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Old 09-24-2012, 07:37 PM   #52
Marc Abrams
Dojo: Aikido Arts of Shin Budo Kai/ Bedford Hills, New York
Location: New York
Join Date: May 2006
Posts: 1,302
United_States
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Re: Sumo: light vs heavy and IS?

Maybe it's just me..... I kind of find it ludicrous that we are entertaining people who are trying to define a very hard to define, Japanese term who DO NOT speak Japanese. I do not speak Japanese, nor pretend to have some deep understanding of words and terms that I do not know the history, context, etc. behind the words or terms. I may put forth my limited understanding with the caveat of my lack of understanding of the language and I will then defer to those who are in a better position to understand the words and terms....

Correct me if I am wrong, but Chris Li was NOT a fan of Dan Harden's in the beginning. Chris Li is someone who I think is a professional interpreter. He not only interprets Japanese into English (and the other way around), is an accomplished Aikidoka, and has researched the history and context behind the words and terms that we are attempting to portray that we think that we know. It is my understanding that Chris explored O'Sensei's original writings because he wanted to see if Dan was full of B.S. or not.

We can continue to display our arrogance wrapped in ignorance, or we can step back and acknowledge the limitations of our assumed knowledge and seek out people who may be better informed than us. This discussion has NOTHING to do with Dan Harden. This discussion evolved/devolved into a discussion of what "Aiki" means (one of too many threads). It is beyond absurd that we have people who insist that they know what this term means in absence of a deep understanding of the language and a deep understanding of the history and context of the term.

For my 2 cents, I currently defer to Chris Li, in absence of a more educated opinion.....

Marc Abrams

ps- Great Post Hunter!!!!
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