From: @brtph115.bnr.ca (Meryl W. Freeman)
Newsgroups: rec.martial-arts
Subject: Re: Choosing a martial art - effectiveness?
Summary: Aikido, not just technique
Keywords: Aikido, spirituality, connected
Date: 10 Apr 92 14:12:48 GMT
Organization: Bell Northern Research Inc.

Well Ned, you knew I had to respond to this... :-)

In article <2308@news.duke.edu> ndd@bal1.mc.duke.edu (Ned Danieley) writes:
>tk@dcs.ed.ac.uk (Tommy Kelly) writes:

>: KARATE - has a heavy weight of tradition behind it.  I enjoyed it.
>: 	 However, it strikes me as being an inflexible system - in the
>: 	 same way that nuclear weapons are inflexible.  At heart, I am
>: 	 a pretty upright sort of guy.  I'd rather step off the pavement,
>: 	 than fight.  I'd rather restrain, than strike.  I'd rather strike
>: 	 a little than a lot.  I'd rather hurt than kill.
>
>This, in my understanding, is exactly what Aikido was designed for; it's
>certainly an aspect that I emphasize in my training.

Agreed, to a certain extent. I like to emphasize "peaceful reconciliation"
rather than hurting. Maybe that's a euphemism, but to me, it captures the
spirit of Aikido.

>I'm curious about this; what explicit religious links have you seen
>in Aikido schools? I've been studying and teaching Aikido for 12 years,
>and the schools I've trained at haven't had any explicit religious links.

I can understand where Tommy might get this idea. Implicit in Aikido and
in O'Sensei's post-revelation teachings is a highly spiritual basis that is
not simply associated with bowing and respect. In the many schools 
with different styles that I've travelled to in the last 9 years,
there's a lot of talk about energy, connection with universal energy and
spirit, and connection and cooperation with others (and not just Ki Society...
in fact, one dojo I visited in Florida had very hard, effective Aikido
technique while emphasizing this spiritual, connectivity aspect). 
I think that many people confuse spirituality with religion.  
It's very different. And it's very personal.
 
>many Aikidoka do meditate; I don't. I sure that there are many people
>who would argue that my Aikido could be better if I did, but it's not
>required. I haven't paid much attention to zen, either.

Maybe not meditation per se, like sitting Zazen. You are probably already
meditating while you are moving during technique. However, I would argue
that being grounded in the physical and in just technique is a very 
limiting philosophy. I think that dealing with the mind, body, and spirit
is essential to personal growth and growth as a MA. However you make that
connection is a personal thing. This is not to say that technique is not
important, but there's a lot more to martial artists than just body parts
moving in a particular way. I find it difficult to understand how, in over
12 years of martial arts training (especially in Aikido) that you haven't
found any kind of spiritual connection? I know this might open up a major
can of worms with some folks on this group... oh well. 
 
In my classes over the last year or so, I have started incorporating more
about energy and connectedness, as well as standard instruction about        
technique. It seems to go over very well with even the most hard-core 
students. An especially enlightening experience for me was teaching Aikido
wrist techniques to a very hard-core Karate school in Raleigh, and 
incorporating the spiritual/energy aspects. I did it as an experiment, and
I was suprised at how well it was received.

>I would urge you not to judge any art by its surface characteristics:
>take some time to investigate what's being done and why before choosing
>your path.

Agreed, absolutely.

In Aiki,

Meryl Freeman


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