Ralph Pettman
Going For A Walk In The World
THREE DIMENSIONS IN ONE I've described the physical, mental and spiritual dimensions of aikido. People starting the art usually feel a bit clumsy because for them the physical aspect of it is the most important one. The mental dimension is comparatively obscure, while the practice of the spiritual dimension can seem even more so. Later on students become more confident. The techniques become more familiar. The physical part of the art is easier to do. They find themselves developing the mental aspects more, while the spiritual dimension becomes easier to understand as well. Later still the balance shifts completely. The physical dimension is then the least dominant one. The mental dimension becomes a rich field for research. And the art opens out into a spiritual realm that has no limits at all. These three dimensions are practised together from the start. The balance between them may change, as I've just described, but in aikido, they are practised together from the very beginning. Trying to make any particular balance between body, mind and spirit defeats the chance of finding that balance. The intention, the "trying", stops you finding the dynamic equilibrium you want. You end up learning only part of what there is to know. You can't, in other words, concentrate on only one dimension and hope to reach for the others through that. Means like these will defeat all but the narrowest of ends. What do I mean by narrow ends? Aikido that is solely intent upon mastering a number of physical movements, for example, is a very limited and rather narrow kind of aikido. It's not aikido at all, really. It's aiki-jutsu, which is an old form of jiujitsu. It teaches clever locks and throws that have very little inner meaning. These can be used for pinning or throwing opponents, but that's all. This may be fine for students who just want a hobby or those who just want a healthy work-out. But what about those who want more? Aikido that concentrates on mastering a number of mental concepts or images, such as "ki" extension or the "hara", is very intellectual. This, too, is a narrow end. Students who approach the art this way have to think so much about what they're doing that they find it difficult to move. They become very self-conscious and their physical movements become very inhibited. They can't just "do" it. This makes the mental skills they want to master very hard to get. Indeed, all their mental activity stops them finding the still point within themselves that alone will give them the knowledge and the spiritual awareness they seek. Then again aikido that concentrates on the spiritual aspects of the art can become too esoteric. A lot gets said but there is little real training. Physical practice becomes highly attenuated and of very little relevance. Students bathe in the warm glow of aikido's spiritual ideals but they don't
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