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Old 08-28-2012, 10:10 AM   #60
Keith Larman
Dojo: AIA, Los Angeles, CA
Location: California
Join Date: Apr 2005
Posts: 1,604
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Re: talking and listening

Quote:
Gary Welborn wrote: View Post
Some thoughts here....perspectives in play.....some of the folks here, me included, see Aikido as fundamentally as a form of modern physical self-defense, limited in some ways, but still a form of self-defense in a physical setting. I don't see Aikido as a way to operate my daily life, it is not a way to world peace and it isn't universal love.
Actually I don't disagree personally. However, many who practice Aikido today do have a vastly larger perspective on the applicability of the art to many things. Aikido went a whole lot of directions... So while I may not participate much in the discussion about how the whole orange metaphor works in terms of Aikido, I do see the metaphor as a valuable one regardless. And clearly for some they do see much of that as relevant to their practice including universal love and world peace kinda stuff. As such much of that discussion is simply not one I need to participate in. Sure, now and then there will be the discussion as to whether this is *really* what Aikido is all about or *really* what O-sensei intended, but... It is clear that it evolved that way for a whole lot of folk (hence the way many distinguish between what they see as Ueshiba's Aikido vs. modern Aikido vs. whatever). So of course now and again there will be the discussion as to what Aikido *really* is, but it doesn't have to be in *every* conversation and sometimes those with that other view of how things work like to have their own discussions. Like it or not, the world of Aikido is huge, diverse, and quite a mess of ideas. And my solid foundation is someone else's misguided mess.

I see little point in defending or asserting particular views in every conversation among those who do have a different worldview on the topic. Then again I don't think one needs to wail against it either when someone does. They should just carry on, have their conversation, and ignore the other discussion if it isn't what they want to talk about.

Last edited by Keith Larman : 08-28-2012 at 10:17 AM.

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