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Around the turn of the century Japan a long-time student of jujutsu, aikijujutsu, and kenjutsu named MORIHEI UESHIBA refined his knowledge and experience into a singular art he called aikido. With this new discipline, he hoped to reconcile the physical nature of combat with his religious and philosophical views. Ueshiba believed in a more compassionate approach to dealing with adversaries, preferring to neutralize their attack in an effort to protect those he saw simply as misguided souls, to show them the error of their ways. The goal of the Aikidoka in a self-defense situation is to neutralize the attacker's action and render him harmless, without causing any serious injury. The ultimate motivation of the art is to bring order, where there is disorder, to integrate where there is separation, to reconcile where there is strife. Kenji Tomiki one of Ueshiba's first students was also a student of the founder of Judo, Jigoro Kano. Because of his education and back ground in Judo Mr. Tomiki brought to his aikido teachings a sense of organization. After quickly ascending the ranks of Ueshiba's top students, Mr. Tomiki eventually went on to develop his own style, or ryu, of aikido in which kata and randori (a sort of free-form practice, similar to sparing) play a major role. |
Autumn Wind Dojo
