Hello Chris,

Interesting that you chose to use this quote, as I have always found it particularly inconvenient for those proposing that aiki = IP. And it is a rather clear statement.

I find that it points to aiki as being a principle of relating or interacting, in which one perceives and then responds to the other's intent and then commitment to act, which by necessity precede the act itself. Doing so allows one to still follow the opponent, so as to be appropriate, and yet does not require waiting for the physical act before responding, so as to avoid being late. It further suggests a neutral state from which you can perceive what is actually happening, not your ideas about what is happening.

The "IP/IT/IS" paradigm as discussed here on AikiWeb would seem to have very little to do with the use of or defending against guns, and even less to do with artillery.

Of course, it is possible that Mochizuki (and/or the translator) was unable to understand do to a lack of background information. But then how would you reconcile that with: