SIMPLE COMPLEXITY

Life can be get so busy. I am sure I am “preaching to the choir” in this respect. For those who have taken time out read this blog I want to first say thank-you and secondly say that I am sorry that I have been so lax in writing.

My intent was for this to be a place to chronicle my journey through Aikido. Like all journeys it is amazing how points view change along the way, especially as our understanding grows.

The more I train Aikido, the more I discover that it is really a way of life as opposed to simply a “martial art”.

It is amazing at how many ways Aikido can impact your every day life.

So, what have I have been doing for SO long? Where do I begin?

I was discussing this very topic with my Sensei Derek Bindner just the other day. He asked how Ichitaita was evolving. The flood gates opened.

I have been swamped with family, work and training – my response was that I had so much that I wanted to write about was that I did not know where I wanted to begin (so get a coffee the flood gates are open).

I have been training and studying Aikido so much I didn’t know where to begin. This brings up, I am guessing a common challenge, for Senseis (and instructors) the world over – what do you do when a student’s course of study and training veers off the “normal” curriculum?

Again (leading to another post) I have been rather taken with the roots of Aikido and their application in today’s world? Ask yourself “Why do you study or train Aikido”? Everyone’s answer will be different and not only that if we were to trace these answers back to the origins of aikido.

I find it fascinating how various “Martial Arts” (another subject for discussion – you can now see where my dilemma is) do not seem to be able to adapt to this concept.

Just because something was done things “this way” for 100 or even 1000 years ago does not mean it needs to be done the exact same way nor does the application of that technique have the same implication in the modern world – enter Aikdo and my understanding and application of aikido.

I can’t help but see the correlations of the intents of Aikido and how they apply to modern day. No one, walks around going heels with a razor sharp sword and as such it is profoundly interesting how aikido principles and techniques play out when people become aggressive.

ASIDE: I believe to understand where you are headed you need to understand where you have come from. Look back to “ancient” Japan, a feudal society – in order to protect lands Lords/Kings/Patriarchs would rely on armies of loyal soldiers to protect their people and holdings. This is a common theme through history and the world. These soldiers took pride in their profession and most certainly wanted to walk off the battle field so they trained. The trained and they adapted. If they encountered a technique or principle they they could use to their advantage they assimilated it into their current style. In short they were NOT stagnant.

“Use your greatest strength against your opponent’s greatest weakness at his weakest moment”

Following this ideal why would would you fight with an enemy when you could quickly strike him down with a sword? You wouldn’t. Daito-Ryu Jiu Jitsu evolved to fill these needs encompassing an “Art” of killing quickly and decidedly. “All encompassing” means that you use your greatest weapon first, so in feudal Japan that would be the Katana. If you dropped or lost your sword it stands to reason that you MUST be capable of taking away your opponent’s as to use it against them.
Aikido is drawn from this concept. How do you handle an armed attacker while unarmed? How do you disarm your attacker and mitigate his threat?

This leads me to my first topic – INTENT.

A short time ago I found myself trying to explain Aikido to a friend who trains in Karate. Whenever he saw a technique or took uke for a technique, like any good martial artist would do, he applied his own art’s principles and techniques to counter what was being explained or taught. The problem was that in the course of trying to explain a movement I would have to be careful to go slow to not only prevent injury but to show the simple complexity of Aikido. Instinctively my friend would adjust to regain his balance.

It seemed as if he was becoming skeptical. It was at this moment that. I realized that Aikido lies in Intent. It is the intent of the attacker. Aikido does not live in a wrist grab, it lives in the commitment of the attacker to grab your wrist.

I found that in trying explain to my friend why a technique works even though it seems so simple was to explain that it lies in the Intent. When he would grab my wrist or gi and ask for a demonstration of the “defense” for that type of attack he was confounded when I said none.

That is not an attack. The attack is not a stationary grab, the attack is what is about to follow: the looping right hand, headbutt, pull forward into a knife, driving push backwards, you get the point. The attack is in the intent. In this example the grab is not the intent, the intent is the subsequent strike. The moment your attacker commits to his attack Aikido comes to life. It is at the moment of attack that an Aikidoka can capitalize on his attacker’s energy and momentum. It is this intent that breathes life into your Aikido. The manner of attack is irrelevant, it is the intent that Aikidoka must recognize.

This is where Aikido differs from other arts. Aikido harnesses this intent to utilize it control the aggressor. As I have heard Mustard Sensei state on several occasions, “Steal their heart”.

Sound simple? Look deeper and you will start to see the complexities. Take your aikido training into a different dojo and experiment. It will open your eyes to this intent. When we practice our techniques we want to make sure no one gets hurt and we train to fall and roll for our own safety. Unconsciously we are training ourselves to attack in a certain way (next article will be Operant Conditioning and I will expand in this in more detail) and by default our techniques are being conditioned in the same manner – off specific cues. It is important to make sure that we do everything we can to avoid this pitfall. It is important to make sure that Aikido does not stagnate.

Experience attacks from people who don’t how to feed you the attack cues you are used to seeing in your dojo and you will start to see how the power of aikido is all in the intent. The moment the attack is initiated. If you act to soon you alert your attacker and they change their course and shift their attack, wait to long and you risk loosing your attacker’s momentum and you will have lost your moment.

Aikido is such a powerful and beautiful art in its simple complexity.