What is Aikido?
Aikido is a Japanese martial art. Aikido translates as "the Way of unifying with life energy" or as "the Way of harmonious spirit." Its goal is to create an art you could use to defend yourself while also protecting your attacker from injury.
Skilled Aikido practitioners can blend into an attacker's motion to either dissipate the energy of the attack or redirect the attacker's aggression back on himself. The word Aikido is composed of three parts: ai, meaning harmony; ki, meaning spirit, energy or breath power; and do, meaning way. The basic principle of non-resistance describes how a person can overcome an opponent without the need to meet force with force.
Aikido Techniques
Aikido techniques are made up of two categories of movement: those of control and those of throwing. There are over 700 movements belonging to these two waza. The throws are often large and dynamic, and the control or imobilisation techniques use powerful pressure on joints. Sometimes direct strikes are used to split the attackers concentration but these are in addition to, not a substitute for a good technique.
Attacks
There are 16 main forms of attack starting with basic attacks to the wrist (katate-dori), shoulder (kata-dori) or lapels (muni-dori) and progressing through to strikes to the head (shomen and yokomen) and punches (tsuki) and various attacks from the rear (ushiro).
Training progresses from attacks in static standing posture (kihon dosa) to full movement (ki no nagare) and multi- person attack (jiyu waza)
Weapons
Like most Martial Arts and methods of self-defence, Aikido is performed unarmed. However, weapons are used to promote body movement, increase strength, improve breathing, increase reaction timing and blending into an attack. All of which are useful for our body techniques (tai jutsu).
Three types of wooden weapons are used:
- Bokken - a wooden practice sword,
- Jo - The Jo is a wooden staff approx. 4 feet 2 inches long and just under 1 inch in diameter .
- Tanto - a wooden knife
The club has practice weapons for students to use, should they need them.
A brief history of Aikido
The founder of Aikido was called Morihei Ueshiba (1883-1969), and is sometimes referred to within Aikido circles as O- Sensei, which means great teacher. His son Kisshomaru Ueshiba was, until his recent death, head (Doshu) of the International Aikido Federation. O- Sensei's grandson Moriteru Ueshiba (known as waka sensei) continues the family tradition and is the current Doshu.
Some of the founder's other top students (for example, Saito sensei Tomiki sensei and Shioda sensei) also formed Aikido organisations, and many instructors run weekend or week long courses to allow periods of more intensive training.
O-Sensei studied many arts, and formed Aikido by combining effective techniques of jujitsu with the skills of Japanese combative swordsmanship (kenjutsu).Aikido encompasses not only the martial aspects of technique (waza) but also ideas of correct distancing (ma-ai), proper breathing (kokyu) and body movement (tai-sabaki).
In his philosophy O'Sensei emphasised the importance of attaining harmony between breath (Ki) and body (Tai). There is equal emphasis on harmony between the mind (Shin) and moral outlook (Ri) and this is symbolised by the (Do) - the way to be followed to reach self perfection.
