Lessons from Aikido – A is for Aikido, B is for Bunny ears...

First contact

My first contact with aikido was when I was working in Canberra, a long time ago. My flatmate had joined the University Aikido club and would come home after class and use me as a uke to practice techniques on. I became intrigued by the various locks employed in aikido and how effectively they could immobilise someone with apparent ease. This was a martial art that did not require physical strength or brawn – it was effortless - and I wanted to find out more.

Lessons from Aikido

It was not long before I joined the club. It was being taught in a very traditional way- with little talking from Sensei and a strong emphasis on self-learning through watching and practice. Sometimes Sensei would stop a class and have the beginners sit and watch the senior grades - watching training he called it. The principle here was the best way to learn is to figure it out for yourself – and not rely on someone telling you. Often this is a slower way to learn but once you have mastered the basis of a technique through your own efforts of discovery it will stay with you.

Incidentally, one of the aspects of aikido that attracts me to the art is the enjoyment of mastering techniques to the point where the technique is performed uninterrupted and flows. Of course there is always room for improvement and discovery.

When I returned some years later to the Canberra club - Sensei was talking a lot more during class and describing the techniques – I was told that Sensei had decided that the rate of progress of students was too slow. He put this down to westerners having being rote taught in schools too long and hence beginners of aikido needed to relearn the ability to watch and learn.

Sensei also emphasised that you should avoid talking yourself through a technique as you are using the “wrong part of your brain” to practice aikido. Verbalising techniques, as Sensei would say, distracts from a deeper learning and training experience.

So a balance is required between the level of instruction required and the opportunity to practice and work out a technique. At Riai I believe we have this balance about right. For example, we are instructed to avoid overly correcting beginners, limit “shadow teaching” your partner, and limit discussions on the mat.

As an aside, a guest Sensei at the Chartwell dojo – said when you watch Sensei demonstrate, focus on three aspects: Sensei’s arms/hands, feet and hips. Put the three together and you will be able to do the technique.

Another tool I have found useful to reinforce a technique is to play it back in your mind as though you are replaying a video and watching yourself as nage being attacked by uke. This type of visualisation is important for training and moves know-how from your short-term memory to long-term memory. This in turn helps you to react instinctively to attacks and achieve “no mind”. Sensei Richard Moon also emphasises the need to be able to react to an energy flow or attack in what ever way – not predetermined.

Visualisation is also important in Sensei Henry’s teaching – as exemplified through use of bunny ears to help with ikkyo and the quest for A shaped arms in various techniques (“A is for Aikido”).

When I started training in Aikido I was frustrated at not being able to master techniques as quickly as I would like to, especially if others are mastering the technique more quickly than you are. In Aikido though, this does not matter. We are not in competition, and everyone is on their own path, with their own challenges and timeline to meet these challenges. When I find new techniques perplexing now, it is a humbling reminder that there is always something new to learn and room for improvement. The path of Aikido is long but this means new challenges are always presented to keep you interested. Obtaining excellence in any activity takes on-going dedication and Aikido is no different.

One idea that I find helpful to move ahead is that emphasised by Sensei Hans. Sensei Hans tells us to train to improve a technique. To do this you must be open to examining your performance of a technique and being aware of where improvements are possible and then practice to try and improve or obtain a new level. It is easy to get trapped into reinforcing less than ideal technique by not checking your performance or assuming that there is no margin for improvement.

Other teachers emphasise the need to start with a strong hanmi (stance) and always extend ki. I believe ki is central to aikido – is it not in the middle of the word aikido! So what is ki? Sensei Nadeau, at the recent camp, talked about “beaming”, others talk about energy flows or streams, and extension. “Un-bendable arm”, where the arm is in a “relaxed state” yet strong – is used to demonstrate ki. In my training at Chartwell dojo I realise so many techniques, if not all, involve use of an un-bendable arm and hence ki extension.

We are told that aikido techniques can create a void or vacuum that can suck uke in leaving you disorientated. As well I have been told that your energy or ki system can be shocked. Part of training is to become a “good uke” and we learn to receive techniques safely. So often though, we do not experience fully how powerful aikido techniques can be.

I didn’t really know what to make of ki when I started aikido, but on a few occasions I have been thrown by a sensei that has made me realise how powerful aikido is and that there is something about ki that is also important to Aikido. In these few cases the throw has left me completely disorientated with a tingling sensation – like your energy system has been shocked, but not in an unpleasant way.

Another lesson from Sensei Nadeau that has stuck in my mind is – don’t just stand there move – which is often reinforced by a slap by Sensei Nadeau if you don’t move. To start with we often practice techniques from static but we quickly need to move on and start moving ahead of an attack. As well we are taught to look at the whole uke when attacking and not to focus on one aspect of the attack, such as the hands.

There are a lot of lessons from aikido which I find can equally be applied outside the dojo to everyday living. These include communication with people (Riai puts a strong emphasis on communicating with your training partner), developing confidence and the “right attitude”, awareness of what is happening around you, moving to a new improved level in your pursuits, better posture and learning to relax.

The effortless nature of aikido is important to me and I will end by emphasising a couple of principles of training in aikido that I often use. These are:
1. It is easy to resort to physical strength when performing techniques – so you need to constantly test whether you are doing this so the true nature of aikido is discovered; and
2. learn to relax – test for tension and be aware of resistance.