Ukemi Rant

Our dojo has had the same comments from visiting instructors from Japan and India the last few months.  Our ukemi is lacking.  Not the actual fall, but the intention in the rest of the ukemi.

Typically, ukemi is taught as the final piece, the actual fall.  This is something I refer to as “gymnastics.”  We practice basic tumbling, but we do it in isolation of any external stimulus.  This is not really anything to do with ukemi at all, but it provides a necessary foundation.  Gymnastics is to Aikido what a baby learning to walk for the first time is to a marathon runner.  Learning to roll is learning your A, B, Cs.  Actual Ukemi is writing a novel.

The ukemi starts with the attack.  The attack is full of intent and aimed at a specific target, and it is cutting through that target.  An attack that stops short of the target is not something that can be blended with.  An attack that misses the target is not something that gets blended with.  An attack that misses Nage altogether is a waste of time to practice with.  For Aikido, we need a real attack.  There is no blending with an attack if there is no attack. 

A Nage who tries to stay within a kata when the attack has no place in that kata will lose sensitivity and ultimately, their Aikido will be worse for it.  When an attack is too low, trying to work with a kata created for a high attack means much more force gets used and the kata is more difficult.  If the uke doesn't attack for the kata, then Nage never gets to actually practice the kata and the blending with an attack that is supposed to be learned never gets learned, because neither side ever has a chance to feel the blend. 

An uke who stiffens up and refuses to feel kuzushi can only do so because they know what is happening.  Nage is stuck within the “rules,” so uke can stick their hands in their armpits and feel they have a victory.  Of course, stiffen up and stick your hands where no one can reach them is the height of stupidity in any martial situation and this reflex will get you killed.  The uke can run in the opposite direction from the nage and feel they have a victory.  No one practices.  Nage hasn't learned to deal with an attack, uke hasn't learned to attack or blend.  It's not like sumo or wrestling where landing on the mat is a loss of points.

Freestyle practice starts to create a chance to learn to blend.  A kata that calls for a high attack while the uke attacks very low requires more force and probably more clashing, but a technique for a low attack will work well.  Make something difficult, something else gets easy.  But, Nage hasn't practiced with feeling the difference between high and low attacks.  Uke hasn't practiced being thrown by a well blended technique.  Freestyle will be more frustrating and more scary for both sides.

After the initial receiving of the attack, uke responds somehow.  If the kata is kaitenage and uke tries to stand tall, the kata is rougher and less beneficial.  Nage should be learning to go with an uke whose balance has been broken forward and downward in kaitenage.  For the instructor from India, he taught us kaitenage and the class was full of people standing tall and refusing forward kuzushi.  His next movement was to follow an uke and break their balance upward.  Several senior students then started doing the ukemi they were supposed to do for kaitenage and fell on their face (making the new kata impossible).  There was no way to follow them upward to break their balance, as they never went upward.  Made the kata impossible to practice, and nage doesn’t learn to follow the movement of uke.  The time came to practice kaitenage, and people had to be bludgened downward, and they had to be physically powerlifted to get of the ground for the kokyunage.  Neither side learns to blend.  Uke has not made a more realistic attack, nor does adding more resistance make someone's technique better.

Freestyle corrects some of these flaws, as the Nage doesn’t have to pretend to lead out a contracted, hesitant, badly aimed attack.  The opening given is the opening taken.  This makes the ukemi more demanding, and ultimately more dangerous for uke as they never did learn to blend.  They have no way to read what is about to happen to them, and they are constantly surprised.  The whole movement feels shocking and frightening, as they've never moved with even gentle force being applied.

For the Japanese instructor, people were attacking in a very static fashion.  They would quietly approach, hold back (their face and body completely exposed), and then grab his shoulders with both hands – and stop moving.  There is no attack that is standing testicles, ribs and face wide open while holding someone’s lapel.  We are not getting ready for Prom; we are not asking someone to pin a flower on our lapel.  The Japanese instructor’s comment was, “I just want to hit you guys!”  He was right.  That was the opening there, there was nothing else.  Try to blend or do a tenkan with that movement?  There was no force being applied, so nothing to blend with.  Some Uke's then complain about a Nage who does Irimi movements too often.  This becomes their excuse to do less forceful, more hesitant attacks which require much more Irimi on the part of the Nage.  It leaves the Nage of either stopping practice, or constantly attacking which really has no place in Aikido.

A friend in Canada was doing his Ikkyu test and he had a randori.  One of the attackers had been watching too many Brazilian jujitsu videos and tried to cling on after he had been thrown.  He got stepped on, and probably by both the other attackers and my friend.  I had a fellow student who tried to cling on too long myself and in moving through I accidently put a knee in his face.  I figured if it happened by accident, it could certainly happen on purpose but I felt bad.  The Japanese instructor was very clear we should take the fall after a certain point.  I think my training back home agrees with this.  Too much holding on leaves the uke too vulnerable, and forces the Nage into atemi.

Some uke also like to clump up or attack too close to the wall or the edge of the mat – this sets up collisions or severe injuries.  Nage doesn’t learn to take the movement that is there, they learn to stop the movement and fight the momentum and the uke feels like they were run over - but this is all done to keep the uke safe.  To just blend is to throw the uke off the mat or into the wall.

As a nage, I find I need to move faster with some ukes because the genuine movement I illicit with genuine kuzushi is not going to last.  Uke already wants to break with the kata and is trying to cover up.  I made an opening, and I follow it because that is the blend.

The kata can be practiced slowly – but it requires an uke that is ready to “lose” and who is willing to move at slow speed the way their body moves at fast speed.  With slower speeds, uke can adjust several times and they can perceive what is coming next.  Uke can stuff the technique a dozen different ways at slow speed, but they never could at real speed.  They need to follow the kata.  Uke’s job is not to protect themselves – their job is to teach and give feedback.  Without good ukemi, there is no teaching and no learning.

Bowing

Bowing is on the 6^th Kyu test requirements for the USAF.  I would like to talk about the specific bow described in the USAF literature, as well as some variations that I was taught.  As an oncology nurse, I find when my patients understand why I ask for something, they are more likely to remember it and more likely to follow the precautions they are asked for.  When you understand the why of bowing, you can figure out how to deal with new situations on your own.

A disclaimer:  Aikido formal etiquette goes back to feudal times and is a part of Japanese heritage.  The culture that gave us strict rules for how many lines and syllables in a poem, the classes in flower arranging, the deep ritual for how to make and drink tea – there are many things in the West that we gloss over and consider beneath notice that formal Japanese culture does not.  There are many layers and etiquette is much, much more complicated than anything I am going to write about here.

A second disclaimer:  The rules change in how they are understood and how they are enforced everywhere you go.  When in doubt, it is always good to bow.  Other people are going to have their own rules for their own dojo.  If a person of rank and respect in the dojo you are at is showing something different than you are used to, follow them.  When in Rome…

At our dojo, a standing bow at the doorway to the dojo, in the direction of O Sensei to start with.  Actually try to make eye contact with O Sensei, then lower your eyes.  Bow from the waist, about 30-45 degrees.  You should not need to throw your hips backward to stay upright.  When leaving the dojo, turn and face O Sensei again and bow in the same fashion.  If there is no picture, bow to the room.  Do not obstruct the flow of people to and from the dojo, and if they are blocking your view of O Sensei do not draw attention to this nor demand that they move out of your way.  You have already started to practice! 

Leave your shoes at the door.  Some dojo will request you wear a second set of indoor only shoes from the doorway to the mat.  These shoes should be left at the edge of the mat facing outwards with the heel against the mat and the shoes set neatly side by side.  If you are at such a dojo, never block the oncoming traffic with your shoes especially if it is the Sensei.  Do not take the spot right between the mat and the change rooms or the main exit or the Sensei’s change room.  If you are later than the other students and the mat edge is full of footwear, unobtrusively get your shoes set up in a second row.

Whether or not you have shoes, I was taught a standing bow off the mat facing O Sensei, then a kneeling bow once on the mat.  The standing bow is to the training space.  The second bow is to O Sensei and both hands go down together.  Your index fingers and thumbs touch.  You make eye contact before you bow, you lower your head and lose eye contact but not to the point that you need to put weight on your hands.  Bow in this same fashion when leaving the mat.  What you do with your shoes is also true of what you do with yourself – never stand where you are blocking other people’s practice or their ability to get on and off the mat. 

There is a bow where you put both hands together in a prayer formation in front of your third eye and then proceed.  Kawahara Sensei saw me do this once, and told me if I was not a practicing Shinto worshipper, I should not do this.  I respected his correction and I still do.

After lining up, the instructor bows to O Sensei with you, and this is the same bow as before with both hands going down together.  Then the instructor turns to face you.  In the past, your sword was on your left side and would be drawn by your right hand.  There were tricks around this, but this was the convention.  You make eye contact.  Your left hand lowers first, releasing your mental scabbard.  Then, the right hand leaves your waist and lowers to the ground after the left has touched.  You lower your head, but don’t put weight on your hands if you can help it.  You should not need to stick your butt up in the air to bow.  You keep a straight spine, and keep your connection to your root.  You start to bow before your instructor, and you finish you bow after he is finished.  Your right hand returns to your side first, with your head down, then the head comes up then the left hand hand returns.

To make eye contact is to identify whom you are showing respect to (make it personal and real), but you do not want to make this a challenging stare.  You are the junior, and it is not your place to demand eye contact if the instructor does not give it to you.  You are putting yourself in a more vulnerable position when you bow first and hold your bow longer, and that is a sign of trust.  In acting as though you have a sword, you are remembering you are asking to be part of a lineage and a history of a martial arts system.  Your instructor is teaching you this art; this is one way you show respect for what he has taught you.  To show too much deference, especially to a stranger is to show you are nonchalant and completely unconcerned about their abilities or that you aren’t paying attention and your mind has drifted somewhere else. 

The straight spine and rooted seiza is a position that you can do martial techniques from.  This is another sign that you remember that you are part of a martial lineage now and a sign of respect to your teacher.  To let your structure go when you bow shows that you didn’t pay attention in class, your practice is not mindful and that you don’t value what you are being taught.

You pause when your head is lowered.  The pause should be present, but not too long.  This is also a sign of trust and respect.

Between equals, bow at the same time.  Each piece of the bow is done at the same time.  Don’t interfere with the larger class or hold the class up! 

There is a common mistake to lower the hands one at a time, then lift them both together.  Kawahara Sensei once saw this and told us this was never a correct variation in any circumstance.  I assume the same goes for lowering hands together then bringing them back one at a time (usually seen when the student can’t handle their own body weight).

Be aware of Ma-ai!  Do not bow so close that the other person might bump heads with you.  If you both have weapons, bow from even further away so that the weapons will only make slight contact at the tip if drawn, or no contact at all. 

When your practice involves a line technique, you are finished being thrown when you have gotten right out of the way of other people throwing and falling.  This also shows awareness of Ma-ai, as well as concern and respect for the rest of the students.

An overly abbreviated bow that makes no attempt to pay attention to the person you are bowing to shows you really aren’t present or ready for practice.  In the past, this was an insult.

When the instructor calls for your attention, you need to briefly conclude practice with your partner (bow) and then watch the instructor (bow in gratitude for the instruction) and then bow to your partner again to resume practice.  If you just switch your attention to the instructor immediately, you could end up getting hit.

To test, you have bowed at the door and coming on the mat.  When you are called up, you come to the front of the dojo and you bow again to O Sensei.  Get in line, and bow at the same time as your uke. 

Kawahara Sensei did not demand we bow to him, but he was grateful when we did.  Here, it is convention that you bow to the examiner as you would an instructor.  Your instructor will be in a different place in the dojo, so you will have to move.  Do not stick your buttocks in the direction of O Sensei.  Again, get side by side or in a line and bow at the same time, moving at the same speed.  This will get you in the right frame of mind for your test with your uke.  Nage is not following Uke, nor is Uke following Nage.  You are together, moving as one.

Then, bow facing each other far enough apart that you cannot touch.  Take the time to line up cleanly before you bow, but line up quickly.

You can see each bow is like entering a new room:  The Dojo, the practice area, O Sensei, your instructor, your partner.  With each bow, you are entering deeper into practice.  To finish practice with your partner, you need to leave that room (bow to your partner).  To leave the test, you leave your partner, your instructor, O Sensei, the Tatami and then the Dojo.  You bow in the reverse order to how you entered your test.  If you have to leave class early, or you have an emergency, you follow this order.

When you know etiquette, it is tempting to use this as a means of judging someone else.  Etiquette should not be used as a substitute form of violence.  It is possible to show contempt for a person while following etiquette exactly, but this defeats the true purpose of Aikido in my opinion.  It is possible to communication respect and concern while making mistakes.  It starts with what is in your heart and mind, and I believe this is as important to Aikido practice as the external form. 

Once, I was driving Kawahara Sensei to the dojo to teach a class.  An elderly man had slipped on some ice and fallen and I apologized to Sensei, stopped the car and made sure the man was alright.  It was wrong for me to make Sensei late for class, but he seemed happy that I had stopped.

We have had Muslim students at our dojo recently.  O Sensei wrote, “The Art of Peace is not a religion.  It perfects and completes religions…The world has eight millions gods and I cooperate with them all.”  The Prophet wrote in the Quran that his followers should not bow to any man, and this is a centuries old practice followed by Islam.  They bow to God alone.  I respect this.  I can see if a person feels genuine respect, trust and concern no matter what their external body is doing.  Communication before class is important, and polite.

It is important to never be late, but it can happen.  Usually, it is accepted that we wait until being acknowledged.  One school had a very involved ritual around coming late, but I never learned it.  Another school let everyone come and go as they pleased in the middle of practice, and being late was no problem.  This is rare, and not to be counted on.  In a seminar situation in the CAF, it was expected that you would not interrupt the larger class and would quietly come on when the local instructor waived you on – different instructors will have different rules and waiting is always safer.  I was told in Hombu Dojo once that by waiting for the instructor to bow to me so that I could bow on, I was distracting the whole class and the instructor and that this was rude, selfish behavior.  The only sure-fire correct thing to do – be on time.

I was taught a standing bow with a weapon.  Some people like to do kneeling bows, of which there seem to be several variations and I am not an expert.  There seems to be a lot of confusion over Tachi-dori bowing.  I am of the opinion there never was a traditional, respectful method of a samurai taking someone else's sword away and then handing it back saying, "Best 2 out of 3?"  It would probably be an insult and a fatal mistake.  There are several ways.  I was taught to back up, put the weapon on the ground and then back up some more.  In the USAF, I was told this would slow the test down and draw things out.  The weapon gets handed back, without the blade or the point facing uke.

World's Simplest Plain Cheesecake Recipe

The very first cheesecake I ever made was a Chocolate Vanilla Marble with a chocolate crust.  The second I ever did was a Raspberry Chocolate Swirl.  I never actually did a simple cheesecake.  I made a wide variety of different flavours, but I always believed I had a basic recipe.  I just never actually made a plain, basic cheesecake.

I finally had a chance to try this for an Aikido Potluck.  I took most of my recipes and pared them down to the most basic essence.

Preheat an oven to 300.  I prefer to use convection.

For a 10x12 Pyrex pan, I made a crust with:

2c ground up chocolate animal cookies from Whole Foods.
4 tbsp of butter that was melted in the microwave.

I have done 1 lb of chocolate cookies with one stick of melted butter,a nd it worked very well.

In an earlier attempt, I used some organic graham crackers that I really didn't like the taste of.

Press the crust into a pan.  No need to butter the pan.  Put the pan with the crust in an oven at 300 for 10 minutes, then press more firmly as it slightly cools.  Let the crust and pan cool completely, or the edge of the cake will cook faster than the center and the cake will deform a bit.

For the batter:

Bring out all the ingredients and bring them up to room temperature, especially the cream cheese and the eggs.

6 packages of regular cream cheese at room temperature (I prefer Philadelphia)
1 1/2c of granulated sugar

Beat the two together in a mixer until smooth.

Add 1 tbsp of vanilla and blend in.

Add 6 eggs.  Beat until the batter is smooth.  Don't over beat the cake batter; you want smooth and not frothy.  Over beating the eggs makes the whole cake texture more bubbly and less smooth.

If the cream cheese is too cold when you start to mix it, the batter will be lumpy, the colour won't be uniform, and you might end up wrecking your mixer.  It is okay to leave the lumpy batter at room temperature for a little while and then try to blend it again if you were in a rush and didn't get your cheese to room temperature.  There will be fewer lumps if you leave the eggs on the counter for an hour or so before you mix them in.

I then pour the batter over the crust.  It will be fairly liquid.  There is no need to smooth it out - the heat of the oven will melt the cheese and the batter will smooth out nicely.

I put a 9x9 pan 2/3rds full of water on the bottom rack, and I put the cake on the middle rack.  This step helps prevent the cake cracking, which is really just a cosmetic thing and not essential.

I give it 25-30 minutes in the oven (no more).  Keep the door closed.  The top should still slightly jiggle when the pan is moved, but as it cools the cake will become more firm.  The cake will also sink slightly as it cools.  Cheesecakes are not tested with a toothpick or knife like other cakes.

The cake does not need to come out of the oven right away - leave the door cracked open and turn the oven off - this is my preferred way to cool it.

I had a friend bring jars of strawberry pie filling to work for this cake, and that worked well as a topping. 

I did make one with a pineapple pudding layer, then toasted coconut merangue on top.  It's fine to bake other layers on top, but it is very important that the cake and pan be fully cooled in between baking or your topping will bake unevenly and probably leave a layer of clear sweet liquid between the cake and the topping.  I either bake the topping first on the stove or I try a topping that can bake in 10 minutes in the oven.

*  For a gluten free cake, just use gluten free cookies ground up into crumbs or omit the crust.  There is no flour in this cake.