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Old 08-10-2011, 02:38 AM   #41
Tim Ruijs
 
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Dojo: Makato/Netherlands
Location: Netherlands - Leusden
Join Date: Aug 2005
Posts: 463
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Re: The Descent of Aiki

Allthough the discussion moved on, I would still like to respond.
Quote:
Niall Matthews wrote: View Post
First off, I could not be more serious.
Quote:
Niall Matthews wrote: View Post
Who has established that Morihei Ueshiba was not a good teacher? Whether you like his style is not a criterion.
The man was an inspiration to many and had great technical ability, no doubt. But even the highest ranked students state Ueshiba hardly explained anything. The late Tamura Sensei (one the oldest students) and Suganuma Sensei (one of the last students) both state this. Both explain that students started to name techniques to keep them apart for practise. So yeah, his didactic skills were not that great.
Quote:
Also deciding if music is good or not based on its purpose is not serious.
Why so serious What are you looking for then? When a tool fits the purpose, the tool is good enough. It does not have to be perfect. Perfection (of technique) was never a goal...There is no absolute reference. Each and every time you execute a technique it is a new one. Perhaps it is because I am an engineer that I have this perspective. I apply a known tool for a problem, or I create a tool that does the job. The better I get, the better I can judge what tool to use, or the better I am able to create a specialised tool. I think Ueshiba and others had similar approach: they adapted their knowledge to solve their problem. In case of Ueshiba: find/define his Budo.
I do not think that is too far off from the OP...just different perspective.

back to the main thread....

In a real fight:
* If you make a bad decision, you die.
* If you don't decide anything, you die.
Aikido teaches you how to decide.
www.aikido-makato.nl
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