View Single Post
Old 05-30-2002, 06:14 AM   #22
Chris Li
 
Chris Li's Avatar
Dojo: Aikido Sangenkai
Location: Honolulu, Hawaii
Join Date: Dec 2000
Posts: 3,313
United_States
Offline
Quote:
Originally posted by chadsieger
If you have already decide not to persue the ki aspect of martial arts, than I am sorry and that is your decision. If you are still undecided as to its existence and purpose/usefulness in martial arts and especially Aikido, please feel free to read my posts.
Hmm, first you'll have to define what you mean by the word, since, in my experience, most arguments start by centering around people arguing for (and against) different definitions.

Quote:
My sensei does not charge to train (novel eh?).
I've been actually paid for teaching exactly once, but that was more than 10 years ago, and was for a month long intensive training session (maybe some people can afford to take a month's vacation to teach, but not me...).

At two of the dojo that I train at currently, one dojo with two Aikikai 7th dans and one dojo with 3 shihans from assorted Aikido styles, nobody gets paid that I know of. The third dojo that I go to the instructor is actually paid and the fees are a little higher, but that's how he makes his living, so I don't begrudge him the money (he isn't rich, I've spent time at his house). At both of the dojo that I trained at in the US before I came back to Japan this time the instructors actually ran in the red some times because they ended up subsidizing things like the Christmas parties - so it's really not a very unusual thing.

OTOH, Morihei Ueshiba made his living off of Aikido for years, and so did (and does) Koichi Tohei, Gozo Shioda and many others, including Sokaku Takeda. Nothing wrong with that, as far as I'm concerned - everybody's got to eat, right?

Best,

Chris

  Reply With Quote