“In the learning process of Aikido participation, one is always practicing with another individual who is always involved in the further benefit that they can give to their mutual training involvement. This is traditionally depicted as the attacker is Uke and the receiver of the attack is Tori. These two perspectives help practitioners to open themselves up to what is the core of their practice together. Uke is always attacking Tori and both are benefiting mutually from being what our Sensei Geis has defined as “two parts of a learning machine”. So, the information and consciousness that is being gleaned is transmitted via our kinesthetic sharing in which we are communicating on a multi-channel processing dialogue which is felt in the silent levels of intuitive guidance.
We are processing the experience of being attacked from a completely different vision, one that doesn’t look at it from a traditional perspective of self defense. Yes, those views are there but we are looking for a different outcome in the light of both people learning from the interaction on the mat as one from which the growth of both people on many levels is more important than just how to defeat someone. The process of centering oneself in relation to working with someone on the mat is a deep and profound practice and is regarded as one of the main Principles that brings about fruition in one’s life on or off the mat. Being centered is a balance that almost everyone can benefit from in relating to just about anything or anyone, once one is accessing this conscious wholism in oneself they are more Aware of themselves from a responsive level of interaction and do not fall into the easily accessed “reactive” self or the unconscious survival mechanisms that one is not aware of and can come out as attempts to make one secure in the form of overreacting to situations that were not that serious but through the unconscious were determined to be of greater consequence than they usually are when we are not centered, and live from clarity.”
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“There are many things in life that we perceive, consciously or unconsciously, as a threat. This creates conflict, as it invokes the fight-or-flight response. In times of conflict, we naturally establish a negative bonding pattern with the person who initiates threatening behavior towards us; a bonding pattern between our vulnerability, which is the part of us that can be open and therefore hurt, and the other person’s “power,” as defined by their behavior. The important aspect of the process, at the psychological level, is that when we feel threatened, the natural thing for us to do is to identify ourselves with (or become) the part or parts of us that we learned to protect ourselves with when we were young, and then react accordingly to the present situation.”
“Ellis Amdur’s writing on martial arts has been groundbreaking. In this volume, Amdur has radically reworked his iconoclastic essays first published on the website of Aikido Journal. Here, he attempts to establish the existence of something all but lost in Japanese martial arts — a sophisticated type of training, encompassing mental imagery, breath-work, and a variety of physical techniques that offered the practitioner the potential to develop skills sometimes viewed as nearly superhuman. Commonly referred to as “internal training,” and usually believed to be the provenance of Chinese martial arts, Amdur asserts that not only was it once common among many Japanese martial traditions, but elements of such training still remain, passed down in a few martial arts — literally “hidden in plain sight.” As always, Amdur reminds us that this is a human endeavor and he provides vivid, even heartbreaking portrayals of some of the great practitioners of these skills, men who devoted their lives to an obsessive pursuit of power.”
Will You Be Able To Do That Technique When You Are Old?
“I indicated that this young student was resonsible for what had happened. Aikido practice requires two people, and both must help each other if advancement is to occur. If one person is superior in strength, speed, or skill, it is he who must adapt to the other and use a level of technique appropriate to the other’s level. At the end of the class, I shared my interpretation on the meaning of the word Aikido, which I will try to repeat from memory here.
“Tomiki Sensei, in addition to being a superb martial artist, was also a man of letters and arts. Tomiki Sensei was a graphic artist of a high caliber and his calligraphy and brush paintings are highly sought after by collectors to this day. (A picture of one of his calligraphic works is below.)
“Aikido was created by Morihei Ueshiba, referred to by some aikido practitioners as Osensei (”Great Teacher”). Ueshiba envisioned aikido not only as the synthesis of his martial training, but also an expression of his personal philosophy of universal peace and reconciliation. During Ueshiba’s lifetime and continuing today, aikido has evolved from the old-style martial art that Ueshiba studied into a wide variety of expressions by martial artists throughout the world.
“The following story provides an additional perspective on the role of martial arts training. It is reprinted from PHP, published monthly by PHP Institute International, No. 32 Mori Bldg. 6th Floor, 3-4-30 Shibakoen, Minatoku, Tokyo 105, Japan, $18 US yearly.
“He received a black belt ranking in Tae Kwon Do Karate with In Mok Kim, a 9th degree black belt in that art. A younger Teja competed in tournaments and did full contact fighting. Yang Style Tai Chi and Qigong followed, taught by Li Leita–who was a lineage Master in the “Yang Style.” He continued his Aikido studies with Robert Nadeau Shihan and Frank Doran Shihan at City Aikido in San Francisco. During this time he notes that he “created a series of advanced training programs for students preparing for black belt level examinations as well as creating and teaching children’s Aikido program[s] at the old Tam Dojo– what is now Aikido of Tamalpais. He also trained with the well-known Aikidoists Richard Strozzi-Heckler, Wendy Palmer Sensei and George Leonard Sensei. In 1984 he traveled to Japan where he studied with the late Saito Sensei and lived at the Iwama Dojo.
“When one begins to talk about practicality, application and usefulness in the world of the martial arts we enter onto a slippery slope. People start talking about “street fights” and “what REALLY happens in a fight”. We begin to theorize about reality, instead of living and training in it.
“When I first saw the TV news of the terrorist attacks on America (9.11.01), I thought it was just a fire. Then came information that airplanes had struck some buildings and speculation that they were terrorist acts. Next were the images of the plane striking the second building. I was glued to the TV and the repeating images of the moment of impact. I believed that a terrible thing had happened.