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Old 07-30-2013, 02:05 AM   #11
oisin bourke
 
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Re: What is Aiki? Introduction to a method of analyzing Aiki. (Part 3)

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That's the very vague allusion I was referring to. Those teachings tell us, precisely, nothing about what aiki is, where it comes from, how it is created, maintained, and expressed. Whether it's because he did not have the words with which to describe these, or whether he was intentionally misleading, we'll never know. Going by the general lack of descriptive terminology in DR teaching, though, I more and more suspect that none of these people had the words, and that whatever skills they had were learned and passed on through physical, intuitive transmission.
I don't think I've read anything that has specifically stated what aiki is, where it comes from, how it is created, maintained, and expressed. If you have come across a text that does please give me link!

I agree with the lack of descriptive terminology, but to be honest, I can't see how "Aiki" can be passed on OTHER than through physical, intuitive transmission. It's a physical art. At best, you can glean hints and key points from other sources, especially if you have a base of reference established from training.

Anyway, you stated that The author is misleading people, but I still can't see how. What exactly did he write that is completely off the mark? As far as I can see, at worst he is being vague.

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Yeah, Kimura's even better at being obscure. I do feel that Takahashi spent too much time and attention on the hands, to the point that it seems to be a genuine distraction to avoid talking about more relevant things such as the tandan, meimon, femoral region, legs, and feet, etc.
He mentioned the legs feet and tai sabaki a lot towards the end of the article. He also stated that this is only scratching the surface. The other terms you mentioned, they're fairly vague

Do you see my point? can't see exactly what Takahashi would have to have written in a fairly short article to have escaped the charge of vagueness. FWIW, that's the first time I have ever come across a specific piece referring to training the wrists at a "deeper" level. I think that would be of interest to people who spend so much time in training grabbing wrists (like people reading this forum).

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As for being dismissive, there's a growing body of individuals who are training in aiki and learning very specific body methods. There is a vocabulary and a physical, technical curriculum that is quite focused. For those of us who have been practicing aiki for 15 years or longer, and have some skills and understanding, it's frustrating to read descriptions of aiki that only tangentially touch on it and lead the would-be student in the wrong direction, away from any glimmer of understanding
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Well, you're free to adopt that attitude, of course. I've seen that on this thread. Personally, I think that "XXX doesn't know what he's talking about" often leads to missing important points.
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