian deities of a supernatural origin. One on the left and one on the right. Pass in between them and hold your breath. Enter the sanctuary and pay your respects. Even when leaving you feel their wide-eyed gaze in your back. They are not kidding, they will protect the purity of the place.

Who are they then? The lions are always presented in pairs, a manifestation of yin and yang. The one on the right has its mouth open and is called shishi because it resembles that

animal. The other has its mouth closed, looks rather like a dog, is called komainu (狛� lit.

Korea dogs). The open mouth is pronouncing the first letter of the Sanskrit alphabet, which is pronounced "a", while the closed one is uttering the last letter, which is pronounced "um", to represent the beginning and the end of all things. Together they form the sound Aum. The male is inhaling, representing life, while the female exhales, representing death.

But it just dawned on me, they are my hands!

My left and right hand curled into lion paws, ready to defend myself, my body, my temple.

Guarding the outer and inner sanctuary, my flesh and my heart, and further in, the innermost, the holiest of Holy, my Spirit.

Suddenly it all makes sense. My hands are my first line of defence. Through which you may pass if you have no evil intent. That's why we wash our hands and mouth before entering.

We make a show of good intent. To come clean before offering our prayers.

Sitting dogs with wild eyes seeing your every move. Hands at an arm-length from the heart,

at rest unless prompted by an innermost response.

How appropriate for an Aikido analogy. Ki extends through the body with the help of Kokyu, the breath. It reaches the fingertips and projects beyond. The breath sustains the life of the limbs. It feeds the blood and energy flow.

So even though the lions are out there by themselves right at the entrance, they are intimately connected with their source in the innermost shrine. Serving the two sides of an independent whole they balance their duties between them. Fire and water. Allowing in and letting out.

Total Aikido Johan Cruyff made the concept 'total football' famous all over the world. He laid the foundation to the successes of FC Barcelona, maybe undisputedly the best club-team in modern history.

With a vision to see the game in its totality, as a living organism where all parts play together

i n p e r f e c t s y n c a n d h a r m o n y, J o h a n encouraged the team above the individual. He placed the importance on the whole rather than on its parts.

Likewise, we want to approach our Aikido in the same manner. Yet just as on the football training-ground, the basic training and conditioning of the individual players are of utmost importance, so must also we establish a solid foundation through personal effort.

Then, once on the pitch or in the dojo, we open to a larger perspective, taking it all in. Now moving as a unified whole, joining a seamless flow of events.

Shadow Play Muhammad Ali made us all understand shadow boxing. Dance like a butterfly, sting like a bee. He moved. He smiled. He would fight his shadow opponent, knock him out and crack a joke at the same time, making all of us laugh.

He combined physical grace with good-hearted humour. Never with evil intent his remarks

were poignant and hit the mark. He rolled with the punches when pressed against the ropes.

Never caught flat-footed he ducked and dodged, moving continuously around and away. Opening himself up to let the other one in. Only to close the gap and catch him on the counter. Back and forth, flowing in and out.

Truth was more important to him than winning and he was the greatest because of it. He could tell a white lie a mile away. Never lost a chance to make history count. Eight nine and ten. Down and out. Knock out.

What can we take from this? What can we learn? In the movement, in the dance. A boxer spends a lot of time shadow boxing, honing his skills, moving his body. Similarly we need to get into the body, move it around by ourselves.

Doing it alone help us establish a natural centre with its accompanying balance. It's like free-dance. We play and move, a never-ending motion that feels good. We pretend there is an other that we interact with. We do Aikido by ourselves, we shadow play. It happens in a relationship with our shadow, our invisible other.

The Indonesian shadow puppet play comes to mind. All night long it acts out the drama with its accompanying spellbinding music. A prolonged, never ending play. A motion that doesn't stop. Here it moves in relationship, in a shadowland of myth and legend. It's mysterious and evanescent. A quality we want to imbue. It's a good story. About the gods of old and their tales spoken through the Hindu epic Ramayana.

Our Aikido can be like a story told. An interconnected flow of events spanning a lifetime. Begin by telling us your story. Tell it with your body. Act it out. Make a believer out of us.

Investing Ki with Care Aikido is powerful as we extend Ki energy through our technique. Using our breath in the Kokyu-throws combined with a full Kiprojection makes for a formidable demonstration of effortless power. Add a vertical alignment, a balanced centre, body grounded and a sink/rise movement we may touch upon a Chinese martial prowess and lean into the internal aspects of the art. And though many are called Master having achieved this skill it's not really Aikido until we add Care. Technical ability, Ki and Kokyu mastery, internal strength, spacial awareness, and sensitivity are all tools and skills needed to learn and understand Aikido but without a spiritual insight of unity and of love and of its expression through what we know we can't say we've mastered O-Sensei's Aikido. It is essential that our skills are harnessed in order to blend with, not to upset, our partner. We need to monitor, funnel and temper our power in relationship to Uke. Love is expressed in the sensitivity you express towards the

engagement. Ability and skill is revealed through your adaption to change, to blend with and care of your partner. So we need to match our Ki extension not to overpower our opponent, we must moderate our strength not to hurt or injure our Uke. This does not mean we become sloppy or weak or Ki-less. Instead we become sharper, more focused, more sensitive and precise. We're able to slow down, draw the relationship into slow-motion, fully in control, pausing to let Uke catch up, imbuing them with the calm of a secure movement, instilling them with peace and trust.

Reassuring them they are in safe hands. Now this engagement you can speed up if Uke is game. Like turning up the volume on your stereo as long as the relationship remains intact. This is training, from slow to fast, from basic to advanced, without missing a beat. All our martial skills must be subservient to our understanding of love and be appropriated accordingly. The Care factor will shape your Aikido. True Budo is not an art to kill but to heal, to restore a rift, to overcome division and to find common ground. Therefore instil your Ki with care of the other.

Open Sesame 'Open sesame' and voila', the rock-door opens.

Say the magic word and the mountain gives up its secret treasure. There's a beautiful hidden meaning in this story.

In the ancient martial arts, the transmission was often bestowed in secret from teacher to student, often in forms of 'Kuden', hidden teachings orally transmitted. Kuden ⼝伝. 'Ku' literally means mouth. 'Den' means to pass down or teach. So kuden means to pass down some information by speaking (not in writing).

It also refers to the secret information itself. It's the oral explanations of the feeling of certain techniques; to elucidate the essence of the principles involved.

Okuden (奥伝) means the communication (den) of the inner arts (oku). Hiden (秘伝) 'Hi' means secret and 'Den' means teach. Thus, hiden means to teach or pass on the secret techniques, methods and principles involved.

These days there is much over-speculation as to its importance and use. It has become as big of a deal as any other mark of rank and stature. The only true teaching some will suggest, implying they know the secret and no one else. Many of the oral explanations are often hinted at in the name of a technique; Tenchi nage (heaven and earth throw) for example in Aikido, and many other schools describe their essence through beautifully descriptive symbolical names of their particular form and syllabus. Alas much has been lost by just remembering the numbering of techniques, i.e.

Ikkyo, Nikkyo and Sankyo; first, second and third technique etc.

So yes the oral transmission and explanation of the descriptive names and principles are of great importance to grasp the inner feeling and movement of our Budo, yet they go hand in hand with continuous training. Without relentless practice no amount of kuden will help you. But in sync with your practice they will highlight what you are working at and guide you to that inner relationship of a connected body and mind.

But once again, the constant reference to ancient manuals and old sayings is not all there is. There's a living, ever new, expression and oral transmission that is ongoing in the dojo. If the teacher is awake to the principles involved in our martial practice he or she will be able to elucidate and explain on the spot in a new fresh way that stays true to the kuden of old. It's a living transmission from teacher to student happening in the dojo perfectly suited to the circumstance of their training in the moment.

Make no bones about it, whether you have been given Okuden or not, it all comes down to training. Do you know it or don't you. And yet many fix their opinions way too early, long before they have matured in the practice.

So what does 'Sesame' have to do with this?

Simply this, nothing is gained quickly. You can not learn the Budo skills and principles overnight. It takes time and training. Thus if you come to 'steal' a technique the door will remain shut. In Japan we were meant to use our eyes to steal the techniques we saw being

executed by our master and sensei. Yet without taking ukemi, taking a fall from your teacher, you would not be able to feel what he was doing. That's why many old time teachers were reluctant to show their art to outsiders as they may walk away with the mere shell of a technique. Only by commitment, dedication and many time by a blood oath sworn, would a student be allowed in on the secrets of training.

Still what does Sesame have to do with it? If you come and demand the doors will remain shut. If you come to test or challenge you are given no reply. If you remain humble and patient and wait, prove your worth, then and only then may the teacher teach you what he knows.

There is no incentive to give up the treasures just because being provoked. No need to prove a point. Unless the magic word, the password is given the teacher will not disclose his secrets. Upon meeting there is no show, no display. Not even a hint at mastery. Useless and unassuming he will easily be overlooked by the impatient.

Aiki is not to be used to brag. Aiki is to be revealed in relationship, not in combat. You can test it in combat if you're so prone and it might hone your skills but at one point you'll have to give up the winning and losing game of competition if you want to understand the spiritual implications of our art.

Open Sesame and He will show you everything he knows. Nothing will remain hidden.

Immovable Immovable wisdom, Acala or Fudo-myoo, the highest expression of a non-dual realisation. If we take it to mean and relate it to the body, we concentrate to establish a strong core centred in our Hara, well grounded and balanced. If we take it to mean the mind, we learn to remain detached through all circumstances. We learn to become one-pointed and sharp. If we take it to mean the heart, we never stray from the love and compassion we see and feel in

oneness. We never succumb to the division people spread.

Taken spiritually the unmovable refers to the way things are in reality. Unmoving, always the same, non-altered absolute Truth. This refers to an absolute state of being where neither circumstances nor conditions stir your understanding.

From this the saying 'moving without moving' come. Remaining in a knowledge-state of oneness there is no going nor coming.

Therefore whether you move or not nothing changes. Whether you experience this on a supernatural experimental level or simply as in your normal daily activity it's all the same.

One yet many There's a tendency to find one solution to everything. One truth that will do. One method that will suffice. The best one that cancel out everyone else. This is the Ego's attempt to control its environment. To claim the throne for itself, to be king. In the martial world this is

expressed as to who sits with the insight knowledge, who knows the secrets and who's got the goods. My art vs the rest. For many this is decided in the octagon, last man standing.

That's kind of feudal age, kingdoms come and go. The only bloodline recognised is in the number of scars and ribs broken. Generals and heads of state know better, with the gesture of a hand commanding armies subduing whole nations. Guns and knives rules the hood, all c l a i m i n g s u p r e m a c y. H o w n a r r o w a n interpretation, my school versus yours. My style or no style.

The art of war employs all strategic means.

The art of life use all of creation in abundance.

Chinese Wushu combine hard with soft, external with internal, multiple disciplines brings mastery. Not dead set on one thing they employ what's needed in the circumstances, changing and shifting as the situation unfolds.

A Budo used to kill employ any means to its end. The art of life, of living, use all varied phenomena to achieve its goal.

Body, mind and heart, soul and spirit. Alone and together, many yet one. Mine versus yours doesn't make sense any more.

Interior Dynamics How strange and how difficult it is to discover and learn about an interior parallel bodily movement that perfectly complements your outward motion. Realising there's an inner equivalent and counter-balancing movement to every outer physical action. A yin and yang cocreative interdependent relationship. The outer bodily motions finding their inner equivalent partner, working in unison to create maximum effect and to retain perfect balance. Effortless motion in theory and life sustaining circulation of the in and out breath. Circulating between inside and outside, rotating, alternating, cocreating and co-sustaining each other. What happens outside must have its equivalent motion inside, a counter reflective balancing act that generates spin; dynamic energy that we can direct upon contact. Physical, mental and spiritual contact are three levels or distances we can work at. Close where body touches body, or before where mind touches mind, or even prior where Spirit touches Spirit.

Unifying upon contact, electrifying and closing

the gap between us. Vertical alignment, centred with spacial awareness, sensitivity and timing we move with confidence. Absorbing all influences, rejecting none. Swallowing up all bumps, absorbing and using their kinetic energy to propel your own action like a hybrid car. Sinking into the ground while lifting limbs, a pulley system aligned with the ground.

Rooted like a tree your limbs subtle a soft circulating life energy. Muscles working unopposed, joints relaxed, impact decides weight ratio, light like a feather or heavy as lead.

Shifting and moving slowly in order to make sense out it all, voice and breath comes to mind. Got to get back on the mat.

Combative vs Non-combative How is it that combatives never understand the mindset of non-combative martial artists? Is it because we are in the wrong category?

According to them if you can't prove your skill in battle you're not able to walk your talk. Shut up or put up as it were. Maybe they figure we should all hand in our weapons, lay down our arms and don a monks robe and join the ministry. How is it that martial arts have always flirted with spirituality? Trying to cover their backs with divine suggestion. Or is it as when the devil grow old he becomes religious? Why is it that the martial hero always went to see the monk, not the other way around? What was he lacking? What does martial skill lack?

Whether you claim Aiki prowess or not, do you think spiritual understanding lies in your ability to defeat another or in your mastery of Aiki?

Let's be clear and not mistake martial ability with profound insight. And let's also state clearly that spiritual accomplishment doesn't bestow martial competence. So why should there be a relationship? Why are we in bed

with each other? Is it on equal standing we negotiate? Or is there dependency? Who rely on who? Who is the master in the house? Is it simply that might and power have had its fill and time of day and in its old age wish for a peaceful end? Trying to avoid his longstanding debt, his accumulated karma? Maybe the old saying 'live by the sword and die by the sword' is haunting his sleep? Or is it simply proven worth now reaping its rightful respect? Battlehard and weary now enjoying the admiration of would-be warriors. Let's not mistake this accomplishment for any kind of spiritual attainment. Though it must be said that many of martial artists has claimed spiritual achievement and paraded it like another belt of credibility. How far from true understanding they are. Spiritual achievement is not something we add to our already long list of martial can- do repertoire. And also, it's not just a little understanding added to the youthful vigour of the martial mind as if once calmed down we'd easily get it.

This is why the combatives never really get what the non-combatives are all about. They never see that it's about a perspective, a way

we see the world. They view the world as a fighter; you and me, us and them. Dual and divided, each man to his own. Defence is natural and conflict unavoidable. If you don't have the goods you're defeated. Simple and true. So why do they flirt with spirituality?

Something still not right? Something still nagging their unblemished record of won victories, of undefeated encounters, even though they have the following of the youth hungry for their own mastery? Some don't blink, settle in with old age, scrolls on the walls and swords in place of shrines. Blind they serve an unknown God with perfect etiquette. It has to be applauded to some degree I admit.

It's quite impressive. As battle-axes they go down, no defeat no surrender. It's the Egos greatest achievement; death before dishonour.

What is this shadowland between life and death that brings us together in the same arts?

Where lies the attraction in our practice?

Mastery involves what? What is this way and where is it leading?

The daily grind There's a marked difference between daily and consistent training where we work the basics, hone the body and temper our soul, to shortterm retreats and seminars. In those concentrated events we want to explore the dynamics of Aikido and look into the spirit of the art. Therefore our mindset must change slightly when we go on retreat. We need to approach it as a challenge, come with no preconceived ideas even if you're an advanced Aikido student or teacher.

Some teach by method; follow a certain program, a set of steps, to ensure steady progress. Others teach by inspiration; advocating and nurturing a quality of mind. I would emphasise one over the other depending on event and group.

In our retreats I like to paint the biggest possible picture, starting with a big frame of mind, an all-embracing context, spiritual in nature but also natural for a relaxed and sharp mind. Start with the largest perspective and return to the individual as we progress. Not like

in the daily grind where we begin with ourselves; creating an immovable connected aiki-body, and then engage with the other.

Less structure yields less results some believe.

But cultivating an open heart we can't limit it to a syllabus. We need to enter a pathless land where we care more about sharing and staying with what's going on, then to fix on ourselves.

Back in the dojo, yes we can work out the details through the day to day practice but on retreat give yourself totally to explore the borderland between you and me in a living relational enactment. This will infuse your practice and create a holistic body where we all participate in One thing. This mindset is demanding because it has no structure but it asks for your constant attention and awareness; how you speak, how you listen, how we communicate, how we train. It demands humility and compliance. The Ego have no room to wriggle out of it.

This intention will yield results but less pronounced in the sense you've got nothing to show for. So do come, jump in the deep end and explore community together; in Aikido, in meditation and in Yo-ga.

Ni Ki ⟆気 Two Ki's: Yin and Yang Heaven and Earth, Male and Female. Up and down, in and out. Two inter-relational opposing forces, one we call gravity, weight or mass slowing down congealing. The other we call Life force, or breaking up, rising, releasing, speeding up.

Heaven is light and tend upwards, Earth tend downward. Just as vapour, mist and smoke rise and stones sink to the bottom.

Matter congeals by gravitational force exerting massive pressure creating heat. Heat escapes and rise, creating a counter movement.

Unopposed they flow through each other.

Closest to the centre the density of mass is turned into white heat that in turn escapes outward, generating power. The lighter it is the faster it becomes, the more mass it accrues the slower it is.

Therefore we call it Gods speed, as when we see the ephemeral nature of spirit we come upon an accelerating velocity that is purely an effect of the original forces. These two forces are enclosed by One Spirit.

Bow men Draw your joints together. To connect your body like an old string-doll. Take out the slack, tighten the elastic string so the wooden doll doesn't collapse in a heap. Enough natural tension to keep it in shape. Let the bone structure 'sit' in its upright balanced form and exert its stabilising effect overall. Breathe easy.

Let the energy extend out through your fingertips. Like you're pulling out a soft elastic band. Let your vision fall inside, allowing your eyes to fall back into yourself. Feel the flesh slide off the bone to the ground. Allow the sun to draw you up just as when pulling up the rug, everything follows. As all things reach upwards, not pushing but being pulled by the heat and light. Sit up, stand up, walk. A natural progression induced by life itself. Suspended between Heaven and Earth we stand as on a floating bridge between the two. One movement keeps us on the ground, the other raises us up. Feeling these forces simultaneously where they meet by connecting

tissue, the sheer between them cause friction and heat escapes. Body temperature rises.

String a bow. Bend it and pull and attach the string. As you let out the slack it tightens. Now the weapon is strung, ready to use. When we bow in seiza or in standing, we replicate this stringing of the bow and come out of it with a tone in the body. When we flex an arm or leg we can do the same. When we open our hand and extend our fingers. Muscle and fascia toning creates a soft tension throughout the body connecting tissue in functional lines. Up down, side to side, and front to back. Six directions that covers the full spectrum all around. Our movements originate in our centre, our Hara. Legs extends down, spine and head up, and hands and arms out. Feel the compression into the Earth and feel the corresponding springboard effect upwards.

Free practice, solo exercise, move your body as if immersed in water. Slowly gently, energised with heightened feeling of the body toning. All parts move in sub-sequential order, one after the other. String movements together, from the ground up, sway like rush in the wind, like kelp in water, or like fire rising. Come back

to a standing pose or sitting seiza. Feel your whole system, go oh so quiet. Open your fingers and let the Ki out.

The Wisdom King Fudoo Myoo-oo and the Sword Kurikara 不動明王と倶利伽羅不動剣

The unmovable Fudoo (Acala Vidyaaraaja) is one of the Wisdom Kings (Myoo-oo). He is usually depicted in a very wrathful way. He is a typical Japanese deity, introduced by Kooboo Daishi about 806 and soon became a special protector of the Mountain Ascetics (yamabushi). An impressive waterfall is considered the personification of Fudoo, for example the Great Waterfall at Nachi, which we met in the story about Kumano.

Fudoo is portrayed holding a two-edged sword with a three-pronged hilt in his right hand and a coiled rope in his left hand. With this sword of wisdom, Fudoo cuts through deluded and ignorant minds and with the rope he binds

those who are ruled by their violent passions and emotions.

Kurikara 倶利迦羅 Also known as Kurika 矩⾥迦, a transliteration of Sanskrit Kulika, the name of a dragon-king ryuu ⿓ mentioned in Indian legends.

In this connection he is also known as Kurikara Ryuu 倶利迦羅⿓ (Dragon Kurikara), sometimes with the addition of ou 王, to read Dragon king Kurikara. Kurikara could also be an abbreviated transliteration of Kulika raja (King Kulika), or of Kulika-nagaraja (Dragon king Kulika).

In Esoteric Buddhism mikkyou 密教 he is regarded as a manifestation of *Fudou Myouou 不動明王 and is also known as Kurikara Fudou 倶利迦羅不動 or Kurikara Myouou 倶利迦羅明 王. He assumes the form of a flame-wreathed snake or dragon coiled around an upright sword, with his open mouth about to swallow

the tip of the weapon, which is called the Kurikara sword, kurikaraken 倶利迦羅剣.

According to the KURIKARA RYUUOU DARANIKYOU 倶利迦羅⿓王陀羅尼経 (Kurikara Ryu-O Darani Kyo), this manifestation of Fudou had its origins in a contest between Fudou and a non-Buddhist heretic in the course of which Fudou transformed himself first into a sword and then into the dragon Kurikara and threatened to devour the sword into which the heretic had changed himself.

Kurikara Fudo is a personification of this deity, this time in the form of a Dragon-Sword. The Dragon King Kurikara (Sanskrit: Kulikaa Nagaraajaa) is said to have a golden body colour and is sometimes depicted with one or two horns on his head. Legend has it that Fudoo had to fight the representative of a different religion. He changed himself into a flaming sword but the opponent did the same and the fighting went on without a winner. Now Fudoo changed himself into the Dragon

Kurikara, wound himself around the opposing sword and started eating it from the top. This episode gave rise to the iconographic rendering as we know it now.

"The sword Susanooh discovered in the tail of the slain eight-headed dragon (orochi) and gave to the gods was eventually given to Ninigi (great grandfather of Emperor Jinmu, the first Japanese emperor), a grandson of Amaterasu the sun goddess, when he came down to earth. The sword is one of the three divine articles that are part of the Japanese Imperial regalia, but it was lost in the 12th century. The sword's name is "Ama-no-Murakumo-noTsurugi" (sword of heavenly gathering of clouds), and it is also known as Kusanagi-noTsurugi (grass cutting two-edged sword) when it was used by Yamato Takeru to cut grass to make an escape route when he was surrounded by fire in one of the Ainu subjugation campaigns. So, both Murakumo and Kusanagi refer to the same thing, the sword of Orochi, the Dragon-King of the Sea. This sword could only be wielded by the Emperor of Japan."

The Aim of the Practice We're not here to learn a certain technique. A system of doing things whether that be Aikido, yoga or meditation. We're here to learn what they all are pointing to. Increased awareness of this will intensify your search. It will heighten your senses and you'll look outside of the form to find its essence. The quality of your engagement is everything. Your ability to absorb teachings, to listen and hear what is not being said but spoken of. There's an aim where we find direction and in that direction we enter the path. Then we just need to follow it.

Keep your eyes set straight ahead and do everything we do with clear intent. Then whether we meditate or communicate we allow ourselves to be available. This in itself will reveal the way to be, the way to investigate, the way to meditate and the way to realise.

Unhindered we now know training is more than the method. The aim is everything.

Strong Mans Aikido Revisited. Clear, precise and sharp. Details of movement. Reminds me of back in the day.

Crisp and smart, solid and sturdy. Yet rocky, somewhat rigid? Knowing the system helps. A method of training, a set of principles; Chushin, centre-line focus. Very important and necessary in many arts. Our Heaven-EarthMan vertical alignment. A two-way system running up and down. Life-force and gravity, the yin and yang polarity. Extend in six directions, add left and right, front and back and we have a sphere. Receive and absorb, enter and turn. Beautifully effective and powerful. No need to clash yet we do. No need to test, yet we do. Subtle but still apparent. I call it one-mans Aikido. The still need for credibility and assurance. Soft and hardly noticeable yet lingering like a past that won't let go. Lions going about their business. I had a good day. Extremely high standard, experience in bucket loads, great people, and a skilled teacher. What more could one ask for?

Atemi Are we meant to make contact? I don't think so. It's the responsibility of the person doing the atemi that it is well-placed, accurate and safe. Meaning having the skill, vision and the ability to hold the strike before impact. Even if uke/nage moves towards it. It's not difficult to land a punch if one sets ones mind to it.

Especially if we do static training or step by step instructive learning. Now, Aikido is not a judo randori nor a karate kumite. It's not a free engagement. It happens under controlled circumstances for the purpose of training principles. One of the first things we learn as beginner Aikidoka is to respect your partner. To land a punch and then tell the recipient he or she must be more careful reveals a lack of care, or at least a lack of understanding atemi.

Whether we use the tegatana swordhand, a fist, bokken or jo, we must use it with utmost care. With precision and speed yes but with skill to stop at will. Without this restraint the rest of the waza or technique will be done with the same intent. If we believe that it resembles

a real situation think again. A 'real' encounter have no preset planned structure. If I apply a pin in the same manner without concern for my partner I'll break his arm. So if you temper the rest of your execution why not the atemis? Am I scoring points? Or do I take the high ground claiming martial reasons for not holding back.

Training can be hard and tough but it's always fair. We always know when we're in control and when we're not. Misunderstanding atemi is a very dangerous thing to do. It has to do with a mindset. Think about it, why would you not control your atemi while controlling the rest your technique? Why carry a double standard?

Do you want to get hit in the face while you're training.

Now it's a different thing to educate uke or nage about connection and therefore reveal openings and lack of awareness in regards to the martial relationship. We may point these things out in a clear manner but this once again does not constitute a disregard towards your partner.

Have you been taught by your teacher to attack with no stops available? Has he or she been an example of abusive behaviour

towards their training partners? Rethink the way we apply our strikes in Aikido. Full on but with the presence of mind to alter in a moments notice. Train safe!

Shugyo The capacity to accommodate incoming force.

How able are you to absorb with sensitivity anything that lands on you? The degree to which you're developed you'll be able to encompass, include and penetrate your uke/ partner.

If their 'shugyo' is more developed than yours you'll find yourself in a precarious position.

That's why in a teaching situation the teacher never use his Shugyo developed skill to hinder or stop his students attempts to learn but g u i d e s t h e m a s a r e c e i v i n g u k e . To demonstrate yes, he will reveal the power and immovability inherent in a developed Aiki-body, showing the result of his Shugyo practice in order to teach. That's why the practice of Aiki happens in a controlled form. A series of set up

basic exercises where uke and nage serve distinct and clear roles in order to facilitate the connection and the dynamic interchange.

Giving force and receiving force in a yin and yang alternating flow. Solo exercises are fundamental to your own development but the partner practice will sensitise your movements with another. Unless you want your Aiki to be rough and uncut, like so many 'old school' boys' aikido, you must soften your handling upon impact to accommodate, blend and compress. This kind of deep sensitivity can only come from years of partner practice.

Following In Aikido we must learn to follow. This often goes against the grain. Most of the time we feel we must be in control, need to be ahead, to lead and guide. We enter, guide and project.

If we run into resistance we insist. We apply technique, leverage and muscle to enforce what we want. Sometimes we might do it very subtle trying to hide our intent yet it causes a

stir, uke doesn't want to comply. And why is that? Why don't uke comply? Is it because you've turned the tables? Switched the attacker? No longer listening to the incoming force? No longer following? Most likely yes and your need to 'do' Aikido, to complete the technique, or for that matter, to fulfil your ukemi, means you've stopped hearing the other.

How about if Aikido was only about pacifying any evil rising? If it was only about subduing any rise in aggression? No more and no less.

Staying with the situation would mean that we'd listen intently and follow closely to and with our opponent. By early anticipation if not plain preemptive, we follow as a shadow and diffuse any rise in hostility.

Let in, connect, wait, move with, follow.

Aikido and Spiritual Development Aikido training does not guarantee spiritual accomplishment and Aikido does not necessarily go hand in hand with spiritual

development. The majority of Aikido teachers are not spiritual teachers and therefore do not know what spiritual liberation is all about. The path of spiritual freedom is exclusive to itself, meaning it will not share its way with other disciplines. The spiritual demands only itself, it will not compromise. Yet you may call Aikido a spiritual path as it follows the principles of truth and love, and outlines the unity of mankind in its message from O Sensei. The practice discipline of the form and principles of the development of an integrated connected Aikibody will have a massive impact and effect on your body, mind and heart. Setting you up with a sound vehicle to face the world and your own self. But this in itself does not automatically turn you into a realised master. The relational engagement; the sensitivity and care developed in partner practice, the conscious aspect of heightened awareness, all contributes to a more mature and morally congruent development of your self. Yet to make Aikido part of your spiritual discipline you need to pursue the spiritual as a personal quest for the sake of the whole. Your intention is everything. The spiritual path is extreme. It

has to do with your whole life. You will have to face your own death and surrender is the only way through. You must be ready to leave everything and everybody behind. Who can say what will remain, if anything? Spiritual development is not a prescribed set of exercises that leads to health and wellbeing, or even mastery in the art of Aiki. O Sensei pursued this path all of his life and Onisaburo Deguchi was his teacher and Oomoto Kyo Shinto and esoteric Buddhism became the framework for his realisation. You and I will have a different background and context yet our spiritual progress depends wholly on our desire for liberation. Wanting it more than anything else. Wanting it more than even Aikido. Pursue it then in your Aikido training, and outside of it, like if your life depends on it.

Because it does.

The dichotomy of rigid Aikido and supple Aikido Why is it when many times we view Daito-Ryu and old style hardcore Aikido we see oldish stiff men yanking on wrist locks with Aiki-age and Aiki-sage and the like? No finesse, little movement and hardly with any taisabaki body movement. Yes they may display a solidity in their body, an immovability if you like, but c'mon, it's not pretty. Many times they define Aiki as the subtle body control as now being rolled out as the lost art of O Sensei. Yes there is internal body control and power generated from the ground up through connected tissue.

All good stuff don't get me wrong, but what happened with the grace and sensitivity toward the other, toward uke? What happened to moving interaction where rigidity has to loosen up in order to flow? Ki-no-nagare is NOT fast kihon. Basic waza is essential with its principles but when extrapolated out into flowing enactment, softness and touch takes over. Gross matter turns naturally lighter and faster as it transforms. The master will display

this lightness of being even upon touch. This is the secret of O Sensei. Not his fundamental training in DR but his mastery in sensitivity toward a no forced engagement. Without the sensitivity toward uke, the real display of harmonious interaction, Aiki is just another way to bully your opponent. Fair enough if you're only in it for the fight but then we're not talking about O Sensei's vision of Aikido. O Sensei's vision is a spiritual one, not a martial one. If you want to display his power we need to assimilate this ideal into our training, into our Aiki. Because this is not a given. Aiki will not give you the tools to become one. Maybe you'll be able to defeat your foe or win the fight but to make peace through your touch demands something more. O Sensei, according to many accounts, had that ability. This in my book takes decades to develop. Only constant training and teaching Aiki will reveal this secret.

The interaction becomes one where we blend and where no force is opposed. It becomes mutually invigorating and satisfying.

Now who can claim this? Either from the DaitoRyu camp or from the mainstream Aikikai?

Good luck you all.

Understanding O Sensei Why do people still insist that hardly anyone can understand O Sensei's esoteric explanations of his spiritual experiences?

Sangenkai does a great job deciphering his archaic Japanese into understandable English and follows up with great understanding of the internal arts with its methodology. These translations deal mainly with his realisations in regards to Aiki and the Heaven Earth Man module following the ancient structure of: Mu 無 Nothingness.

Ichi Rei ⼀霊 One Spirit Ni Ki ⼆気 Two Ki's: Yin & Yang.

San Gen 三元 Three sources: Heaven, Earth and Man. Shi Kon 四魂 Four souls: North, South, East and West.

Hachi Riki ⼋⼒ Eight powers: Movement – Stillness Melting – Congealing Pulling – Loosening Combining – Splitting

This diagram suits the internal Aiki martial arts but will be applicable to all men regardless of walk of life. It's 'Life' based, not martially based. It's Budo, the cessation of arms. It is spiritual in essence and manifested in our daily relationships. Spiritual simply means true and loving since Love and Truth are the two sides to the same coin.

Anyone that ventures into the spiritual domain of life (which by the way is not some hippy escapism but nitty gritty real life experience) will with study and effort be able to experience and realise the very same truths that O Sensei and many others have realised through time immemorial.

Understanding Aiki is one thing and a very big thing indeed but it does not necessarily translate all of O Sensei's spiritual experience.

They often transcend the martial application and address humankind itself. That is his vision. Whether or not we are budoka they're still relevant for all. That's where O Sensei meet all other spiritual masters exclaiming the oneness of mankind. This of course is something we all share through egoless participation and non-competitive relationship.

All based on One Truth. Now this is what we want to discover and thrive within.

The Hidden Realm O Sensei spoke of the 'hidden realm' pointing to a spiritual reality underlying all of existence.

This is key in understanding his development of Aikido from pre-war Aiki-budo to post-war Aikido and even further to his last decade alive. Iwama was to become his 'Ubuya', his birthplace for his spiritually received Aikido.

This can be attested to from his own words.

His spiritually blended martial art took root in Ayabe, under the tutelage of his spiritual mentor Onisaburo Deguchi, then still a very much martial based Daito-ryu Aiki bujutsu.

Though Shinto and Buddhism are closely associated with the martial arts in Japan it is first-most a cultural and national heritage that runs through all their varied arts that ascribe their source to a mystical origin spiritual in nature. Individuals like Deguchi and O Sensei pursued this path a little further than most and

thereby came to taste, feel and see the underlying spiritual truth through their own personal experience. This made them aware that all metaphors and fantastic tales of the kami/spirit could be realised in their own body and mind. They also realised it was more than a personal inner experience. It was a universal reality hidden from most people but nevertheless a very active source available to be tapped at will. But as an universal law it would supersede any individual and thereby humble anyone encountering its mysteries. As an absolute underlying reality who's nature would be discovered to be universal love, O Sensei would in his later years exchange the kanji character of Ai (union, blend), the first kanji in Ai Ki Do, to Ai (Love), and exclaim his art was an art of universal love for all beings.

Now we can see the evolution of his Aikido from a martial art to a spiritual art based on a very personal realised vision of mankind.

This in no way takes away from the martial ability but ideally improves it. And it doesn't confer any shortcuts to mastery. We still have to put the work in, exert the effort and find the right teachers. But the spiritual legacy is not

something to be taken for granted for Aikidokas, it will remain a supremely lonely path that demands its own sacrifice martial artist or not. The hidden realm will always be hidden but it is in no way less real for it. It just keeps us guessing but ignoring it will not help.

S e e k t h e h i d d e n a n d fi n d s o m e t h i n g unexpected.

The teacher is never better than his best student In the sense that he can't outperform beyond the limit of the students ability to receive. If he would he could do serious damage to his uke.

If we stay within the capacity of the receiver and close to his edge of ability we'll be able to balance the interaction perfectly. The fluidity and play between teacher and student is a constant field of learning for both. In Ken-zenichi-jyo sword we learn that if an opponent gives you his full 100% attack, you should receive the attack with zero. If he gives you

90% then you receive it with 10. 90-10 80-20 70-30 60-40 40-60 30-70 20-80 10-90.

This adaptability in blending lends itself ideally to the neutralisation of aggression, of absorbing perfectly what comes. The more skilled and supple a student is, the more of the teachers ability must be deployed, but though a masters response will always be in perfect accord to an attack it is in constant flux feeling the shifting sands of the interaction.

Holding on for dear life In Aikido, with some experience, we can destroy peoples attempts to do technique. We can also upset their attempts to practice principles. We can easily counter their efforts.

This is usually done to confirm ones own ideas about ability, skill and Aiki. We test our partner openly or secretly, trying to prove our own understanding of how it should be done.

Sometimes this happens naturally with beginners that are new to the practice. They react and stiffen up, resisting any input. This is

understandable and fine but then we teach them about uke/nage relationship, body receptivity and balance, and about being strong yet soft.

There is also another time where resistance training can be part of an ordinary practice.

When two skilled practitioners or a teacher with a student are focussing especially on a certain aspect with clear understanding of the task at hand, whether that be about technical or internal principles or both.

Sometimes you want to test the teacher and you intend to disrupt his or her moves. This mindset is already conditioning your attack.

This is like stepping into the ring and challenging the other to fight it out. You're on the back foot already if you're doing it secretly or at full scale attack if you do it openly. Either way, the teacher sees and feels the intent and can respond in a number of ways. Old school Japanese way the teacher cuts the attempt short by responding in kind and teaches the student a lesson. The harder they come the harder they fall comes to mind. Some times with broken limbs as a result. A different response is to educate the student of

appropriate training methods, explaining the difference between set-up form, principle training, and free style engagement.

Sometimes students of different styles block each other in order to prove their schools superiority. This has partly led to the spread of mixed martial arts competitions that somewhat undermines the ethos of Budo. Unfortunately if this takes place in the dojo we loose the meaning of a shared work and of a mutual engagement. This can sometimes visibly be seen as a disengaged, superior motivated attitude of the practitioners.

Luckily this is not the majority of dojos but we still need to be aware of an unconscious subtle part of ourselves that still engage in this kind of confrontation. Remember the context, where you are. Are you a guest or host. Are you there to learn or to teach? If there is movement can you move? If there is stillness, can you be still?

Some will give themselves to the engagement.

Others not. Some will stand their ground, others have no claim. Some train for themselves, others for each other. No need to hold on for dear life. Let go into life.

Immovable Mind Fudomyoo or Acala, the embodiment of a principle, in the internal martial world it refers to mastery of body and mind coordination, of the establishment of an Aiki-body. A centred, grounded and expanded body-being.

Sometimes translated as the un-fettered mind, meaning that it can't be placed or fixed due to its very nature. Movement then is natural to the immovable mind. It's not that it moves by itself, rather it's the movement of time that makes it impossible to fix. The unfettered mind moves with all things without hesitation yet it remains immovable. A natural state where lightness and heaviness don't contradict each other.

The Dojo - a Sacred space Can we come into a shared space together?

Where all separateness falls away? It's more than just feeling good with each other, more than just being friends. Can we actually step into a conscious open mindset which we all

would participate in? Not as outsiders looking in, but as a merged entity exhibiting a oneness of being. This is possible if we dare to leave our ego at the door. It takes willingness to want to experience something beyond ourselves. A shared communion in body, mind and spirit.

In Aikido we can strive to have an all-inclusive awareness as we engage with each other.

Being wide awake and conscious all around helps in the martial sense and points to a greater possibility of embracing the other mentally, throwing a net around them, including them in your movement. By doing so we may harness their aggression and guide them freely. This opens the possibility of them joining the movement if we allow the play that ensues.

The back and forth flow, the kaeshi-waza, the reversals. Without an end result in mind we can learn much in the interaction. Now we're moving away from a solely martial perspective and enter a relational enactment where a cocreative process ensues. Moving together, blending and alternating the balance between uke and nage. Changing and switching as the flow dictates. No more an attacker and defender but a merged interaction where both

mutually benefits and are nurtured. A life-giving practice where the circle can always widen to include more and more.

Aikido as a Healing Art We all have experienced the joy and thrill of Aikido and possibly also the injuries and wear and tear from it. Usually the positives outweighs the negatives even though many of us carry the marks and bruises left from years of practice. But is it the satisfaction we derive from the training that would constitute part of the healing aspect? No doubt, with the right advice regarding training methods we can benefit greatly from the yoga inspired stretching, the mindfulness of breathing, the establishment of a balanced centre and the different Ki exercises, all in conjunction with the waza pair work. The sensitivity in the relationship, the apprehension of a mutual engagement, the satisfaction of the noncombative and non-competitive interaction. All this is deeply beneficial for both body and soul.

Include the philosophy of O Sensei and our mind find plenty to grapple with. Healing body and mind seems to happen through their coordination and integration. A healthy balance tick many of our boxes. But ultimately, what constitutes healing? According to O Sensei we must enter the spiritual realm, learn the difference between the real and the unreal, the true and the false. We need to expose the Ego in contrast to our genuine self, our individual mind in contrast to a collective consciousness.

A personal view in contrast to a unified perspective. The path of Aikido lends itself to this inquiry. The principles support a deeper understanding. O Sensei's teachings point to a spiritual healing for body, mind and heart. We must take this on and go further than he did.

We must see his creation of Aikido as a tool for the evolution of spirit for all beings; for the Aikido community as a whole and for the world at large. No longer solely an individual pursuit but a effort to come together, both in body, mind and heart. This must happen within your own body and soul, between you and the next one, and among many of you that gathers

together, whether that be in the dojo or elsewhere.

Aikido and Non-Duality 'Non-duality', for me, is the Indian philosophy of Advaita, meaning 'Not two'. In the sense that when we come to discover the oneness of all things, the non-dual nature of existence, we stop dividing everything up in this and that, in you and me, us and them, have and havenot's. We begin to see everything operating out of a unified perspective. O Sensei said; 'I am the universe' summing up his spiritual experience into one holistic vision. Now if he, or for that matter we, can vouch for such an incredible statement, it must include all things and all others. And it must infer that we all partake in that absolute. universal truth. He states clearly that it was this realisation that ushered his Aikido into a transcendent visionary path. In Aikido Non-duality therefore points to a way of holding the other not as a separate entity but as part and parcel of your

own extended self. Making it possible to match and blend with utmost precision.

In Yo Dynamics The Attractive force being the weight of being, carries within itself a natural adjustment to all things. It welcomes things in its own way yet do not compromise its integrity nor do violence upon the other. It need not go out of its way to meet another but it may chose to do so in the spirit of play or simply by being forthcoming and caring for a reciprocal relationship. To give and to receive is the in and yo, the yin and the yang of mutual recognition. It's part and parcel of taking part, not standing apart, not being the special one that only receives. Aikido is a relationship and when we educate uke as well as nage it becomes a beautiful dance between the two. No more master student but friends that share an ongoing dynamic interchange, giving and receiving equally in the process. No more one mans show of skill and application but a shared event.

Aikido is martial but I'm not a fighter Is it or isn't it? C'mon it's not rocket science is it? Martial arts are the science of warfare, of fighting, of strategy, of psychology, of power.

Anyone interested used to join the army. If you wanted to be a warrior you'd become a soldier.

You'd learn lethal combat, weapon systems and defence tactics.

I'm not a soldier yet I do Aikido. I'm not a fighter and I can't compete in the ring yet I teach self defence. Aikido has lethal techniques, arm breaking locks, but we never spar nor test it in combat. Yet it's a martial art but I'm not a warrior.

Giving Birth Are we supposed to come together in such a way it gives birth to a new creation? Two coming together in union and in effect having an offspring by doing so. Creating new independent life distinct from the parents.

Takemusu is pointing to that creative process.

Giving birth through Aiki, through merging heaven and earth, through blending fire and water, to man. A singular practice to many, a solo exercise to create a connected Aiki-body.

A unified immovable being. But life giving requires at least two. Two beings coming together creating a third. An intimate union of opposites producing a new creation.

My take on it is that O Sensei started out as an actual soldier, faced life and death in real battle. His Budo was geared to work in a real situation. Now he realised early on the futility of war through his spiritual insights and his Aikido became more and more deep without losing the martial aspect. Yet his situation changed, from battlefield to normal life where he hardly ever would have to face real combat. Now training became a battle to win over the self.

This became the spiritual vision he would always advocate regardless if you were a soldier or lay person. Whether we die in an assault or not is besides the point. If you want to be a soldier there are no rules. You fight till death. If your Aiki is developed, tried and

tested, maybe you'll have a better chance to survive, maybe not. But if you want to become a warrior then enlist in the army, go to war fully prepared, know your weaponry, and fight the good fight. But most of Aikidokas are not soldiers and we have no wish to learn how to kill and how to survive and be ready to use it when called upon. Strategists and generals can play with other people's lives without risking their own life. How many officers were killed in Afghanistan and Iraq? Our boy heroes came back in body bags. So let's not kid ourselves, even being a cage fighter is far from being a soldier (though that may be the individual case). But Aikido is all about intent and intent looks different when placed in different situations and depending on each individuals development as a person. So as we grow maybe the need to go to the front disappears and a different attitude begin to shape our self. How well we'll do as a fighter we may never know? But please do not go looking for it. There's too much of it around as it is. Aiki might help you or it might not. There's no guarantees. But what Aiki developed will do is to transform you into a better human being

and as such you'll meet O Sensei in his intention and vision of this most beautiful martial art.

A Non-aggressive Demand The attention and intention we lay on the other in Aikido may be referred to as the 'attractive force' that O Sensei spoke of. The drawing in of uke, and the yamabiku, the mountain-echo, the calling out and receiving in return, whether by body, mind or spirit, creates a spontaneous interaction difficult to resist. Just as when one offers his hand for a handshake and you take it and just as when someone offers you a gift or present you accept by receiving it. Done in a non-aggressive manner and even with a loving intention we find it hard (and rude) not to accept. Spiritual accomplishment creates a similar response. We are attracted by the purity and strength of spiritual expression. We feel drawn towards the love that is embodied.

Krishna, the Hindu embodiment and avatar of Godhead on this Earth can be translated as

magnet, an irresistible attractive force no one can withstand. We are drawn towards the centre of ourselves. Towards the absolute truth just as moth are attracted to light. In his presence if feels like a demand that we feel compelled to answer. Involuntarily sometimes, yet we can't help it. This ensuing relationship nurtures and feeds a part of ourselves that craves connection and union while it repels the Ego in each of us and scares the living daylight out our sense of privacy.

In Aikido, we handle any encounter in this manner, drawing them in into a relationship hard to separate from. O Sensei showed the way. Can we follow?

Martial Art or Not? Big discussion. I side with them all. How chicken shit isn't that? I take everybody's perspective and agree with their point of view.

Yet I hesitate to call testing your skills in the ring Aikido. Testing them in real life scenarios is much more true to the point. It's easy enough

for us that never or very very rarely encounter real dangerous violence to side on the art side of martial and advocate the philosophy of peaceful resolution and most likely actually backing up that argument with real life experience. But knowing there are tough guys out there facing down and dealing with scary violence as part of their life situation reveals that one way is not enough. Everybody's context varies, so use the correct tool for the job intended. Don't bring a knife to a gunfight etc. We have institutions dealing with our protection; the army, the police force, the street vigilantes, the bouncers. But that's after the regime has won the war and established supremacy. Armies were built to conquer and to win, not defend a docile nation. Now we have armies to 'defend' our supremacy. Any threat to that and we preempt any attempt to upset the established hierarchy. Might and power rule the day. Martial Arts were always a tool to conquer others. Then that they used those weapons of mass destruction as a way to defend themselves is another twist to the story. A knight in shining armour and all that hero bs. There's always a lot of blood under

the bridge before the victors can claim noble virtues as their motto. Where does Aikido fit in?

Depending on a persons situation, context and personal development he and she will accommodate the art accordingly and I see nothing wrong with that. I can identify with where they are coming from. Personally I'm not a fighter and I'd probably not last a minute in a real fight. But that's not why I train even though I do view it as a martial art with a self defence capacity. The applied self defence though in my book have no rules nor restrictions and as such we may use whatever means necessary in a life and death situation. How that is going down I have no idea. There are no guarantees.

Yet the appeal of Aikido for me is the spiritual realm, or the notion of oneness, non-duality and the wonderful blend in interaction. The creative rush that makes the encounter life affirming and mutually beneficial.

Yet I can affirm everybody's opinion as I'm able to see it with their eyes, from their perspective.

The more we know, the larger our context and living situation the better. It will affect our resolution, enhance our understanding and evolve our engagement.

Restraining Order When we restrain somebody from harming themselves or another, they usually calm down after a few moments and we can let go. The hold and the care gives them two things we all need, physical touch and love. Aikido is like this. We give each other the physical interaction all living beings crave and we extend care in the relationship in order not to harm. But pay attention to the balance. If you care too much, restrain too long, the human or animal will freak out. So bear that in mind when you impose a restraining order on someone. In feudal Japan when hunting they closed off three flanks and left one open as to provide an escape route. Restraint is a spiritual practice. To close ones mouth and ones senses. To go inside to contemplate ones excesses, ones trivialities. Silence of being can be hard to cope with. But it can also be the biggest learner. In the constraint of our expressions we are forced in on ourselves and maybe for the first time really see who we are without anything. Careful for what you ask for.

Three weeks, three months or three years? Let the sentence do the trespassing justice.

The Attractive Force O Sensei would almost magically draw people out. Witnesses would attest that even nonstudents off the mat would be having an urge to get up when he passed them by in the dojo.

His ukes would involuntarily be pulled into a relationship. Inryoku 引⼒ (引=Pull, ⼒=Power), the Japanese term for gravity and attractive force, is the wording O Sensei would use for his ability to effortlessly handle his ukes. He would also say that this would stem from his understanding of the polarities of yin and yang; the Chinese mutually arising, interdependent opposite pair (Inyo in Japanese) where yin has the feminine water attribute and stands for the quality of receptivity and yang is the male creative fire counterpart. These oppositional forces converge in our selves and is in Aikido first addressed as 'Tenchijin', Heaven-EarthMan, our vertical alignment with the ground

with us in the middle. With the movement of up and down in a dynamic balance we're able to manipulate the in and the out; drawing in as we reach out, or extend while contracting, remaining always balanced in the centre. A relaxed and established Aiki-body where the slack has been taken out of the connective tissue will be able to respond from a centred awareness both physically and mentally. A coordinated body and mind lays the foundation for a further exploration of the dynamics of an engaged relationship. To remain solely bodily self-centred is not anymore the main attraction even though those abilities display unusual immovability and power. By using your widening sphere of influence by extending your sense of self to include the other, you in effect draw them into your field of action. Letting your heart open to include a larger context enables you to absorb the movement that happens within it. We find ourselves in the middle, on the 'floating bridge of Heaven' where gravity is suspended between the evenly balanced poles. Now if you come to realise that this self of yours that is literally hanging in the balance between Heaven and Earth is fundamentally

self-less, you'll discover a new perspective of unity, and even more than that, you can come to see that this non-dual nature or essence is love itself. Love's dynamism has also this dual movement of in and yo. Both expansive and attractive and as such we 'fall into' love. When I open myself up, become vulnerable, exposing a realness that is of the spirit, it affects others.

The radiance of love is attractive and magnetic to our self. It happens on a physical level, on an emotional level and on a spiritual level. It touch our whole being and we feel compelled by it. As gravity pulls the rain to Earth new life sprouts forth. Takemusu Aiki.

Martial Ability Must begin within. Within you. Standing on the ground, sink in and fill out. Connect from top to toe, side to side, front to back. Stretch gently.

Don't confront. Create a Heaven Earth Man conditioned body, then build a Hara centred awareness. Establish a centred rotational sphere through which an axis runs where its

oppositional forces dynamically meet in all directions. Fudomyoo, or the immovable body, a stabilised centre, a firm a solid body yet flexible and pliable. Liquid metal as it were.

No Fight There is no fight left in this body. No incentive at all. To raise my hands to anything but a natural response feels strange. Is that giving up? Is it to soon? To pair up is always a training opportunity, never a contest. No will to win I'm happy to let go of intent. Yet to take part I include, participate and embrace. Yin and yang consciously balanced within.

Transformative Aikido What makes Aikido transformative? Now we’re not talking about the hard craft of years of perfecting techniques and body conditioning.

What makes you change in the moment? What is that touch that dispels ignorance and

neutralises aggression? How do you transform what comes to you into a peaceful encounter?

How to disarm the most stubborn attacker?

O Sensei’s ‘golden light' experience of 1925 in his own words O Sensei exulted inside: ‘This is a divine transformation!' Awestruck and ecstatic, he seemed to see his body becoming golden, as the universe itself was transformed.

He could hear, distantly, the almost inaudible sounds of birds and insects; he could see leaves moving on the trees, and the direction of the wind. Within emptiness, existence was still manifest. Suddenly, all of nature lay open to be seen, and O Sensei felt as if his small self could merge completely with the larger universe.

Immediately afterwards, I felt as if I was enlightened. Anyone who contracted himself and became smaller by thinking about the

achievement of victory would see nothing. But the person who embraced all things with love and affection, who let ki govern the flow of events, could open a space of becoming one with the opponent, in ki, in mind, and in the movements of the body. The one who was enlightened would be, as we call it, the winner.

But this would be victory without ‘winning'— real victory, winning over one's self. This would be the victory of merging with one's opponent, of humans becoming one with God, of the universe becoming part of love's creative energy. It would surpass the mere victory or defeat of individuals. It would be absolute victory of the God of Takemusu, and this is the supreme objective of the path of Bu, the martial way. These things are what I understood.'

That is a summary of what O Sensei said."

In the Realm of Ghosts She said after a moments reflection, ‘He is in a ghost realm’. Referring to O Sensei, our newfound friend, an ageless Japanese lady that we’d met in Kathmandu, a spiritual guide in her own right, were answering our question if she ‘knew’ Morihei Ueshiba. When we met I had been immediately attracted to her as if I’d known her from long ago. She noticed my affection but more or less ignored it till we had dinner when she said without any undue attention, that she’d been my mother in a past life. I instantly knew this to be true. It wasn’t something I usually would subscribe to nor entertain in my spiritual quest as I’d scrutinise every find with objective logic. This was way past my normal understanding so I took it all with a grain of salt, yet storing it in my memory for future reference.

Thinking again of the Shugyo O Sensei managed to accrue over his lifetime and in the way it creates a field of spirit substance (for lack of a better description) that became his seat, his platform for his existence. Now I’m

speculating as I have no clue to what all this means or if it has any bearing on any level of experience. Maybe you have some thoughts about it?

Affective Aikido Yes affective not effective. Many martial artists and fighters are interested in their ability and effectivity in ‘real’ life scenarios and test their skills in the ring where they face off with another. This mindset creeps into many students of Aikido as well. But because Aikido doesn’t lend itself easily to a combat situation many seek out other sports to complement their study. Boxing, wrestling and Brazilian Jujutsu to name a few. The internal martial arts of China also offers a wide range of effective combative methods. This focus on what works in combat has produced a whole new generation of fighters in the mixed martial arts circuit. No doubt they are formidable athletes, well trained and fit with exceptional skill, yet do they exemplify what Aikido is meant to be? Are

we, the Aikidoka, meant to be competitive sports men and women? What happens with our mindset and attitude when we try to test our ability? Do we use the art of evasion and non-resistance to gain advantage and win? Do we turn our internal skill into superior fighting drills? Are we interested in effective Aikido, in Aikido that ‘works’? Is this really the aim and way of Aiki? Or did O Sensei change the focus? His focus was always on hard training, daily misogi. That’s why he named his Iwama dojo ‘Aiki Shuren Dojo’. Shuren 修練, the polishing and kneading of one's spirit, forging it into something strong and bright through sincere and dedicated training. The meaning of Shuren is training or discipline. The word carries a strong connotation of serious training.

The first character shu can also be read as asamaru and means to hold firmly. Ren can also be read as neru meaning to knead or polish. O Sensei was interested in creating strong healthy human beings. He would say that our daily practice of Aikido was our misogi, our spiritual purification. The severe practice in the dojo was never meant to be combative or

competitive. It was there to polish our soul, to forge our sword through heat and cold, fire and water, using yin and yang as opposing mutual forces to create Aiki. The dojo was a place to practice the Way. And the Way has a lofty goal; Spirit or Kami, that in the end would come to be seen as the endless Love of God. Through self sacrifice in training we would become victorious. Not through a competitive or combative mindset. The goal may be lofty and out of reach but the attitude isn’t. Will someone beat you in a fight? Most likely yes, but that’s not why we train. Do we need anything outside of Aikido to fulfil our need to overcome another? Do we need sparring to complete our Aikido training? Do we test our Aikido on our training partners by resisting and enforcing? I rather affect my partner with tangible feeling of presence and inclusion, handle him with care and firmness, with perfect blending and timing.

A ‘real’ fight In Bangkok two big Israelis got into an argument with a young Thai in a snooker club.

They threw their weight around and confidently sized the smaller man up. In the West we’re prone to think that a challenge or a fight is not a life and death matter, especially when the odds are on our side. But in many countries in Asia any insult is taken in the most serious manner. Face is at stake and to defend oneself is a matter of pride. While in the West some believe in fair play the truth is that in a fight there are no rules. It doesn’t matter if you’re bigger, better or stronger. Now the young Thai man left the club and all others quickly tried to make the Israelis leave too. They said, you better leave because he has gone to get his gun and if you’re here when he comes back you’re dead. This was a wake up call for me. It doesn’t matter if you’re a martial art expert.

Power will be overcome by more power. You can never win. You can never fake a real situation, you can’t test for the real thing. And the real thing doesn’t care about rules or an

even playing field. War has no winners, only dead ‘heroes’.

Zen Master Bankei Once, after Bankei had given a talk at the Korin-ji, a samurai proud of his skill in the fighting arts approached him for an interview.

"I trained for many years in the art of duelling," he said. "Once I had it mastered, my arms moved in perfect accord with my mind. Now, if I face an opponent, my blade will split his skull before his weapon even moves. It's just like you possessing the Dharma eye."

"You say you have perfected your skill in your art," Bankei said. "Try to strike me!"

The samurai hesitated for an instant.

"My blow has already fallen," said Bankei.

The man's jaw sagged. "I'm astonished," he sighed. "Your stroke is swifter than the spark off a flint. My head rolls at my feet. Please, master, teach me the essentials of Zen." One winter when Bankei was preaching during a retreat at the Sanyu-ji in Bizen province, laity and priests from Bizen and Bitchu assembled in great numbers to hear him. At a place called Niwase, in Bitchu, there was a large temple of the Nichiren sect, whose head priest was a learned cleric deeply venerated by his congregation. By that time, Bankei’s name was already known far and wide, and his teaching inspired great respect, so the Nichiren priest’s followers all came to attend the meetings.

Resenting this, the priest told them, “I’ve heard that Bankei isn’t really enlightened. If I went there, I could give him a question I know he couldn’t answer. I could stop him with a single word.”

So saying he showed up at one of the meetings. Standing at the rear of the assembly, in the middle of Bankei’s talk he said in a loud voice, “The people here all listen to your talk and believe what you tell them. But someone

like myself could never be expected to agree with the essential idea of your teaching. How can you save me when I don’t accept your teaching?”

Bankei raised up his fan and said, “Would you move forward here a little?”

The priest moved forward.

“Please come forward a bit more,” said Bankei.

The priest advanced again.

“Look how well you accept it!” said Bankei.

The priest withdrew stupidly without saying another word.

The Spiritual foundation of Aikido Why do some arts claim a spiritual foundation?

Yoga and Aikido stand as good examples of this controversial idea. Many Christians bark at it, and dare not approach it. What does it mean to have a spiritual foundation? Is it something that will seep in unnoticed? Infiltrate us unknowingly? Are we unconsciously allowing in foreign spirits? Are we being duped into believing in a quasi religion? Are we being

manipulated by evil dark forces? Some people are genuinely concerned about these questions. Are we idol worshippers laying our trust in fanciful imagination? Is it dangerous?

Why do we bow to a picture of an old man?

Why do we put our hands together in a Pranam, the Indian way of greeting someone?

Why do we have a Kamidana, a wall-shrine in the dojo, in our training hall where we practice the Way. Not knowing anything about Eastern culture and history it's understandable that people react with suspicion and question the reasons behind these prominent features of our art. Are we able to explain it clearly to them? It's very important that we should be able to, and that we ourselves understand what they mean and represent.

To me, the spiritual foundation of any art lies in its principles and in its philosophical context.

These principles might seem obscure to the untrained eye and its philosophical context may be foreign to many. It takes study to penetrate to its essence. Worship and devotion to one God may seem to exclude any other influence but from ones own chosen path.

Many people are satisfied with an exclusive

worldview, one that tolerates (at best) but dismisses other expressions of the spirit. Fear of the unknown masquerades as righteousness.

How blatantly arrogant this comes across. It would be funny if it wasn't so important that many times they criticise religiosity in their own faith yet can't see their own rigid adherence to fixed ideas and beliefs. What if one would ask what the spiritual principles were? What if one would take the time to find out? What would it be like wanting to understand instead of dismissing?

Deconstruction Lately I've been having to re-evaluate my Aikido. After meeting and training with Dan Harden it seems like I've deconstructed everything that was established and started again. Like I'm taking apart what I've learned through the years and slowly put it back together. I find myself apologising to my students for not being very clear in my

teaching these days. A little confused but confident it all will come back together in a better way at one point. Dan is teaching me the internal aspects of our Aiki practice and it is somewhat a new dimension albeit much has been touched upon before yet never explained and shown in such detail. I know years of training and focus lies ahead in order to fully incorporate these new insights but I'm confident that much of my old learning will come into its own with renewed vigour after instilling it with fresh understanding. Heaven Earth Man, six directions, In Yo relationship, fill out with Ki, establish a Hara. Back to the drawing board, back to training.

My Concern I've traveled a path not many follow. The further I've gone the less visible it becomes. I trace the footsteps of people ahead yet the path becomes smaller and smaller. There are no more road signs and no one to show the way. An ancient path I know is there and I'm

confident it'll lead me right. I see it right in front of me just like Lakshmana followed close behind his brother Rama on the trail.

Now to bring this back to the practice of Aikido may seem a bit far fetched but I'll give it a go.

The interrelation in a fight is usually one of contention and combat. The best fighter wins the day. Even in Aikido this can be seen as one views the other and executes skilfully to dominate. Soft push hand exercises turn hard the moment we want to overcome and both lock on to battle. The struggle begins. From no contention to striving to win. This bothers me.

Every time we engage we switch on, frame up and root down, turning into an immovable moving force. Now let the best man win, the strongest Shugyosha takes the price. In a world of fighters there is nothing higher. O Sensei must have displayed all this mastery yet what was it that took his vision beyond the duality of the fight? When did the need to overcome go? When did he take the fight out of the fight? How can we pacify someone without resorting to domination? Is it possible to come to a mindset that never views for an advantage? That never tries to come out on

top. When the very desire to prove your worth is gone. When the fear of failure no longer incapacitates you. When the smallest touch of resistance becomes a point of reflection. And all this without having to stand your ground, hold your point of view, or keep your guard up.

When will this become first priority? When is the Ego ready to surrender its arms? But not only that. When will it turn all its experience into its own undoing. When will it actively work for the complete unification that underlies all relationships and all engagements. Now how does this tie in with the Ramayana? If you follow closely behind not letting yourself be entangled on the narrow pathway through the forest. What kind of mindset is this. What is your heart set on? What does your senses tell you? Where lies your devotion?

The Measure of Man The Imperial Regalia of Japan (三種の神器 Sanshu no Jingi/Mikusa no Kandakara), also known as the Three Sacred Treasures of

Japan, consist of the sword Kusanagi (草薙劍 Kusanagi no Tsurugi), the mirror Yata no Kagami (⼋咫鏡), and the jewel Yasakani no Magatama (⼋尺瓊勾⽟).

They can be said to have the measure of every man. Because as we understand their significance we realise they mean something about us, individually and collectively. The jewel (or pearl as it is) represents the Truth.

The truth absolute inherent in all men. A secret we must find in order to fully understand life.

The mirror represents the reflective quality of truth. In it nothing can be hidden and all our features are seen just as they are. This becomes obvious when we communicate with each other. All of our ego behaviour stand out in stark contrast to the purity of the mirror. The sword represents the discriminative wisdom cutting this ego mind of ours. It's double edged as to cut both ways. All fall by its blade. Both you and I. Leaving a pristine beauty for us to behold together as one realised being.

It stands the test of time and will forever be the measure of mankind.

O Sensei Ueshiba: 'How was I able to understand the true Bu that had eluded all others? Where did I find the answer? I had looked for it in all kinds of martial art schools, but I was not able to find it in any school conceived by human beings.

Then, where on Earth was it? I will tell you then how I, Ueshiba, was able to understand it. I asked questions to myself and then understood. I have the universe inside me.

Everything is in me. I am the Universe itself so there is no me. Moreover, since I am the Universe there is only me and no other.

Everything was within me. I found it when I became enlightened. Well then, how can one achieve enlightenment? The answer is that we must stand on Ame no Ukihashi, the Floating Bridge of Heaven.'

The Basic of Basics In Iwama we did pride ourselves of learning the basics of Aikido as the founder taught it via

Saito Sensei. We thought we received the inner secrets to the outer flow that O Sensei exhibited. Kihon Waza, or basic techniques would build the foundation of our Aiki body. A solid and firm yet supple body. The training was vigorous and dynamic. Hard and tough it was meant to forge our selves. We followed the structure of teaching with the uke nage relationship and the only ‘testing’ applied was holding harder and resisting. We learned about Kokyu extension and centred awareness. We were meant to learn from ceaseless training, through osmosis. There were not much explanation of the inner workings of Aiki and no talk about the spiritual significance of our practice. It was more a boot camp for young wannabes where camaraderie and good cheer was the rule of the day for the uchi-deshi. We did look sideways to other arts to see if we could cherry pick their strong points. Some of us did dabble in one or two other disciplines which would serve to inform our Iwama practice.

Meeting Dan Harden has thrown a new light on basics. Or rather on the basic of basics as he address the inner connection you have to

establish within yourself. The Heaven Earth Man module made clear and emphasised.

Many more insights into the internal power system explained and demonstrated. It opens up a whole new dimension of what Aikido can contain. Yet not everything is lost. Everything that came before is valid but even more so if informed by the internal alignment and principles. For me this is a journey inwards, to the very foundation of body/mind coordination.

There is another, equally important direction, and that is towards the ethical and spiritual domain of our training. That may very well be called the context or the innermost secret to our art that O Sensei outlines in his substituting the Ai in Aikido to the kanji character of Love (also pronounced Ai). But that is a different post.

Aikido must be beautiful Otherwise it’s not Aikido! my first teacher Tomita Sensei told me when I was a kid.

Beauty in this regard means that we need to

have good posture and precise movement.

Body structure and execution must be clean and smooth. Our handling of our opponent must be filled with care and measured in regards to proper balance and distance. Force metered out proportionally to match the attacker. Our gi clean and face washed. Your heart must be pure and your motivation unselfish. To be beautiful you can’t hesitate, you can’t stall. You can’t hate and you can’t lie.

Aikido is a vehicle for the spirit, that’s why it must be beautiful. You can’t be a brute and do Aikido. That’s why Aikido is Misogi, purification of your soul. Real Aikido is beautiful, sensitive and effective. Do Aikido with a smile and with love in your heart and your Aikido will become beautiful and God will love you for it.

Dumb Force It’s just dumb. The reasoning behind it is to be a plain receiver of force so the ‘giver’(Nage) can train his technique and feel his inner connection. Fair enough, we understand this

method but that’s not how we do it in Aikido.

Uke in Aikido receives the technique yet without avoiding or distancing himself. He doesn’t contract, resist or block. He’s centred, grounded and connected. He’s not evasive nor compliant. He is moved, not moving by himself, not calculated nor preempting the fall. He stays with, still with the intent of the attacker, not turning the tables on Nage. He’s buoyant, free and responsive. This method also enables him to learn kaeshiwaza (reversals) at a later stage of training.

We don’t need to use ‘dumb’ force for Nage to feel his technique. Because we do not evade nor neutralise his attempt, we actually help in his completion. Agreed this is not a fighting oriented approach nor is it meant to be. It’s educating Uke and it is enabling Nage to learn the form. We do not jostle for advantage nor prevent the application. And because we do not disperse or deflect Nages attempt he will thoroughly feel his own skill throughout the technique. So instead of receiving Nages practice with dumb force we use smart force helping both parties to develop skill. This is what I call the Uke-Nage relationship. It’s a

practice, not a combat scenario. Smart force does not collapse upon impact, nor does it stiffen up. It stays centred allowing Nage to fulfil and complete its execution. This is why Uke means to receive. It’s not dumb, it’s smart.

Being moved by Ki Different folks, different strokes. Welcome to the world of Aikido. Some focus on the martial aspect, some on the blending and others on the flow. In practice there is traditionally the three step method: 1. Kotai (hard, firm, solid, heavy body), Kihon Waza, basic static form.

2. Jutai (supple, soft body), Awase (matching, blending).

3. Ryutai (flowing body), Ki no nagare (flowing Ki) These three developmental stages are maintained through all Kata (form, technique) and we add one to the other as we progress.

Ultimately incorporating them into one solid, flexible, flowing movement.

To these three O Sensei would add; 4. Kitai (Ki or energy body), Takemusu Aiki.

This is where we leave the fixed form and allow a free engagement to create an appropriate response with a highly developed centred connected body and mind.

By then we are moving with intent and are moved by intent (Ki). Yet we maintain all previously acquired stages in our body making the practice a training and not turning it into a test, contest or competition.

What does it mean not to fight?

Can you see that your mindset dictates your engagement? Can you see how fear makes you react? Can you also see how wanting to win creates duality? Confidence enables you to relax the need to combat but can you see when you close off and go into survival mode?

Where lies the difference? Can you see where the mental attitude changes? Where you go from ‘no fight’ to fight mode? Can you detect the shift in yourself? Under pressure we automatically fall into ‘flight or fight’ mode. We desperately try to defend ourselves and we lock onto a back and forth, give and take just as if arguing. Locked into battle just like in the ring. Fight it out, both fully going for it. Can you see the mindset? Can we not train Aikido in that manner please? We don’t pit each other against each other. We practice uke and nage, give and take. We practice each part separately. We train to receive, to absorb and to direct. We flow with and do not contend. We learn to attack with clarity and precision but without locking up and going defensive. We do not practice a bout. We train specific skills, both as uke and as nage. We do not have a free fighting scenario. Can you see how even considering ‘trying to make it work’ is doomed to fail? You can’t use Aikido techniques in hand to hand combat. You can’t ‘pretend’ fight in Aikido. Detecting the shift in yourself is of vital importance. If you can’t recognise when you go from ‘no fight’ to ‘fight’, you won’t be able to

understand the beauty of Aikido. So we need to be able to point out this mindset at the beginning so we don’t waste time thinking we are learning Aikido in order to defend ourselves. If your mind is set on the duality of fight and defence you won’t be able to appreciate Aikido as O Sensei explained it; as a spiritual path of no confrontation. And this mindset of ‘no fight’ does not come about through mastering fighting even though the confidence you gained from your experience in fighting may loosen your fear and therefore be helpful, but ultimately it’s about understanding what the ‘no fight’ attitude means in yourself regardless of skill level. We must and need to discover the correct mindset at the outset of our practice. If not, all of our practice will be tainted by duality. Aikido is about learning about non-duality. Non-duality is about the truth of our being, inherently conflict free. Therefore we must practice it. We must clarify it at the start of every practice session. We must detect it, recognise it, in ourselves and in others.

If you do not understand what is being said, you must ask for clarification. This shift of attitude is what makes O Sensei’s Aikido

different from all other Budo. Can you take it onboard? Do you train with no opponent?

No fight is no strategy There’s a difference in assuming control in a situation and in letting things be as they are.

Assuming control is a vigilant strategy of being aware of your circumstances. Ready to act without a moments notice. It’s a warriors prerogative. Alert and ready. Fearless, skilled and unhesitant. This would constitute a admirable skill and combat effectiveness. Yet it’s not what I consider true Aikido. Though I can’t fault such an attitude and many a warrior would claim their invincibility upon it, yet it leaves me wanting. In Aikido you have opened up the spiritual truths governing our universe.

You have come to see it as a holistic whole where no thing is separate from the other. In that there is no fear, not because you’re confident about your ability and skill but rather, because you see no difference. There is no fight fundamentally in your world and as such

you do not put up such a mindset as to defend.

This is no guarantee that you’ll walk free from violence but it will assure you of not bowing into duality and separateness. This mindset, to me, is far superior to the warriors vigilance.

The warrior may fare better in combat but that’s no guarantee either.

To learn Aikido is to learn where there is no fight. To learn that we do not exist separate from the other and therefore naturally moves in unison, as fish in the sea are moved as one in the current. If you’ve awakened to the natural flow of aiki you will not set aside a time to practice separateness. You will move in oneness, in practice and in life. This is a mindset. Recognise this unique mode in yourself and learn to remain there even if challenged. This is very difficult but why not try?

What is a selfless uke?

As a kid we never resisted any technique. We just took it. Thrown around and moved as nage

pleased. We did not anticipate, we just followed. Moving into the adult class at fourteen I had no chance to resist. Light and soft I was an easy target. Staying connected was a matter of survival unless I wanted my limbs torn from me. Ukemi became second nature. My body was my landing pad, with a nice bounce added. Wrists got stronger, taking more pressure. This stood me well coming to Iwama where ukemi was relentless and unforgiving on the hard mats. Now in Iwama they resisted so the techniques were applied accordingly. The body took a beating there.

Today I see students and teachers alike anticipating the technique and going before it being applied. That throws nage completely off.

Uke doesn’t get to feel what it means to be taken nor does nage get to execute correctly.

Worst case scenario nage tries to catch up to close the gap to uke and puts it on extra fast.

Recipe for disaster. To be uke don’t tighten up, remain centred and pliable. Don’t resist, you’re not helping. Let nage know your limits before you train. Any damages? Injuries? Fears?

Speak with each other. As uke surrender your ego. Let nage have you, accept ukemi. Don’t

collapse, don’t turn into jelly, don’t stop your intent. Be engaged yet not controlling. Don’t be the aiki police, that dictates what is correct and incorrect. Sometimes you see ukes who never surrender. They’ll never give themselves away.

Training becomes futile. Nage is going through the motions but is never allowed to control uke.

I’ve seen this a lot in Hombu dojo. With an air of aloofness judansha feel invincible in their ability to completely destroy nages attempt to learn a technique. I’m sure many of you have been on the receiving end of this.

So learn the art of ukemi, remaining cool under pressure and being able to receive anything coming your way.

I hold my hands up I don’t know how to do this. I try but is yet to find it in myself. I stretch and pull, strain too much and tense up. I must do my homework.

I’m such a lazy git. But I’ve seen too much to give up. I’ve already got the t-shirt so better get with it. C’mon this is my own pep talk. Back to

the classroom of the dojo. Fail and fail again is the mantra. Humble pie is the medicine. Back off guys, can’t you see I’m trying. Here we go again. Thank you Dan.

Educating Uke Why would you suddenly loose all your principles when being on the receiving end of a technique? If you’re centred and pulling silk when applying a technique why not when receiving? So now you remain centred receiving, absorbing as much as you can without overly resisting. Solid yet supple.

Allowing nage to perform the technique and as long as he/she correctly executes, no need to be difficult. Stay with it, if there are any holes or gaps your balance will reveal them. This approach will help nage to perform more precise and it will help you (uke) feel closer.

Never anticipate your ukemi and take it in advance. Connect your body and limbs, centred move with nage and let him bring you down. Never compromise your physical

integrity. This does not mean you suddenly close up and become immovable. You still remain an able uke, helping nage improve his form and even though you’re the receiver and are thrown or pinned, you stay connected and pliable throughout. This will greatly enhance your practice and slowly you’ll gain a better notion of blending because of it. Mind you, this does not mean you’re in control. You do act fully the receiver and as such you can’t at the same time exert full control. That would nullify nages attempt to perform. Yet you remain centred and retain your intent of attack. It’s a fine balance that you need to decipher; don’t be a wet blanket nor an immovable block.

Somewhere in between you’ll find the perfect fit.

Pointers for Nage Being Uke we find what we want (or don’t want) from Nage. His or her application inform us of their skill, mode and care (or lack thereof). We base our own Aikido on what we

prefer to receive from Nage. Hopefully you don’t enjoy being pounded to death and so neither treat your ukes like that. I found that taking ukemi for teachers and students alike, I value their skill, sensitivity and care and want to reciprocate it to the best of my ability. I learn to be nage from taking ukemi. Not necessarily from my own ability to take ukemi but from feeling Nage handle me within my range and skill level, pushing it to its limit to help me improve. Nages adaptability is my greatest teacher. Feeling him gaging me, shows me how to do it too. I’ve never enjoyed being hit by a truck, leaving me feeling I’m lucky to have survived. But I don’t mind feeling power whence it’s delivered with skill and understanding and I love being taken up in a whirlwind where I’m carried and moved that leaves me feeling nurtured and wanting to come back for more. That’s what I want, if my engagement can bring a smile to uke and leave him or her a happier person. If my Aikido technique and feeling can leave uke wanting more.

The temptation to compete How quick we change. One challenge and we’re at it. Seemingly from an innocent attempt to test a little and all hell breaks loose. Not flagrant to begin with but persist and it escalates. Resentment is stirred but kept under keeps pretending it’s nothing. Yet we all can feel the separation that it incurs. So some open it up in a friendly way to use it as a training tool. Find trouble spots and resolve them. Work it out in the spirit of a shared endeavour, pressure testing they call it. Trouble shooting the clinches, snags and openings that present a problem once you address them as such.

Kata practice and the Uke/Nage interactive relationship is set-up training tools with semifixed rules of engagement. Once we begin to inject resistance and block as to highlight flaws we open Pandora’s box, there’s no end to it.

Because we can do that ad infinitum and never get any wiser for it. Maybe it serves some purpose for actual combat readiness but it’s far away from the Aikido motto of not having a competitive mindset. There’s another way to

address shortcomings (if any) in your Aikido practice. By perfecting your ukemi, your receptivity. By naturally following without compromising your physical integrity any flaws will become apparent in nages execution. Not because you decide to block or test uke but because you follow perfectly. Nages inability will be seen but without uke having to compete or challenge. Now can we become sensitive enough to see this urge to ‘compete’ as something counterproductive to our Aikido?

Do you want to see it?

When I feel contention I either surrender my attempt or inform uke of the contention. I have no need nor desire to contend or prove a point by forcing or evading the contention. Many contend as to test the technique or the person. A challenge of sorts albeit misguided. When studying kata or form based technique we follow a set norm of uke/ nage relationship of give and receive. When we contend, either consciously or not, we go

against what’s being done, or we evade to escape. This can happen with intent or simply as a beginners reaction. We need to learn about proper training and the relationship attacker and defender have. To learn to resist less, centre balance more, becoming more fluid and supply strong.

Remove the slack Not with force but with a gentle pull. Within as well as without. Connected everything becomes easier. Refine your senses, go from a gross to a subtle feeling. Like a sailor adjusting his sails to the changing wind, reeling in and letting out, fine tuning as he carves through the water. And so it is with uke and nage, adjust accordingly; blend, match and fit the engagement. Don’t do violence upon the circumstances, remain perfectly within the context of the situation. The larger the context the larger the sensitivity needed. So removing the slack in the end points to you removing the

slack to life itself. You and the sea become one.

Spiral Dynamics or Aikido with a twist How was I to know? Nobody told me! It is a revelation and now it see it everywhere. It is in the Japanese mythology, in the origin stories, in the shrines, in the ceremonies, in the clothing, in the names and emblems, in the techniques and the principles. Our planet does it, our solar system and our whole galaxy. It has NEVER been a secret! Rotation, or Kaiten in Japanese. Nishio Sensei’s first principle.

Kaiten does not refer to the perimeter circumference of a circle but to the rotation along its central axis. And as we move in time it spirals forward. Unless we want to be stationary, standing still, the circular motion becomes a spiral in time. Extremely powerful, and most so along its core central axis. Now why didn’t I think of that? I can only thank the

teachers pointing out the obvious. Okey back to the dojo to sort this out.

Sumikiri Sumi means clear and Kiru means complete, thus those two words put together mean complete clear or serene. Ueshiba says that this serene mental and physical condition can be compared to the state of a fast spinning top.

When it spins very quickly the axis is very steady and the whole top looks as though it is still. So, as the body rotates the practitioner’s mind must be spinning at a high speed. By having this established, his body will look steady but at the same time it has a lot of energy inside it. Ueshiba says this state of mind and body, Sumikiri is a Gokui, essential point or a secret technique of Aikido.

In a broader martial art terms, Sumikiri defined as a visual slow down; a phenomenon which takes place generally after many years of intense training. Sumi-kiri can cause

movements to appear to be delivered in slow motion making it relatively easy to apply a blocking technique or a counter move.

Exciting Times Aikido is going through a revival. We are finding teachers that have extraordinary skill and insight into the internal tendon/fascia connected body system and the Aiki in/yo mechanics. We are finding cross-overs from Chinese martial traditions and related arts of Asia. The Daito-ryu roots of Aikido is being honoured and revitalised without necessarily loosing the flow and beauty of non-competitive/ non-combative Aikido. The martial aspects and its tremendous power inherent in the correctly usage of Hara, Chushin and Aiki, though difficult to obtain, has not gone amiss. Can we now harness these rediscovered invaluable principles without loosing the ethical ideal of OSensei’s spiritual vision? Without going down the route of sports-Aikido and/or combative competitive style engagement. Can we still

cultivate our mind and heart as we relearn body skills long lost due to negligence and misconception? Can we face a world of competitive mixed martial arts without flinching? Without succumbing to the allure of the fame of the game? Can we retain Aikido despite the changes? Without the need to compete yet learn the lessons we sorely lack.

It’s exciting times indeed if we can evolve and present our Aikido in its most beautiful way where the relationship between uke and nage flows unhindered yet without ‘selling out’ the inherent principles of Aiki, Chushin, Hara, Maai, Kokyu and Sumikiri. A tall order indeed but why not strive now when we have the tools and teachers? Be not afraid of change but put in the work needed, for the outcome depends on us. That Aikido remains as Aikido, evolved, yet still Aikido.

The Aikido Bullet Everyone these days says Aikido is useless in a MMA fight. That’s true. I never thought otherwise. When I was thirteen years old there was a school friend who was wrestling. In Sweden in the seventies we had some world champion wrestlers and we knew of their might. My friend was small but very skilled and all of us knew not to mess with him. I had started Aikido when I was twelve but not in order to learn how to fight or compete. It was for the sheer fun of it; the interaction, the body learning and for the fascinating technical report. It was the uke/nage relationship and training method that I enjoyed. I advanced in my own speed, not needing to make a team or compete in tournaments. No coloured belts nor medals and diplomas. Ok we had silly white pyjamas but actually they were quite comfortable and could withstand a rough and tumble. Being thrown was as fun as throwing and I could clap out whenever it got too painful.

Yet I didn’t loose. I felt like a winner every time I returned home and with a smile to boost.

Boxing and wrestling were the only real fighting disciplines I knew of and I never had enough interest to join, though sparring with friends was always good fun. Aikido was just so much more satisfying to me. So I wasn’t challenged in the ring nor on the wrestling mat and yes I’m probably worse for it, but hey, that was never my philosophy anyway. I always figured that a real fight is REAL. No rules and anything goes.

Ugly, brutal and violent where survival is more important than life. We made sure our friends were not far off. Strength in numbers was always a safety precaution, maybe better than personal skill. Sure, personal skill is fantastic yet what does it help when it escalates? From fists to knives to guns. To street gangs to organised crime, to army to military, to nuclear war. Where do we draw the line for self protection? I remember reading O Sensei saying there are no rules in Aikido. There is nothing that cannot be utilised. A boy can kill a man without any skill. Aikido was never created to fight in the octagon and so we don’t fool ourselves thinking we are warriors. Yet we know enough to enjoy our training daily.

Where does it all lead?

Conflict resolution in the octagon. Martial arts turned professional blood sport for the masses, reeling in the dollars. Gladiators, slaves in the hands of the rich, used exclusively for entertainment and profit, live by the sword and die by the sword. It’s not that the Saints are better people, don’t get me wrong. I believe firmly we’re all made up of the same stuff.

What you experience, I too experience. Ok so you have a deeper knowledge of this or that, but that does not exclude me from the human experience. With its inside and outside, with its depths and its shallows. We all experience fear, heartache, frustration, we all experience joy, love and gratitude. We suffer the same make up, albeit with slight variations on the same theme. Heaven and Hell runs through our Being, from the darkest to the most bright.

Where do you differ from me? Now where do you want to live? What’s your habitat? Who do you want to be? If our change, transformation and evolution ideally happens from a lesser place to a rather greater place, from bad to

less bad, from good to better, from gross to subtle, from insensitive to sensitive, from ignorance to wisdom, our martial art will have to follow suit. From violence to less violence, regardless of how you define it. We all slot in somewhere along the developmental path yet all hopefully move in the same direction, faster or slower as it may be but nevertheless improve as we grow older. Not a guarantee but probably something we all can agree to if we take a moment to reflect. With this in mind we can understand Aikido’s evolution beyond a narrow definition of it. But with its evolution it does not mean the tradition is lost, two ends of an ever widening time gap. Keeping the history alive and well researched keeps our modern art honest and informed. Men and women from both sides of the spectrum will highlight its advantages, Aikido being too broad to be confined to a singular narrative. Yet whichever story we follow there has to be development and evolution. Starting with, and ending with, the individual. O Sensei showed in his way the method to reconcile differences, to pacify aggression, and to heal division. Surely because he felt these intimately in himself. Just

like we can feel these human dilemmas in our souls. A step is a step is a step, in the right direction call it spiritual or not. O Sensei spoke of three dimensions; “the Manifest, Hidden and Divine as the general map of the nature of the art.  These terms correlated with the words Techniques (Manifest), Principles (Hidden) and Perspectives (Divine)� (quoted from Patrick Cassidy Sensei).

We will, whether we like it or not move in this direction when we begin to investigate our selves and our lives. There are some fundamental truth lessons to be learned along the way that will eventually throw light upon the teachings and enhance and inform your own relationship to Aikido and to life itself.

Training with Inagaki Sensei I remember fondly the day I managed to get to train with Inagaki Shihan. Back in the late eighties I was a live-in student in the Iwama dojo under the tutelage of Morihiro Saito Sensei. Evening sessions were mostly very

crowded and we lined up in two rows to bow in.

The norm in the dojo was that the person you first bowed to became your partner for the whole class and if you wanted anyone specific to train with you had to be fast. Being a white belt at the time I was sitting in the back row quite far away from the Dai-Sempai (senior students) that always sat front right. Usually the higher graded students that sat closest to them were quick to bow into them making it difficult for us lower grades to pick them. Also some of Saito Sensei’s senior students like Inagaki Sensei would not come to the dojo on a regular basis which made it even more rare to get a chance to train and firsthand experience their knowledge and skill. But one day I had my luck. I found myself sitting right behind Inagaki Sensei as we bowed in and after Saito Sensei finished his normal regular start with Tai no Henko I jumped over the first row of students and landed in seiza in front of Inagaki Sensei. I had him for the full hour. It was brilliant. Right on the limit. Sensei kept me stretched and never let me off the hook. The techniques were sharp but never excessive.

Many of us students knew that Inagaki had a

tough reputation and training was hard. My own experience of it was very rewarding as I knew not to try to resist and my ukemi was up for it. But it wasn’t like I just managed to survive, Inagaki Sensei exercised precise control and he felt my limits to perfection. This symbiotic relationship made for a wonderful training and afterwards as I thanked him for practice he asked where I came from and who was my home teacher. I said Tomita Sensei from Stockholm and Inagaki lit up with a smile saying they used to be uchideshi together just after O Sensei had passed away. Brothers in arms.

Inagaki Sensei’s skill had been sharp and to the point, I had felt totally safe and respected but also I knew I could not have ‘misbehaved’ or I would have suffered for it. This was proper ‘Kotai’ solid training forging a strong body. This sharpness I have felt from accomplished Iwama students to various degrees yet the ‘space’ in the technique that Saito demonstrated and I experienced is a very rare thing. Now many years later from my time as uchideshi I’ve met Inagaki Shihan a few times only but each time he has been the gentleman

described by others and always extended himself selflessly to help and encourage visitors to Iwama. I’m one being grateful and thankful having received his kindness during my short visits.

Why do we practice basics?

Kihon (basic) or Kotai 固: Solid body, static fixed training.

C.f. jutai, ryutai and kitai or Kotai, ekitai, kitai: Solid body, liquid body, gaseous body; ice, water, steam.

I like to exchange the Ki in Kihon to 気, together with Hon 本 (like in Nihon; Japan) meaning the origin of Ki; from where Ki originates from. So in order to identify this place of origin we must begin at absolute Zero.

At a complete standstill. Fixed and rigid, hard and solid; a state that doesn’t move. In order to detect from where does movement come from, from where it arises from or originates from.

This is absolutely essential if we want to understand ourselves from a spiritual perspective. From nothing comes something.

Wherefrom and what is this spark to life, to action? When we can see this impetus, this first attempt, to come alive, to disclose itself, we will find out who we are. We need to be held firmly so we can’t escape. Only then are we forced to go deep within to find the key to unlock the mystery. Only when you’re able to arise consciously from within a constriction will you comprehend its use. We have to go back to zero, to surrender ourselves, in order to start again. Only then will we feel and sense the deepest part of ourselves. If we don’t, we will panic and struggle. We will resist and fight the grip. We’ll freak out. That’s why we practice basics; to learn how not to freak out, how not to panic. Methodologically and painstakingly we go through the basic exercises step by step. Learning how to relax under pressure, how to remain centred, composed and connected. Then and only then do we move into flow, continuous movement. Seated in an immovable place within wherefrom all action is

derived. All motion issuing directly from the original source. Direct manifestation.

Atemi in Aikido Sometimes the Atemi (strike) in Aikido is misunderstood. As Aikido is foremost a fixed setup partner practice with an Uke/Nage, step by step form based interaction, we need to see the Atemi as part of the whole engagement.

First, our Atemi delivery in training is never meant to ‘land’, whether with a hand, foot or with a weapon. We should always learn to stop in time, to control our distance, speed and timing. Uke therefore has to respond in kind.

Not reacting to block or to counter in order to neutralise the Atemi but to ‘go with’ the intent of the strike, using your hand or arm only to gently protect the targeted area. If we decide to block and hinder the Atemi knowing very well where the strike is aimed we in effect turn the tables on Nage and a struggle usually ensues which scuppers Nages attempt to learn the technique properly. Ukes initial attack when

with an Atemi should be on target, precise and sharp but with the control to stop it if necessary. But unlike a boxer Uke doesn’t withdraw the punch but allow it to be used in the ensuing motion, extending rather than contracting, enabling the full range of the technique to be employed. Now both Uke and Nage need to be relatively solid, flexible and balanced yet responsive to the intended form of the technique practiced. Yes it’s a choreographed form, not a free engagement as in sparring. Some will add this as heightened test for your skill level but then we are stepping into the work of combative arts.

And for me it changes the dynamics. Then Atemi becomes a real weapon and will be used as such in the interaction. And that is a skill in its own right. Within the Atemi of Aikido the precision of a weapon exists yet the way we utilise it in practice is to help the ensuing flow, to learn about distance and to add a level of seriousness. So please, in practice, don’t block or hinder the Atemi. Stay safe by moving your body in response and use your palm to protect your face just in case. As Uke control your attack and measure and know the distance you

can use. Because we don’t want to get into a push- and-pull way of doing Aikido.

Furthermore the Atemi should be delivered as part of the whole, in sync with the rest of the application. In Kihon static exercise learn the internal movements, in flowing ease up on the harshness so to not to break up the fluidity.

Don’t linger with the Atemi when in flow.

Ki Flow and Blending: “In sharp contrast with solid techniques where the motion starts from a static state (Kihon), this Awase exercise features flexible and smooth movements. Mastery of solid techniques is a prerequisite to commanding this fluid technique.” -M Saito.

Aikido is not conclusive Aikido, like a good conversation, should build.

One thing building upon another, possibly never ending. An evolution in relationship where we grow through the interaction. Where one thing leads to another, where experience

and knowledge stack up, accumulating information as it develops. This is learning in communion. But not for the isolation of the individual but as an organic whole. A system informed and enlightened by its own participation. Therefore you can’t own it. It doesn’t belong to you and that’s why you share it. Like a good conversation.

String’em up A wonderful quality in Aikido can be when you’re able to suspend the other in midair.

Almost as you’d slow down into ultra rapid before accelerating again. Slow and fast interchangeably with a feeling of drawing the other in. This depends very much on Ukes ability and cooperation and on the quality of Nages sensitivity and skill. If you’re able to intercept an activity with preempted motion you may draw the other out, almost similar to stringing them up, filling the space between you. Now it’s important that you do not execute when in this advantageous situation and

violate the trust of your vulnerable uke. So you learn to handle it with care. This can be more or less dynamic depending on the skill level of the aikidokas so the range can differ considerably. Once we begin to taste this quality can we work towards making it smoother? Round off the rough corners? Feel the transitions and make them seamless without any breaks? Until it becomes like the wind through the trees. Like a master puppeteer making his puppets come alive with grace.

Shut it down If we nip it in the bud, if we kill it before it grows, there won’t be any development. That’s why when the old Shogun went hunting they closed off three flanks and left one open, leaving an escape route for the animal to find (either through cunning, luck or providence) or to be caught and killed. It was considered an act of benevolence because to shut down all options was seen as overly oppressive. In a

similar manner, leaving exquisite art work slightly flawed or to leave a few remaining rice grains after a meal, was to leave room for more. Not to exhaust a situation, but to allow for continuation of life. Just as a band comes to the end of one improvisation, leaving just enough space for it to regain its strength to flow into a new creation. So it must be in Aikido. Because, in fact, it’s a natural balance of things. For example, if you would restrain your friend (or foe) in an excessive manner they would panic and your hold would suddenly be deemed violent. There’s a point where just force is appropriate but past that point we need to allow for an opening. This is beautifully shown in advanced Aikido where uke is allowed to continue the engagement where we flow from one thing to another. In order to dissipate anger and aggression we need to leave room for the other to return to his senses.

Point of Balance Like the bottom-heavy doll we used to have as kids, the one that always returned to an upright position after being pushed over, all things, we, humans and animals alike and nature itself have the propensity of uprightness, or of uprighteousness as I like to call it. We grow upwards, towards the sun if you like. And whether we lie down, sit or stand our body always align or adjust itself according to gravity while rising. Unless we take the corpse-pose in Yoga, being deeply asleep, unconscious or dead we have a tendency to rise. Our mind wants to get back to an upright position. This ‘buoyancy’ is the living spark of life, just as a baby tries to sit, then stand and walk. Once old enough this becomes our accustomed point of balance, and even if conditioned by your personal aches and pains, bad habits and mindset we always return to the upright position after being off balance. We bounce back after being down. It’s programmed deep in our DNA, this will to live and to get up no matter what. I don’t know about you but it

blows my mind. Since I wrote a piece a few years ago with the same title I’ve learned a lot, a work in the beginning stages, and feel the need to update it. My teacher teaches the internal aspects of properly aligning and balancing opposing forces within you and how that can and will result in what is referred to as an immovable body. I will not try to outline this process because I can’t. But I’d like to expand on the quality of the ‘buoyancy’ of the body when training the uke-nage dynamics in Aikido.

And as there are many ways you can flog a horse (pardon the expression) I’ll only speak from my own preference of the engagement. In order not to either collapse the engagement and not to overly shut it down, both uke and nage retain their own balance, but uke only to a point. Nage ‘allow’ uke to stay just on his limit, balancing him on the brink, in order to move him effortlessly. If you break ukes balance completely he’ll collapse with no rebound quality left in him. Therefore keep him sweet by moving him within his own range of balance. Too much and you’ll loose him, too little and he’ll regain his stability. This springback system makes for a dynamic interchange

in our application of technique. Uke learns to be pliable, responsive and buoyant, nage learns to find the correct amount of input, find the sweet spot in balancing uke. The sensitivity cultivated in both uke and nage makes for a smooth interaction. This can be practiced within the set forms of the various techniques but also within a free flowing interchange where you mix it up. It is a partner practice and not a randori style attack and defend scenario.

Both are equally learning how to blend. The focus is on the flow and matching.

O Sensei, the Shaman Back in the day when esoteric Shingon Buddhism and Shinto shaped Japan, O Sensei was maybe one of the last myth bound spiritual warriors, possibly similar to one of the renowned Yamabushi and wandering ascetics of Shugendo? Though his life was that of a layman, raising a family while pursuing his martial and spiritual way, his effort and onepointedness was likely second to none. He

followed his heart and pursued his interest in his spiritual awakening side by side with his Shugyo practice, becoming an ardent follower of Oomoto Kyo, a Shinto ‘new’ order under the close discipleship and friendship of its charismatic leader Onisaburo Deguchi in Ayabe. O Sensei’s efforts gave way to deep mystical revelations that informed his martial training development with spiritual knowledge and vision. Esoteric knowledge based on his personal experience and insight became his homeland. His Aiki prowess joined the greater inner awareness of a deeply spiritual and universal nature that was to become the centre of his life’s work: Aikido. Fiercely nationalistic O Sensei was a product of his time, he had experienced war in Manchuria in the RussoJapanese war 1904-05, lived through the horrors of World War 2, and his Aikido was then to be shaped in the countryside of Iwama during the American occupation.

Enlightenment being a very personal objective pursuit, O Sensei’s modern students found it d i f fi c u l t t o c o m p r e h e n d h i s e s o t e r i c explanations of Shinto based cosmology in reference to his internal Aiki understanding. A

personal interest in spiritual awakening is rare to find in the collective mindset of the Japanese people. O Sensei was different from the norm. He had pursued his dream with a passion, inspired and influenced by his personal revelations. Most of the young budoka that came to practice Aikido with him had no interest in personal spiritual liberation and had mostly no understanding of the esoteric teachings of either Buddhism or Shintoism. Seemingly O Sensei did not have the means to explain his esoteric spiritual knowledge in a modern language. The practice became the way, the Misogi and the purification. Martial ability and agility became the focus. The national decorum and culture served as the moral ground and foundation for its ethics, an unquestioned norm for the Japanese people. To leave the cultural matrix is very difficult for the Japanese, and to leave to pursue spiritual freedom even rarer. And then to reunite with ones kinsfolk outside of its cultural context almost impossible. That’s why O Sensei stood out as a Shaman, an esoteric old man with incredible powers, incomprehensible to understand but awe

inspiring to behold. Something to uphold and venerate but not to emulate. His way was not to be our way. He gave us Aikido, as the tool that possibly could unlock deeper mysteries once we were ready for them, once the Misogi had done its work. He planted a seed in his Aikido Shugyo, a seed of spiritual awakening for anyone ready to take it upon himself to pursue it beyond merely the martial way.

Kagura Mai Dance of the Gods. Spiral up through the body and out through the arms. As it reaches the end in the hands it snaps and returns, reverses sending the impulse the other way. Begin in the legs, rotating the femur in the hip socket, creating an infinity laying-down figure eight (∞) movement back and forth between the feet. Let the arms stretch gently pointing with the finger as they begin to alternatively swing, moving them forward and up with the momentum generated by the legs. They curl upwards as you create a twirling motion from below.

Creating a connected spiral rising up and up.

First do it with one arm and hand, then the next. Feet firmly planted parallel. This constitutes a great spinal twist from feet to fingers. A rising spiralling motion. Then do it with both arms alternatively. The do it with the bokken, wind it first clockwise then anticlockwise. Do it with the jo in the same manner and see how it creates an equal twirl below downwards, finding yourself in the middle of large X, cone up and cone down. The ‘X’ also indicates that the left leg is connected to the right arm, and the right leg to the left arm. So in effect you have two spirals working in opposite directions. Now you can open the spiral up or close it in, widen it or tighten it. You can stir the clouds and Heaven with the bokken’s extended trajectory, even fully across the universe. While rotating the bottom created spiral down deep into the Earth. Once you’ve done it from standstill, you can bring the spiral into a IrimiTenkan turn while synchronising the movement with the steps, letting the body now participate in flowing rotation. You can see these movements in the Jo Suburi number 19.

Kaiten-nage utilises this complete body spiral through its technique as a rotation through its limbs fully till it reverses on itself just before you execute the throw. Like the Tao symbol of Yin and Yang it returns on itself when it has exhausted its rotation. In order to gain a sense of the motion the body has to be connected throughout. Open the joints but stretch through them. From feet to fingertips pull from centre.

As you retain a stretch through the limbs the fascia slowly will give and release more, extending the stretch. Use your mind to pull on opposite directions.

I Remember A long time ago I met a well seasoned Aikidoka part of the same spiritual group I was engaged with for several years. At a retreat in India we were talking and a friend came up, realising we both were Aikido people, said: Oh show us some Aikido then? We looked at him and my friend simply said, that’s what we’re doing right now. And I thought, how perfect an answer was

that. We were engaged in a normal dialogue without pretence. Aikido in the truest sense is a way of being, a way of communicating, that never raises a hand in vain. Life is not artificial and doesn’t need imposing upon. Man thinks he can superimpose an external reality upon something already perfect. Create drama where there is none. Our friend, at loss as to what to say, walked away. My aikido brother and I looked at each other with the eyes of recognition simply of the way things are. After all, he had been a long term Zen practitioner as well as Aikidoka. He was, and still is, one of the very few Aikidoka I’ve met that really understood what Aikido is in its real life application.

Don’t confuse them Just as an internally connected body does not automatically confer martial prowess so neither does martial prowess bestow automatic spiritual understanding. Nor does spiritual understanding bestow martial prowess and neither does martial prowess bestow an internal connected body.