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But you will certainly develop your own understanding and things that seemed incomprehensible at one point will make some sense to you later. But only if one trains in a way that is designed to illuminate the deeper principles. A lot of Aikido training simply won't take one there.
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Agreed but what I was trying to open up in a not very articulate ways a notion that is stuck with me, which I believe you have expressed in other ways. The notion is that the spiritual and technical sides of aikido cannot be seperated. However the general meaning of "spiritual" as Western people mean it is somewhat different in the East where spirituality is a technical science, and values and ethics emerge from the practice and not the other way round.
In Chen Tai Chi, possibly the last combat oriented from, yielding isa way to gain mastery over an opponent. It is not that giving way to the will of another should be equated to love, peace and harmony. However it is very difficult to really learn to yield at the deepest levels of muscular and skeletal structure, whilst winning through strength is still a fundamental world view governing our mental and emotional approach tp life. I Chuan, mind/body boxing stresses intent as the pathway to power but ultimately defeating others leads back to the roots of conflict in oneself and we arrive back where we began.