Sep.2009

There is a great difference in the environment surrounding the world of Aikido today and that of the time when I first started Aikido in 1958, and became an uchideshi (live-in practitioner) in 1969.  Back then in 1958, the vicinity of the Aikido dojo connected with the Aiki Shrine (today’s Ibaraki Branch dojo) hardly had houses around, and there were not even street lights. Amidst the dense beech tree forest, it was the kind of place that required courage just to get to the dojo.  

 

A simple room of four and a half tatami mats which was his living and sleeping area, was where the Founder lived.  This room was connected to the dojo by a corridor.  In those days, Mr. Nishiuchi who was the uchideshi then, and the late Morihiro Saito Sensei and Mrs. Saito who were already living in the present area, attended to O-Sensei and Mrs. Ueshiba.  I was a first year junior high school student when I joined, training among the adult students from 7 to 8 p.m.  During the summer, the tatami mats would become moisture laden so they were taken off the floor and stacked in the corner of the dojo.  Training was done on the bare wooden floor.  Naturally, the skin over the knees peeled.  Painful memory remains of the time my knees got infected from the wounds.

 

Due to the location, many of my sempais (seniors) were self-employed farmers.  Unlike today, not much automation existed in farming back then.  All produces were grown by human labor, therefore, it was as if everyday was for the training of the body, and the body was naturally conditioned and built.  Furthermore, influenced by Saito Sensei who had a Karate background prior to Aikido, every student had made a rolled straw barrel at home, and trained their fists and hand blades on it.  The training for yokomen uchi was done in attacking with the wooden sword and handling the attacker with bare hands.  A dojo like this must have appeared as extremely severe to the outsiders who joined in the training as visitors.  After two years of training I received my shodan, and my certificate number is 723, which suggests that in all of Aikido, there still were not that many members.

 

We called the Founder  “O-Sensei”.  The Founder lived in Iwama with his wife for 27 years, from the age of 58 until his passing at 85.  Concentrating his whole energy on martial arts and farming, O-Sensei’s life was that of offering his prayers to God, farming and devoting himself to the studies of Aikido.  We believe that it was in Iwama that O-Sensei refined Aikido. 

On the site of the Aiki Shrine is a poem written by O-Sensei: “utuskushiki kono ametsuchi no misugata wa nushi no tsukurishi ikka narikeri (the beauty of heaven and earth, the Creator made, as one family)”.  This poem embodies the earnest desire and hope for understanding that, “because this beautiful earth that we live on was created by God as our home, we must cherish it in how we use it and live amicably and joyfully.”

 

O-Sensei’s teaching style was such that if katate tori was being practiced, variations of katate tori would be taught throughout the session. O-Sensei never used the word “teach” because he was passing on what was granted to him from above.  When he showed the next variation of katate tori, he would say, “now I present to you so-and-so”.  At the beginning of class, O-Sensei always started with tai no henko.  There are four points to learn out of this training.  1) The adjusting of the maae (the distance between partners) and matching of one’s ki with that of the partner.  2) The studying of the angle for the proper opening of the body from the top of the head to tip of the toes. 3) The cultivation of the power of breath to be able to create the opening for the body no matter how strongly one is held.  4) The development of a settled mind upon opened body position, and the development of a strong hip in order that one does not move even when pulled. 

 

After completing the exercises that stem from methods such as chinkon gyo, Nishishiki health practice, and makkoho, O-Sensei gave a long talk, and then began the practice session.  At the time, I had no idea of what O-Sensei was talking about, however, in later days, when I would read about his message in magazines, I would recall the scenes in which O-Sensei had talked about those matters.  There was one message about the spirit of Aikido that O-Sensei always talked about,  and I believe this is the principle of Aikido which concerns the purpose of Aikido training.  O-Sensei said, “The foundation of AIKI is love.  It is the embodying of the spirit of the heaven and the earth in one’s heart, and the maintaining the great spirit of loving embrace for all in order to fulfill one’s mission.  This indeed ought to be the Way of the martial art.  AIKI is to win over the self.  It is the Way to gain absolute self-completion through the removal of all enemies.  Furthermore, AIKI is a martial art technique in which the law of the universe is absorbed into the body, in order to attain the higher realm of united soul and body.  This is the process and the Way of AIKI.” 

 

To add my annotation, I believe what O-Sensei wanted to express here is this:  The soul of heaven and earth is love itself.  It is the heart of compassion.  The sun gives its light and warmth to the rich and poor alike without discrimination, and does not seek anything in return.  This is loving without expecting a gain.  Hopefully, you will cultivate this kind of a giving heart through Aikido.  And as you find your answers to “why was I given my life?”, “what is my life’s mission?,” hopefully, through Aikido, you will cultivate the kind of character that would serve to do good for people and the world.   

 

O-Sensei said this about the training in Aikido waza (techniques).  “It is the training in which one’s soul is made to harmonize with that of the working of the entire universe.  It is the training in which one’s body is made to harmonize with that of the working of the entire universe.  Is a training in which the ki that unites the mind and body is made to harmonize with the working of the entire universe.”  It is necessary to have these three taking place simultaneously.  By the effect of this training, one is led to naturally understand the principles of the universe, the mind becomes clear, and the body becomes healthy; and if every person becomes an illuminating light for his or her surrounding, we should be able to light up the whole world.  

 

O-Sensei also used to say “Aikido wa misogi waza (Aikido is act of purification)”.  To add my annotation here, I would like to suppose the body as the boat, and the spirit (soul) as the headman of the boat. The boat goes in the direction that the headman wants it to go toward.  The analogy to a car would be that even if the car’s body is sturdy, if the driver is reckless, the car could become a moving weapon.  O-Sensei’s message, therefore, is that no matter how much you train your body, it is not good enough unless you also cultivate your spirit in a wholesome way in order that you would properly put your body to effective use.  The “entire universe” which O-Sensei talked about is the realm of God in which no human wisdom, consciousness, nor will is involved.  The soul of God is unconditional compassion (where compensation is not sought).  The technique of Aikido is the training to bring one’s soul and body to synchronize with this soul of God.  What should a person receiving life in this world be doing until his body decays?  In O-Sensei’s teaching, that would be the cultivation of the soul through its purification. In cultivating the soul, one must not have the intention of self preservation, but instead, with a neutral mindset, one shall maintain the attitude of grateful reciprocity and appreciation, and behave to add to the joy of all life. This is the only way to cultivate one’s soul.  In this world, we may live to 100 or so, but in the real world that we will eventually be returning to, we must continue to live for 500 or to 1,000 years.  Therefore, while we are here we should try to understand the soul of the universe, and accumulate good deeds so that when we go to the next world, we would be able to live in the good stage (a realm where those of like mind exist).  As we train in our daily practice, therefore, it is very important that we train ourselves to the spiritual level of O-Sensei that I just described.

 

1. Being one with the opponent (the matching of one’s ki and body shall be further elevated to the level of attaining oneness with the entire universe).

2. Proper courtesy and dojo manners (the sense of respect for one’s opponent, sempai and sensei shall be further elevated to the level of having appreciation for one’s parents and ancestors, respectful  reverence for nature and  proper behavior as a responsible and internationally minded member of society).

3. Power of perseverance (by bearing the hardships of training, a strong mind and body shall be built to withstand difficulties met in school, society or work place).   

4. The heart of  loving kindness toward the opponent (by training with each other and enjoying the training regardless of who one is practicing with, the mentality to harmonize is cultivated, which leads to ridding the attitude of satisfaction for the self alone).

5. The mind of creating (by constantly experimenting on the techniques, creative ingenuity evolves.  Furthermore, through continuous training over a long period of time, one’s life could be made that much more rewarding through the relationships created between fine teachers, sempais, and fellow students).   

 

Seven years ago, I had put together in my own way, five purposes of Aikido training, stemming from O-Sensei’s teachings.

 

1.    To develop a strong body and will power that will withstand when encountering difficulties.

2.    To develop a heart that builds and shapes positive human relations transcending race, religion, beliefs and politics.

3.    To develop a heart that is appreciative of one’s surroundings, including

people, ancestors, country and the universe.  

4.    To develop a heart that creates things by sensing early one’s calling from above.

5.   To develop a heart that maintains world peace and a natural environment.

            (above 1-5 purposes translated into English by Mark L. Larson)

 

 

O-Sensei said, “Aikido is a martial art in which from the beginning one is aware of his triumph”.  The entire universe is God’s world, where it is overflowing with the light of love.  Therefore, there is no discord in such a state.  Aikido is about learning of this mind, therefore, there is no room for fighting. Anyone can hold on to the attitude that as long as he himself is taken care of, it is not necessary to care about others.   It is in knowing that the purpose of Aikido training is to get rid of such thinking, it can be said that one has won from the beginning.  O-Sensei also said, “The technique of Aikido is faster than the speed of light”.  When your body is positioned in  tai no henko, with what kind of feeling are you extending your arms?  You must believe that the ki that unites your body, arms, and mind, are extended to the end of the universe.  It is said that for the light of the sun to reach the earth, it takes 8 minutes and 19.3 seconds.  However, when a person thinks of the sun, his thought can go to the sun and return instantaneously.  For some of you, it may be that your mother has already passed on, however, try recalling of your mother’s smile.  You can recall it in an instant.  What is thought is the same as having translated that thought into action, therefore, it can be said that the technique of Aikido is faster than the speed of light.  

 

There is so much more that I wish to write about, but in conclusion, I would like to say that for those training in Aikido, it is not genuine Aikido unless the practitioner himself, and those around the practitioner are happy, as well.  I am aware of this and I try to remind myself of it, but when my wife pounces at me in my hangover, “As you are unable to control yourself, your Aikido hasn’t reached too far,” there is nothing I can say in response.  

 

I close in hopes of further learning and growing together with you. 

 

 

Shigemi Inagaki

Aikido 7th dan 

      Shihan of the Aikikai Ibaraki Branch