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Old 09-04-2001, 10:25 AM   #1
MaylandL
Location: Western Australia
Join Date: Sep 2001
Posts: 241
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Aikido Does Work

Hi everyone.

I've been doing martial arts for about 15 years experimenting with different disciplines in my early years. I did do ju jitsu for about 4 years and have been doing aikikai aikido for about 8 years. There were times when I thought whether all the training was worth it and whether aikido could be used in a practical situation.

Well, just thought that all you dedicated aikido practitioners and students alike would like to know that aikido does work and very effectively too.

I had an incident just last week. I had a rather busy day having been up for close to 16 hours. I was pretty tired and just before I decided to go to bed I took the garbage out to the bins. Well its midnight and its dark and the bins are located behind a large gate just near the car port. About two meters (about 7 feet) from the bins I vaguely see a dark figure jump out at me to punch my lights out. What is colloqiually called a "King Hit".

Well I just toss my head back, the punch grazes my eye and some how I move (tenkan I think), grab something and he gets thrown to the ground and I land near or on top of him. I'm not really sure since it was dark and it happended so very quickly, though at the time everything seemed to happen in slow motion. Anyway there's a bit of a struggle and he says "please let me go" and for some reason I do.

Anyway he runs off, hopefully to go change his underwear and all I get is a couple of scrapes and a small bruise. According to the police (my wife insisted that I call them) I was pretty lucky and they think that I might have disturbed him trying to break inot my car. The Police said if he had got that first punch in I could have been in real trouble.

I don't know. Anyway, my wife is happy I wasn't hurt. Maybe from a practical perspective this is what Ueshiba was getting at. That no matter what surprises there are, you are able to blend with the force and redirect it so that the aggression is neutralised and leaves the attacker with no other option than to submit or retreat. The result is no one is really hurt and the attacker is unable to continue with their original intent.

Anyone got any thoughts about this?

Mayland
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Old 09-04-2001, 11:04 AM   #2
shihonage
Join Date: Sep 2001
Posts: 890
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Re: Aikido Does Work

Quote:
Originally posted by MaylandL
Maybe from a practical perspective this is what Ueshiba was getting at. That no matter what surprises there are, you are able to blend with the force and redirect it so that the aggression is neutralised and leaves the attacker with no other option than to submit or retreat. The result is no one is really hurt and the attacker is unable to continue with their original intent.
I would be surprised if there wouldn't be a documentary of him somewhere using almost exactly the same words.
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Old 09-04-2001, 03:34 PM   #3
mj
Location: livingston, scotland
Join Date: Dec 2000
Posts: 715
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Re: Aikido Does Work

Quote:
Originally posted by MaylandL
Anyway there's a bit of a struggle and he says "please let me go" and for some reason I do.
That's the trouble with you aikikai guys....too nice

Only joking, glad it worked out well for you.

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Old 09-04-2001, 08:13 PM   #4
Axiom
Dojo: TC Aikido Center
Location: Minneapolis, MN
Join Date: Jul 2000
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Considering that he did jujitsu, its surprising he didn't go with their more traditional strategy of "break every bone in reach"...looks like the aikido training kicked in on time...:-)

Alex Magidow
Who is currently enrolled in Judo because its free

_________
An eye for an eye makes the whole world blind
-- Gandhi
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Old 09-05-2001, 05:33 AM   #5
ian
 
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Dojo: University of Ulster, Coleriane
Location: Northern Ireland
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I thought that sounded like a very beautiful event. I especially like the 'please let me go' bit.

I have used aikido myself in a couple of situations and I believe it saved my life once (from a knife attack). I think the great thing is not the techniques, but that you avoid the often devastating first blow.

One of the things about confrontations I've had is later thinking that I should have damaged them in some way to teach them a lesson. However now I don't think people learn lessons in this way (or at least not the right lessons). Also, I've realised that if you feel comfortable defending yourself you have no need to teach people a lesson - I think they learn more from benvolence. Also, you can hope that they live long enough to regret their previous misdemeanors.

How did you feel about this yourself?

Ian
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Old 09-05-2001, 05:46 AM   #6
Anysia
 
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Location: Perth, Australia
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Re: Aikido Does Work

Quote:
Originally posted by MaylandL

I don't know. Anyway, my wife is happy I wasn't hurt. Maybe from a practical perspective this is what Ueshiba was getting at. That no matter what surprises there are, you are able to blend with the force and redirect it so that the aggression is neutralised and leaves the attacker with no other option than to submit or retreat. The result is no one is really hurt and the attacker is unable to continue with their original intent.

Anyone got any thoughts about this?
Yes, I have some. I am the wife. I am very glad that his 15+ yrs of training took over when his brain was fogged from a long day. A slight bruise, and a few scrapes on his elbows was little to show for an attempted mugging. Mayland was more embarassed that he got tagged, even that slight graze, and nothing I could do would dissuade him from it. That is until I talked to a few other blackbelts and a sensei.
Even Maylands' sensei had told him that even HE would not have been prepared for that attack, and Mayland did quite well. After that, and some of his friends even saying he was very lucky, and his reactions were right on the mark. Then he finally gave up being 'embarassed'.



So yes, aikido DOES work. (and as a side bonus, he has been teaching our son how to defend himself too, with the warning if he tries to show off what he is taught, he will be personally monkeystomped.

Aikidoists do it on the tatami!
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Old 09-05-2001, 05:47 AM   #7
MaylandL
Location: Western Australia
Join Date: Sep 2001
Posts: 241
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Thumbs down Reply to Ian

Thanks for your comments Ian. You're right. After the incident I thought about all of the things that I could have done to him to really beat the snot out of him. But on reflection that would have gone against all of what Ueshiba wanted aikido to achieve and what practitioners should strive for to live up to Ueshiba's legacy and contribution to the philosophy and practice of martial arts.

The other side of the coin is that the law takes a less than favourable view of people with martial arts training beating people up. I think as martial artists we have a responsibility to use what we have learned responsibly and with compassion. I think that's what Ueshiba would have liked too.

Mayland
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Old 09-05-2001, 10:18 AM   #8
Carlos
Dojo: Yamato
Location: Rio de Janeiro
Join Date: Aug 2001
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Re: Aikido Does Work

Quote:
Originally posted by MaylandL

There were times when I thought whether all the training was worth it and whether aikido could be used in a practical situation.
Mayland,

Yes, Aikido work's real fine.

I know about several cases when Aikido work's and other when did not work at all.


My teacher's wife was inside the subway when some "pervert" try to grab between her leg's.
Like you she didn't think, only feel and react.

She grab his hand and direct the attack to his right and punch the guy's nose with the left hand. She break his nose and the guy stop the attack. He fell on the floor don't believe what is happening.

She run and ten minutes later can't understand how she did it.

Regard's

Carlos

http://aikido.paginianicial.com.br
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