Perhaps pertinent to this thread, here are two polls I took a few years back on the subject of pain:
"Is enduring physical pain necessary in getting better at aikido? - 10/9/2004"
http://www.aikiweb.com/polls/results.html?poll_id=241
"Is inducing physical pain in others necessary in getting better at aikido? - 10/16/2004"
http://www.aikiweb.com/polls/results.html?poll_id=242
-- Jun