The Power of Friendship

Aikido is a relatively young art, but has a huge broad base.  Morihei Ueshiba had many contemporaries and many students.  He had difficulty sharing his full vision of his art, and so many of his students developed their own methods of communicating what they learned and what they felt was important.  Ueshiba had many influences:  from the Koryu world of Sokaku Takeda; to the rational dissemination and preservation of skills of Jigoro Kano; to the military machines of his day that wanted methods to create/regurgitate entire battalions in the shortest possible time; to his religion that criticized his government, his emperor and the war; to the consequences of the Battle of the Pacific and Japan's surrender; to the opening of his legacy to the entire planet under multiple generations of students.

I started training in a small dojo, the only dojo for the entire province of Saskatchewan.  Aikido did not exist until you reached Winnepeg to the east, or Calgary and Edmonton to the west.  If there were schools in North Dakota and Montana, the Canadian and American economies were such that I seldom travelled south of the border.  Going north, the nearest dojo I would have found was likely in the U.S.S.R.

There were two Shodan and two Ikkyu instructors, and a couple of fourth Kyu who trained me for my 5th Kyu test.  They were everything Aikido to me.  They had their disagreements and didn't perform their techniques all the same way.  I ask many questions and I am a challenging student, so I spent a lot of time drenched in sweat with bleeding knees and sore wrists.  In the disagreements, who was "right" was often answered by me being in pain - and it got driven home that there was so many right perspectives; so many ways for me to feel more pain.  We all shut up and practiced, and I loved it.  There was only one Shihan for many years, Yukio Kawahara.  He liked it when people shut up and practiced too, and so we did.  He seldom if ever mentioned politics that I know of.  Akira Tohei visited the province once, sharing a seminar with Kawahara Sensei.

I was stunned when I started to travel to other cities for seminars.  Some places, I could never visit without having someone try to determine my political allegiance.  What was this Ki Society stuff?  What was the war time stuff?  People who didn't tolerate questions.  People now talked about how Aikido had changed, who was closer to the source, who didn't like to train with who, why someone else was wrong, why their school was better.  People who lectured on harmony, peace, and love but clearly and openly despised and harshly judged their fellow Aikidoists.  People who would rather skip a day of training than risk being contaminated by the "wrong element."  And, this is how they treated people in what I would learn were the same associations, with nearly identical lineages and allegiances!

Books became more plentiful, and also hinted at a much larger and nastier Aikido world.  This new-fangled Interweb was starting to catch on.  My first major seminar nearly 20 years ago had ten Shihan teaching.  Students were walking off the mat when an 8th Dan direct student of Morihei Ueshiba that they would maybe never see again was teaching; openly saying because it wasn't their teacher.  I loved the opportunity to see the other perspectives.  

My teacher is now deceased, and I miss him.  So, what is my future and the future of my Aikido?  Anyone at this writing who has trained in Aikido for less than 46 years never had the opportunity to even meet the Founder.  Out of the ten Shihan teachers at this one seminar decades ago, over half of the instructors are now dead.  Out of the other associations, so many great teachers are now dead as well.

"Tradition is about keeping the flames alive, not worshipping the ashes."  Gustav Mahler

I have a lineage, and I will honor it.  There are still beautiful opportunities to be had.  Our collective art started with one man, then promptly fragmented.  The full scope of what Morhei Ueshiba taught is still perhaps alive, but it is in pieces.

The old parable about the blind men and the elephant goes like this:  the one man touches the elephant's ear and says an elephant is like a piece of paper.  One touches the trunk and says the elephant is like a snake.  One touches a leg and says the elephant is like a tree.  Another touches the side and says the elephant is like a wall.  What would you learn if you talked to all of these men?  Certainly stories would contradict.  Would you pick just one of them as being "right?"  

A new phenomenon in Aikido for me is the Friendship Seminar.  In this area in particular, the late Toyoda Sensei's Aikido Association of America lineage has regularly and generously opened their doors and invited the larger Aikido population.  A local Birankai affiliated dojo recently held an open door seminar as a fundraiser for Chiba Sensei's family.  Raleigh Aikikai is an excellent dojo representing the late Mitsunari Kanai.  Several paths that can be traced back to O Sensei are represented very close by.  

I have fond memories of meeting Takeshi Kimeda of Yoshinkan, an energetic dynamic powerhouse who never hesitated to open his doors to an outsider and was an inspiring ambassador.  I had a very insightful, thoughtful and thought provoking seminar with Patrick Parker of Shodokan Aikido and Kodokan Judo.  Patrick in particular went out of his way to not only be the instructor for the weekend, but also very much a gracious host to me as an outsider.  So many blogs and websites are for self- promotion; his Mokuren Dojo site is very generous with his abundant knowledge.

How do we move Aikido forward as a powerful, vibrant, martially viable, healthy, health-promoting, creative, timelessly innovative Art with a strong connection to history and lineage?  For me, increasingly the answer is, look back.  Look to the other schools who focused on another teaching method, or another facet of the beautiful gem of Aikido.  Experience the lessons of the other teachers who saw Morihei Ueshiba and Aikido in different times and circumstances.  I believe the greatest future opportunities for the Art of Peace lies in Friendship.

Iriminage Omote and Ura

Omote and Ura from a perspective of Irimi equals Omote and Tenkan equals Ura?  I remember asking how to differentiate these variations as a new student, and not getting an answer.

Another version of Omote, which we had on the USAF test requirements briefly as a Tenshin variation (though I would have to ask if this is an Irimitenkan instead).  While Nage does step where Uke's open side was initially, Nage is doing this throw from behind Uke.  The Ura is very familiar.

Shirata Rinjiro was one of the few students of Morihei Ueshiba from the prewar years (that I can find) who used the terms Iriminage Omote and Ura (along with other Japanese phrases I don't recognize or understand, but Shirata Sensei had a very in depth method of defining Iriminage variations.  He had En no Irimi for circular movements, Sankaku Irimi for triangular movements, and Chokusen no Irimi for linear movements.  The linear Irimi techniques seemed to include both stark variations of Shodokan Atemiwaza, as well as a deep entry Irimitenkan where Nage then steps back further.  All three types could be done entering in front or behind Uke, and this did not make them Omote or Ura.  Omote and Ura were an addition to these categories.  In this video clip, and Shirata Sensei's book written with John Stevens, Aikido:  the Way of Harmony, the Omote and Ura variation seems to be distinguished strictly by the finishing movement.

I'm not even touching on the Sokumen Iriminage variations that many later schools call Kokyunage.  Shirata Sensei appears comfortable combining his different ideas in a single technique?  With O Sensei's Dokka saying the basic variations of Iriminage take ten years to learn, and knowing that there are supposed to be limitless variations, I like the idea of there being several basic ideas - the ABC's of Iriminage.

Ultimately, nothing new here.  We all practice these variations.  While Iriminage Omote and Ura is becoming something more easily Googled and YouTubed, this is an example of Iriminage Omote and Ura from a direct student of O Sensei.

Thanks to Stanley Pranin of Aikido Journal for his kind permission to use this clip of Shirata Rinjiro Shihan.  The entire video is in the Members Only section of Aikido Journal Online, and the entire video as well as the entire website is highly recommended by me.

Rendezvous with Adventure

Rendezvous with Adventure is maybe one of the first clips I ever saw of O Sensei.  The filming was done before I was born, but within my Dad's lifetime.  I have had friends who were at the Tokyo tower more recently, and apparently the view has really changed.  There are some changes to Aikido to my eye.

When they actually start to practice (1433) the only exercise I recognize is Funakogi Undo.  I don't know what these exercises are for, but this class is taught to these cameramen by both Koichi Tohei and Kisshomaru Ueshiba - and I have trained in both of their lineages.  

The cameramen talk about taking ten days, practicing seven hours a day before being allowed to train in techniques.  It looks like they had to learn to fall along the way.  Not many beginners would agree to a seventy hour introduction before being allowed to be introduced to a technique.  I would love to know what that seventy hours entailed.

A student challenging the teacher (Koichi Tohei, at 1928) to a match seldom happens anymore.  

I had also expected to be a little more...impressed.  The head instructor of the Hombu Dojo, an eventual tenth Dan against someone who trained for less than two weeks.  Not saying I would do better or that I would be any prettier.

I never saw a Sensei get challenged like this, but I saw Kawahara Sensei agree to "answer questions" from his own students outside of class time when he was a good mood.  I remember asking him about a Nikyo reversal in my living room once, which had him roar and put me on my knees in Nikyo and yell, "REVERSE!"  (I did not.  I could not.)

The pin by Koichi Tohei - not something I see happening much in Aikido dojo now.  I know Ki Society people who who say it wasn't Aikido.  It is not classical Aikido as it was taught to me, but more resembles Daito Ryu - speaking as not a Daito Ryu person.  The very cool pin by O Sensei himself leading into the closing credits is something I never saw anywhere else either.    

At the time, I had only practiced very rudimentary Tsuki and Shomenuchi with a Jo.  Seeing O Sensei with a Jo (2113):  "Well, that's different."  After seeing YouTube of Koichi Tohei's Jo kata, Rinjiro's Misogi no Jo, Saito's Aikijo, Shodokan Jo kata, as well as Birankai and Nishio Jo work, the demo is still unique.  I can recognize individual movements, but the overall flavor is very different.

An interesting piece of history, enjoy.

What did you learn in kindergarten?

I wrote a piece a little while back about how information starts with small pieces of understanding and then grows.  Rational transmission of knowledge starts with a foundation, and then builds on it.

I remember Kawahara Sensei being asked by a student looking to open his first dojo, "What should I focus on teaching?"  Sensei replied immediately, "Gokyu" (5th Kyu).  He had a set of basics that he thought gave a good, solid, foundation for a beginning student to move forward:

Shomenuchi

Ikkyo to Yonkyo, Omote and Ura, suwari waza and tachiwaza (seated and standing)

Shihonage Omote and Ura

Iriminage

Kotegaeshi

Ryotedori 

Tenchinage (standing)

Kokyudoza (seated)

Morote Dori 

Iriminage

Katatedori 

Kokyu Ho

Koshinage

Yokomenuchi 

Shihonage Omote and Ura

Ushiro Ryotekubidori

Ikkyo

How much time did I spend on this test?  25 years later, I have the test requirements memorized.  How valid was the test?  I admit of course I learned Katatedori Shihonage and Katatedori Ikkyo long before I learned the Gokyu requirements.  Of course I had to learn how to fall, how to stand, how to sit and so many other things first.  There was very much an unofficial 6th kyu.  I started in September and didn't take my first test until April.  I remember reading the test requirements for other associations with pride, and some jealousy.  Koshinage in the first couple of months was painful, and I had blood stains on my gi pants from bleeding knees.  It never occurred to me while training for my test that other groups didn't do all the same stuff.  

With all the different students of O Sensei with their own understanding of Aikido, many teaching methods have sprung up and entire associations seem based on the teaching methods and the specifically embraced terminology.  For the raw beginner, the biggest differences between schools don't seem to be the Dan level studies, but rather the first few weeks and months of instruction.  I find collecting the Kyu lists of test requirements fascinating.  

Fourth Anniversary

When I moved south of the border into the U.S., Kawahara Sensei asked me to study with the USAF.  I was in Yamada Sensei's domain, now living by a USAF dojo and had a long time girlfriend (now my wife) who studied with Yamada Sensei, and Kawahara Sensei knew this.

A few years back, the USAF revised their test requirements to include Tenchinage Omote and Ura, Jujinage Omote and Ura, Kotegaeshi Omote and Ura, and Kaitenage Omote and Ura.  I had never heard these names.  I started to look into it, and several blog entries later I've finally reached where I started:  Yukio Kawhara Sensei.

Coming up through the ranks, all of my tests except for one had been in front of Kawahara Sensei.  He was always generous (if somewhat terrifying) with his feedback.  He could be at times very clear about what he wanted.  Other times, we'd be sweating and gasping, our brains would be turning to mush and he would calmly, quietly say, "another way."  He would be silent through several variations, then maybe say, "No idea, huh?"  Or, "Another way" again.  Or, purse his lips and shake his head "No" with his eyes boring through the student.  

Ikkyo through Yonkyo, Omote and Ura was part of every test, as was Shihonage Omote and Ura.  The variations and attacks would change, and he would be often specific about what he was after.  Suwari Waza Shomenuchi Nikyo and Sankyo, Omote and Ura appeared on three tests in a row (Gokyu, Yonkyu, Sankyu), but how the technique was done would change.  He would note that techniques like Suwari Waza Gokyo did not have an Omote or Ura.  Sometimes, he would say a version of a basic technique like Sankyo was "neither."  Or, he would show something that looked like nothing I had ever seen, and still call it Sankyo.  I was never aware of anything else having an Omote or Ura, though I knew multiple variations for most movements.

Morote Dori Ikkyo to Yonkyo was not just Omote and Ura, but also the Ura was done circling Gedan with the Omote circling Jodan.  Hanmi Handachi Kaitenage Uchi and Soto had specific variations that also demonstrated what I now hear differentiated as Omote and Ura.  Kotegaeshi was at least two ways, and these variations are sometimes what I now have been told are Omote and Ura.  Did he call for Omote and Ura for these other techniques?  Maybe he did, and I was just not listening or I've forgotten.  What I remember is often he would say, "do this" while showing us a technique.  We would practice and drill "this" for months.  Then, he would come back, and say, "do this (showing something very different.)". No explanation, just a change.

His Katate Dori Tai no Henka practice was at first frustrating, and then mind blowing.  While Tenkan is a strictly defined thing in some dojo, a couple of times a year he would change the practice.  Did Uke push, follow, hold stiff, come around?  Did Nage end up behind or slightly in front of Uke?  How far was the turn?  Did Nage step in front or behind?  Hands together at the same height and distance from my center, or apart?  Hips straight or turned?  Hands Up or Down?  Uchi or Soto?  Both Uke and Nage starting from Hanmi, or both starting by stepping out toward each other?  Weight forward or backward?  Shifting before the turn or after the turn?  Lead, blend?  It was a very - varied - practice.  I haven't come anywhere close to the depth he did.

I've come to think he was right.  Asking what is the one way to always do a movement correctly for all situations is like asking what color, or what spice, or what number is going to get me through every situation in my life.  He was always clear there were many right ways, just that there were many, many more wrong ways.    

If he did break down to specific variations, this is a good example from my memory.  More than other techniques, I remember him teaching these two for Jo Dori.  Entire classes were devoted to just these two:

#1

Tsuki type movement by Nage

My thumbs face to Uke

Start Ai Hamni

Issue through the end furthest away from me

Move Inside, 

move facing forward

Circle Gedan (underneath)

Cross Uke's arms

Nage and Uke Face to face

Linear - throw with structure

#2

 

Hasso Gaeshi/Uchi movement

My thumbs face away from Uke

Start Gyaku Hamni

Issue through the closest end to me

Move Outside 

Move Turning away from Uke

Circle Jodan (overtop)

Open Uke up

Nage and Uke Back to back

Full Tenkan and pendulum - throw with momentum. 

Eventually, he'd say, "Yudansha, do what you will."  I never heard him refer to these two Jo Dori techniques as a pair, nor did I ever hear the names he gave these techniques.  He just seemed to treat these two as a pair, and they are the opposite in several variables.  Change any single one of the variables above, and you'll still have a good technique (ie Circle Jodan instead of Gedan on #1).  These two form a very good base to discover new techniques.  I have no idea what any of those names are either.

 

Combat-ish

A friend was watching one of my black belt tests.  "It looks like you're hurting them sometimes but that they're cooperating with you a lot of time."  Movies make it look like anyone can be hit, kicked, shot, and stabbed then maybe jump up and run a marathon I guess.  Everyone is supposed to walk home from training.  Testing is verifying training, but it is still training.

Nik Wallenda, the man who walked the tightrope between two buildings in Chicago simulated 90 mph winds in his training.  "I want to make sure I've trained harder than what I will experience during the walk."  No doubt, he built up to this.  

I have heard some martial arts teachers talk about training more harshly to be ready for the dreaded phantom "street."  It is valid - to a point.  Who wants their daughter to take a Rape Prevention class where the instructor is going to be harsher than any rapist would be?

While more groups are talking about "More Realistic Training", everything we do in any class now is fake.  Training is different from doing.  Training is learning.  

I can train to assist with Ebola patients without being exposed to an Ebola patient.  The training and simulations let me learn lessons from other people who faced more danger than me, and maybe paid with their lives.  I can take my CPR and ACLS (advanced cardiac life support) and not have a patient die during training.  

Flight simulators are safer for pilots, and planes (and passengers) than "on the job training."  The old joke:  "If at first you don't succeed, so much for skydiving," need not apply to training for combat.  The majority of martial arts students will not be in a life-or-death situation, and even when they are, dialing 911 is still a better idea.

Even worse for people who are training for life and death situations, training injuries can make them less likely to succeed in an altercation!  Damage a joint.  Movement and flexibility become impaired, cardiovascular training becomes more difficult.  Training stops.  Maybe pain killers, fatigue, and depression start messing with my head.  Injure a leg; running away or dodging an attack is more difficult and maybe impossible.  Lost time at work is lost income, lost income is less disposable income for classes and maybe even other more vital daily needs. Stress becomes an ugly spiral.  Ironically, I become much easier prey.

And, it's not just about combat.  I couldn't spike an IV bag or unit of blood with a broken thumb, and I couldn't do chest compressions nor was I able to safely help a sick patient to the bathroom for months after an elbow injury.  My freelance editor wife lost days of income from a stray fingernail in her eye.  These were training injuries.

Imagine writing a qualifying exam after getting a concussion, or writing a paper after breaking fingers.  A detached retina, or a corneal abrasion, or a pulled groin muscle can serious hamper a law enforcement officer or a soldier in their ability to perform their duties.  Imagine a surgeon who gets a broken arm as a consequence of "recreation."

The people before us developed methods of training an aspect of combat that wasn't combat itself.  I develop my flexibility, strength, cardiovascular health, mental focus, my ability to strategize, my familiarity with a tool or an environment, my reactions to stress; and then I become a better fighter and hopefully a better all around person with a higher quality of life.

Stand Up

In Aikido, Seiza plays a huge role.  Standing at the start or end of class, or doing a standing bow is something associated with weakness.  "He has bad knees, He's overweight, He's injured."  The student is embarrassed, and a little shamed.  Instructors have the choice of getting up and moving around whenever they want to, and beginners are given some leeway usually.  I've written on the Diamond Pose (the Yoga name for Seiza) here, and I posted a video, mostly on ways to warm the body up for this posture.

While of course O Sensei practiced Suwari Waza and Hanmi Handachi Waza and sat in Seiza, he also stood.  There is a lot of documentation on the waterfall in Iwama, and how O Sensei would stand there daily for extended periods of time.  National Geographic has a documentary by Josette Normandeau, a Canadian Aikido student who has travelled extensively.  She is introduced to the waterfall around 16:15 by Hitohiro Saito Sensei.  Her description echoes that of this consultant who also spent time practicing Misogi, or ritual purification, in this waterfall.

One thing both accounts agree on this the cold.  Many cultures have practices related to immersion in water.  Advocates say this leads to a higher level of mind and body connection and greater physical abilities.

Shinto standing practices have been around for a very long time and these were advocated and revived apparently by Omoto-Kyo and Deguchi.  These practices fell out of favor or weren't fully embraced by some students for a variety of reasons.  For one thing, O Sensei's religious leader was imprisioned, and known for treasonous and anti-war rhetoric - not all of Ueshiba's students shared his religious beliefs or openly dared to be associated with Deguchi.  For another, standing meditation is boring and painful with little overt connection to combat ability (though armies the world over make soldiers stand at attention for long periods, and have for centuries).  Some martial artists reserve this as a secret teaching for select students.

In Chinese martial arts, power standing or Zhan Zhuang is a common adjunctive practice; or even the primary practice in the case of Yiquan.  When Bruce Kumar Frantzis writes he believes O Sensei was exposed to Baguazhang, I think this one of the things he is referring to - some Baguazhang schools make heavy use of Zhan Zhuang as Frantzis' lineage does.  Whether or not O Sensei ever had any contact with any Baguazhang practitioners, he did practice standing and would have all the physical changes associated with people who practiced Zhan Zhuang with regularity in his body.  I have heard that one reason O Sensei was different from his students was that his students separated his martial practices from his religious ones.

All of this is in addition to the usual benefits meditation is known for:  increased ability to focus on tasks, improved memory, improved clarity of thought, improved impulse and emotional control.  Improved ability to perceive, analyze, and learn.  These benefits can be achieved sitting in Seiza, but also in other postures or even in motion.

There are few schools with a solid curriculum for teaching power standing, and I learned most of what I do from Shifu John Painter.  I had Aikido and Taiji teachers who had me practice standing, but there was minimal feedback and instruction.  I learned what standing could be from a student of Juilong Baguazhang.  Check out the Gompa if you are interested.  

Mostly, I want to address this article to people who don't feel they are practicing Aikido unless they are able to sit in seiza for prolonged periods of time.  I know students who only meditate in seiza, and only define meditation for themselves as involving Seiza.  Travel and injuries cost them so much more distress as their meditation has to stop.  The mindset seems to start with, "Seiza is Aikido, nothing else is."  Only meditating in Seiza also means that the mental benefits of meditation don't readily carry over into regular practice; what doesn't carry over into regular practice doesn't carry over into life. 

When I went for my Sandan test, the examiners came up beforehand and asked if I had knee problems or could sit in seiza.  They anticipated that I would be injured as a result of training for a few decades (they weren't wrong, but I did do the kneeling portion of my test).  Seiza is a valid and powerful practice, and a piece of our Aikido history and Japanese culture.  Seiza is not always healthy, and kneeling can be done to excess making students old before their time.  Standing is an alternative and adjunctive training method that is historically relevant to Aikido.  You can still practice Aikido when you cannot sit Seiza.  You may find there are enough benefits to convince you to stand more often!

(Of course I sit seiza for teachers, and to start and finish every class.  I do believe Suwari Waza should be practiced at least weekly.)