Weapons practice is an integral part of Aikido. Jim Hyde, 2nd Dan. Weapons practice is an integral part of Aikido – most of the movements we make in class have parallels to weapons (bokken and jo) techniques and practicing the kata improves alignment, coordination, and movement. Our testing requirements at Aikido of Charlotte include 4…
Aikido is frustrating. It’s supposed to be. You’re sitting there. Your legs hurt after a bunch of suwari-waza. The instructor demonstrates a technique, and you can tell there’s some subtlety to it. He shows it 3 times, pronounces its name, and says “Ok, partners”… and there you are, left mainly to your own devices. You…
Aikido is fascinating in the way that it glorifies the virtue of humility. I’ve always been a sucker for samurai stories. Honestly, it’s probably a major factor in what drew me to study budo. One of my favorites is “The Taste of Banzo’s Sword”. It involves a young samurai, Yagyu Matajuro, who was sent off…
Ed-san: A lot of people talk about aikido’s effects on its practitioners’ daily lives – that it isn’t just limited to the mat. How has aikido influenced your everyday experience? Weiner Sensei: My understanding is that O-Sensei created Aikido not only to effectively train our bodies but to bring people together in harmony. Meaning, I feel he…
The martial arts are a pretty dogmatic discipline. We tend to practice techniques as instructed, concentrating less upon the historical context from which they arose. It’s ironic because so many of the legendary teachers and grandmasters whose skill we seek to emulate were, themselves rebels and revolutionaries. I like to think that in aikido, which…