View Single Post
Old 09-02-2002, 05:45 PM   #20
Kent Enfield
 
Kent Enfield's Avatar
Location: Oregon, USA
Join Date: Jul 2002
Posts: 224
United_States
Offline
Quote:
Colleen Annes (ca) wrote:
so are you saying you believe O Sensei had as a goal of Aikido the development of this moral viewpoint, that we would eventually reach this moral practice of his art, but that goal is not actually part of Aikido?
Yes. That's exactly what I'm saying. I also do not think that practicing aikido inevitably leads to moral development, just that it is intended as a tool for that development. The potential moral development comes from the practicing of something difficult (in this case, learning to fight effectively), not from the techniques of the art itself. Heck, even kendo and judo claim to intended as instruments of moral development, but do not make the claim that you have to be a good person or using the techniques for a good purpose to be doing kendo or judo. They just claim that you ought to. I believe it to be the same with aikido.

Aikido in and of itself is amoral. It was developed so that practice of it could be used as a tool for moral development.
Quote:
Colleen Annes (ca) wrote:
As for the kicking uke in the middle of kotegashi, it sounds like it was demonstrated do do the kick rather than finish the kotegaeshi throw you already had? But not to show uke his vulnerability and the reason to take the fall, but rather immobilizing uke with the wrist lock so you could kick him in the chest? So you give up the certain technique in order to stand on one foot and kick an immobilized uke in the chest?
It wasn't so much a stop one technique, start another type thing. You just used a kote-gaeshi motion to open the chest in order to deliver the kick. If you're opposed to being on one foot, you really would have disliked the technique that came next: a flying scissors takedown in which nage was completely airborn. I'd also that point out that kotegaeshi is no more "certain" than maegeri.

The point was not to get stuck in a "this technique is aikido; that one is not" mindset. Or it could have been just for Saotome s.'s amusement, having seen what happens when a bunch of aikidoka try to practice the technique.
Quote:
Colleen Annes (ca) wrote:
I don't see the point in those who demo kicking uke after you've pinned him, either.
I've never done that or seen it done, but I'd guess it's so that uke doesn't get up right away.

Kentokuseisei
  Reply With Quote