Spirituality of aikido?
Hello all.
Aikiweb is telling me that it has been a long time since I posted. I do have a thought floating around in my mind and I will share it. I have been re-reading "The Spirit of Aikido" by Kisshomaru Ueshiba. In this book he concentrates on what spirituality means in aikido. The feeling I get from him is that first and foremost the spirit of aikido comes from a traditional Japanese mindset. Secondly, can that mindset integrate into different cultures? Keep in mind these are just my interpretations. So, my question is... What does spirituality mean to you as a practitioner of aikido? For me it is the calmness and joy that comes from working with other people on the mat. Everyone is stripped of their usual professions, or social status of everyday life. My partner is another person wearing a gi and is here to interact with me, connect with me and then move on. The simpleness of it draws me in everytime. The politeness of Japanese traditions attract me as well. The traditions keep me humble, yet alert. The quiet moments when we sit back down and all you hear are people breathing heavily after a technique is practised is priceless. Yes, they are tired, yes they may hurt in places, but they remain quiet, go inward and relax. Others look toward sensei eagerly, wondering what the next technique will be. I was speaking with a friend of mine who is practising another martial art and after the conversation I felt frustrated. Why? After pondering this it occurred to me that all he was interested in was the physical, practical aspects of both his art and mine. This told me that I wanted more from a martial art other than self defence and physical conditioning. Aikido provides that 'extra' for me. Is it spirituality? I'm not sure. I have more to say, but I don't expect people to continue reading. So please, comment. :ai: :ki: |
Re: Spirituality of aikido?
Here is a whole list of threads about spirituality dating from 10-01-2000 to 01-12-2009.
http://www.aikiweb.com/forums/search...earchid=528209 David |
Re: Spirituality of aikido?
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By the way, I have a simple study guide that I developed for my own students that will guide you through the book, The Spirit of Aikido. If you answer all the study questions (188 of them) you will really have a good understanding of what the book is communicating and it will help you to remember what is in it. It is free to all who email and ask for it. Best wishes, Jorge |
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To David's list add http://www.aikiweb.com/columns/themirror/2004_05.html
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Re: Spirituality of aikido?
Sorry, David.
The link is coming up with no result. |
Re: Spirituality of aikido?
i am a southern cheyenne from the state of oklahoma, usa, and i am not yet a practitioner of aikido. for some reason i have been drawn to aikido over the past year, i have studied tae kwon do, but my interest in it seems to be going away. there are no dojo's here in my hometown, if it is gods will, and i pray that it is, i will be a student of this art, or budo.
prayer is a strong part of our cheyenne culture, as it is in many others. i believe that god intended for aikido to come into my life in anyway possible. our cheyenne warrior societies are still present, but the ways of which a warrior lives from day to day are misconceived by our younger generation. the meaning of warrior has been distorted greatly by hollywood perceptions and even visual artists. the ways of a cheyenne man, are similar to those of a samurai, the care we show our articles for prayer and battle is the same kind of care the samurai show their swords. i have found the book spirit of aikido and read it, and found a story about germans trying to use science to recreate a japanese sword. the scientists could not do it, then the statement is made that if you want a japanese sword you go to a japanese swordmaker to have one made. i feel i lost interest in tae kwon do, because the genuiness was lost somewhere along the way in that branch of the martial art. i am not saying that it is a bad thing, i am saying that notoriety has probably gained more value than the tenets the students learn. that maybe the best direction for some students, but at this stage in my life that is not what i am looking for. i have been unemployed for the past few weeks, there is an ice storm here that i have walked through to have something to do, our bills are due, and everything is alright. cheyennes believe that life if a circle and i have learned that aikido is based on circular motions. if i hold positive thoughts in my mind good things are likely to happen. holding negative thoughts in my mind is not in my best interest. i have what little i have learned from reading about aikido, and applied it to what i have learned from our cheyenne teachings, with the help of god it has benefitted my thoughts and art and even my tae kwon do. so i believe that aikido can help those of us who are not japanese, to learn about ourselves and where we come from. thanks for the time in reading this if you have made it this far. |
Re: Spirituality of aikido?
Thank you for participating and sharing your thoughts William. May the coming new year bring good things to you and your's.
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Re: Spirituality of aikido?
Hey,
@William- U reminded me to go back and read all the native indian philosophy i could get my hands on off the net. I believe native indians and aikidoka's would have been soul brothers had they lived in the era and area. I think it is the same with indian philosophy too. If you get a chance, try "bhagvad gita". Its the same truth in essence, only spoken in different languages and expressed differently. Peace |
Re: Spirituality of aikido?
Just wanted to add a thought before work since Sensei Barrish recently described something fitting to this thread. He said many people look to ascetic techniques for spirituality, but that spirituality can be found in something as "ordinary" as eating breakfast. I think this points to an important aspect of at least one form of Aikido spirituality.
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Re: Spirituality of aikido?
hmm that is a nice impartation about the cheyenne warriors, Patience, who ever finds the strength from within and grasp the meaning is a warrior.
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Re: Spirituality of aikido?
Hello everyone, Hello Matthew-san,
re: eating Everything in Nature is born, matures and perishes---everything has a beginning and an end. To live and grow as the healthy child of Okami we digest well, we are sustained by divine cosmic vitality through the sacred act of eating. Sometimes people confuse spirituality with the learning of esoteric techniques.....I think we can see more regarding spirituality more simply, via someone's relationship other people and with food. Being alive and being present is easily seen by relation to food-- that which we receive from Divine Nature that directly connects us to the Sun, to the Seasons and to Daishizen no Meguri- the ceaseless movements of Divine Nature/ Kannagara. Itadakimasu/ Gochiso sama Prayer before eating: Tanatsumono momono kigusamo amaterasu Hi-no-Oo—Kami no megumi etekoso. Itadakimasu Momo mean 100 (or many many) Kigusa meaning is trees and plants Amaterasu is in this case a verb meaning shining brightly. Hi-no-Okami is Amaterasu Omikami Megumi is blessings of Okami. Ete means to receive Basic meaning is: All the trees and plants thrive and grow by receiving the blessings of divine solar energy. When we eat these sacred plants we receive the life sustaining cosmic vitality of Amaterasu Omikami. I will humble partake/receive…………. Prayer after eating: Asayoini monokugotoni Toyoukeno Kami no megumi wo omoe yonohito. Gochiso sama. Asayoini means morning and evening Monokugoto means each time you eat something Toyouke no Okami is Kami of sacred foodstuffs that sustain our lives Kami no Megumi means blessing of Kami/ Divine Nature Omoe means to consider deeply Yonohito means people. Basic meaning is: each time we eat let us consider deeply the divine gifts of life sustaining food --- carrying divine solar power to each of our cells ..what a feast…what a joy to be alive!!!! Arigatou gozaimashita. yoroshiku onegaishimasu Koichi Barrish Tsubaki America Kannushi |
Re: Spirituality of aikido?
Thank you, Sensei!
I was going to try to elaborate, but can't beat the source...particularly since I also confused a word. :o I was going to mention that idea of consideration for the deeper mechanisms/processes in the things we do as being spiritual practice. |
Re: Spirituality of aikido?
What spirituality I have originates outside my Aikido training. That is, I don't come to Aikido practice looking to find in it a spiritual path for my life. My faith, my relationship with God, began long before I started into Aikido training and has completely satisfied all my existential, ontological, and/or metaphysical inquiries and concerns.
I don't regard the things you seem to think are "spiritual" as such. My understanding of what "spiritual" means is rather narrower, or more defined than yours, I guess. The sound of people breathing heavily after exercise, the calm awaiting of what comes next, the social leveling effect of practice are all interesting and perhaps pleasant aspects of Aikido training, but this doesn't qualify them as spiritual, in my opinion. True spirituality, as I understand it, cannot exist apart from, or outside of, a relationship with God. More generally speaking, however, the term "spirituality," has become a catch-all term for anything people wish to elevate, for whatever reason, above the mundane. Used this way, "spirituality" as a term has become so broad in its meaning that its become rather meaningless, I think. Jon. |
Re: Spirituality of aikido?
I think spirituality or how you define it and find meaning in it depends on your beliefs, dogma, and what not.
for instance, the concept of God alone can vary greatly from an omnipotent/omnipresent being to one that is pervasive/ubiguitous and a part of the collective conscious of the universe. As such how people connect or find meaning to the concept of God will greatly differ. I think that it is perfectly natural and fine for someone to find spirituality in something as simple as breathing. I don't think there is any religion that does not connect spirituality to breath or breathing, albeit some might find more connection to others. "the breath of god", prana...etc. Most world religions have meditative practices in which breath is a major part of. So, it may not be a big part of your spirituality, but it may in others for sure and I would submit that for them...the IS "True Spirituality". For me, sometimes breath, the act of breathing, prana...is a very integrated part of my spiritual practice...other times it simply means I am out of breath. I do find joy and peace in the fact that I am breathing which means I am alive...that alone invokes an existential response in my brain, which reminds me that I am alive and....etc, etc... So, while it may be meaningless to you, it does not mean that it is meaningless at all. |
Re: Spirituality of aikido?
Hi Jon, I think I started to feel the same feeling you expressed at first:
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In this way I agree with Matthew and Barrish sensei that an exploration of how simple aspects of your life intimately relate you back to ultimate origins or ultimate cycling is indeed a spiritual exercise. This opens the door to lots of things being considered spiritual without the term "spiritual" becoming an imprecise proxy for "anything I want to elevate above the mundane." |
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Kevin:
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Jon. |
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With that in mind I agree with the second statement completely. If genuine spirituality is about connection with God, Who is also omnipresent, one should be able to have genuine spiritual experiences doing anything. ...Or to put it another way: Whatever a spiritual person is doing, it's a spiritual experience (spiritual is as spiritual does) because whatever they're doing they're maintaining that divine connection. |
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Insofar as one's activities draw one's thoughts to God, they can be potentially spiritually beneficial. But regarding the activities themselves as "divine" or spiritually significant beyond allowing one to acknowledge God through them is, in my view, erroneous. Quote:
The Bible teaches that God's Spirit may come to dwell within a person (though never in inanimate/non-sentient things or animals) and it is this indwelling that imparts spiritual life to that person, but this by no means implies that such a person is themselves divine - far from it. Quote:
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For myself, then, I don't see Aikido practice as a particularly useful vehicle for spiritual pursuits. Insofar as I can use Aikido to "glorify God" it has some spiritual purpose, but I don't think meditative breathing, or ukemi, or the pleasant after-burn of vigorous training do this by default - or at all, really. I apologize if I'm coming off as truculent. My intent is not to be merely argumentative, but to provide an alternative perspective on the matter of spirituality. Jon. |
Re: Spirituality of aikido?
So essentially you are saying that if it doesn't meet the citieria that you define based on your interpretation of the bible then the person cannot have a spiritual experience?
Do I understand this correctly? So there for Hindu's are wrong, Muslims, Buddhist...all are those religion's pratices or void of spritiuality? To include shinto pracitces such as misogi of which the DNA of his imbedded in Aikido? |
Re: Spirituality of aikido?
Hi Jon-
I wasn't trying to be truculent in my post either, and it gave you the opportunity to end this argument, instead of perpetuating it, so I am a little disappointed you didn't reply. Let's stop arguing and be more explicit: If we (Christians, non-christians, all of us on the forum interested in spirituality in Aikido) can agree on a definition for "spirtuality" then we can stop arguing and go forward with the OP's discussion. The only one who gave a constructive definition of it is you, and I think it is a good starting point: Spirituality means having to do with the relationship of one's self with God. (did I get that right?) Now, if folks like O-sensei (thanks Kevin), Reverend Barrish, athiest aikidoka like myself, or anyone practicing a religion that does not have one god are to be excluded, we can end it there. But here's a simple way we can all be in on the discussion: What is it about "God" in the definition above that you are talking about, specifically? Then we can replace the word "God" with those specific things and we can all discuss, from within our own religions or non-religions, because those things could be shared across different belief systems. Quote:
Spirituality means having to do with the relationship of one's self with the origins and ongoing functioning of the universe. Such a definition would cover everything you've said in your posts.. it would cover O-Sensei's spiritual writings, and it would cover what Matthew and Reverend Barrish have posted. What do you think? --Jonathan Wong |
Re: Spirituality of aikido?
I define myself as a spiritual atheist. I have never had a moment of faith, a moment of a belief in a deity or creator or purposefulness in the universe.
However I am awed to laughter and tears being present at births and at deaths, at watching the flight of enormous flocks of cranes, the full moon over the hills or the ocean... all those things that connect me with this enormous and longlasting universe (that I'm happy to conceive as essentially random and chaotic) and the other living beings that inhabit it and that remind me I am but one tiny insignificant momentary speck in the universe who can make of my bit of time what I choose (although the universe doesn't really "care", I know my positive of negative actions affect some around me and hence spread...thus, again, the connectivity). |
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BTW, note that though I have posted twice, I haven't even dealt with the OP's question and presented my views on spirituality in aikido. The reason is that we haven't settled on what is spirituality and what isn't. I think settling on a definition would open up a lot of conversation.
To illustrate my point better-- in Buddhism there are lots of "gods" but other than the word being the same as the word used in Christianity, there is nothing god-like about them. They are simply powerful non-human entities... the real spirituality in that religion has not to do with the gods. Conversely, some shamanistic religions may not have gods at all, but worship the sun, or some animal forms, etc. So gods are not where to look in those religions either. Point being, all of the above explore the relationship of the self with the greater universe (its origins or its constant cycles of renewal). So does Christianity. So there really should be some specific aspect of spirituality that we can all agree on as being definitive of spiritual experiences. --Jonathan Wong |
Re: Spirituality of aikido?
Hi Janet, I'm glad I got someone on board!
I think this really speaks to Matthew and Jon's original argument. For non-Christians, what is it that classifies something as "spiritual," considering that anything could be thought of in a "deep thoughts but not spiritual" kind of way? Quote:
So: unique among all the "deep" things I could think, it is those times when I feel connected to a something that is greater than myself, greater than humanity, that I feel something that I think is what we all (even Christians) are talking about. --Jonathan Wong |
Re: Spirituality of aikido?
Hello Mr. Barrish, Everyone
Thank you for your post. I am interested in your response, and trying to understand this better; not to do a 'gotcha' style post. What a fine time to have this discussion again; as we enter into this season. A time of reflection and gratitude. For others, it's more; for some it's less. I believe that most here seek the best things; to be honest and to pursue truth, love and righteousness and to follow these where they lead. These threads are always heated; but i hope not to be rude or to fight. These topics always seem to being out the best and worst in people, do they not? I feel that at many points the 'spirituality' of Aikido gets confusing. Frankly, I am confused by it. Sometimes they are generic 'spiritual feelings' and/or earnest sincerity that people mean. And then other times they are generic in that 'thanking god' means thanking your deity that you believe in. Here it is an all size-fits; and delineation of who/what is being thanked is deemed not to matter. This easy-going syncretism appeals to people as fair....but ..in what other area of knowledge is 'preference' or 'pleasingness' or all-encompassing inclusivity the main criteria for selection or discerning of 'truth'. (certainly not in physics, biology, geography, etc). Where in life (and technique) do details not matter? And then other times the names are specifics...and specific names mean specific things....like the God (and/or Gods) and/or Kami of Shinto or Oomoto Kyo. In your post it seems specific names are named. What is meant? Those names come from somewhere. Where? When and How were these names learned? Are all names the same? I do not think that can be true. Are those names the root of Aikido spirituality? Can we test it? Anyway; I do not mean to assault with a barrage of questions... These area all questions I naturally find myself asking. If we are talking about actual sacred things; then.. well...this does require a high standard. A high standard of thought, of analysis, of pedigree. Public fora are really not the place for this; but i do mention it to suggest that these things not be taken too lightly. There likely will be unforseen (but not unforseeable) consequences to these choices. Does it matter if you are 'spiritual' or not? Is everyone the same, independent of how spiritual you are? Does it matter 'how' you are spiritual? Does it matter where the standards come from? Who sets them? And on and on and on. It is a deep thing to be sure. I can only share my questions. I think, of course, being grateful for food; and life itself (as well as myriad other things) is really important. A grateful heart is a good foundation. I agree with that.. but what I want to know is... Is Aikido or does Aikido presume a religion? Do some 'fit' better than other? Was it 'designed' with a 'fit' in mind? As Aikido comes from O-Sensei, so the source of the spirituality in Aikido is from O-Sensei (is it right?) and all that informed his beliefs. I do not think he separated Aikido from his beliefs. In fact; I think this wholistic view is implicit. This is something I have not yet settled for myself. Put another way: Is there an intended immutable spirituality in Aikido? To summarize this overlong post: Is spirituality of, for instance, eating; the act of being grateful (e.g. the spiritual starts and ends with the individual)? Or is it being grateful and thanking/remembering/revering the source? (e.g. the spiritual starts with the individual and ends with the kami/god) If it is closer to the latter...then i think the *who* must be important. No? just some random thoughts. Josh p.s. I thought Don Hebert made some very interesting points on the subject of Spirituality in Aikido here: http://www.aikiweb.com/forums/showth...783#post236783 Actually, IIRC that was kind of a turning point in that thread that lead to some interesting discussion on this very topic. Best to everyone. |
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