What is Aikido?
| Aikido has often been referred to as the
gentleman's fighting art. Though it is not an unfamiliar word, few outside
the world of the martial arts can distinguish it from various other "methods
of self-defense." Its trademark, however lies partly in its sophisticated
style and particularly in its essential motivations.
Aikido is a method of self-defense which can be used against any form of attack and -- at its highest levels -- a Discipline of Coordination, a "way" of harmonizing all of a person's vital powers. There is no attack in aikido; i.e., its goal is merely to neutralize an aggression and render the attacker harmless, without causing him any serious injury if at all possible. To do this requires skill, but even more, it requires an ethical intention. The very word aikido, in fact, contains the three elements which comprise the art: (ai), harmony or coordination, (ki), spirit or energy; (do), the method, the "way". A person who studies and practices aikido correctly desires only to defend himself without harming others. To possess this attitude, one must achieve a very high level of integration of the powers of mind and body, the harmonious combination of physical means and ethical motives. |
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Aikido was founded by Master Morihei Uyeshiba. He developed and
synthesized it from various other martial arts which he learned as a young
man. His practical experience in these arts is one of the richest and most
thorough of any sensei (teacher). Many of the arts and techniques which are
found in aikido date back, in fact, more than 700 years to the time of the
Genji and Keike regimes. A number of the masters under whom Master Uyeshiba
studied died without revealing their arts to any other disciple.
The records of Master Uyeshiba's studies include, among others:
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| "The enemy raises his sword to attack But lo, I am already standing behind." |
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"Enlightenment Like the hazy mooon of evening Comes out and sets without a trace." |
