Aikido (a work in progress)

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Aikido is not a way to fight with or defeat enemies; it is a way to
reconcile the world and make all human beings one family.

Introduction

Aikido1
is a japanese martial art dating back to the early 20th century.
It is based on not conflicting with an attacker, instead blending with
their attack and then using their own energy to neutralize them.
Probably the most famous aikidoka2 is Steven Seagal,
although he generally does not use much aikido in his movies. It is
not uncommon after a new Seagal movie is released for aikido dojos3 to be inundated with inquiries from 13 year old males
asking, "Can you make me into Steven Seagal?"

A brief history of aikido

Aikido was founded by O-sensei4 Morihei Ueshiba
(1883-1969) in the 1920s. O-sensei studied many forms of armed and empty
hand combat and was considered one of the greatest martial artists of his
time. He became a disciple of the Omoto-kyo religion and studied under
it's leader, Deguchi Onisaburo. Omoto-kyo taught disarmament and
peaceful resolution of conficts. O-sensei blended Omoto-kyo's principles
and his training as a martial artist into a new art that, while efective
in a martial situation, was primarily concerned with being nice to an
attacker. O-sensei's new art became quite popular throughout Japan and
has since spread around the world. O-sensi died on April 26, 1969 at the
age of 86.

Basics of aikido

On a purly practical level aikido is based on movement. The key comes
from knowing when and how to move. For example: a good throw comes from
the hips, not the arms, and while your opponent is still moving forward
to strike. On a spiritual level aikido is about learning about yourself.
Who you are, what your body is telling you, what your oponent is
thinking, etc... The trick behind aikido is learning to integrate the
two.

Many of the movements in aikido are based on sword work, so in many dojos
sword fighting is taught as a supplement to the empty hand work. Also
jo5 and tanto6
techniques are also taught.

Pros and cons of aikido

Advantages of AikidoDisadvantages of Aikido
  • Because aikido is almost purely defensive it is hard to hit an aikidoka who knows what he/she is doing.

  • Aikido has a spiritual side as well as a physical side.

  • Aikido is a soft art and as such is often underestimated by people, giving an aikidoka the element of suprise.

  • The way aikidoka move their bodies is fairly unique in martial arts, making it hard for practioners of other arts to predict one's movements.

  • Aikido's message of blending works well in other (non-martial) situations as well.

  • Aikido is effective for everyone (physical strength is not important) including children, the elderly, people who are physically impaired, etc...

  • Because aikido doesn't injure an attacker it is safe to use on friends and loved ones and people you don't want to hurt (ie. a police officer can take down a suspect without risking police brutality charges).

  • Aikido makes a wonderful compliment to the study of other martial arts

  • Because aikido is almost purely defensive there is very little stoping an opponent
    from getting back up afterwards. This is the biggest disadvantage.

  • Because of the spiritual side of aikido some dojos and senseis almost completely
    ignore the physical side to concentrate on spiritual enlightenment.

  • Because of the physical side of aikido some dojos and senseis almost completely
    ignore the spiritual side to concentrate on martial effectiveness.

  • Aikido is weak against certain kinds of attacks.

  • Learning and following the japanese customs and words used in a dojo can be hard
    at first (don't worry though, you'll soon be folding your bathrobe left over right7 and bowing to people at work)

How to tell if you've just been trashed by an aikidoka

  • Your opponent is wearing a t-shirt covered with japanese characters.

  • At the start of the fight he/she sinks into a low, narrow stance.

  • No matter how hard you try to hit him/her, he/she is never
    accually standing where you thought they were.

  • After a you missed a strike, he/she slides in beside you, brushes
    their hand against your elbow and introduces you to the wonders
    of flight. Or they turn your arm in such a way that two different
    joints are bent in directions they are not ment to bend in.

  • When the fight is over and you have been hummiliated, your wrist
    broken and you discover that the human body can't fly your
    opponent bows and thanks you in japanese.

1"Aikido" commonly translates to "The way of harmonious spirit".2student of aikido3place
of studing the way
4great teacher5wooden staff6dagger7Right over left
is reserved for the guest of honour at a funeral.

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