Greetings from a neophyte

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[Tony Sova]

Greetings and Sh'lama (peace),

My name is Tony and I am from Lansing, Michigan. I have engaged in Martial Arts for around 28 years, to a greater degree Greco-Roman/Freestyle Wrestling & Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu and to a lesser degree Judo and Muay-Thai kickboxing. While these arts are practical for the purpose of both self-defense and attaining superior physical conditioning they are incompatible philosophically (aside from maybe Judo) with the Divine principle of ahimsa or ‘non-violence'.

Having gained a keen awareness of my own competitive and highly ‘physical' nature as a result of my attraction to the Martial Arts that I listed earlier, I seek to reconcile this part of mySELF with the spiritual ideal of ahimsa of which I hold so dear. It is O'Sensei's endorsement and application of the cherished ideal of ahimsa to Martial Arts that has drawn me to the philosophical/spiritual foundation of the path of Aikido. I aspire to integrate ahimsa into my life on the physical, psychical (mental) and meta-physical (spiritual) levels. I intuit that the study and practice of Aikido may help to facilitate this process for me and seek to engage in it to suit this end.

I offer my humble obeisance to the Aikidoka on this fourm and to the Divine persona of O'Sensei whose teachings has inspired my heart to cultivate a life perceived from the spiritual platform on all levels.

The most insignificant beggar,
- Tony

"When you call out God's name, it echoes inside of you"

[akiy]

Hi Tony,

Welcome to AikiWeb and thank you for your introduction.

-- Jun

[Ron Tisdale]

Hi Tony,

Assalamu alaikum,

I think that by focusing on the physical practice of aikido over time, you will find an ability to infuse your practice with your spirituality. I wouldn't focus so much on it at first...just start training in a good dojo, train hard (you are obviously familiar with that), and let the practice lead you.

Best,
Ron (and welcome to the mat!)