One True Thing

Daniel, Patrik, I can't help but laugh and smile at the inherent comical value behind shooting peasants, and phesants.

Phesants scream less.

Was the sweet easy because the floor was wet from scrubbing?

Just making a funny. I too am interested in the question of "was there a moment when..".

Sometimes I wonder if I should take another MA as well simply to get some physical contact experience done with. As in sparring, and then get used to people *trying* to hit me.

Then again, that's what randori is all about, and I guess my lack of experience there brings up the thought above. I think I answered my own question.

To keep the topic on Aikido/MA, I've found that I had that "one true thing" type of feeling when we did randori with our eyes closed. Well, I mean, the ukes had their eyes open, we weren't all bumping around and falling all over the place. But it felt good, albeit *very* different.

Hi Daniel!

The event took place during the summer of 1998, so it's almost 5 years ago. It feels like it's been longer than that, though. The event, however, feels perfectly fresh. It really is like it was a day or two ago (parton the cliché, but it's true).

I remember the feeling of struggle, and the feeling of perfect balance when I did the sweep. It felt like I hit only air with my foot. I don't know where it came from, or why. It was if my body was acting on its own. I hadn't been practising Judo for 5 years or so, but it still in my system I guess.

I think I made the sweep in exactly the right moment, as he was stepping to the side or something. But given the guys weight (I'd estimate it to be around 100 kilos), I still think I should have felt more resistance than I did. It's very strange indeed. If I didn't remember it so clearly, I'd almost believe he was right, that someone else did it. However, the people watching were 4 m away and I was facing them!

Regards,

Patrik

Did you ever wonder how many "true things" you might have missed by not being in the moment?

I don't really have one of these moments as nage. I have many as uke. Here's one.

Chuck Sensei was demonstrating (munetski kokynage I think) and I was uke. I punched once and Chuck said "You have to decide to hit me." So I thought "Sure." and I forgot about class, and the dojo and just remembered my karate training and punched like I was trying to crack his sternum in half. Next thing I remeber is admiring the drop ceiling from my vantage point flat on my back. Chuck was frowning at me like "Why didn't you take ukemi?"

Some folks say that kata practice is not worth much as far as timing and intensity etc. because both parties know what's going to happen. Well I knew exactly what Chuck was going to do, and was punching as deviously as I could (retracting, ready to punch again, I think I even jabbed first) and I hadn't a chance in hell of reversing or anything else. He had me, pure and simple, from the very first fraction of a movement I made.

True things. Only in the context of my wedding, and watching my two sons being born. I've been touched to tears watching my son work himself like a maniac to get good enough and strong enough to play sports.

A few times, when emergencies have happened or tragedies, I've been able to act without thinking of myself, and realized later that I'd done pretty good. But I don't think I transcended much, I was raised to step up when the stuff hit the fan.

But I had me some of those moments as a kid that are like Hooker sensei mentioned. I can still feel my 10 year old body pulling on the oars of an old wooden rowboat on the Russian River.

Matt, Chuck was training with me in Denver when I brought Saotome Sensei out for his first visit west. Sensei watched Chuck for a few moments and then used him for uke the rest of the seminar. You have one hell of a good teacher. And I have always thought that Charlie is the finest Aikidoka in America bar Sensei. If you don't take ukime - you will.

Okay. Osawa Sensei used me for uke about thirty years ago and stepped on my gi as he motioned me to get up - holding his hand above me. I couldn't move and looked down to see where he was holding me. I saw both his feet and naturally assumed he had moved and I could now get up. I couldn't. I lay there looking up at him and trying to move, completely puzzled, and then realized why I was pinned to the mat without a single part of him touching me...

I find this story very intriguing I wonder if Mr Linden could perhaps share with us all some more information about Osawa Sensei, his techniques, style of aikido & his classes.

I don't see how this relates to this string, but since it is already a little out of bounds - why not?

Osawa Sensei was a small man (I refer, of course to Osawa the elder, not the current Hombu Shihan) and very slight. He was probably not more that 100-120 pounds at most and very elderly (80+) and his aikido was at an extremely advance level. I did not underestand it at the time, I was only nidan then and his style of movement requires experienced eyes to grasp.

One of the greatest gifts that Saotome Sensei has given all Aikido is the fact of his shihan training sessions in Sarasota - you come away from them with a different ability to see and comprehend. Although it has been 25 years since I last saw Osawa Sensei I can still see his movements and will try to describe his style in retrospect.

He moved from his center (of course) but seemed to stay inside the vortex and to draw uke inside with him as opposed to great masters like K. Tohei who always seemed to be larger than he was and enveloped his ukes - often throwing them 15 - 20 feet. (he once threw me well over that using a kote gaishi). The difference in style is very telling; Osawa Sensei seemed to disolve the energy while those like Tohei Sensei dispersed it. I know that this might be a very fine point, but don't ask if you don't want to know.

How he did this, well, I'll try and explain. He moved with a great deal of energy, but what seemed like movement in his hands was an illusion. Imagine his arms hanging at his side; raise them without moving the position of the upper arm and elbow so that the hands would be directly in front of the navel - and then spin across the mat with an uke attached. To the observer it looks as though there is a great deal of movement however the movement was done with the body and the only concession to the uke was in raising and lowering his general position. Now - he would slide into the uke's center and his movement would start like a top spinning but instead of being projected outward you were gently propeled earthward. There is a hair splitting difference in what he did that is different from everyone else I have ever touched except Saotome Sensei who can do the exact same thing.

Now it is true that Saotome Sensei often trained under Osawa Sensei at Hombu - he mentions him often - and his style has influenced him greatly. I can make no claim on knowing if his style similarities have to do with having learned them from Osawa Sensei or if the ability to achieve these results are the culmination of mastership. Certainly neither of them resemble the films of O' Sensei that are in distribution, but it is also true that the art has evolved and grown since O'Sensei first brought it to us.

I hope this is useful and/or at least interesting.

Linden Sensei,indeed, we are acutely aware of how lucky we are here in Baltimore.

Mr Linden thankyou

You are most welcome.

Two short stories:

The aikido one -- I was uke, my 12-y-o was doing a technique the name of which I've forgotten, but it involved sweeping my arm down with "sticky hands." I couldn't understand how he could possibly pull me down like that without his hands just sliding off my arm. That's what happened quite a few times, for both of us trying it, but then he did it. I went over like a 200-lb guy was throwing me, and the kid had never closed his hands. I looked up and his face was shining. He said he could feel it in his fingers, like electricity.

I was at a vipassana meditation retreat in Barre MA. The dharma teacher talked about how the desire for enlightenment, like any desire, creates an artificial gap between you and enlightenment, yet the desire is what brings us to practice. He challenged us to deal with that paradox. I went to walk, struggling with this, and then I thought, "Who is this 'I' that wants to be free?" And everything went away. All was hum and God and life and The Force and whatever you want to call it; there was no "me" there. It was so blissful that I laughed and danced. Lasted for days, then faded away as the old grasping/desiring habits came back. So I wouldn't quite say I touched the infinite, but it sure touched me.

A Christian friend asked me, "Are you saying that God is Love?"

I said, "No, God is bigger than love. Love is the natural reaction of the human spirit when it comes in contact with God."

Thank you -- doumo arigato -- for letting me share this. Love and respect to you all

i've also had moments like that at vipassana retreat.

the time i realized that it wasn't that i was angry About or At something, i was Just Angry.ended up rolling in the dirt, laughing

at myself.

the time i went on retreat on the tail of a nasty, major depression, expecting to suffer for a week.on the third night i felt my body turn transparent, like a bubble floating weightlessly,and it lasted the week and more.

coming home from my first (& only) 10-day and having to say good-bye to my 17 year old cat,holding her and feeling my body and the house and everything around me dissolve into one big vibration that just contained Everything.

moments of Truth.

Q

The peasants are revolting...

I'm not surprised, nobody likes eating unpleasant peasant pheasant...erm, sorry.

I'm not the pheasant plucker I'm the pheasant plucker's son and I'm only plucking pheasants til the pheasant plucker comes...

Try saying that three times fast

Cindy Perkins wrote: there was no "me" there. It was so blissful that I laughed and danced. Lasted for days, then faded away as the old grasping/desiring habits came back. So I wouldn't quite say I touched the infinite, but it sure touched me.

If there was no "me" there, then what was it that the infinite touched?

When the nurse called my name and she showed me the tiny little creature she had on the glass basket and said "This is your son". Never ever had I felt so complete and so fullfiled. Suddenly all about all made sense. I cannot exchange that feeling for the world!