Secret Of Aikido?
 

Interview with Henry Kono:

Showing me another quote from Bob Nadeau's article in Aikido Today Magazine, which says: "Once O-Sensei told me one day clearly and emphatically that the truth of aikido could be caught in a very short moment of time. If you catch the secret," he said. "You can do what I do in three months."

Anyone have ANY idea what the secret is or could be?

Re: Secret Of Aikido?
 

Do a search for Mike Sigman or Dan Harden's posts ;)

I think he meant you could do what he does to a smaller scale (emphasizing again that he's doing something almost completely different body wise), but it'd take much longer than three months to match what he'd built up over the years :)

Re: Secret Of Aikido?
 

Yes, it's called training.

You train.

Lots.

Re: Secret Of Aikido?
 

Kuzushi, knowing how to and when your opponent is unbalanced.

David

Re: Secret Of Aikido?
 

"There is no enemy for Ueshiba of Aikido".

Re: Secret Of Aikido?
 

Maybe being in the correct place, at the correct time, in the right rhythm (out of your opponents time/rhythm), becoming their centre, all at once. Capturing their balance and energy, controlling direction and momentum - 'becoming one with'.
What do you think?
Easy to say!! wish I could do it.
Pete:)

Re: Secret Of Aikido?
 

Coming from someone who spent an entire lifetime practicing, it must surely be a metaphor or something. If it was true, I would have gotten the secret of aikido many years ago, or maybe I've got it and I don't know yet :D

Re: Secret Of Aikido?
 

I'll echo what Rob John said. :)

Re: Secret Of Aikido?
 

I'll echo what O-sensei said.
If I knew it I could do aikido like O-sensei.

Three years on a stone
 

Interesting thread!
Tamura sensei told me that Osensei had said to him about learning aikido: "Three days should be enough."
Then, there's the Japanese saying: 'Three years on a stone.' Even if you want to learn something as simple as sitting on a stone, it takes three years. On the other hand, after those three years you can do it.
I believe it to be true, sort of. After three years you don't know it all, but you know how far it can get you. So, you should reconsider whether to continue on this path, or search for another. You can also use it about teachers: After three years you should know what your teacher can give you, and you can decide to remain with that teacher or find another one.

Three days, three months, or three years. It's all the same - time is relative ;)
The most intriguing question is what to learn, specifically, in order to learn aikido - quickly or in a lifelong quest.
I think it is possible to comprise the essence of aikido into a few factors that may or may not be possible to learn quickly. Maybe they are:
1 Find one's center, and let it govern one's action.
2 Extend ki - or breath, or intention, or inspiration, or what you want to call it.
3 Join with the attack, instead of resisting it.
4 Treat your partner with compassion.

Comprising them into one:
Show compassion from your center.

Just my three cents...

Re: Secret Of Aikido?
 

"Show compassion from the center."
This is so universal and is applicable to anything! Worth so much more than three cents Stenudd sensei. Spoken like a true champion of aikido.

Best regards,
Larry

Re: Secret Of Aikido?
 

I seem to recall that a prominent aikido teacher once replied to this sort of question,

"There is no 'secret teaching' in aikido! You were told all the 'secrets' in your first month of classes!"

Grain of salt, as always. Especially with what was probably a response meant to spur further thought, rather than resolve the issue.

Re: Secret Of Aikido?
 

Perhaps the secret is that there is no secret,
nothing hidden,
just unseen.

I am glad I don't know the secret.
It keeps me curious and training.

Re: Secret Of Aikido?
 

Excerpt from "Interview with Koichi Tohei (2)" by Stan Pranin, at http://www.aikidojournal.com/article?articleID=127

Eventually I also met Tempu Nakamura Sensei, from whom I first heard the words, “The mind moves the body.” Hearing this I thought, “That’s it! That’s all there is to it! It’s so simple!” I started looking more closely for that kind of thing and indeed discovered that Ueshiba Sensei would move his opponents’ bodies by leading their minds (kokoro). And he did it while completely relaxed. It would have been good if he had simply taught us that, but he never did.

Re: Secret Of Aikido?
 

Rei, Domo.

Re: Secret Of Aikido?
 

I asked Kono sensei what was it that O-sensei could do that you could do if you learned the secret of Aikido. But he told me how, not what.

So what could he do that was based on "the secret of Aikido"? The only possibility I have in mind appears in this interview:

Is that a clue?

Re: Secret Of Aikido?
 

Well, if anyone told you, it wouldn't be a secret, now would it? :p

Of course, they don't tell you any secrets either ... ;)

If I knew any secret, which I can neither confirm nor deny -- it seems to me that there is a clue in the "if" and the "catching" ... If I knew, that is ... :)

Re: Secret Of Aikido?
 

I asked Kono sensei what was it that O-sensei could do that you could do if you learned the secret of Aikido. But he told me how, not what.

So what could he do that was based on "the secret of Aikido"? The only possibility I have in mind appears in this interview:

Quote:
O-Sensei: Yes. I met him when we were making the rounds after a celebration marking the 10th anniversary of the establishment of the government of Manchuria. There was a handsome looking man at the party and many people prodding him on with such comments as, “This Sensei has tremendous strength. How about testing yourself against him?” I asked someone at my side who this person was. It was explained to me that he was the famous Tenryu who had withdrawn from the Sumo Wrestler’s Association. I was then introduced to him. Finally, we ended up pitting our strength against each other. I sat down and said to Tenryu, “Please try to push me over. Push hard, there’s no need to hold back.” Since I knew the secret of aikido, I could not be moved an inch. Even Tenryu seemed surprised at this. As a result of that experience he became a student of aikido. He was a good man.

Is that a clue?

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Last edited by Alfonso : Today at 04:12 PM.

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Alfonso Adriasola

*****************************
Yet so many deny and others continue to fail to understand- the impact of the above advice offered by the arts very own founder.
Their reply has been "what good is, a. resisting, and b. pushing."

Takeda said the best reason to learn martial arts was to become strong. Ueshiba in the above example discussed strength.
Neither one was discussing muscle.
But true, clear, power
The best martial art training is done in preparation, alone. Then the rest becomes much easier.

Student of Ueshiba I trained with
"This is Ueshiba's Aikido. They don't teach this anymore you know-it's not in modern aikido."
To the question of those in aikido not believing this is in fact the way he was pointing?
What do they know? Have they trained with Ueshiba?

Again and again through demonstration and example he pointed the way.

None are so blind as those that refuse to see
None so deaf as those who refuse to hear.

Re: Secret Of Aikido?
 

Maybe, Aikido is daily life?

Re: Secret Of Aikido?
 

Amen to that

Re: Secret Of Aikido?
 

I found this statement.

The secret to Aikido

"I think of Aikido as a study in physical blending. Much of the "secret" of Aikido is in learning how people move, and how to coordinate in one way or another with that movement. It is sort of like horse riding, or rafting; there's this force that you're interacting with, and if you're good, you can -- to some extent -- control or direct that force. The sneaky part is that what you're really doing is learning to control yourself, which is much more difficult."
by Sean Russell

David

Re: Secret Of Aikido?
 

There is no secret! Seek an ye shall find!!
Its all in the beginning...... (If you find a good teacher) Then just keep training.... if you stop... you lose the "secret"
Tony

Re: Secret Of Aikido?
 

True, but if you go out of your way to actually meet them, they'll demonstrate it all clearly enough.
As for the secret of aikido, I'd have to guess that's a combination of anything that comes out of Anno Motomichi's mouth, mixed in with all the ditto'ing that Rob John, Mark Murray, and - oh, yeah - that Dan Harden fellow are doing.

Re: Secret Of Aikido?
 

My favorite secret to Aikido is Practice,Practice, Practice. (second favorite is what Rob John said)

Re: Secret Of Aikido?
 

Isn't it possible that the Shihan who trained with both the Founder and Ni Doshu have figured out what the "secret" is? Isn't it possible that it can't be put simply into words and that if it were, we still would not understand?