View Single Post
Old 12-12-2011, 08:35 PM   #158
Ken McGrew
Dojo: Aikido at UAB
Location: Birmingham, Alabama
Join Date: May 2006
Posts: 202
United_States
Offline
Re: "stance of heaven (and earth)" and IS

I think you need to define Aiki and internal.

Quote:
Carsten Möllering wrote: View Post
Thank you very much!

My question indeed addressed people who practice the internals of aikido in the specific way which is synonym with IS/IP here. I was very happy when I found aikiweb being a place where those internal aspects - which are inherent in aikido - are discussed by people who have a certain way and understanding and who are obviously skilled using this way.
I was curious to better understand, how this certain people understand something, we teach at us.

But you conquered this/my thread - like you did with others - to pursue your personal crusade against ... I don't really know against what?

I'm not involved in the "problems" of the aikido scene in the US, and I'm obviously not taken serious by you.
So I'm watching this debate with an outsider's view. Your posts seem to be just personal. And they seem to be really hot tempered.
Having practiced aikido for some 18 years and being a scholar of the arts with theological, philosophical and historical background I don't see that your writings question the reader in a factual sense and they don't lead to new knowledge or insights. They just state (not even posit), what you want to be stated.

I really don't understand how aikido can be practiced without using internal aspects?
Isn't this common to all styles of aikido: Using the tanden, using in and yo. Using different forms of breathing. Using imagination/visualisation. And so on ... Doesn't everyone who practices aikido makes use of things like this, internal aspects of using the body? And doesn't everyone who practices try to "create" a body and a feeling that allows to use body and mind in a way that may be called "aiki"?
Endo sensei sometimes askes the students: How do you make aiki??? How??? And then makes us try to explore ...

True: There are different ways of understanding, doing, learning these aspects. Maybe almost contradicting ways.
I had some very interesting arguments with people who do ki-aikido (Yoshigasaki doshu) whether the "one point" is the tanden. Or if you nee to create cerstain skills of the body when it's the mind which leads the body anyway.
And I would be very glad to learn whether I understand (and like) what Dan Harden teaches. I was glad to be thrown by Ikeda sensei and to get to know his approach (or the first steps ...) I am glad to have my teacher who brings his experiences of koryu whith him and makes aiki more understandable. And so on.
You can discuss, study, practice. You can like or not, integrate or sort out. Depending on what you, your teacher, your style, your line of tradition think to be essential.

But I don't see how you can practice without the internal aspects at all. And how can you discuss aikido without talking about internal aspects? This wouldn't be aikido no more but would be just hollow.
  Reply With Quote