Introduction

[Please visit our sponsor:]

[Hideo M. Kimura]

Hi, I'm Hideo Kimura of Shizendo Aiki-waza Dojo in Honolulu. At my age (77) I'm not so much interested in the combat aspects nor political aspects of Aikido as I am in the kinesiological & wellness education in relation to the spiritual aspects of practicing Aikido. I am not affiliated with any mainstream Aikido group since going independent in 1983 & organizing the Shizendo Kanno Kanwa Kai (Shizendo Functional Relaxation System). Under the Shizendo umbrella, I teach two classes--Shizendo Kakki-ho & Shizendo Aiki-waza. The first is more Ki therapy oriented, but the second is more somatic education-oriented. My purpose for being on Jun's program is to hopefully connect with experienced Aikido instructors who experiment with innovative ways doing the Aiki arts consistent with the philosophy of non-fighting mind" & have been researching & experimenting with teaching the arts in a more effortless way, yet not "mickey moused" choreographically, realizing full well that there is also a need for non-resistant kata that is another important aspect of practicing Aikido. .
In Shizendo we call our method "Sliding Hands Aikido", which entails training our intuitive sensing of Ki lines--with a minimum of "thinking" Aikido beyond the basic stages. We have made strides into the concept & techniques, but I feel we're still scratching the surface & am hoping I can find some other experienced instructors who are in the same direction that I am headed & are open to sharing any new ideas that I can experiment with & incorporate into our practice. One is never too old to learn new things & one style almost never fits all. I am also willing to share what we have discovered for those interested.
I began Aikido in 1956 under Hombu-affiliated Hawaii Aiki Kai (earned yondan) & later after the Tohei-Waka-sensei split, joined Tohei-sensei's Hawaii Ki-Aikido Society where I was awarded the rank of Ki Lecturer in addition to the Aikido dan. I taught Aikido at the University of Hawaii in 1966, & established dojos in Hana, Maui; Waiahole, Oahu; Kapaa, Kauai; Wake Island (under Federal Aviation Administration); served as staff instructor of Shinichi Suzuki's Wailuku, Maui, dojo; & conducted several Aikido & Shizendo Ki therapy workshops for Bay Area Aikido clubs & one Boston dojo (North East Aikido) in the Nineties. After retiring as a school principal in 1983, I began a second career as a licensed massage therapist to learn more about the intricacies of self-healing modalities.

[akiy]

Hi Hideo,

Welcome to AikiWeb and thank you for your introduction. I hope you'll find people with similar interests with whom you can connect here.

-- Jun

[Lucy Smith]

Hideo,
I loved your introduction. We all have different visions of Aiki and it's so nice every single time I hear of another one. I am all set up for a life long Aiki experience, and planing to get to know all I can about it, though yet I am just a beginner managing with iriminage and proper ukemi :rolleyes:
I'm just glad I found this way of being more than just myself, if that makes any sense :freaky: (loved the "magic moment" thread, which by the way seems way distant yet).

Hope you enjoy Aikiweb, and I hope I'll be reading more about what you have to say.

:D
Lucy.

[dps]

Hideo,
Anyone with 50 years of practice certainly has my attention when they speak of their knowledge and experience of Aikido.

Thank You
David

[Hideo M. Kimura]

Hideo,
I loved your introduction. We all have different visions of Aiki and it's so nice every single time I hear of another one. I am all set up for a life long Aiki experience, and planing to get to know all I can about it, though yet I am just a beginner managing with iriminage and proper ukemi :rolleyes:
I'm just glad I found this way of being more than just myself, if that makes any sense :freaky: (loved the "magic moment" thread, which by the way seems way distant yet).

Hope you enjoy Aikiweb, and I hope I'll be reading more about what you have to say.

:D
Lucy.

Sorry I didn't find this comm section until today when I accidentally had to give my URL to Andrew Crawford for his Aikido website. Yes, if you are new to Aiki training, learn the basics well from your instructors. As you progress, you will likely find that the physical aspects of training nor merely intellectualizing the philosophy of Aikido in the dojo & not "hands-on-ing" in every day life can cause a "plateauing" even after 20 or more years of practice. Ultimately, love, peace & harmony must be incorporated into the arts in order to spill over into daily life. As you mature in dojo training, you may suddenly realize that your arts must gradually evolve into a manifestation of love, peace, & harmony. At least that's been my experience is over 40+ years. Incorporating the principles of , for example, love into the arts, in my humble opinion, means explicitly that if we follow the love, peace, & harmony philosophy of Aiki-ing, we should learn to apply any of the arts (especially the take-down or lock phase) in a more efficient yet relaxed effortlessness style. In Shizendo, we have been working toward this end with our concepts of "sliding hands" in relation to "non-fighting mind". We have made some strides, but are still 'scratching the surface" into developing a prototype of full compliance with the laws of nature & universal law. The meditative aspects are a must if full inner peace is to be realized. The more we experience to learn, the ;more we realize what we still need to learn.

[Hideo M. Kimura]

Hideo,
Anyone with 50 years of practice certainly has my attention when they speak of their knowledge and experience of Aikido.

Thank You
David

Sorry I couldn't get back to you earlier. Truth to tell, I just discovered this feedback site even thought I had signed up with Jun sometime back. I am no longer in mainstream Aikido, but maintain a small class in what-I-call Shizendo Aiki-waza as a sub-component of my overall Shizendo Ki Kinesiology Research program which is basically a human potential model with Ki therapy as an integral part.
We are primarily an experimental/research group in discovering different healing modalities. We treat Aikido arts more as a movement therapy mode rather than martial arts. We still utilize jo, bokken, tanto, jyu-waza, but more as a way of discovering creative ways of moving with the minimum of muscular tension for a maximum of efficiency in doing the arts. Kinesiology principles & somatic sensory awareness help a lot in helping us discover new levels of inner relaxation & awareness. I don't know if our mode fits into how you train, but if there are any questions feel free to contact me. One of my students set up a website at http://shizendo.tripod.com. I didn't know until fairly recently. I was wondering why he asked me for all the info. He did a great job, but I need to call his attention to some typos (chuckle). For e-mail, you can reach me at: shizenaikiwaza@yahoo.com

[paulo gomes]

welcome welcome i ve never also introduced my self i'm Paulo ive been practicing aikido some years now and i think this site as the most candid on the web nice to be here!!!!!!!!!! :D

[Mike Galante]

I most certainly agree with your comment on the meditation. How can one achieve this unity of heaven and earth by just practicing technique. O Sensei had very strong spiritual practice and he said his techniques were inspired by God. So I think we should all take a lesson from him and get the feeling of the techniques as much as the form. Sit Zazen!
Mike

[Kevin Leavitt]

Hideo,

Welcome. I wish I had the time and ability to work with you and your concepts. When I retire for the military in about 8 years, I hope to explore much of what you are doing. It is all very interesting and what I want to really do for my second career!

I look forward to your post...I hope you will contribute!

Are you familar with Dr Richard Strozzi-Heckler? You must be, I believe he is in the same field of work as you.