View Single Post
Old 03-02-2008, 11:03 PM   #8
rob_liberti
Dojo: Shobu Aikido of Connecticut
Location: East Haven, CT
Join Date: Jul 2004
Posts: 1,402
United_States
Offline
Re: Freeform Bokken Drills to Develop Aiki Flow

Okay, first thing's first. Jun, I fear I've hijacked a thread. Would you please be willing to move my last post and Dan's response (and Mike's if you like) and the rest of this one to a new thread called "you say aiki, I say aikido, let's call the whole thing off" or something like that?

Quote:
As George Ledyard clearly states, the totality of the expression in and for aikido has to be learned from within aikido to BE aikido. Anything else...just isn't aikido. These side trips to learn these skills will be nothing more than that.
This brings several ideas to mind. Sorry I don't have time to fully form this post.

1 - That quote doesn't seem to apply to how aikido was originally formed.

2 - Anyone read "Global Brain: The Evolution of Mass Mind from the Big Bang to the 21st Century" ? The author discusses "conformity enforcers; the diversity generators; the inner-judges; resource shifters; and inter-group tournaments."

3 - It does not have to come FROM WITHIN aikido. It just has to get TO people looking to do no harm, drop their ego, and manifest their true selves to BE aikido. (As an aside - What's up with people picking on the "moral high ground"? I appreciate people choosing to NOT hurt me, myself!)

4- Somehow, this quote seems appropriate:
http://www.elise.com/quotes/a/marian...nd_measure.php

5- Is Saotome sensei's ability to move around attackers and seemingly disappear really "internal power"? I'm starting to think it is related. But maybe that is my wishing to finally get some insight into that one.

I want to develop internal skills and use them to do aikido even if it means I have to take falls for people when it's my turn to take ukemi. I have to do that for many people now and I have terrible structure. The interesting question here comes from the fact that I take ukemi from people using the progressive resistance model to help teach them the nage side. After developing internal skills will taking ukemi in this cooperative model really help them do the nag side?

I eventually want to apply those skills to other fun things like MMA, BJJ, Arnis, Kung Fu, etc. I just don't want to destroy someone when I have a clear power advantage and there is really no need to do so. I do need to figure out how to better survive the MMA learning. Being thrown in aikido is easy to soften. Taking shots to the ribs from aiki power no matter how much it is being pulled back hurts. Getting tooled with aiki response while trying to punch is just terrible. Do I really want to destroy any more nerves in my arms? Seems like they were put there for a reason? Can't I just get some wonder woman like arm bands or something?

Rob
  Reply With Quote