DoingAikidobyAlanDrysdale,Godan ChiefInstructor,SandDriftAikikai

ForewordThis book is intended for students who are neither total beginnersnoradvancedyudansha.WhydidIwriteit?BecauseI haventfoundabookwhichcoversthematerialIwantourstudents to know. I have pulled together my thoughts on doing aikido based on almost twentyyears ofteaching,andseeingthe same errorsmadetimeaftertime.Someoftheseerrorswerepointedout tomebymyteachers,butmostwerediscoveredthehardway. Thisisofcoursethetraditionalwaytopractice,butitdoesmake progress slower than it need be. Even with the best teachers, aikidoisnevergoingtobesomethingyoucanlearnrapidly.Ifyou reach shodan (first degree black belt) within ten years, youare doingwell. I have made no attempt to make a definitive catalogue of techniques.I'dfinditboringtodoandthebookwouldbelargeas youcandoalmostanytechnique,omote orura,fromanyattack, and there are oftenmanyvariations. Theinformation isaimed moreatrefiningtechniquethanonwhichfoottoputforward.The bookdoesnotcoverbasicinformationsuchashowtobehavein thedojo,asthisiscoveredbyapamphletalreadypublishedby SandDriftAikikai. Thereareasmanywaysofdoingaikidoasthereareteachers. ThisbookisbasedonthewayweworkatSandDriftAikikai.We firmlybelievethataikidoisamartialart,apracticalmethodofself

DoingAikidodefense. Thus there is an emphasis on practicality and effectivenessthatothersmayfindoffensive.Theyarewelcometo theirstylealso,however,OSenseicertainlytaughtapracticalart. On the other hand, excessive violence will limit the scope of practice, both causing early retirement from the art and driving awaystudents.Asisoftenthecase,themiddleroadisthebest. Tomymind,aikidoisnotareligion.Norisitmystical.There aremental andspiritual disciplinesintheart,aswellasphysical ones. Kiisatermusedtodescribepoorlyunderstood,hardto communicateconceptsthatrelatetoallthreeaspectsofaikido.All areimportant,butnotmystical. Aikidoisforbothmenandwomen,formaturechildrenand oldpeoplewhoarefit.Thereisnodifferenceintheartforthese differentgroups,thoughthepracticewillvarysomewhat. Awordaboutpoliticalcorrectness:Ihavegenerallyused"he" asapersonalpronouninthisbook. Thisisnotintendedtobea slighttowomenandthesexesareonlytwodivisionsofaworld thatisincreasinglyandunjustifiablyrepresentedasdivided.Itis stillgrammaticallycorrecttouseittoincludebothsexes.

DisclaimerAikidoisphysicalandstrenuous,likeanymartialart. This bookisformoderatelyadvancedstudents,notforbeginners.You should only practice what is described here at a reputable club underanexperiencedinstructor.

Acknowledgments:ThankstoAnitaandDoc,andallthestudentsofaikidowith whomI'vepracticedovertheyears. ParticularthankstoKelly,

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Russ, Allen, Dart, Chris, and Karl, for being in some of the pictures,andtoAnitafortakingmanyofthem.

1996,AlanDrysdale

Foradditionalcopiespleasesend$15percopyto: 6208WindoverWay, Titusville, FL32780

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DoingAikido

ContentsWhatisAikido?...............................................................................1 Attitude.......................................................................................5 HowtoAvoidGettingintoaFight..............................................7 Calmness,Alertness,Clarity........................................................8 FollowtheRightWay,nottheeasyway...................................10 Practicing.......................................................................................13 StandingandMoving.................................................................15 Ukemi........................................................................................16 Breathing....................................................................................22 SelectingaPartner.....................................................................22 DoingTechniques......................................................................23 Extension....................................................................................35 PracticewithaSword....................................................................37 Suburi.........................................................................................37 TanrenUchi...............................................................................40 ShihoGiri..................................................................................40 KumiTachi................................................................................41 PracticingwithTwoPartners.....................................................43 AttacksforPracticingAikido........................................................45 KatateTori.................................................................................46 KataTori....................................................................................46 RyoteandMoroteTori...............................................................48 ShomenUchi..............................................................................48 YokomenUchi...........................................................................49 Tsuki..........................................................................................50 UshiroAttacks...........................................................................50 SuwariWazaandHanmiHandachi...........................................52

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Kicks..........................................................................................53 MultipleAttacks.........................................................................54 AikidoTechniques.........................................................................56 GeneralPrinciples......................................................................56 Atemi..........................................................................................62 OmoteandUra...........................................................................64 Ikkyo..........................................................................................64 Nikkyo........................................................................................68 Sankyo.......................................................................................72 Yonkyo.......................................................................................76 Shihonage...................................................................................77 KoteGaeshi................................................................................81 KaitenNage...............................................................................83 IrimiNage..................................................................................85 TenchiNage...............................................................................88 KoshiNage.................................................................................89 KokyuNage(SokumenIrimiNage)..........................................91 AikiOtoshi.................................................................................93 JujiNage....................................................................................94 HenkaWazaandKaeshiWaza......................................................96 Weapons.........................................................................................99 SwordTechniques....................................................................100 JoTechniques...........................................................................101 KnifeTechniques.....................................................................102 FreestyleandMultipleAttacks....................................................106 Teaching.......................................................................................113 MovingOn...................................................................................120 Glossary.......................................................................................121 TestRequirements.......................................................................125 ContactInformation.....................................................................127 v

DoingAikidoIndex............................................................................................129 ProgressinginAikido..................................................................130

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FiguresFigure1.Hanmi............................................................................15 Figure2.KohoUkemi................................................................17 Figure3.ZempoUkemi................................................................18 Figure4.SlappingBreakfall.........................................................19 Figure5.IrimiEscape.................................................................28 Figure6.TenkanEscape...............................................................29 Figure7.CornerStepEscape........................................................30 Figure8.ShihoGirifromLeftHanmi..........................................41 Figure9.MoroteTori...................................................................48 Figure10.OmoteandUra............................................................64 Figure11.ShomenUchiIkkyoOmote........................................65 Figure12.ShomenUchiIkkyoUra..............................................68 Figure13.Nikkyo.........................................................................70 Figure14.SankyoHandhold........................................................72 Figure15.SankyoTakedown.......................................................74 Figure16.Yonkyo........................................................................76 Figure17.Shihonage:HandHold................................................78 Figure18.KataToriShihonage....................................................79 Figure19.KoteGaeshi.................................................................82 Figure20.KaitenNageOmote.....................................................84 Figure21.KaitenNageUra..........................................................85 Figure22.IrimiNage....................................................................87 Figure23.TenchiNage:Kuzushi.................................................88 Figure24.TenchiNage:Kake......................................................89 Figure25.KoshiNage..................................................................90 Figure26.KokyuNage.................................................................91 Figure27.KokyuNagefromMaeGeri........................................93

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DoingAikidoFigure28.AikiOtoshi..................................................................94 Figure29.JujiNage......................................................................95 Figure30.ShihonagewithaSword............................................100 Figure31.JoTori......................................................................101 Figure32.YokomenUchiGokyoOmote.................................103 Figure33.ShomenUchiGokyo.................................................104 Figure34.KoteGaeshiwithaknife...........................................104 Figure35.SankyoKnifeDefense...............................................105 Figure36.TwoAttackers...........................................................110 Figure37.FiveAttackers............................................................113

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WhatisAikido?Aikidoisamartialart. Italsoprovidesexerciseandagood dojoislikeanextendedfamily,buttheseareincidental.Amartial artisafightingart.Aikidoisaformofselfdefense,soitisless aggressivethansome,butitisstillafightingart.Itisrigorous,it is physical, and it works. However, there is no competitive sparring. Withsparringyouhavetohaverulestominimizethe chanceofsevereinjuries.Therearenorulesinaikido. Almost anybody can do aikido, but you should be fit and healthy because it does involve energetic movement. Great physical strength is not required, but strength is used when available.Beinganaturalathleteisunnecessary:perseveranceis morecritical.Mentalstrengthandacuityaremoreimportantthan physicalability.Goodcoordinationisimportant. Doing Aikido:Ichosethistitle becauseaikidois apathto followthroughlife.Itisn'taskilltolearnandthenuse,asmostof us treat driving a car. It is something that must be constantly studied, constantly improved. Youwillnever reach theend of whatthereistolearn,thoughyoumightreachtheendofwhatyou individuallyarewillingtoacquire.Ifyouthinkyouhavelearned allthereisinaikido,you'vestoppedlooking.Youmightneedto gotoanotherschool,tofindafreshperspective,butusuallyallyou needtodoistostudyharder. Aikidoliterallytranslatesasthe"wayofharmonyandspirit". Thismeanstoactivelyblendwithanattacktocounteractit. As such it is ideal for a small, less muscular person. However, musclesandmuscularstrengthareveryimportantinaikido.Ikeep finding students whohavebeentold"don'tusestrength, itisn't aikido".Thisiswrong.Strengthcanbeahandicapisinlearning 1

aikido, whenastrongbeginnercanusemusclestothrow down anotherbeginnerevenwithincorrecttechnique. Strengthshould notbeusedverymuchatfirst,butasatechniqueislearned,your strengthshouldbegraduallyfedintothetechnique:justasyougo easyontheacceleratorwhileyoulearntodrive,thenusemoreand morepowerasyouprogress.Bythetimeyoubecomeayudansha (blackbelt),youshouldbeusingallofyourstrengthatleastsome ofthetime,andusingiteffectivelybutwithoutstraining. Acriticalaspectofaikidoisthephilosophy. Itisdefensive. Thisdoesnotmeanthatitispassive:farfromit.Butitdoesmean that you should not use it to cause trouble. This includes not invitingtroublesothatyouhavetheopportunitytopracticeyour artonanunsuspectingperson. Aikidoispracticedinthedojo. Youpracticeforwhatyou hope never happens:anattack onthestreet. Aikidois notthe techniquesthatstudentspracticeinthedojo.Thesetechniquesare toolstohelpyouunderstandanddeveloptheart.Aikidoiswhat happens when you are attacked, and youdo something without thinking,anditworks.Itisunconscious,comingfromMusashis "void",ratherthanbeingsomethingyoudoconsciously. Itsnot somethingyouthinkabout,exceptinlearningit. There are many martial arts. All are worthy of respect becausetheyworkedforsomeone,somewhere.Youshouldstudy otherartsandotherstylesifonlytounderstandhowyoucanbe attacked. You will probably also learn things that can be incorporated into your personal style. However, beware of "tricks". Amartialartisastateofmind, andtricksimplying easylittlethingsthatmaygiveyouanadvantageinaparticular situation are not the way to go. You should accumulate techniquesanddistilloutthecommonelementsandmakeanart 2

WhatisAikido?outofthem,anartwhichisrobustandeffectiveindealingwith variedattacks,includingthoseyouhaveneverseenorimagined before. Basicprinciplesremainthesame; applicationsvary. WalkerSensei There is only one type of human body, with two major subtypes(maleandfemale).Becausethereisonlyonetype,there is a restricted number of ways someone can attack you and, similarly,alimitednumberofdefensesfromtheseattacks. Asa result,therearemanysimilaritiesbetweendifferentarts.Likethe blindmenandtheelephant,itisamatteroffocusratherthanof absolutedifferences.Ifyoudon'tlikeaikido,youcanstudyoneof theothers.However,don'tcometoanaikidoclassunlessyouare ready to study aikido. Your sensei is there to teach you. He generally gets paid little or nothing to do this. Your fellow studentsaretheretolearn,nottogethurt.Youowethemyourbest also.Inexchange,yougettobepartofthedojo,anorganization ofpeoplededicatedtotheart. Physically, aikido is characterized by circular movement (marui). Evenapparentlylineartechniqueslikeikkyo omote are circular.Veryoften,whenbeginnersarehavingaproblemwitha technique, it is because they are not moving circularly. For example, in irimi nage, the head is pushed down, and often beginnershavetroublegettinguketostandbackupsothatthey canbethrown.Thisisbecausetheyaretryingtoreturnukeshead alongthesamepath,insteadofmakingamorecircularmovement andreturningitalongadifferentpath. 3

OSenseiwasdeeplyreligious.Consequently,heimbuedhis aikido with religious meaning. I am not religious, so I dont address it here. However, any martial art is more than merely physical:itincludesmentalandspiritual aspects. Mentalaspects coverthingslikewhattothinkaboutandwhattolookatwhile doing techniques. By spiritual, I mean everything beyond the logicalmind:whatmakesitworthfightingtosaveyourfamily, what makes a person worthwhile, what makes someone trustworthyandhonest,whatmakeshimdeterminedtowin. Partofthepracticeofanymartialartistodeveloparesolute spirit.Thisiswhatmakesthedifferencebetweenawinneranda loserinmartialartsorinlife.Traditionalschoolsapparentlyspent agreat deal oftime developing fortitudeintheir students,with rigoroustraining,constantdiscouragement,afairamountofabuse, andexposuretounpleasantconditions.Imnotsurehowmuchof theirsuccesswasduetotrainingandhowmuchtoweedingoutthe nonperformers.However,thespiritislikethemindorbody.It doesneedtobeexercisedtobecomestrongandresilient. This developmentwilloccurifthestudentconsistentlypracticeswith determination.

Ai. SofarasIunderstandit,aimeansharmony inphysical,mentalandspiritual senses. Physically,youshouldnotconflict with your partners strength,even ifyourpartner is anattacker bentondoingyouseriousharm. Instead,youshouldblendwith hismovement,takingovercontrolofhispowerandusingittodeal withhisattack.Mentally,yourattitudeshouldbesimilar,avoiding argumentswithoutconcedinganythingimportant.Spiritually,you shouldavoidclashingalso.Youarethesolejudgeofyourself.

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WhatisAikido? Ki.TherearemanymeaningsofthewordkiinJapanese,even

restricting ourselves to the particular kanji (character) used in aikido.Iliketothinkofitasmeaningthesameasthespiritina spiritedhorse.Kiisntanythingmystical,andthisjustreminds methatIhavetobeactiveandaheadofthegameinmytechnique. Onethingthatusedtoinfuriatemeearlyinmyaikidocareer wasthatwhenIaskedabouthowtodoatechnique,peoplewould, moreoftenthannot,saysomethingaboutki.Isoonlearnedthatit meantthattheydidntknowtheanswer,theydidntknowhow bettertocommunicatetheanswerortheywerentabouttoshare their secrets with me. There is no magic in aikido, except in Asimovssenseoftechnologyyoudontunderstand.

Do.Adoisaway,amethodofstudy.Amartialartwithdo

initsnameisgenerallymoreesotericandlesspracticalthanone withjutsu.Aikidocanbeusedtodevelopbody,mind,orspirit, orevenallthree.Itisalsoaveryeffectivemethodofselfdefense. Thereisnoconflicthere,thoughsomepeoplefocusononewayof lookingataikidoandsomeatotherways. Itis,however,inour dojo,notacceptableforpeopletointentionallyhurtotherstudents, nortopracticewithoutdueconsiderationfortherankandphysical ability of others. In the case of aikido, the study, the path, is lifelong.

AttitudeCorrectattitudeiscritical toanymartial art. Yourgeneral attitudetolifeandonthematshouldbethesame.Youshouldbe respectfulofothersandofyourself. Beproudofwhoandwhat youare. Thatmeansdevelopingyourselfintosomebodywhois 5

worthwhileaswellasbeingproudofhavingdoneso.Aikidohas nothingtodowithexcessiveuseofforce,andyoushouldnever lookforopportunitiestopracticeitonthestreet,atleastnotthe physicalsideofit. Ontheotherhand,youshouldnotbackdownevenintheface ofdeath fromwhatyoureallybelieve. Eternalvigilanceisthe priceoffreedom.Soisthewillingnesstostandupforyourbeliefs. Aikido is amartialart. Itisdesignedtobefunctional,tobean effective art in the event of a physical attack. If you work to understandit,itwillbefunctional. Occasionally,wehearabout peoplewhosayaikidodoesn'twork.Theyarewrong.Theyhave neverlearnedtomakeitwork.Thefailureisinthem,notinthe art. However,therearenoguaranteesinthisworld. Evendeath maybeconqueredoneday,andyoucanavoidtaxesbynotearning enoughtopaythem. Aikidoiseffective,buttherearesituations fromwhichitisunrealistictoexpecttoemergeunscathedoreven alive.Ifsomebodyintendstokillyouwithagun,youarelikelyto die.Ifadozenpeopleattackyouwithknivesandsticks,youare likelytodie.Butinmoreprobablesituationssuchasastreetfight, aikidowillmakethedifferencebetweenlifeanddeath. Alwaysbeready.Youwillneedaikidowhenyouleastexpect it. If somebody jumps out of a doorway to attack you, your responseshouldbebothimmediateanddecisive:perhapstostiff arm them awayor backfist them in the face, depending on the positioning.Itshoulddefinitelyneverbetoshrinkawayorgivea startledjump.Musashisaid"neverdiewithoneswordsheathed". By this, he meant to useall youhave to succeed. This is the correct attitude, and it has applications well beyond physical confrontations. 6

WhatisAikido?Thebestpracticeforbeingreadyinthestreetistoalwaysbe ready on the mat. I often see people practicing kokyu ho by shufflingtogether,anduketakesholdofnage,andletshimthrow themdown. Thereisnointentoneitherside. Instead,practice alwaysbeingready,withthearmsextended.Whentwostudents cometogethertopractice,alwayswatchhowtheyapproacheach other. Ideally, nage should give just enough of an opening to inviteuke'sattackatatimeandinamannerofnage'schoosing. Neithershouldbelackadaisicalaboutthepractice. Oneoftenhearstalkaboutnottryingtowin,howthereisno winning or losing in martial arts. This is overstating the case. Thereisnocompetitioninaikido. Therearenoconteststosee whocanwinacup.However,succeeding,achievingyourgoalsno matterwhatstandsinyourway,iswhatmartialartsareabout.Just besurethatwhatyouarefightingforisworthdyingfor.Having saidthis,excessiveconcernforwinningatlittlethingscangetin thewayofprogressinthedojo.Alittlecompetitivespiritbetween peopleatthesameleveltoseewhocanprogressfastestisperhaps good,butitcanbecarriedtoofar. Everybodyprogressesathis ownpace,andbasictechniqueformsthefoundationforadvanced technique. Whatshouldbeavoidedinmartialartsisthinkingin termsofwinningorlosing,ratherthansucceedinginyouraim.As Musashi says, always think of cutting the opponent not of particularstrikesanddefenses.

HowtoAvoidGettingintoaFightFights generally come about because people want to fight. Two people frustrated with life rub up against each other and createsparks.Ifnodamagewasdone,thatwouldbefine.They'd justgetsomeexerciseandblowoffsomesteam,andsettledown 7

again.Unfortunately,oncewegetpastearlychildhood,fightsget serious.Peopletrytohurtorevenkilleachother.Thenyouneed tofindabetterwayofsettlingadispute. Thereisalwaysariskofseriousinjuryinafight.Nomatter howskilledyouare,thereisanelementofchanceinvolved.You mighttriponastone,breakyourankle,andloosethefightasa result.Youmightgetintoitwithsomeonemoreskilledthanyou are. You might very well have misjudged how well you can handleaphysicalconflict,particularlyafterafewbeers:ifitgets tothepoint ofaphysicalconfrontationoveratrivialmatter,you have certainly misjudged something. Few things are worth fightingabout. Ontheotherhand,therearethingswhichitisyourmoralduty tofightfor. Thereisnodoubtinmostpeople'smindsthatthey shouldfighttoprotecttheirfamily,forexample. Iwouldagree wholeheartedlythere.Butwhataboutoverwhelmingodds?You should be ready,willing, andable to dieforwhatyoubelieve. However,insomecircumstancesitmightbebetternottofight, eventhoughyouwantto.Youmustdecidewhatyourgoalsare, andyouregoshouldnevercomeintothedecision,andyoushould goforthosegoals.Youmayhavetodecidequickly,sobesureof yourpriorities.

Calmness,Alertness,ClarityFightshappenwhenpeoplegetangryattheiropponent,atthe world,oratthemselves,andlosecontrol.Thisiswrong:don'tlet yourselfgetoutofcontrol. Angercanbeusedasatool,toget moreoutofyourself,tospuryouontosuccess.Itcanbeusedto overwhelmanopponentevenbeforeanythingphysicalhappens, butitshouldneverbeallowedtocontrolyou. 8

WhatisAikido?You should stay calm, in a state of mushin (empty mind). Thiscanbedifficultwhenyouarebeingprovoked,butyoumust choosethetimeandplaceforaconflict. Thefirststeptowards defeatistoletyouropponentmakethesedecisions.Mushinisnot blankness,ratheritisastatewhereyouseewhatisgoingonand respondappropriatelywithoutthinkingaboutthedetails.Afogof angercaneasilypreventyouseeingwhatisgoingon,thenyoucan besurprisedfrombehind. Youshouldremainalert,always. Ifyougetcareless,acar couldhityou,oryoucouldtriponacurbandgetbeatenasaresult. Seewhatisreallythere. Itiseasytobemislead. Madison AvenueandtheentirepoliticalstructureoftheUnitedStatesworks bymisleading.Youhavetolookbeyondtheobvious.Youmight stillbemislead,butnotaseasily. Asacorollarytothis,donotletyourmind getattachedto events.Attachmentcanalsoblindyou.Wehaveatendencyinthe Westtoliveinthepastorthefutureinsteadofthepresent. We throwsomebody,thenworryaboutwhatwedidwrongaswetryto throwthenextone.Orwethinkabouthowwewillthrowthenext personbeforewearefacedwithhim.Attachmentbecauseoftoo muchfocuscanbeasbadasattachmentbecauseofanger.Evenas youdoatechnique,leavepartofyourmindfreetoseewhatis happeningelsewhere.Engageandthrowoneattackerthenlethim goinyourmindaswellaswithyourhandssothatyoucanpay attentiontothecurrentproblem. Similarly,whenyouarefacedwithanattacker,dontlethis eyesorhisweaponcaptureyourmind.Don'tevenlookathisface. Allowyoureyestowatchthewholeofhim,andeverythingelse aroundalso.Observethemovementofhishands,butdon'tfocus exclusively on them. Usually, an attack will be signaled by a 9

movementofthebody,thoughhewillprobablytrynottotelegraph it.Maybethehipmoves.Maybethefoot. Conversely,trainyourselfnottotelegraphwhatyouareabout todo. Certainlydonotpullbackafistbeforestriking. Donot make extra arm movements to "set uke up". Just make the appropriatemovement:nowarning,justmove.Ifyouarerelaxed, youaremoreabletomovewithoutwarningthanifyouaretense. Ifyouaretense,anopponentcanseeyourelax,andknowsyouare abouttomove.

FollowtheRightWay,nottheeasywayItiseasytofollowthecrowd.Itiseasytodowhatfeelsgood atthemoment.Indeed,don'tavoiddoingthesethingsjustbecause youfeelinclinedtodothem.Buttherecomesapointwherethe easywaybecomesthewrongway. Ifyoukeepdoingtheeasy thingpastthispoint,youwillpaythepricelater. Inaikido,thepriceisstagnation.Youwillstopprogressing, andmayevengotheotherway.Atsomepoint,yoursenseiwill have taught you all he knows. Then you need to pick up the responsibilityandfigureouthowtomove on. Icertainlyexpect mystudentstolearnallIhavetoteachandtomoveonfurther, thenpassthebatontotheirstudents. Generallyitislazinessthatstopspeoplepracticing,butyou can also overdo training. You can be too rigorous, and hurt yourselfandhavetostoppracticing. Youcanhurtyourpartner, andendupwithoutanuke.Youwon'tprogressthatwayeither. Howdoyoufindtherightway?Yoursenseihastoshowyou atfirst.Untilyougainanunderstandingofyourown,dowhathe says,dowhathedoes,andcopyitasaccuratelyasyouareable, alwayswonderingwhyhedoesitthatway. Gradually,youwill 10

WhatisAikido?begintoseethewayforyourself. Bythetimeyoureachyour shodan,youshouldhaveanideawherethepathis,butalwayskeep lookingfornewideasandlevelsofunderstanding. Thisassumesthatyouhaveagoodsensei. Therearesome peopleoutthereteachingwhodonothavethewellbeingoftheir studentsinmind. Generallyyoucantellbywatchinghowthey treattheirstudentsandbyhowmanyinjuriesthestudentshave. Youshouldchooseasenseicarefully. Onceyoudochooseone, trusthim.Youmightstillfindthat,asyouprogress,younolonger agreewithhim. Youmighthavedifferentideasofhowtolive yourlives.Thenyouhavetoeitherfindanothersenseiorbranch out on your own. The only guidance I can give you is to be consistentandrigorous.Don'tmakecompromises.Eitherresolve differencesofopinion,orlooksomewhereelse. WhenIsaythis,Idon'tmeandisagreementsoverlittlethings. Forexample,thereisplentyofroomfordoingtechniquesdifferent ways. What I mean is that if you are in a dojo being run by somebodywhomyoudonotwholeheartedlyadmire,youareinthe wrongplace. All too often, people choose the easy way out of laziness. This is fatal to the art. Often, the reason people don't like a particular techniqueisthattheycan'tdothattechnique,orcan't takethatukemi.Ifanything,studythesetechniquesharder.You don'tlearnmuchbypracticingwhatyoualreadydowell.Youdo learnbyunderstandingwhyyoudon'tlikeatechniqueandhowto makeitwork.Ifyoureallyfeelatechniqueisineffective,figure outwhy,andhowtomakeiteffective. Thereisnofastwaytolearnaikido.Alltheteachers,books, andvideotapesintheworldcanonlypointouttheway.Itupto

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theindividualstudenttoprogress,andtheonlywayistopractice, continuallypractice.

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PracticingAlwaysbeready.Icantsaythisoftenenough,orstressittoo much.Practicealwaysbeingready,bothmentallyandphysically. Practiceitonthemat,practiceathome,practiceatwork,practice onthestreet. Mostpeoplewhoareattackedaresurprisedthey didntpayattentionuntilitwastoolate. Alwaysmaintaintheextension ofyourarms,especiallythe leadingone.Keepitinuke'sface,sothatukehastopushitaside togetincloseenoughtoattack.Ifyouarebeingharassedinabar, andyouropponentkeepscomingcloserandcloser,sothathecan suckerpunchyou,holdoutyourhandandsay,"Pleasestayaway," orsomesimilarwords. Thenhehastobrushyourarmasideor grabittoattackyou.Eitherofthoseattacksarequitefamiliarby thetimeyouhavepracticedforayear,andwillgiveeasyopenings forapplicationoftechniques. Alwaysmaintainthetrianglestance,withonefootforward, andmaybethirtypercentoftheweightonit.Don'ttaketoowidea stance:atmostoneandahalfshoulderwidthsbetweenyourfeet. Thenyoucanmoverapidlyinanydirection.Especiallywhenyou dokoshinage,don'texceedthisdistance. Otherwise,ukemight fallonyourlegandhurtyourknee.Forkoshinageyoucaneven putyourfeetsidebyside.Youcanexceedtwoshoulderwidthsto performsomeotherthrows,butregainthecorrectstanceassoonas ukeisthrown. Beingukeisashardasbeingnage,andwithoutagooduke littleprogresscanbemade.Ukeshouldbeneithertooeasynortoo hardtothrow.Ukeshouldflowwiththetechnique,neithergoing toosoonnorhangingback. Eitherextremeisfrustratingtonage and,asyouprogress,dangeroustouke.

PracticingAttackmeaningfully. Don'tgiveasloppyattack:putsome intentinto it,focusingontherequiredattacknotonwhatother attacksyoucoulddo,butdontovercommiteither.Youcanslow downforanagewhoisn'treadyforafullboreattackindeed,you should, but never attack without aiming at the target. With a punch, the target is generally the center of the belly, where a mistake will just wind nage without doing permanent damage. Aimtodrivethroughthetarget.Snappingapunchshortmakesthe attackirrelevant.Withagrab,catchholdasifyoumeantohold nage. Practiceyourattacks.Ifyouarepunching,practicedelivering punches.Eachpunchshouldbeaclean,powerful,focusedstrike. Ifyoumiss,suchasifnagestepsaside,youshouldendupon balance.Afewweekspracticingwithakarateclasswillimprove mostpeoplespunches. Beagoodactor. Whenyouslowdownfornage'sbenefit, don'tcheat. Sure,youcouldchangethetarget. Sureyoucould changeyourbalancetostopthatbeginnerfromthrowingyou.But whobenefits? Certainlynotthebeginner. Notevenyouasuke. It'sacheapboosttotheegoandabadhabitthatwillloseyou friendsandmisleadyouinlearningaboutaikido. Donthurry.Beginnerssoonfindthatiftheyrushthrougha techniqueitwillworkbetteragainstanotherbeginner.However, rushingatechniquepreventsyoufromstudyinghowtomakeit better.Ifyoulearntorushtechniquesinthedojo,youwillgoso fastinthestreet,withadrenalinepumping,thatyouwillbetotally ineffective. Thereisnodangerthatsomebodyyoumeetinthe streetwillbeabletoreversetechniquesonyoubecauseyoudo them slowly and correctly unless they have studied aikido, but

Practicingthere is a serious danger that you will fumble and loose the technique. Take care of your body, its the only one you get. It is important to be able to work through pain, even the pain of a Figure1.HanmiYoushouldbeinbalancewith70%oftheweightonthebackfoot.

severeinjury,butyoudonthavetodosoallthetime.Injuriesare madeworsebyworkingthroughthepain. Ifyougethurt,take timeoffthematforfullrecovery.Dontgettooeagertodowild ukemi. Build up to them. Otherwise you might end up permanentlyhurtandunabletocontinuepracticing.

StandingandMovingThe basic posture of aikido is hanmi (halfopen stance) as showninFigure1.Youshouldalwayscomebacktothisposture, eitherleftorrighthanded.Standupright,withyourkneesslightly bentandyourfeetoneandaquartershoulderwidthsapart.Have onefootinfrontoftheother,toesfacingforward.Therearfoot should be crosswise, carrying seventy percent of the weight. Extendthearms. Ifukefacesyouthesameway,withthesame footforward,youareinaihanmi.Ifhehastheotherfootforward (mirrorimage),youareingyakuhanmi. Theexactangleofthefeetvariesfromsenseitosenseiand from time to time. Shioda Sensei shows the front foot rotated slightly out (towards the little toe). At least one picture of O Sensei shows the front foot rotated slightly in. However, you shouldbecomfortableandonbalance.

PracticingFromhanmi,youcanfreelyadvance,retreat,movetotheside, orturn. Ifthestanceistoowide,youwillonlybeabletomove one foot freely (at best), and are effectively tied down. If the stanceistoonarrow,youlltripoveryourownfeet.Howeveryou move,evenafterukemi,alwaysendinhanmi. Tomove,youcanstepnormally,leftright(ayumiashi),or,to maintainthesamehanmi,movewithoutcrossingyourfeet(tsugi ashi).Toturn,pivotontheballsofthefeet(insteadoftheheels). As you move, keep your feet in touch with the ground. They shouldskimthematwithoutcatchingonobstacles.However,the mat is generally flat and easy to move on. You should also practicemovingoutside,ongrass,roughground,sand:wherever youare,practicemovingsmoothly,alwaysknowingwhereyour feetarewithouthavingtowatchyourfeet.

UkemiEverythingukedoestopreventbeinghurtisukemi,whetherit isaroll,aslaptothemat,orjustloweringyourselfgracefullyto thematfromikkyo.(Ifyoudoubtthelastexample,considerthe effect of your face suddenly meeting the pavement.) Even protectingyourfacewhennagemakesanatemiispartofukemi. Ukemidoesnotendwhenyouhitthemat. Afteranyroll,you shouldendupbackonyourfeetfacingwhereyouwerethrown from.Notonlyisthiseasieronyourback,butitpreparesyoufor thenextattack.Youshouldbelikeaball,bouncingoffthemat, ratherthanlikeasackploppingdown. Ukemi is a set of techniques that must be learned and constantlypracticed.Otherwise,likeanyothertechnique,youwill graduallyloseyourskill. Practicethemsmall andslowatfirst, startingfromcrouchinglow.Asyouprogress,builduptowhere

Practicingyoucanthrowyourselfdownfromastandingpositionandendina smoothrollbacktoyourfeet,inhanmi. Generallywestartwith backward rolls (koho ukemi). Figure2.KohoUkemi. These will Uke should roll smoothly to the mat and back into remain useful hanmi for as long as youdoaikido. Therearetwowaystostartabackroll. Inthefirst,putone footdiagonallybehindyou,instepdown,asshowninFigure2.In thesecond,youputafootdirectlyback,soledown. Ifindthe latter oneawkward,butitmaybebetterifyouhaveaninjured knee. Whichever way you start, you should contact the floor gradually, rather than thumping down on your tailbone. Roll diagonallyfromthebackleg,tothathip,acrosstheback,andoff theothershoulder.Thisavoidsbangingtheheadonthematand hurtingtheneck. Therollshouldbecomfortable. Practiceuntil youcanthrowyourselfbackwardsandrollrightbacktoyourfeet. Ifyouarebouncingfromcornertocornerofyourbodyyouare doingitwrong. Yourbodyshouldbesmoothlycurved,sothat there areno corners tohurt. Imagine rolling abrickalong the ground.Itisthecornersthatgetdamaged. I often seepeople falling backandending flatonthe mat. Thisisdangerous:ifyouarethrownhardanddon'troll,youwill gethurt.Besides,somebodycouldlandontopofyou.Complete therollsothatyouendupstandinginhanmi.Rockingbackwards andforwardsislessdangerousthanlandingflat,assumingthatyou areabletorollallthewayoverifthrownhard,butitisabadhabit togetinto. Ifsomebodythrowsyoudownandyourockbackto

Practicingyourfeet,youwouldberollingrightbackathimandhe'dkickyou intothemiddleofnextweek. Forwardrolls(zempoukemi)arejustlikebackwardrollsin reverse.Asisshownin Figure3,extendanarm inacurve,thumb back, Figure3.ZempoUkemi elbow forward. Roll Makesurethearmdoesnotcollapseasyouroll. from the hand to the elbow,totheshoulder,thentotheback,hip,andbackontoyour feetwhilerotatingtofacenage.Themainproblemstudentshave isnotkeepingthearmextended.Asitcollapses,thereisariskthat youwillhurtyourshoulder.Usebothhandsinitiallyifyouhave to,anddolotsofpushupstostrengthenyourarms. Again,you shouldinitiallypracticefromcrouching,graduallybuildinguptoa standingposition.Workuptojumpingoversomebodykneeling onthemat,androlloutofthefallbackintohanmi.Onepersonis easy. Twoshouldbewithintheabilityofanybodybythetime theyhavebeenpracticingacoupleofyears.Alsopracticejumping oversomebodystandingbentatthewaistandrollingbacktoyour feet.Extensionisevenmorecriticalwhenyoudothis. Slappingbreakfallsareusefulwhennagedoesnotletgofor uketoroll,orwhenthetechniquewouldendinanawkwardfall. Generally,nageisholdingonearmandukerotatestoslapthemat withtheother.Theslapshouldbegivenwiththepalmdownand thearmrelaxed.Theharderyouhitthematwithyourarm,theless hardyourbodywillhit.Tolearntoslaphard,lieonthematand rollfromsidetosideslappingthemat.Yourarmshouldbeabout 45tothebodyandshouldslaplimplylikeahose. Forthefall,practicebysquattingdownandextendingoneleg infrontsothatyoufallbackandtotheside,slappingasyouhitthe

Practicingmat.Alwaysexhaleasyouhitthemat.Practicewithlessandless squatuntilyoucandotheukemi fromastandingposition,then you are ready to practicewith Figure4.SlappingBreakfall apartner. Windupandslaphardwitharelaxedarmasyoubreatheout Once youarereasonablycompetentatthisfall,haveyourpartnerhelp you.Firstofall,grasphisgilapelasheholdsyourarm.Throw yourfeetintotheair,andslapasyouhitthemat.Yourpartner shouldbendslightlytoletyoulandonyourbackwithouttoomuch ofathump.Next,holdyourpartnersarminaRomanhandshake (wherebothofyouclaspeachothersforearm).Letyourselffall overhisarmandslapasyouhitthemat(seeFigure4). Finally, haveyourpartnerthrowyouinkotegaeshi.Thefallshouldfeel justliketheonefromthehandshake. Shihonage may be done as a throw or a takedown. It is importanttolearntheshihonagebreakfall,ifonlyforvisitingother dojos or at seminars. Generally, if nage does the technique correctly, uke can always take an easy backwards ukemi. However,ifnagethrowshard,particularlyifthefinalcutisinthe wrongdirection,ukerisksabrokenelbowunlesshegoesoverthe topanddoesamorespectacularukemiendingwithaslapping breakfall. Thetwokeystothisukemiarenotwaitinguntiltoolateand foruketotakehisheadtothehandnageisholding. Takingthe hand to the head is not the same, as uke is holding the hand. Consequently,takingthehandtotheheadisfeltasresistance,and nagecranksthetechniqueonharder.

PracticingLearntolovetakingukemi.Thismeansthatyoushouldwork to make the falls smooth and clean. It means that you should practiceuntilthefallsarefuntotake.However,takingfallsona hard surface can be a bruising business, unless you are well padded.Workuptoitfromadojomatbyusingacarpetedfloor, thenwood. Dirtisquiteforgiving,unlessitispackedhardoris stony. Begenerousintakingukemi. Evenwhenyouareworking withsomebodywhoyoucanstopeverytime,giveanhonestattack andwhentheymaketherightmovesgowithit.Letthemthrow you.Itisn'tuke'sjobtocorrectnage:thatssensei'sjob.Onlyhelp peoplewhentheyarehopelesslylost,whentheydon'tknowwhich waytomove,orwhenyouareindangerofbeinghurt. Fartoo manyhighkyuandlowdanranksspendtheirtimewithlowerrank peopleinteachingthem"their"way.Thisirritatesbothnageand sensei. Iftheirwaywassuperiortosenseisway,theywouldbe teachingtheclass. Timing isveryimportanttoperformingukemi correctly. If youflygotoosoonevenifyouarebailingoutofapotentially dangeroussituation,nagewillfeelcheatedandwillinfactnotbe developingtherightfeelforthetechnique.Ontheotherhand(and thisiscommoner)ifyouhangbacktoolong,notonlywillitbe harderfornagetodoacleancrisptechnique,butyouarerisking injury. Youlllandharder. Nagemightcontinuethepressurea littletoolongandgrindyouintothemat.Mostimportantly,little injuries will accumulate. You will develop chronic pain, particularlyintheelbowandwrist.Thisisnobenefittoeitheryou ortouke. Resistanceiscommonerwithmalestudents,particularlywhen working with children or women. Uke should flow with the

Practicingtechnique.Flowintherightdirectionaswellasattherighttime. If uke decides to fall in one direction and nage throws him in another,ukewillprobablygethurt.Thisisparticularlylikelywith shihonage. Good ukemi is going with the technique, without thinking. Sometimes peopleobject thatifukedoesn'tgiverealistic resistance, in a real situation the techniques will not work. However,thisisgenerallywrongandmisguided.Nagedevelops strong technique byfrequentsuccessfulrepetition, notbybeing stymiedagainandagainandforcedtoresorttotrickstosucceedin completingthetechnique.Thereisadifferencebetweenaforceful attackandmufflingtheperformanceofatechnique. Successful applicationinthestreetdependsmoreonescapingtheattackand takingthebalance thanonmuscularpower. Thewholepoint of martial arts is tosubstitute technique forstrength andnumbers. Youmaydependonforce inthestreet,wherethegoalistowin ratherthantolearn,butyouarenotusingaikidowhenyoudoso. Ukemi is much the same for practicing oneonone and multipleattacks.However,withmultipleattacks,ukemustbeas muchawareofthesituationasnage.Ioftenseeukesinmultiple attacksituationsnotpayingattentiontowhatisgoingon.Theyare theoneswhowillbehurtifanotherukeisthrownclosetothem. Evenoneonone,bothukesandnagesmustalwaysbeawareof whatisgoingonaroundthem,asthereareusuallyotherpeopleon themat. Goodukemiiscrucialfordevelopmentinaikido.Untilukeis competentenoughatukemitobeconfidentaboutnotgettinghurt, progress will be slow. Once uke has developed good ukemi, practicebecomesfarmoreenjoyableforbothukeandnage.Itis

Practicingasmuch funbeingthrownhalfwayacrossthemat andtakinga cleanrollbackontoyourfeetasitistomakethethrow. Ukemiisalsothekeytocountertechniquesandtochanging techniques (henkawaza andkaeshiwaza). Onceyoucanflow withthetechnique,youcanchangeit,eithertakingoverasnage, or, as nage, flowingfromonetechnique into another. Without good ukemi, youwillneverbecome agoodaikidoka. Beinga goodukeisashardasbeingagoodnage.

BreathingItis a goodideatokeepbreathing. Seriously,breathe out when you push, when you exert yourself. Martial arts have traditionally placed a great deal of emphasis on breathing techniques,particularlyonlearninghowtobreathefromthehara (center). Thiswasprobablytogivenewpeoplesomethingtodo whilethesenseicheckedthemout. However,itisimportantto keepcontrolofyourmind,andbreathingmighthelpthis. AtSandDrift,wedon'tplaceasmuchemphasisonbreathing. Breatheconstantlytoavoidbuildingupanoxygendebt:breathing outwhenyouexertyourself,breathingoutwhenyouhitthemat. Oftenpeoplebreathetoofast.Breatheslowlyanddeeply.

SelectingaPartnerTrytoworkwitheverybodyinthedojobeforeyouworktwice withanyoneperson.Itmaybemostfuntoworkwithoneortwo students,buttheothershavesomethingtoteachyoualso,probably more. It is common for people approaching shodan to avoid workingwithbeginners.However,beginnershaveresponsesmore likewhatyouwillfindonthestreet:awkward,unpredictable,and

Practicingnervous.Studyhowtheyreact.Studythewaystheyfindtoturn outofthetechniques,andseeifyouknowthatcounterandifitis safetodo.Studyhowtonotletthemescape,withoutusingundue strengthorspeed.Ifyouhavetheirbalanceandkeepit,theywon't beabletowriggleoutofthetechnique. Peoplecomeinallsizes. Learnhowpeoplewithdifferent physiqueswork.Learnhowpeoplewithdifferentmindsetsthink. Learnhowtoapplytechniquetothemall. Sometechniquesare hardtodoagainsttallpeople.Somearehardtodoagainststrong people. Some are hard to do against bullheaded people. However,alltechniquesworkagainstmostcombinationsofpeople inthedojo.Agreatlevelerforheightisthattoattackyou,ukehas toreachyou.Thisiswhatmakeshanmihandachiwork.Evenif youdecidenevertouseaparticulartechniqueinthestreet,practice it in the dojo. You might just happen to need it, and it will improvethebreadthanddepthofyourtraining. Youshouldlearntojudgepeoplesabilitybyhowtheymove. Not only will this awareness warn you to be careful with somebody,ortobecarefulofthem,butyouwillbeabletojudge howtheywillattackbyhowtheymove.Coloredbeltsalsogivean indicationofability,butwillinhibityourlearninghowtoseewhat a new person can do. This awareness should extend to the techniqueitself.Youshouldbeabletofeelhowgoodatechnician yourpartneris,toknowwhetherheisgoingtoslamyouintothe matorwhetheryouneedtobecarefulwithhim.

DoingTechniquesAtechniquestartsbeforecontactismade,andfinishesafter contactisbroken.Thisisparticularlyimportantwithfreestyle,but shouldbeconsideredevenwithverybasicstatic technique. As

Practicingsoonasukeisseenandrecognizedasapotentialthreat,youshould be tracking what he is doing, without seeming to. As he approaches ma ai, position yourself suitably. In freestyle, for example,startmovinginawaythatwilldrawhimintoyourarea ofcontrol.Afteryouhavethrownhim,continuemonitoringukeas longasyoucanseehim.Inparticular,keeptrackofhimwhileyou movetoasaferdistance,outsideofmaai. Thereareavarietyofwaysto do even basic technique. Most PartsofaTechnique techniques are learned statically. Escapetheattack Thisissimilartokatainkarateor Takethebalance uchikomi in judo. There is a Throworholddown tendencyforstudentstothinkthat Zanshin uke is controlling the situation, but even at this time, even with static technique,nageshouldlearntocontrol whatishappening, notuke. Thiscontrolisstilldonebypositionandtiming,even though nagesoptionsaremorelimited. Forexample,youcan positionyourhandtoaffectwhereukespowergoes.Forshomen uchiikkyoomote,ifukeattackswiththerighthand,youwantto deflect his hand to your right. For shihonage, conversely, you wanttodeflectittoyourleft. Withnagealreadymovingwhenukegrabshold,itiseasierfor nagetocontrol uke,solongasnagesmovement isintheright directionconsideringthetechnique,ukesangleofapproach,and ukeandnagesrespectiveenergies.Eventually,nagecanmoveso wellthatitseemsasifukebarelytoucheshimandisspunoff effortlesslywhatSaitoSenseicallskitechniques.Thislevel ofproficiencyisthegoalofmostaikidoka.However,itcanbean elusivegoal.Youmustdevelopasoundfoundationbydoingbasic

Practicingtechnique, first static, then moving. Too much practice of advancedtechniquewillundermineyourbasictechniqueandyou mustalwaysbeready foranukewhodoesnotblendwell,orin caseyoumakeamistake. There are four parts to a technique: the initial defense or evasion, taking the balance, the actual technique, and zanshin. Alwayspracticeeachoftheseinthewaythesenseiisdoingthem onthatday. Youcan'tlearneverythingatonce,sofocusonthe broad picturefirst,butasyoubecomebetter,copythesmallest details.

Evasion. Everything happens when uke invades your space,comingwithinmaai.Ifhestaysoutside(recognizingthatmaai canbealongway,saywithagun),heisnothreat.Heentersma ai, strikes or grabs, and the technique starts as you evade the attack. Inaikido,wedon'tnormallyblocktheattack.Especially withapowerfulattackfromabiggeropponent,adirectblockcan bedangerousandineffective,onlysettingyouupforthenextshot. Ifheisswingingaclubatyourheadandyouputanarmintheway toblockit,youwillmostlikelygetabrokenarm.Ifyoudeflect theblow,thenatleastitsforcegoessomewhereelse.Ifyoudirect thatforcesothatitworksagainsthim,youaredoingaikido. Generally, particularly on the street, an aggressor will only attackwhenheseesanopening. Thisiscalledsuki inJapanese. (Tsuki, which soundssimilar, is apunch,andis written witha differentkanji.)Ifyouprovidenoopeningforanattack,theywill notusuallyattack.Thisisthedifferencebetweenamartialartist andmostpeopleonthestreet.Amartialartistshouldnotbeopen toaneasyattack.Onceaconfrontationdoesoccur,byprovidinga sukiyoucantosomeextentdeterminehowtheattackerwillattack.

PracticingHoldyourhandshigh,andhewillusuallyattacklow.Guardlow, and he will attack high. You should practice this in the dojo, givingukeanopportunitytoattackinthewayyouwanthimto attackbutnotprovidinganopeningforotherattacks. Yourevasion consistsofgettingoutsideofthetargetzone. Thetargetzoneiswhereukeexpectsyoutobe,theplaceheis aimingfor,whenheattacks.Ithaslimitsinphysicaldimensions andintime.Apunch,forexample,isonlyeffectiveinavolumeof spaceabouttwiceasbigasthefistitself. Outsidethiszone,the powerdeliveredfallsoffrapidly.Onceyougetofflinetowhere thefistmisseslaterally,thepowerfallstozero.Thepowerisalso focusedindistancefromuke,particularlywithamorepracticed ukewhowillsnapthepunch.Ifyoumoveclosertoukethanhe expects,thesnaphasnthadtimetobeexecuted,andthepunch becomesashove.Beyondthetargetzone,ukestopshisextension sothathedoesntfallover,andagainthepowerdisappears. Thesameprinciplesapplywhenukesattackisagrab:thereis stillatargetzone.However,youdonthavetobreakawayfrom ukesgrip,althoughthisisoftendone.Achangeinbodyposition isusuallysufficienttoevadethegrab,andmanytechniquescanbe donewhileukeisstillholdingon.Withagrab,youwantuketo losepower,andpossiblytoleadhimtowhereheloseshisbalance. Movinghisgripoutsidethetargetzoneaccomplishesthis. Youwantuketoknowwhereyouwillbewhenheunleashes theattack,andyouwanthimtothinkyoullstillbetherewhenit arrives.Onceapunchisreleased,andthisistruetoanextentwith anyotherattack,ukecannotappreciablyredirectit.Thatiswhen youmove:afterthereleaseistriggeredbutbeforeitarrives.This isalsoanaspectofsuki,whichisanintervaloftimeaswellasa physicalopening. (Seealsomaai,Page52). Thisislikeduck

Practicingshooting.Ifyouaimdirectlyataflyingduck,ratherthanleading it,youwillmiss.Thistimingputsabigpremiumonseeingwhen andhowukewillattack.Youcangenerallyseethisbywatching ukesmovements.However,ifyouallowuketomovewithinma aiwithoutforcinghimtocommithimself,hewillbeabletostrike withoutyouhavingtimetodoanythingeffective. Alwayskeep ukeatmaaiunlessyouareactuallydoingtechnique. Ifukemoves insidemaaiandhasnotreleasedtheattackyoumusteithermove back,whichisgenerallyapoortactic,oryoumustmoveinanddo atechnique. Inthestreet,youmighthavelegalproblems ifyou makethefirstphysicalcontact. Thelawmaynotrecognizethat approachingwithinmaaiisjustasmuchanaggressivemoveasa swingatthehead.However,ifyouputupahandandaskhimto stay back, he has to either grab that hand or knock it aside to continuetheattack.Ineithercase,hehastheninitiatedtheattack. Therearefewevasivemovementstolearninaikido,themost important being irimi,tenkan,and corner step. These defenses apply to all attacks. They are primarily hip movements. The accompanying arm movements are less important and may, in somecases, beomitted entirely. However,thearmmovements shouldalsobepracticedtoprovideanextradimensionofsafety. Irimiisperhapsmostcharacteristicofaikido.Itisanentering movement. Asukeisattacking,anenteringmovementprovides themostrapidchangeofpositionofnagerelativetouke.Yougo into shikaku, behind uke, as he attacks. Timing is critical in aikido,butespeciallyinirimi. Don'tmovetoosoon,orhewill retargethisattack.Dontmovetoolate,orhe'llhityou.Anirimi escapeshouldbeinthesamebreath asuke'sattack. Itisnota reaction,itisasimultaneousmovement. Anothernameforirimi wasyamabikonomichi,thepathofanecho.Theideawasthat

Practicingasyouextendki,thekiofyouropponentwillcomebacklikean echo. SaitoSenseiquotesanoldpoemdescribingirimi: Brandishinghissword Myenemyinfront Preparestoattack, Butbehindhim, Iamalreadystanding Thefootworkforan irimi entrance is shown in Figure 5. With an irimi entrance you can pass either in front of uke or behind him. It can be performed with nage facing uke or he canbefacingaway.The most common form is with nage moving behind uke, facing his back. Nage should be close to uke after an irimi entrance, close enough to do technique and close enough to suppressanotherattack.

Nages footprint

Ukes footprint

Figure5.IrimiEscapeAsukeattackswithalefthandfrontpunch,slip behindhisback.Nageshouldmovesoclosely into ukes rear that uke has no room for a strongattack.

PracticingTopracticethetimingforirimiescapes,bothukeandnageuse asword. Usuallythis practice is donewithabokken(wooden sword),butthereisalottobesaidforusingashinai (bamboo sword). Thenyoucantryhardertohityouropponentwithless concernfortheconsequences. Ifyoudohithim,itwillhurtbut you won't kill him. Whatever you use, the strikes should be serious.Itiseasytogiveahalfheartedstrike,andasnagemoves, tochangeyourmovementandhithim.Thennobodylearns,unless nagelearnsthathistechniquesdon'tworkandthatyouarenota gooduke. Facingeachotheratmaai,swordtipstogether,both ukeandnageliftuptheirswordstogether. Bothstriketogether. Nagemovesinandtooneside,sothatwhilenagecouldhituke, ukestrikesemptyairwherenagewas.Clearly,ifthemoveistoo soon,ukewillhavetimetoretargetandhitnage,justaswitha punch.

PracticingAtenkan defenseissimilartoirimi,butwithaturnsothat nagegoesfromfacinguketohavinghisbacktohimasshownin Figure6. Thebackfootmovesfirst. Thisrotationalmovement makesitharderfornageto behitsolidly,andprovides impetustoatechniquesuch as kote gaeshi. Again, it can be in front or behind Nages uke,andtherotationcanbe footprint in either direction. However,itisusuallydone behindukewhilerotatingto meshwithuke'smovement. Ukes A tenkan movement is footprint characteristic of kote gaeshi. You blend with uke's movement, escaping, taking the balance, and throwing. Your body rotationtendstobrushoffa blow,andinfreestyleitlets you see who is close enoughtoattack. Figure6.TenkanEscape Asukeattackswithalefthandfrontpunch, Acornerstep(Figure7)is turn and slip behind him, back to back. a movement back out of Moveinfarenoughtobebehindhim,and rangeandtothesideofan turntheheadtofacethesamewayasheis attack.Itisthecommonest facing. defense used against yokomenuchi,butisalsogoodagainsttsuki. Ineithercase,the strikeisknockeddownandukespowerisredirected.Ifnagetook

Practicingastepdirectlybackwards,ukewouldfollow.Instead,astepback andtothesideallowsyoutogetoutofrangeandupsetsuke'splan ofattackifdonewiththerighttiming. Dont move your feetfirst,movefromthe hips. Dontadjustyour feet before moving, or uke will know you are getting ready to move. Pull the hips back and rotatethemoffline,then putthefrontfootbehind and drag the new front footintoalignment.The final position should be 45degreesoffthelineof ukes attack, and bring you almost back to ma ai. From here,youcan strike down the attack, but are out of range of ukesnextstrike.Ifyou turn too much,youwill Figure7.CornerStepEscape come in range of ukes As uke attacks with a left front punch, other arm or foot and withdraw the hips in a turning movement whilesteppingthefrontfootbehindthebody willgethit. andpullingthenewfrontfootintoalignment, As for any attack, goingfromlefthanmi torighthanmi. Dont dont reach out to get signaltoukewhatyouaredoingbyadjusting uke, or you will be thefoot.Justpullthehipbackoutoftheway, exposing yourself to offlineandoutofrange.

Practicingotherattacks. Ideally,theonlyopportunityukeshouldseeisthe oneyouwanthimtosee,andonlywhenyouwanthimtoseeit. Thisistheideabehindtheoftenexaggeratedmovementusedtoget uketoattackinmunetsuki,whennagestepsforwardstickingthe stomachout. Similarly,ifyouarepracticingtsuki,dontmakeit hardforuketoreachyou.Youwantuketothinkhehasaneasy shotatyou.Youwanthimtoonlyseethatopening.However,the movementshouldbetoosubtleforuketonoticeconsciously. Likeukemi,evasionstendtobeneglected.Theydon'tresult intheimmediatesatisfactionofsmackingukedownhardonthe mat,buttheyarethemostimportantpartofatechnique.Aclean evasionprovidesthefoundationforthenextpartofthetechnique.

TakingtheBalance.Thisisthesecondpartofanytechnique,after the evasion. Kuzushi, or taking the balance, tends to be emphasizedlessinaikidothaninjudo,butisnolessimportant. Evenanimmobilization likenikkyo,whichseemstodependon pain,ismostlydependentonbalance. Ifnagefailstogetuke's balance,ukecanresistnikkyoquitestrongly. Itmighthurt,but willprobablynotcauseanimmediatesubmission.Youmightstill make it work, but it will take more effort and time that you wouldnthaveinarealconflict. Ukeisoutofbalance whentheheadorhips areoutsidethe areadelineatedbythefeet.Ifthenoseisinfrontofthetoes,uke canbereadilythrownforward. Iftheheadismovedbehindthe heels,ukecanbethrownbackwards. Ukecanbeoffbalancein anydirection,butonlycertaintechniquescanbedonefromany particular direction. Balance is best felt rather than seen. An excellentpracticeistodotechniquewiththeeyesclosed. (Uke mustthenlookoutforotherpeopleonthemat.)Asyouprogress,

Practicingyouwillbeabletofeelbothyourownandukesbalance.Asyou improve,youwillfeelmoresecuredespitebeingunabletoseeand theinitialuncertaintyofyourownbalancewilldisappear. Anoteofcautiontonage:ifnage'sheadisoutofthesesame limits,nagecaneasilybethrown.Itisquitecommontoseetenchi nage beingcompletedwithnagesheadwellforwardofhisfront foot. Ifukeholdsontonageasheisthrown,hecanthenthrow nage. Similarly,inshihonage,iftheheadisback,ukecanpull nagebackwardsandpreventcompletionofthetechnique. Nage shouldkeephisbalanceevenwhileheistakingukes.Whenyou feel offcenter, relax your legs, resettle your hips, and do the techniquefromyourhara. Itisverydifficulttotakeukesbalanceunlessheismoving. Thus, if uke strikes, try not to block the blow, but redirect it instead.Statictechniquecanbequiteachallengebecauseofthis. Generally,nagemakesalarge movement,gettinguketomakea small movement inresponseandstarting totakeukes balance. Nagethentransferssomeofhismomentumtouke,speedinghim up and completing kuzushi. Finally, nage plants himself and acceleratesukestillmoretoapplythetechnique. Balance alsohas amental component. Asharpatemi will momentarilydistractuke.Onceyoutakehismind,youcanmore easilydisturbhimphysically.However,donotfallintothetrapof thinkingonlyofthementalside.Takingthemindisonlypartofa technique. Once you have uke's balance, you have his strength. You shouldkeepitratherthanhavingtogobackandtakeitagain.You can easily give uke back his balance by poor technique. For example,withiriminageifyoutaketheheadbackalongthesame trajectoryyoutookitdowntotakethebalance,youwillbeputting

Practicinguke back on balance. Instead, gobackalong adifferent route. Evenifyoumovecorrectly,youcanstillletukeregainhisbalance byinsufficientextension. Thereisamindsetthatseemstothinkthatisitwimpytotake ukemi,thatyoushouldstickitoutforaslongaspossible. The mostobviouswayanukecandothisistonotletnagetakehis balance.Thisisnotagoodwaytopracticeforseveralreasons.It makeslifeundulydifficultfornewstudents,itcausesinjuries,and itmakesithardtopracticekaeshiorhenkawaza.Smallinjuries causedbyexcessiveresistancewillaccumulate.Evenifyoufeel youcantakeit,theywillbuildupandyouwillgetmoreserious repetitive motion injuries. If you cant get the balance of a particularuke,askyourselfwhynot.

Kake: GeneralPrinciples. Thethirdpartofatechniqueisactuallyperformingthethroworimmobilization.Thisistheleast importantpart,providedtheevasionandkuzushi havebeendone correctly,thoughalmosteverybodypaysthemostattentiontoit. Perhaps this is because it is hard to go into a lot of detail on evasion and kuzushi. True to this tradition, most of this book addressestheexecutionoftechnique. Therearecertainprinciplesthatapplytoanyaikidotechnique. Aikidoiscircular,involvingmomentumtransferfromnagetouke, as well as control ofukes movement. Throwingjust involves extendinguketothepointwherehehastofalldown.Thisisquite powerfulenough,especiallyonconcrete,withoutnageworrying aboutthrowingukehard.Nagemightthrowuketothegroundand movebackoutofrangeofasubsequentattack,orhecouldfollow uketothefloorandapplyanimmobilization.

PracticingImmobilizations arequite similar tothrows exceptthat uke fallslessspectacularly,butonceukeisonthegroundnagemust maintaincontrol.Todoso,hemustkeephisownbalanceandstay closetouke.Ukehasanadvantagewhenheisonthegroundin thathecanpushofftheground,whilenagegenerallyhastopush down,using hisweight. Nagemustnegateukesadvantageby keepingukeinanawkwardorpainfulposition. Generally,nage should push across ukes power, rather than pushing directly againstit.

Zanshin.Thisisnagesattitudeaftertheendofthetechnique:a

slightpauseattheendofthetechnique,whetherastrikewitha sword orathrow. Asyoucompletethetechnique,yourposture and mental and physical balance must be correct, so that uke cannotpullyouover,evenifheholdson.(Ifthishappens,dont resist,justfallonuke.Inthestreet,useyourknees.)Youshould checkthattheyarecorrectbeforegoingontothenexttechnique. Totestzanshin,nageshouldholdhispositionattheendofthe technique. Ukeshouldthen,usingverylight pressurewiththe fingertips,pushnagetoseeifheisonbalance. Zanshin is most important in oneonone practice, and you shouldtaketimetothinkaboutthetechniquejustcompletedbefore yougetreadyforthenextone.Whenyouareready,focusallyour attentiononthenexttechnique,withoutthinkinganylongerabout howwell(orhowbadly)youdidthelastone. Asalways,youmustbeawareofwhatishappeningaround you. Dontjustturnawayfromukeafterexecutingatechnique. Keepready foranotherattackfromukeorfromanotherattacker. Ifyouhavethrownukeatyourfeet,moveoutofrangeofhim.If youhaveimmobilizedhim,afterreleasinghim,movebackoutof

Practicingrange.Ifyouhavetakenaweaponfromhim,butaregoingtokeep practicing, hand theweaponbackwithout givinganopening as youdoso. Donotoverdozanshin.Turningtooquicklyfromoneuketo thenextwillresultinincompleteandineffectivetechniquesduring multipleattacks,butturning toolate willresultinyounotbeing ready for the next attack when it comes. Zanshin can almost disappear in multiple attacks, but you must still complete each techniquebeforegoingtothenext.

ExtensionThe use of extension is characteristic of aikido. Almost always,nageispushingoutwards.Almostalways,ukeisextended beyond where he can control his balance, so that his power is reduced. When extension is lost, nage loses power, uke gains power,andsuccessiscompromised. The idea of extension is hard to explain. Full extension generally meansthatnageisdoingtechniqueattheedgeofhis sphereofinfluence,makingukemove fasterthannagedoes. It meansthatukeisextendedsothatwhennagemoves,hehasto movetoo.Ifthereisslackbetweenukeandnage,sothatnagehas tomoveacoupleofinchesbeforehemovesuke,histechniques willbeineffective. Theunbendablearm,wherenageextendshispowerthrough thetipsofhisfingers,isoftentaughtasanexampleofextension. However,thereismuchmoretoextensionthanthis.Topractice extension,performtechniquesusingmovementonly,withoutthe atemi andpressurepointsthatmakeaikidotechniqueseffective: relyonuketoholdon.Mosttechniquescanbedoneinthiswayif nage understands the technique well enough. Uke must make

Practicingcommittedattacksbut,moreimportantly,nagemustdrawukeout andmaintainthisextension,usingittocontrolukeuntilhehasto falldown.Onceyouunderstandhowtodothis,startworkingup tothenormaltechniques,andtheywillworkbetter.

PracticewithaSwordDifferent martial arts stress different aspects of conflict. Aikidocomesfromthesword.Thestressinaikikenisonstrong cuts,thepowerfulcutsnecessarytocutthrougharmorandbones on the battlefield, inordertodevelop stronghipmovement for aikidotechniques.Conversely,sportkendousesshortsnappycuts whichwouldnotprovideagoodfoundationforaikido. Kendo does,however,provideexcellenttrainingintiming.

SuburiThemostcrucialpracticeofaikikenisthesuburi,aseriesof sword cuts. Theyshouldbeperformedbycuttingtheairusinga regularbokken.Aheavybokkencanalsobeusedtobuildupthe bodyandforhittingatargetsuchasarollofbrushwood(seePage 41). Thesuburiaredescribedbrieflybelow.Theyareshownin moredetailinVolume1ofTraditionalAikido,bySaitoSensei. Each cut, each stroke, should be performed carefully and accurately. A hundredgoodcuts will benefit youmore thana thousand performed carelessly. In particular, perform each cut separatelyfromthenext. Wavingthebokkenupanddownwill onlystrengthenthearms. Correctcutswillstrengthenthewhole body,improveaikitechnique,andteachmentalfocus.Cutsshould belightatfirst,buildinguptostrongerstrikesasyourbodygrows stronger,oryouwillhurtyourelbows. Allofthebodymustbe usedinthemotion,ratherthanjustthearms,butyoushouldbe relaxed:lettheken(sword)dothecutting. Foreachsuburi,thestartingpositionshouldbeintheonguard position.Youshouldbestandinginhanmi.Thehandsshouldbe atbeltlevelandasfarapartonthehandleasyoucangetthem:the

SwordPracticelefthandcradlingthebuttendofthehandle,therighthandagainst theguard. Mostofthestrength shouldbeinthethirdandforth fingers. Thelefthand shouldholdsecurelybutnottightly. The righthandshouldholdalittlemoresoftly. Thearmsshouldbe almostfullyextended.Thetipoftheswordshouldbelevelwith youropponentsthroat.Imagineyouarefacinganopponent.All suburi strikes are shomen uchi. (Yokomen strikes are similar exceptthatthehipsareturnedasyoucut.) The first and third suburi are most important for aikido. Normally,sword techniques areonlydonerighthanded,though theycanbedoneonoppositefeet.However,asthepracticeisto developouraikido,whichshouldnotfavorrightorleft,Ifeelwe shouldpracticeaikikenleftandrighthanded.

First Suburi. This is a basic shomen uchi strike executed

withoutstepping,althoughthefeetshouldmovealittle.Youcan startineitherleftorrighthanmi. Careshouldbeusedtomake surethatthestrikesaremadeverticallyoverthetopofthehead. Thereisnoneedtohurrytheupwardsstroke.Forpractice,takeit well back behindyourhead. Thedownwardsstrokeshouldbe powerful,deliveredfromthehips.Thekenshouldcutthroughthe imaginarytargetandstopsixtotwelveinchesthroughit,butnot swingtoofarpast.Thus,itwillendupbeinghorizontaloralittle higher. The strike should start at the hips and progress to the shoulders,arms,wrists,andendwiththeswordtipmovinglikea whiplash.Thefirstsuburiismostimportantforikkyo,kotegaeshi, shihonage,andtenchinage.

SwordPracticeSecondSuburi. Thisislikethefirstsuburi,butthesword isonlylifteduntilitisintheverticalpositionneartheear.Thisisa defensive posture called hasso no kamae. The hips should be rotatedoffthelineofattackastheswordislifted. Atthesame time,move yourfrontfootback. Stepforwardtostrikeshomen uchi.Thissuburiismostimportantforsankyo,yonkyo,andkokyu nage.

ThirdSuburi.Inthis,theswordistakenovertheheadandlaidbackasfarasyoucanreach,windingupforthemostpowerful strike possible. Lift the sword broadly, reaching high as you breatheintothestomach,andlayitbehindyou,compressingthe airinyourlungswhilestillwatchingyourfoe.Thencutandkiai (yell)atthesametime,puttingeverythingintothestroke.Thisis mostrelevanttoiriminage,kotegaeshi,andkoshinage.

ForthSuburi. Strikeasforthefirstsuburithenchangefeettostrikewiththeotherfootforward,andkeepalternatingfeetasyou makeeachstrike.

FifthSuburi. Asfortheforthsuburi,butprotectthesideofyourheadanduppertorsowiththebladeofyourswordasyoustep totheside,thencut.

SixthSuburi.Asforthefifthsuburi,butthrustafterthestrike.

Thebladeshouldbehorizontalforthethrust,theedgeturnedaway fromyourbody:onewayforonehanmi,andtheotherwayforthe other.Thissuburiisimportantforshihonageandkotegaeshi.

SwordPracticeSeventhSuburi. Asforthesixthsuburi,butstepforwardtothrust,sothatyoualwayscutononefootandthrustontheother.

TanrenUchiThis is practicing the suburi, primarily Numbers 1 and 2, whilehittingatarget.Abundleofbrushwoodistraditionallyused andthisfeelsbetterthanhittingatire.Thehipsshouldfeelsolid throughouttheexercise,especiallyforthethirdsuburi.Ifyougrip theswordtootightly,youwillfeeltheshockallthewayupyour arms.Saitoshowsagripwiththehandsnexttoeachotherforthis exercise. Youwillneedastrongbokkenfortanrenuchi.Aflimsyone, onewithcrossgrain,oroneimproperlyseasonedwillbreakaftera fewstrikes. Thebokkendoesnothavetolookpretty,merelybe abouttherightsizeandshapeandbestrong.Ifastraightpieceof oakissplitintofourquartersandroundedoff,itwilldryinacurve tomakeaverystrongbokken.

ShihoGiriShihogiri(fourcorners cut)isapracticeforcuttinginany direction.Cutasforthefirstsuburifromlefthanmi.Nowleave thetipofthesword whereitisandpivotthebodythrough180 degrees.Pivotontheballsofyourfeetanddontstep,liftingthe handsabovetheheadforthenextcut.Settleyourhipsandmake the second cut 180 degrees from the first cut. Now turn 180 degreesagain, backtotheoriginalposition,thenslidethefront footroundtocontinueturning thehipsanother90degrees,and makethethirdcut270degreesfromthesecondcut. Turn180 degreesand maketheforthcut. Thusyouhavecuttoallfour

SwordPracticecardinalpoints.Itisimportanttomaketheturnwithyourbalance controlledandstrikewiththehipssettled.Anotherfourstrikescan bemadebetweenthesefour,bymakingthefifthcutwitha180 degree turn followed by an additional 135 degree turn. The remainingcutsarethenmadelikenumberstwo,three,andfour. ThesequenceisshowninFigure8. The importance of this exerciseistolearnhowtoturn the body freely in any direction. It is critical for shihonage, but is also importantforothertechniques and particularly in dealing withmultipleattackers.

KumiTachiKumi tachi is practicing theswordwithapartner.Itis particularly important for Maintainextensioninthecutsandkeep studying distance and timing. thehipsstableduringtheturns. Saito Sensei covers it extensively.ThemostimportantmovementstopracticeareSaito SenseisfirstthreepairspracticesinVolume1,andtheyokomen uchidefense. Forthefirstpairspractice,faceyourpartneratmaaiwhere the ken blades overlap three to sixinches. Lightly touch your opponentskensothatyoucanfeelwhatheisdoing.(Toomuch pressurewillallowhimtoexecuteacircular parryandhityour wrist.) Figure8.ShihoGirifromLeft Hanmi

SwordPracticeBothpeopleshouldlifttheirswordsandstrikesimultaneously. Uke comes straight in. Nagemoves offline and cuts at ukes wrist. Thisexercise,mentionedearlierinthesectiononirimi,is critical for understanding timing. Both raising the sword and strikingmustbesimultaneous.Ifnagemovestooearlyortoolate, hewillgethit.Itishardtooveremphasizetheimportanceofthis exercise. Thesecondkumitachistartsthesameway.Thistime,asuke liftshissword,nageenterswithathrusttothethroat,takingukes balance.Thethirdkumitachiisthesameasthesecond,butwith nageraisingtheswordandukethrustingatthethroat.Thistime, nagestepsbackasforthesecondsuburi,evadingthethrust,and cuts ukes wrist. The difference between the second and third kumitachiisthetiming. Forthesecondone,nageentersinvery quickly as uke lifts his sword, surprising uke and taking his balance.Forthethirdone,thethrustdoesnotsurprisenage,and heevadesitandstrikes.Youshouldstudythedifferenceintiming and feeling between these two kumitachi exercises. They correspondtodifferentwaysofdoingiriminage. To practice the yokomen defense, Saito shows a kumitachi exercisestartingfromthesameonguardposition. Thistime,as onepartnerattacksshomenuchi,theotherpersondefendswitha scooping thrust to the stomach. The first person defends by steppingback,insteadofforwards,butcontinuestheshomencutto keepthesecondpersonfromdrivinghometheattack.Thesecond personthencutsyokomenuchi.Thefirstpersondefendsbyagain steppingbackandstrikingdowntheattackingswordwithasticky feeling. Thesecondpersondrawsouthisswordfromunderthe othersblade,andmakesasecondyokomenstrike,fromwhichthe firstpersondefendsinthesamemanner. Itisimportantthatthe

SwordPracticedefender notflinchfromthestrike,movingbackphysicallybut remaining mentally strong. This is equally important in performingtechniques.Nomatterhowstronglyandaggressively ukeattacks,nagemustnotflinch. Hecangiveground,butmust maintainhisextensionevenforuratechniques. Foralltheseexercises,itisimportantthattheattackerstrikes attheopponent,notathisopponentssword. Also,performthe exerciseslightlyandslowly. Cheapbokkensbreakeasily,anda bokkenisalethalweapon.Theexercisesshouldbeperformedto learn, not to try to win. There should be no feeling of competition,especiallyatfirst,orbothpartnerswillloose.

PracticingwithTwoPartnersHavingtwoattackersisexcellentforpracticingtechniqueas well as developing an awareness of multiple attack situations. Generally,thepracticeiswithoneukeinfrontofnageandone behind.Bothukesshouldbeatmaaiinthiscasewithjustthe tipsoftheswordscrossingforthefrontmanandtheotheruke shouldbeatthesamedistancebehindnage.Nagemovesfirst.As soonashemoves,bothukestrytostrikehim.Generally,shomen uchiispracticed,butyoucanalsopracticefromayokomenattack.

Shihonage Practice. Shihonage omote comes from ahorizontal cut with the sword followed by a body turn and a verticalcut.Foromote,asyourtwopartnerscomeintocutyou, cutthroughthemiddleofthemanyouarefacingwhilestepping offlineinthedirectionofyourcut.Continuethehipmotionofthe cutintoaturn,leavingthetipoftheswordbehind,andtakethe sword overheadtostriketheotherattacker(whowasoriginally

SwordPracticebehindyou).Keypointstopracticearesteppingthroughwiththe swordtobothcutthefirstukeandstillgetoffline,andtoleavethe swordtipwhereitisasyouturnbeforemakingthesecondcut,just as for shiho giri. Turn your hips through a full 180 degrees betweenthefirstandsecondcuts. Uraisalmostidenticaltoomote,exceptthatthefirstcutis throughthemantotherear,requiring360degreesofturnfrom start to end. Again, step off line and continue the motion by turninginthesamedirection.

KoteGaeshiPractice. Shomenuchi kotegaeshi ispracticedthesamewayasshihonageura,exceptthatafterthefirstcut,you changedirection,turning backtocutthesecondman(stillwith shomen uchi) rather than continuing in the same direction. Students commonly do kote gaeshi with the hands, which is ineffective,ratherthanusingtheentirebodyasforthethirdsuburi.

AttacksforPracticingAikidoOn the mat, the goal is to practice safely and realistically. Therehavetobecompromisesforsafety,andyouneedtoknow where they are so that you can avoid pitfalls in the street. In aikido,muchofthetrainingisslowandmethodical.Ifabeginner isattackedviolentlyhewillgethurtorinjureuke,eitherofwhich wouldbecounterproductive. By working slowly, both nage and uke become reprogrammed,sothattheymoveinamoreeffectiveandpowerful manner.Asthesemovementsbecomemorefamiliar,thespeedof theattacksisincreasedsothattheyaremorerealistic.Bythetime students reach shodan, they should be working at close to full speed.However,theywillstillneedtoslowdowntocheckhow theyareexecutingthetechniques,topracticewithkyuranks,and tolearnnewtechniques. Agoodruleofthumb istodoonerepetitionasfastasboth uke and nage can handle it for every ten slow and careful repetitions. Ifyoucandoitslowly,youcandoitfast,butthe reverseisnotnecessarilytrue. Fastorslow,attacksmustbetrueontargetandextending deepenoughoryouarewastingyourtimeandyourpartners time.Punchingshortwillmaketechniqueshardtodo. Theattacksusedinaikidoareratherstylized,forsimplicityin learning.However,theydocovermost,ifnotall,possibleattacks. The only major weakness in most dojos is not practicing techniquesfromkickssufficientlyoften,andkickscancertainlybe includedwhenworkingwithaclassthatcantaketheukemi.

AttacksinPracticingKatateToriThisisaonehandgrabtothewrist.Itcanbethesamehand (ai hammi) or opposite hand (gyaku hammi). While often practiced as a simple wrist grab, katate tori also provides an openingforablow. Startwellapart,almostatmaai. Nageshouldstartwitha handheldoutstronglyasaguard. Thisforcesuketograspthe handandpushitdowntocontinuetheattack.This,ratherthanthe moreusualgrabbingofalimparmfromtooclose,iskatatetori. Usetheimpetusukeprovidestoperformthetechnique. Beginnersoftenworryunnecessarilyaboutgettingawayfrom agrasp. Thereisnoneedtoactuallybreakaway,asyouarenot heldimmobile. Allthatisheldisyourwrist. Bymovingyour body,youcandowhateveryouwant,andthestrongerukegrips, theeasieritistousehisgriptoupsethisbalance andtwisthim intoanawkwardposition.Thekeyisfornagetomovehisbody aroundthepointofcontactratherthantryingtomovethepointof contact. To understand how to move freely from katate tori, practicetenkanundo:turningaroundthecapturedwristtolineup back to back with uke, facing the same way and with the arm extendedtomatchukesextension.

KataToriLikekatatetori,katatori(ashouldergrab)isjustthestartof anattack,withthecompleteattackgenerallybeingkatatorimen uchi(ashouldergrabfollowedbyastriketotheface).Ifeelthat katatoriwouldgenerallybefromthesideorbehind,orelsenage should nothavealloweduketogetso close. Themenuchi

AttacksinPracticingstriketotheheadisusuallyshomen,butcouldbeyokomenor jodantsuki.Thetechniquesaremuchthesame. Whenattacked,nagemusttakebacktheinitiativeandnotbe hamperedbyuke'sgrasponhisshoulder. Foruke,itisbetterto graspwiththefingers,whicharequitestrongenough,ratherthan withfingersandthumb.Ifyouuseyourthumbitcanbetwisted intothegisothatoncertaintechniquesyoucannotletgo. Katatoriisexcellentfornagetolearnhowtoavoidbecoming entangledbyuke. Thisisparticularlytruewithshihonage,kote gaeshi, and irimi nage. Uke can make these techniques quite difficultbyholdingontonagesgi,andevendrivinghiselbow down. If nage allows uke to control the situation, he will be hopelesslytrapped.Toavoidthis,nagemustmaintaincontrolof hishipswhilekeepingukeoffbalance,andkeepcorrectextension. Thekeytokatatori isastrongstriketoukesface,tyingup his free arm. The importance of this strike can hardly be overemphasized.Nagesshouldershouldbelikeahairtrigger.As soonasuketouchesit,nagesarmshouldbeinhisface.Ukethen hastorespondtonage,ratherthannagebeingdriventorespondto ukesstrike.Asuketriestopushnagesarmaway,nagecaneither overpowerukeor,ifthattakesanyeffort,letukedrivenagesarm away, while steering the arm to where nage can use it for a technique. Ifnageistooslow,sothatukeisalreadystriking,youcan move intoapositionsidebysidewithuke,sothatukesstrike misses, and continue into the technique. However, your arm shouldstillbeusedtoprotectyourfaceandthreatenuke.

AttacksinPracticingRyoteandMoroteToriRyotetoriiswhenukegraspsbothnagesarms.Morotetoriis whenukegraspsoneofnagesarmswithbothhisarms. These attackscanmakenagefeelevenmorerestrainedthanwithkataor katatetori,butwhenyoumove correctlyyouusethestrength of yourlegsagainstukesarms,andthereisusuallynocontest. In responsetoeitheroftheseattacks,nagemovesmuchthesameas for katatetori andsohecanchosebetweendoingaiandgyaku hanmi techniques, because uke is holding on with both arms. However,avoidmovinginfrontofukesbackfoot,asthisisthe moredangerousone. Themostimportanttechniquetopracticefrommorotetoriis kokyu nage (see Page 83). With both his arms, uke has more chancetoholddownnagesarm.Avoidthisbyturningsothatyou canliftthearminawiderarcthanukecanfollow. Themost important practice fromryotetori istenchinage (seePage79). This particular tenchinageallows Figure9.MoroteTori. nage to learn how Noticethatnagesarmisfullyextended. tomoveincloseto uke,goingaroundhisstrengthratherthanagainstit.

ShomenUchiThisisanoverheadstrikeatthetopofthehead. Whileit could be with a club or bottle, it is generally practiced with a tegatana. Thestrikecanbestartedwitheitherfootforward,and canalsobethrustupwards(likethedownwardstrikeinreverse). The upwards thrust is particularly useful for initially teaching

AttacksinPracticingikkyo.Inpracticalterms,apunchtothefacemaybeeasiertotreat asashomenuchiratherthanasatsuki. Thebasicdefensetoashomenstrikeisarisingblock,withthe energyofthestrikebeingexpendedalongtheangledforearm.If allelsefails,andyoudonthavetimetodoanythingelse,usethis basicblocktoprotectyourhead.Whenyoulearnit,youcaneven absorbastrikewithajowithoutgettingabrokenarm.Allthree evasive movements can be used for shomen uchi. As with all defensesagainststrikes,keepthethumb againsttheedgeofthe handtoavoiditbeingbrokenifyoumisjudge. Becauseukeshand ismovingquitefastonthedownstroke, nageshouldgenerallyblendwiththeelbow,whichismovingmore slowly.Forexamplewithshomenuchikaitennage,theelbowis quiteeasilymanipulated,whilethehandisalmostimpossibleto catch.

YokomenUchiThisisadiagonalstrikeaimedatthehead(temple)orneck.It shouldbeperformeddescendingatabout45degrees.Itisidentical inmotiontoshomenuchi exceptthatthehips arerotatedduring thestrike. Thebasicdefenseasdescribedearlierforswordpracticeisto move, using a corner step, back out of range and in the same directionasthestrike.Thissoftenstheblowifitdoesland.Atthe sametime,strikedownukesattack,catchingthemiddleofhis forearm with the back of your forearm, deflecting the strike withoutslowingitdownmuch. Ifnageaddssomeeffortinthe rightdirection,ukeshouldfalldown. Thetechnique,something likethejudoukiotoshi(floatingdrop),redirectsukesforce out anddown.Asyoudeflectthearm,strikeattheface.

AttacksinPracticingIndefendingagainstyokomenuchi,becarefulnottolosethe extensionofyourarm,orastrongattackmightcrashthroughyour defensetohityourhead.Theamountofdeflectiondependsonthe technique.Forikkyo,donotknockdownukesarmveryfar.For kotegaeshi,strikeitdownandbrushitpastyourbodyasyouenter intoshikaku.Forshihonage,cutthestrikedownandsweepitin frontofukesbody. Forascarfthrow,sweepitfurtherstill,to whereyoucanwrapitaroundukesface.

TsukiThis is usually practiced with a straight front punch. A reversepunchistreatedmuchthesame,butismoredifficultto dealwith.Thepunchcanbemiddle,highorlow,butisgenerally practicedasamiddletolowpunch,aimedatthestomachwhere thedamagewillbeminimalifitlands. Itsnotverykind,and unnecessary,topracticeachestpunchwithwomen. Thepunchshouldbeonline,andshouldbeaimedatstriking nage,ratherthanatsnappingthefrontofhisgi. Ifukedoesnot punchfarenoughintonagesspace,notonlywouldtheblowbe ineffectiveandnotathreat,butsometechniqueswouldbeharder toperform. All three defenses are usedagainst tsuki. Thearm canbe pushed to one side with the hand when doing an irimi escape, particularlyifukehookshispunches(thoughthesecomecloseto being yokomen uchi), but nage should not come to depend on deflectingukesarmratherthanmovinghisownbody.Youmust getoffthelineratherthanbackingawayfromuke.Backupand hewillfollow.

AttacksinPracticingUshiroAttacksTheseareattackswhereukegoesbehindnage,tocatchboth arms,ortogoforastrangulationorakidneypunch.Ifukegrabs both hands from behind, generally it would be because another attacker would be punching nage. Ushiro attacks are ideal for learninghowtomovewellwhilealsokeepingukemoving. Thebasicdefenseisfornagetogetukeinfrontofhim,where hecanmoreeffectivelydealwiththeattack.Generally,itisbetter fornagetokeephishandsinfrontofhisbody,notallowinguketo pullthembehindhisbody,althoughtherearetechniques inthe eventthathedoesnotsucceed. Ukecanonlypullnagesarms back if nage resistsbystraining hisbodyforwards. Whenuke pullsback,gowiththepullandcrowdhim,whilekeepingyour ownbalance. Onceagain,itiscriticalthatnagetakestheinitiativefromuke, otherwiseushirotechniquesarequitedifficulttoperform.Asuke grabsyouroutstretchedarmandstartstomove behindyou,turn towardshimandgotopunchhiminthekidney. Ashemoves awaytopreventapainfulatemi,quicklyturntheotherwaytoslip underthearm.Dontraiseukesarm.Rather,slipyourhipsunder hisarmandyourheadwillfollow.Again,balanceandtimingare thekeys,withnagetakingadvantageofuke'sattempttogetbehind him. Strangulations and chokes from behind are particularly difficulttoescapefromoncetheyareapplied.Whereverpossible, preventukegettingafirmgrip.Withastrangulation(pressureon thebloodvesselsatthesidesoftheneck)youhaveaboutfour secondstoreleasethepressureoryouwillbecomeunconscious even though it might barely feel uncomfortable. Chokes, with

AttacksinPracticingpressureonthewindpipe,canbeevenmoredangerous.Whileyou maystayconsciouslonger,ifthetracheaiscrushedyoumaystill beunabletobreathewhenyourattackerletsgo.Keyitemsareto strikeukewiththeelbowsandtomove outofthelineofattack, preferablycirclingintoukesshikaku. Ifukedoesgetan arm aroundyourneck,catchhisarmandpulldown,whileturningyour bodytowardstheelbowtoreleasethepressureandcontinuingwith atemi. Ushiroryokatatori(withbothshouldersheldfrombehind)is agoodexercisefornagesbodymovement.Generally,nagehasto movemoreinthisattackthanforushirotekubitoritomaintainuke inextensionandoffbalance.Thearmsshouldhowever,stillmove muchasforushiroryokatate(tekubi)tori,movingtheshoulders more effectively. Ifukestrikes atyourhead,lift botharms to protectitasyoumove.

SuwariWazaandHanmiHandachiSuwariwazaispracticingtechniqueswhilekneeling.Thisis difficultforpeoplewhohavenotlivedtheirlivesontheirknees,as theJapaneseusedtodo.Themainreasontopracticeitthesedays is to learn how to use your hips and how to move your body, therebystrengtheningyourstandingtechniques. Thetechniques mayalsobeusefulifyouareknockeddowninthestreet,though youshouldrollbacktoyourfeetagainassoonaspossiblerather thanchoosingtostaydowninsuwariwaza. The stances and techniques should be almost identical to standingtechniques.Inparticular,whenyoubow,youfaceyour partner,butwhenyoureceiveanattack,youshouldbeinhanmi: withonekneeforwardjustlikeinstandingtechniques.Justasfor standingtechniques,youmustmove. Aikidokaoftenmove less

AttacksinPracticingwhendoingsuwariwazathanwhenstanding. Asaresult,they dependtoomuchonupperbodystrength,andtheirtechniqueslook sloppyandareineffective. Hanmi handachi is when nage is kneeling, and uke attacks fromastandingposition.Thisisprimarilyanexerciseinhowto deal with an extremely tall opponent. Dontreach upfor uke. Make uke reach down to get you, thereby compromising his balance. Withhanmi handachi,younormallydotheentiretechnique kneeling. However, you can also practice by starting from a kneelingpositionandfinishingstanding.Thisisalsoanexcellent practice, both from the practical point of view and to improve certaintechniques.Nageismuchlesslikelytobendthearmsand sneak under ukes arm (compromising his control) when doing hanmihandachishihonageinthismanner.

KicksKicks are like other attacks in most ways, but have longer range and are more powerful than hand strikes. They are also slower. The main reason that defenses against kicks are not practicedmoreisthatwehavefewclasseswherethestandardof ukemi is uniformly highenough to take the awkward falls that result. Whenthreatenedwithakick,watchthelegonwhichukehas littleweight:ifukesweightisevenlydistributed,hecantkick withoutshiftinghisweight.Thestrengthofakickisgreaterwitha deepstance,butthenecessaryshiftinbalanceisgreaterandmore apparent,unlessukehasalreadyunweightedonefoot. Theback foot is the stronger one, so that is generally the one to watch.

AttacksinPracticingBecauseukemustunweightonefoottokick,nagecanlimitukes kicksbycontrollinghisbalance. Asforanyotherstrike,thesamebasicescapesareusedfora kick. Linearkicks aretheeasiesttoavoid. Circularkicks,like yokomenuchi handstrikes,canbehandledbymovingoutofthe targetzonebut,generally,movinginonukeandjammingthekick ismoreeffective.Watchukesknee.Ifheistrained,thekneewill pointwhereheisgoingtokick.Thus,youcandistinguishbetween afrontkickandaroundkickbythepositionoftheknee. Thefallfromakickismoreawkwardthanmostaikidofalls, becauseyoudonthaveafoottoputbackandslowyourfall.Sit asclosetoyourheelasyoucanandslaphardasyoufallback.

MultipleAttacksAikidoisdesignedmoretodealwithmultipleattacksthanfor fightingoneononewithsomebodyofsimilarcapability.Usually inaikido,wepracticeveryformally,oneonone.Inthiswaywe learn to be very competent in the techniques. If the mat is crowded,wemightpracticeingroups,butstillpracticinginthe sameway,throwingoneafteranotherinthesametechnique.This buildsagoodfoundationfordealingwithmultipleattacks. Avarietyofexercisesareusedtotrainformultipleattacks. Thefirststepsaretodorandoriwithoneperson,thenanumberof people.Randoriisanexercisewhereukeattacksandnagedefends in an unstructured way. Ideally,theattacks andtechniques are entirelyatthediscretionoftheparticipants,andtheattackerscan attackfromanywhere,includingfrombehindnageifhecarelessly givesthemthatopportunity. Tostartout,attacksandtechniques mayberestricted,andeverybodymightworkslowly. However,

AttacksinPracticingthegoalistodoitwithnoholdsbarred.Thetechniquesmightbe doneemptyhandedorwithajo. Freestyleintestingissomewhatdifferent.Here,nagestarts outfacingthelineofattackers. Whennagebows,theexercise starts. All the ukes might attack at once, orthey might attack howeverthesenseidirects. Inanycase,nagemustcontrolthesituation.Ifnagebecomes toofixed,hewillcertainlygetattackedfrombehind. Nagemust move,asdiscussedingreaterdetaillater(seePage98),soasto limitthesuki availabletotheattackers,allowingonlyoneuketo attackatatime.Hemustavoidbeingtrappedagainstthewall,the edgeofthemat,orinacorner.

AikidoTechniques

GeneralPrinciplesThereareanumberofg