Re: Sagawa's Aiki
 

It's a fascinating thing that we have similar stories regarding other greats in DR on their deathbeds. I cannot source this, but I recall a story of Kodo Horikawa throwing a student who had placed a hand/grabbed (I don't remember the context) on his foot. Ueshiba, too - there are several stories.


Ellis Amdur

Re: Sagawa's Aiki
 

No, you don't have to be. But it's easy to spend everything you have on it. And even for the rich, it's not an easy road.

David

Re: Sagawa's Aiki
 

I disagree with your disagreeing! (Don't PM me for a longer explanation as I don't have one.)

Hi Mark.

Back to my hole,
Allen

Re: Sagawa's Aiki
 

I don't know about being rich to get good at Aiki, but I do know a number of people who have made a small fortune just teaching Aikido. Problem was, they started out initially with a large fortune. ;)

Mike

Re: Sagawa's Aiki
 

Why do you think this is like that?
Intuitively i believe you are right.

Is it because it is a mystery?
Is it because it is (..or rather becomes) a pursuit of power?
Is it a spiritual thing?
Is it simply the challenge?
Is it ego?

What single-mindedly drove Sagawa?
is this like any 'thing' ... in that it can become the focal point for obsession? or more specifically; that it rewards obsession itself.... creating a feedback loop...?

what u think?

Re: Sagawa's Aiki
 

Well, everyday life is expensive. Then you add air fare and hotel, car rental and meals to travel to meet teachers, seminar fees, etc., time in travel, missed work days, etc.. You need a pretty good cushion to absorb all that and the missed work.

Look at what Sagawa describes--traveling all over Japan with Takeda, and he had to pay for his own room and meals out of his own pockets. Mochizuki put everything into living a pure budo life. He was living with Morihei Ueshiba, doing sword and kobudo in the mornings, competing in judo shiai in the afternoons and doing aikido at night while living in an uninsulated dojo and having to watch out for O Sensei's needs. Finally, he got sick from so much hard breathing the moist winter weather of Tokyo and had to spend six months in the hospital.

I couldn't afford that. I don't know many people who could, and if they're teaching for a living, chances that they will have great health insurance are pretty dang low.

In Mochizuki's case, Jigoro Kano paid for his hospital stay since he was the one who had put Mochizuki on that incredible life.

After the hospital, Mochizuki went back to the milder weather of Shizuoka where his family built a dojo for him. So, again, plenty of money was available somewhere. Of course, Mochizuki at some point got a professional bone-setting license, so he did earn some money, but even so, the dojo was probably always a financial burden. If you ever work out how many students you would need and how much each of them would have to pay to cover the dojo, utilities, insurance and a living wage for the teacher, I can tell you, it's some ugly numbers.

His culture, in my opinion. Meiji roughneck, as someone said. He had the finances taken care of from the beginning, his father set him on the daito ryu path and he just determined to make that his ju-hachiban (18--a way of saying "your specialty").

As far as living such an obsession, when I first went to the old yoseikan in 1986, a Jietai Colonel asked me what I did for a living and I told him I was teaching yoseikan in my own dojo. He said, "Oh. Martial arts crazy. Yeah. I was like that when I was young. It drives your father crazy, I guess."

I said, "Yeah."

I guess it just depends on how far you commit to going with it.

David

Re: Sagawa's Aiki
 

Is there a video clip with Sagawa? The link to youtube given in this thread seems to have been withdrawn... are there any other?

Re: Sagawa's Aiki
 

Hi!I am very interested in Sagawa Dojo and even bought Transparent power a while ago!It's a amazing book by the way.But...tell me guys,is the dojo still operative?Is Kimura still the new head?
How goes things nowadays,I hope Mr.Wollos had a chance to upgrade his Aiki there.