Yes, we can say that his son simplified Aikido in order to popularize the art, he created a curriculum of techniques that made it more comprehensible to teach and to learn, he took out much of the Shinto references and kotodama exercises. But we should credit the nidai doshu for all his work, for it is not likely that any of us would be practicing Aikido, thinking about its philosophy or have talks on the subject like on this forum if it were not for him (and a number of students of O Sensei).

Tom