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Old 02-07-2013, 12:48 PM   #1
Dan Richards
Dojo: Latham Eclectic
Location: NY
Join Date: Oct 2007
Posts: 452
United_States
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Is modern Aikido based on the atomic bomb rather than the sword?

I'm serious about this, and I'm playing with some inquiry. Since the Bronze Age, the sword had been the height of martial technology. In the pre-war era Morihei Ueshiba appears very warlike and grimacing. Like he was going to tear you a new one. Contrast that to post-war aikido, after the atomic bomb, and there is a smiling older man running around with his arms raised towards the sky and declaring peace.

M. Ueshiba had several "conversion" experiences over the years, beginning in the 1920's. But it wasn't until WWI and his direct experience of another type of destructive power, the atomic bomb, that things appear to completely transform, and he makes a complete 180.

Quote:
"The Way of the Warrior has been misunderstood. It is not a means to kill and destroy others. Those who seek to compete and better one another are making a terrible mistake. To smash, injure, or destroy is the worst thing a human being can do. The real Way of a Warrior is to prevent such slaughter -- it is the Art of Peace, the power of love."
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