History of Aikido

Aikido's founder, Morihei Ueshiba, was born in Japan on December 14, 1883. As a boy, he
often saw local thugs beat up his father for political reasons. He set out to make himself
strong so that he could take revenge. He devoted himself to hard physical conditioning and
eventually to the practice of martial arts, receiving certificates of mastery in several styles
of jujitsu, fencing, and spear fighting. In spite of his impressive physical and martial
capabilities, however, he felt very dissatisfied. He began delving into religions in hopes of
finding a deeper significance to life, all the while continuing to pursue his studies of budo, or
the martial arts. By combining his martial training with his religious and political ideologies,
he created the modern martial art of Aikido. Ueshiba decided on the name "Aikido" in 1942
(before that he called his martial art "aikibudo" and "aikinomichi").
On the technical side, Aikido is rooted in several styles of jujitsu (from which modern judo is
also derived), in particular daitoryu-(aiki)jujitsu, as well as sword and spear fighting arts.
Oversimplifying somewhat, we may say that Aikido takes the joint locks and throws from
jujitsu and combines them with the body movements of sword and spear fighting. However,
we must also realize that many Aikido techniques are the result of Master Ueshiba's own
innovation.
On the religious side, Ueshiba was a devotee of one of Japan's so-called "new religions,"
Omotokyo. Omotokyo was (and is) part neo-shintoism, and part socio-political idealism. One
goal of omotokyo has been the unification of all humanity in a single "heavenly kingdom on
earth" where all religions would be united under the banner of omotokyo. It is impossible
sufficiently to understand many of O Sensei's writings and sayings without keeping the
influence of Omotokyo firmly in mind.

Despite what many people think or

claim, there is no unified philosophy
of Aikido. What there is, instead, is a
disorganized and only partially
coherent collection of religious,
ethical, and metaphysical beliefs
which are only more or less shared by
Aikidoists, and which are either
transmitted by word of mouth or
found in scattered publications about
Aikido.
Some examples: "Aikido is not a way
to fight with or defeat enemies; it is a
way to reconcile the world and make
all human beings one family." "The
essence of Aikido is the cultivation of
ki [a vital force, internal power,
mental/spiritual energy]." "The secret
of Aikido is to become one with the
universe." "Aikido is primarily a way
to achieve physical and psychological
self- mastery." "The body is the
concrete unification of the physical
and spiritual created by the universe."
And so forth. At the core of almost all
philosophical interpretations of Aikido,
however, we may identify at least two
fundamental threads: (1) A
commitment to peaceful resolution of
conflict whenever possible. (2) A
commitment to self-improvement through Aikido training.

Aikido was first brought to the rest of the world in 1951 by Minoru Mochizuki with a visit to
France where he introduced aikido techniques to judo students. He was followed by Tadashi
Abe in 1952 who came as the official Aikikai Hombu representative, remaining in France for
seven years. Kenji Tomiki toured with a delegation of various martial arts through fifteen
continental states of the United States in 1953. Later in that year, Koichi Tohei was sent by
Aikikai Hombu to Hawaii, for a full year, where he set up several dojo. This was followed up
by several further visits and is considered the formal introduction of aikido to the United
States. The United Kingdom followed in 1955; Italy in 1964; Germany and Australia in
1965. Designated "Official Delegate for Europe and Africa" by Morihei Ueshiba, Masamichi
Noro arrived in France in September 1961.
Aikido makes use of body movement (tai sabaki) to blend with uke. For example, an
"entering" (irimi) technique consists of movements inward towards uke, while a "turning"
(tenkan) technique uses a pivoting motion. Additionally, an "inside" (uchi) technique takes
place in front of uke, whereas an "outside" (soto?) technique takes place to his side; a
"front" (omote?) technique is applied with motion to the front of uke, and a "rear" (ura)
version is applied with motion towards the rear of uke, usually by incorporating a turning or
pivoting motion. Finally, most techniques can be performed while in a seated posture

(seiza). Techniques where both uke and nage are sitting are called suwari-waza, and
techniques performed with uke standing and nage sitting are called hanmi handachi.
Thus, from fewer than twenty basic techniques, there are thousands of possible
implementations. For instance, ikky can be applied to an opponent moving forward with a
strike (perhaps with an ura type of movement to redirect the incoming force), or to an
opponent who has already struck and is now moving back to reestablish distance (perhaps
an omote-waza version). Specific aikido kata are typically referred to with the formula
"attack-technique(-modifier)". For instance, katate-dori ikky refers to any ikky technique
executed when uke is holding one wrist. This could be further specified as katate-dori ikky
omote, referring to any forward-moving ikky technique from that grab.
Atemi are strikes (or feints) employed during an aikido technique. Some view atemi as
attacks against "vital points" meant to cause damage in and of themselves. For instance,
Gz Shioda described using atemi in a brawl to quickly down a gang's leader. Others
consider atemi, especially to the face, to be methods of distraction meant to enable other
techniques. A strike, whether or not it is blocked, can startle the target and break his or her
concentration. The target may also become unbalanced in attempting to avoid the blow, for
example by jerking the head back, which may allow for an easier throw. Many sayings about
atemi are attributed to Morihei Ueshiba, who considered them an essential element of
technique.

In some areas, Japanese police officers are required to hold at least a Shodan
(black belt) in Aikido.
Aikido is the only martial art allowed in the U.S. federal prison system.
In a recent Florida court case, a man resisting arrest charged the officer
involved for using excessive force when his wrist was broken during the

application of an Aikido technique. The case reached the Florida State Supreme
Court which ruled that the offender broke his own wrist by resisting the
technique.
Morihei Ueshiba, founder of Aikido, once pinned a Sumo wrestler using only a
single finger.
The government of Japan awarded Ueshiba both their Medal of Honor and The
Order of the Rising Sun during his lifetime in recognition of the value of
Aikido.
Aikido was among the first martial arts freed from the ban imposed on their
practice by the US government after World War II.
Your arm is stronger when you relax it. (!)
The well-known actor Steven Seagal is a 7th degree black belt in Aikido.
The practice of Shikko (or "knee-walking"), which has become an integral part
of Aikido training, was originally developed when Japanese feudal lords
required that all their followers remain on their knees while in the lord's
presence. It later developed into a formal movement in many Samurai
ceremonies.