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Mark Balogh wrote:
1) Saotome Sensei said that being uke for O'sensei was like attacking and being thrown by a ghost. I believe (and some may disagree) that O'sensei at his peak was the finest practioner of aikido that has ever been. He was soft, relaxed and immovable. Tamurai Sensei is like this, that is what I mean by the best I've seen (in the flesh). I have never come across anyone (hard style or soft style) who has disputed his aikido. I think following O'sensei's example it is clear what "better" is.
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I would probably tend to agree with you, others may not. There are high ranking instructors out there who have a reputation for being hard and brutal yet there are people who seek them out as instructors. These people want/need something different so for them the "soft, relaxed" aikido is not better. I have my preferences but that is exactly what they are, preferences. I can't honestly drop a blanket over a style or way of doing things and call it better. I can say it's better for
me but that's about as far as I can comfortably take it.
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Mark Balogh wrote:
2) A wider variety of the people? You are suggesting a martial art for the masses?
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OH NO!! HEAVEN FORBID!!
Sure, why not? I'm not saying everyone will do it but everyone who's interested should be able to give it a go. I was lucky enough to find an instructor that I "fit" with right off. If there's a bigger pool of personalities to pull from there's a better chance others will find an instructor they "fit" with too.
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Mark Balogh wrote:
Is that good for aikido technically?
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Again, this could go either way. If I"m a person who believes that we all need to follow the path that O-Sensei took with his personal training, from hard/uber-martial to soft/squishy, I'd probably say no. If I'm some one who thinks that we can stand on what came before us to reach even higher I'd more than likely say yes (I'll let you guess which one I am
)
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Mark Balogh wrote:
I don't have the answers
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I think we're in the same boat here
Hell, I don't know the questions most of the time.
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Mark Balogh wrote:
personally I am very intrigued by how and what O'sensei taught his close students, when they had one on one tuition and like.
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That's cool. It's never been a concern of mine. I have a hard enough time just trying to understand what's going on in our little dojo.
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Mark Balogh wrote:
What do you think BD?  |
- That we probaly agree more than disagree
- That it'd be fun to meet on the mat someday and train with you.
- That fried egg and smoked provolone cheese sandwiches are yummy
Best,
Bronson