32 ƫđƫ333ċ (%06) #ċ*!0 | (^) FEATURE STORY
treasure handed down from one
generation to the next.
Aikido is not usually
practised alone. Indeed, it can
be said that the essence of the
art is found in the fleeting
interaction between two, or
more, people. From the outside
looking in, good aikido seems
to be as much about shin (a
person’s mind/spirit/character)
as it is about the waza
(technique) being practised.
Certainly, those who display
even the slightest disregard
for others are reminded of the
purpose of aikido training and
its core message of peace and
harmony that O’Sensei spent
much of his life transmitting.
In contrast to the majority
of aikido training, however,
misogi — a spiritual purification
ritual that involves splashing
one’s near-naked self with cold
water, usually in the freezing
cold of the very early morning
— can be undertaken alone.
O’Sensei had a revelation while
performing misogi one day in
- To his surprise, he began
to experience his art differently;
his appreciation for the fighting
techniques he’d been practising
for years began to alter. Writing
down his thoughts some
time later, he recalled that,
“Around two o’clock in the
morning, as I performed ritual
purification, I suddenly forgot
every martial art technique I
had ever learned. All of the
techniques handed down
from my teachers appeared
completely new. Now they were
vehicles for the cultivation of
life, knowledge, virtue and good
sense; not devices to throw and
pin people.”
Waking up in this manner
(satori) is, I have to say, a
phenomenon not unique to
aikido. Even so, that the study
of fighting techniques can lead
to a life void of conflict is rare.
The founder of aikido wrote,
“You must practise misogi” —
but why did he believe it was
so important? I asked Ueshiba
Sensei for his thoughts on the
relevance of misogi today:
“Hmm... This is a difficult
question to answer, because I
don’t know for sure what O’Sensei
was thinking when he was
expressing this point. I believe
that one of the important things
aikido teaches us is to do the
right thing; to develop ourselves
to become a good person. Misogi
is helpful in achieving this and so,
as far as that is concerned, as well
as for other reasons too, I believe
misogi has an important role to
play in aikido.”
My own training in karate-
do over 43 years has taught
me to pay attention to how I’m
thinking. The wrong mindset
can lead to problems in the dojo,
and I’ve long understood the
necessity of ‘being present’ once
training begins. When practising
aikido, each training partner
adopts a particular role: Uke, the
person receiving the technique
(called ‘taking ukemi’), and
Nage, the person performing the
technique. I was curious to know
if this meant having a particular
mindset according to the role
each aikidoka adopts. “One
of the first things to consider
important when you take ukemi
is to avoid being injured; this
is very important because if aninjury occurs, maybe you have to
stop training. Also, you should
never try to escape from your
training partner, but instead
learn to absorb your partner’s
technique and accept it 100 per
cent and still come through
okay. This is important for your
confidence.
“As far as nage is concerned,
it is important to keep to the
technique and to try to develop
good form; just do what is
necessary and don’t do anything
extra. For example, it is quite
common to see people over-
stretching or sometimes being
a little bit too forceful. When
this happens, it is possible for
negative consequences to arise,
especially if the other person
fails to take proper ukemi.”
The level of trust involved in
the practice of aikido is obvious.
Even the most simple-looking
techniques can cause severe
pain and/or injury if applied
carelessly. Less obvious is the
necessity to rid yourself of the
desire to ‘win’. An ambition
to triumph over others rather
than achieve victory over the
negative aspects of your own
nature blocks the way forward,
and reduces aikido to nothingmore than fighting. From
the beginning, aikido asks
its followers to address their
own nature. Within the ranks
of Aiki Kai Australia, there
are three 7th Dan students of
Shihan status, and many others
holding the senior ranks of 5th
and 6th Dan, including two
further Shihan. The fortitude
of these individuals stands as
testimony to their dedication to
the spirit of aikido, and reflects
the example set for them by the
late Sugano Seiichi Shihan, who
established Aiki Kai Australia
back in 1965.
The passage of time brings
its own rewards, but also gives
rise to moments of doubt, times
when nothing goes well: days
when stopping seems like a
valid alternative. In Japanese,
this situation is most commonly
expressed as kabe ni taru, or
‘hitting the wall’. I wanted to
know if Ueshiba Sensei had ever
experienced this, and if he had,
what he did to get through such
times. “Yes, I’m experiencing
it right now!” (Note: Ueshiba
sensei had picked up a bug
on his flight from Japan, and
wasn’t feeling great for most of
his time in Melbourne...notPhilip Lee Shihan demonstrates
with Alexander Lee