Cady Goldfield

Some of who visit here do so because they have an interest in the direction aikido has taken, not because they train in it, but because they are from aikido's parent art, Daito-ryu. It's interesting to see how aikido has largely spun away from the physical principles that make many of the older arts so powerful, and some from the older systems may wonder why aikidoka wouldn't want to have some of that power in their own system, seeing as it can be used to subdue an attacker completely without violence or even pain.

Personally, I think that this "outside" perspective adds food for thought for aikidoka who may feel that they want to explore all of the possibilities for what their art could be. It's all conversational, anyway. Think of the perspectives and insights a Christian group might gain on the meaning of their "Old Testament" and even into their "New" if they were to invite some scholarly Jews to their discussion group. It's sort of like that. You don't have to adopt or adapt any of the intelligence provided, but it does give you a new body of knowledge that you didn't have before, and it might broaden and deepen your understanding of what you have.