“We, as fairly dedicated martial artists, should understand why we train. Even if we never found ourselves having to “explain” aikido to our friends and family, we should be able to articulate, at least to ourselves, just what keeps us coming back to the mat day after day. Examined from the perspective of a “normal” contemporary American life, what ever that might be like, we have to admit that what we do – dressing in funny foreign clothes and attacking each other with wooden sticks, for instance – is pretty unconventional.
But we do it anyway, despite, or perhaps on account of, Aikido’s unconventionality. And we do it as often as our bodies allow us to, and sometimes more often than we should. Aikido is not a drug, though some have jokingly argued that it is nevertheless an addiction. So, again, why do we train?”
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“Each year the Budokan hosts a series of enormous, day-long, martial arts training events for children. The martial arts are Sumo, Karatedo, Shorinji Kenpo (Japanese Kung Fu), Jukendo (way of the bayonet), Kendo, Naginatado (way of the glaive/halberd), Judo, Kyudo and Aikido. On Sunday, swarms of Aikidoka from elementary school age through junior high (US 8th grade) crowded the Kudanshita train station outside the Budokan. Many wore their keikogi on the train, others carried bags and furoshiki crammed with gear. Here and there sensei from different schools with little flags herded their troops to appointed meeting areas. This year the chaos was much more contained than last year when we had to parade around a bit to kill time before being allowed in. This time everything went smoothly and the kids were in their seats minutes after arriving.
I have been thinking about something lately and it has had quite an impact on my training and personal outlook. I was able to run at a steady pace for 3.58 miles without any breaks. Now you may say big deal, lots of people do that and even more every day. True, nothing really special there except for the fact that I have not run in years. The last time that I did I could barely do half a mile continuously without stopping to catch my breath or grab my side from a cramp. 
“Paul Barker has a simple goal: to help change people’s lives for the better through the power of aikido, a Japanese martial art that combines strong self-defence techniques with the promotion of peace and harmony.
“I have frequently spoken of making appropriate use of our internal structure in our aikido practice. I will once more explore this idea from another perspective. Similarly when painting a wall or weaving a basket, it takes multiple layers criss-crossing to obtain a good coverage of paint or a strong structure.
“Putting out “positive vibes” is an important way of creating a sense of connection that allows others to approach us at a distance that is “friendly” close. Inother-words , we can actively manipulate the sense of proper distance that others use when interacting with us. From a martial arts perspective, it is relatively obvious that controlling this distance is an important component towards being able to effectively stay safe. Consciously effecting the preconscious experience of a potential attacker is an important martial arts tool.
A unique workshop on “The Spirit of Aikido” will be presented by Professor John Stevens. AiKiDo is “the Way of a Spirit of Harmony.” This spirit of harmony has many dimensions. Kototama (Sound Spirit) is one of the means in which the body is trained to move with breath and sound sources. This is usually thought of as a power enhancer (KiAi), However, the most subtle yet highly connective life essence placed into a body movement, sword cut, brush stroke, or musical instrument are all part of Kototama. Misogi (cleansing) also brings into existence, and into the “here and now,” the many dimensions of life and activity. Kototama and Misogi are two of the spiritual foundations of Aikido. They are reflective of Eastern concepts of mastery.
Recently I spent time with a friend who had become fascinated by Dante’s Inferno. He described some of the memorable characters that Dante writes of meeting on his visit to Hell—characters who were stuck for eternity in the misery of physical and emotional attitudes they had created for themselves in life. My friend mentioned one in particular, Farinata, whose body is shown rising just halfway out of his tomb—stiff, erect, pridefully aristocratic, fiercely contemptuous of hell itself. It was one of those striking physical images that linger on. Later I remembered a figure from the underworld of the ancient Greeks—Tantalus, last seen grasping desperately for the figs and pomegranates that eternally elude his grasp.
“Clint Eastwood, in The Outlaw Josey Wales, tells his companions that when everything looks bad and it seems you can’t win then you must get mean, “mad-dog mean,” in order to survive. This is the basic attitude necessary for effective self defence and has always been a precept of the martial arts that if we must choose between technique and fighting spirit, then go for fighting spirit everytime.
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“McDojo is a pejorative term used by some Western martial artists to describe a martial arts school where image or profit is of a higher importance than technical standards, and in the related use of martial arts franchising. The term is an example of McWords applied to Japanese martial arts dojo.[1] A McDojo of Korean martial arts may be referred to as a McDojang but the term McDojo is used for various arts regardless of origin. While using the term McDojo primarily indicates judgement of a school’s financial or marketing practices, it also implies that the teaching standards of such school may be much lower than that of other martial arts schools, or that the school presents non-martial arts training as martial arts. Where a McDojo’s practices may border on fraud, this can be referred to as bullshido.
How can fighting arts used to disembowel and behead then become meditative, yoga like “spiritual paths” with cultish followings and then be considered the same thing?