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Old 07-17-2008, 07:38 PM   #149
Peter Goldsbury
 
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Dojo: Hiroshima Kokusai Dojo
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Re: Seiseki Abe Sensei video....whats going on here?

Ellis's post, about aikido as love, reminded me of some interesting antecedents I have come across while researching for my Aikiweb columns. Here is an interesting quote:

“The authoritarian basis of Japanese morality in this period can be seen very clearly in the habitual ill-treatment of Japanese soldiers by their officers. Discipline was conducted through bentatsu ([鞭撻: 鞭 means whip or rod; 撻 means to flog or strike: the combination means to goad someone or to urge them on]: the routine bashing and striking of soldiers), which was presented as an “act of love” by the officers for the soldiers. Even in the Japanese Navy—which was far more westernized in its conduct than in the Army—adopted a practice of harsh discipline known as tekken seisai (鉄拳 means a clenched fist; 制裁 means sanction or punishment: the combination means the 'law of the iron fist') in the wake of the Russo-Japanese War. It was often called the 愛の鞭 (ai-no-muchi, or ‘whip/rod of love’).”

O Sensei apparently distinguished himself in the Russo-Japanese War of 1904-1905 and later taught many of the officers who administered the whip. I think it is always good to have some cultural context to O Sensei's "Aiki is Love" statements.

The quote, by the way, is from a Japanese scholar who is trying to explain the atrocities done by his countrymen on their foreign POWs in WWII.

All will be revealed in a future column .

Last edited by Peter Goldsbury : 07-17-2008 at 07:41 PM.

P A Goldsbury
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