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Old 06-05-2008, 03:14 AM   #24
CorkyQ
Dojo: Kakushi Toride Aikido
Location: Los Angeles
Join Date: Mar 2008
Posts: 111
United_States
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Re: Easy ikkyo, painless nikkyo, attacking nikkyo?

The points to the video clips that I put up on youtube were this:

The first one "Easy ikkyo, painless nikyo" was a simple demonstration of how the nature of ukemi forms aiki, something that should be pretty obvious but is overlooked by people who think they have to muscle through either movement. Ikkyo is a natural technique when uke is extending his musculature during a grab or strike, but if the musculature is is compressing then ikkyo will not manifest without force. Clearly a person stronger than his partner or in a better position to use leverage and/or who does not care whether they injure their partner can force ikkyo, but force is in opposition to harmony by definition.

The same holds true for nikyo, but in this case nikyo is in harmony with the compression of musculature. If uke is extending and elongating his musculature, nikyo will only manifest if nage makes room for the extension and lowers the point of connection without conflicting with that outward stretch (not shown in the clip).

One can feel free to disagree with the idea that aikido is about harmony and not force. This clip is not for them.

The next clip "Is nikyo an attack?" is not meant to demonstrate martial technique, as what aikidoka is really going to be doing something that would result in nikyo being applied in a martial situation? Which aikido technique when done properly results in a nikyo being applied to nage?

The point to the clip was to demonstrate that in the application of nikyo in a traditional way when one focuses one's ki into the necessarily constricted flow, including the use of the hand that traps the fingers of the affected wrist, the intention turns the person applying the nikyo into uke which is why a reverse is possible. There has been no argument that a reverse is never possible, has there? This is meant only to demonstrate why nikyo is reversible. We do however believe that because of the nature of traditionally applied nikyo it is always reversible by the extension of ki in harmony with the application.

The speculation as to the effectiveness or the nikyo being applied in the video or the lack thereof is pointless. Some people said the "raised elbows" meant non-effective application, while Rob L. said he could effectively apply nikyo with his elbow in any position. For the demonstration we all showed our ability to affect our partner's center prior to changing our responses, but if anyone thinks we were were fooling ourselves or each other, you'll have to remain in doubt. We all left the dojo that night with the sore wrists to prove it, at least to ourselves, but I'm not trying to change anyone's mind. Either you will understand what we were getting at or you won't. Many people do, many people don't. We tried it in a different dojo with aikidoka who are not necessarily of the same mindset as us and got similar results, but again, you would have to take our word on it. Other people have written me from all over the world saying it worked for them, but I can't verify if they are fooling themselves or really did what we did. Others have written saying we're insane, and maybe we are, but we know what we experienced.

Granted it is not easy to overcome the limbic system response to pain, but when one can do it, if the flow of ki from center follows the field of energy produced by uke's application, aiki mainifests effortlesslessly. Again, no one is suggesting this as a way to, after stupidly putting oneself in a position to be on the receiving end of nikyo in a real life situation, "push" through a joint lock. It is a demonstration of how that wrist lock actually creates ukemi, nothing more, nothing less.
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