AikiWeb: The Source for Aikido Information AikiWeb's principal purpose is to serve the Internet community as a repository and dissemination point for aikido information.
Hello and thank you for visiting AikiWeb, the
world's most active online Aikido community! This site is home to
over 22,000 aikido practitioners from around the world and covers a
wide range of aikido topics including techniques, philosophy, history,
humor, beginner issues, the marketplace, and more.
If you wish to join in the discussions or use the other advanced
features available, you will need to register first. Registration is
absolutely free and takes only a few minutes to complete so sign up today!
The Concepts involved in Aikido training are so intrinsically intertwined, and the Japanese names attributed to these concepts are so massively rife with alternate and broader meaning, that it makes writing an article of this type extremely easy in one sense. In the sense that, I can elaborate into other areas of my life and training as an Aikidoist without fear of veering off topic (Like now for instance).
In another sense it becomes ludicrously difficult to pin down exact English translations for just about any of these concepts. What constitutes an adequate synonym for a word in Japanese may well be totally off track when directly translated back to English. By no means am I implying that the English language is less poetic or profound. What I am iterating is that our languages grew up a world apart and associations between objects, feelings and concepts mapped themselves differently. Differences, at a glance, that are astoundingly slight, however during close inspection of philosophy and mindset, drift apart the further you travel. Like two blind men given the same directions to a tree in the woods. Both men make it to a tree. Who knows which tree is the correct one?
Given all of the above, ‘Kimai' translates loosely as focus. I'm going to discuss the implications of, and cultivation of focus.
The good student should practice Aikido always with the focus of a swordsman. This is the crux of our practice of focus. This is also a principle motive
...More
My name is Andrew Medland. I am a 3rd degree black belt in Aikido. Its possible I should have started this journal a little earlier. I just checked the last time i visited this site was back in 2003. I think I am going to have to frequent more often if this is going to be interesting reading.
who knows? Next time I might actually post something Aiki related