Thread: My Rope Theory
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Old 01-19-2011, 07:44 PM   #19
Randall Lim
Dojo: Tendoryu Aikido Singapore
Location: Singapore
Join Date: Oct 2010
Posts: 94
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Re: My Rope Theory

Quote:
Graham Christian wrote: View Post
HI. Thought I might share with you a viewpoint of mine and equate it with Aikido as a whole. The reason I havn't posted it on an ongoing thread is that I believe it deserves it's own, we shall see.

I call it The Rope Theory and in it's simplicity it is this:

Imagine the whole of Aikido, all organizations, all styles, all individuals are all part of one rope called Aikido.

Now every individual is a strand of that rope.

That's the basic theory and it leads to fascinating questions.

As I see it you can then look at Aikido as a whole and see what makes it stronger and what makes it potentially a weak rope.
If the strands argue and fight each other for example then it is not good for the rope.

If a strand thinks it is the rope then it is deluded.

If a strand turns against other strands then it is banning itself from the rope.

So what makes the rope stronger?

My opinion is when a strand realizes it is a strand and all others are strands in their own right and then through sharing the rope itself gains strength and quality.

To me it's one of those analogies that the more you look at the more you see. For example you could look at all people in the world being strands of the same rope etc. etc.

Thus when one strand goes against others it is obvious from this analogy that it is defeating it'self. For example if a person decides they are against people with green eyes then that person has opposed millions, one verses millions. The thread thus destroys it'self and the rope becomes that much weaker.

I thoght in an Aikido context and indeed this Aikiweb Rope this analogy may help and even lead to some fun responses. Anyway got to go training in half an hour.

Regards. G.
From an Engineering point of view, a multi-strand rope is much stronger & more flexible than a solid homogenous (single-core) rope of the same material & thickness.

Reason: Friction between each strand helps keep the rope together & make the rope stronger. While the ability for each strand to subtly slide along each other helps in the rope's flexibility.

From the Aikido point of view, instead of friction, it would be inter-club bonding that keeps the Aikido rope strong. While the ability for each club to subtly vary in approaches & styles to offer society a wider perspective of Aikido.

Each club or Aikidoka only percieves a small aspect of the wider Aikido. No one can claim that he knows & understands the whole of Aikido. Only O-Sensei can.
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