Aikido

My sempai who is a student of Takeda Shihan was in Japan this past week. He demonstrated at the Fall Embu Taikai. He actually refused many times when asked. The person in charge eventually just put him in the lineup. Very nice demo. I’m so proud of him

Video here

In my last post, I said that you can’t do unbendable arm without a good posture and relaxed muscles.  That is true in a very broad sense.  But I was unsure of the exact details.  So I asked my friend Chris Moses, a nidan in aikido and now a practitioner of Shinto Ryu Iai Battojutsu, what he thinks are the mechanics behind the unbendable arm.  He watched the video at http://www.martialdevelopment.com/blog/how-to-bend-an-unbendable-arm.  Here’s an excerpt of what he said:

… let’s talk about the video a bit.  I’ve never seen an Aikidoka do unbendable arm to the side, it’s always to the front.  Since it’s from a kung fu site, they’re probably just doing whatever they know.  Doesn’t help that they’re using the Oscar/Ratti graphic (Dynamic Sphere) since that book is awful in my view.  In Chinese arts, there’s a concept of six direction power.  A lot of the standing stuff from Tai Chi (silk reeling in particular) is designed to develop this six direction power.  The directions are: up/down, right/left, front/back.  Most people do unbendable arm in one direction, front.  Better people are able to bring the spine into it and get three directions: front, up and down.  When you do this however, you tend to use the pectroalis minor to stabilize the unbendable arm.  This can create a strong structure so long as you do the usual up/down/push back tests (what you see in Aikido demos).  It does not stabilize very well in the other directions.  You give the example of extending forward to de-stabiliaze the UBA (UnBendableArm).  This relates to my earlier paragraph (kaeshi) and how that sense of returning develops a fourth direction of power (back).  That’s better, but it still has some limitations.  By bringing in left and right by both expanding and returning the shoulders and aligning them properly with the spine, you create a much more stable structure.  Hopefully you’ve seen the videos of OSensei using unbendable arm through a bokken and having many people push perpendicularly on the bokken?  Here he’s clearly demonstrating six direction power.  If you’re just shooting forward, you will collapse/lose control when pushed from the outside, you need to be developing tension in the six directions.  What I think most people find as they study this six direction stuff, is that all six directions serve to support the others.  If you’re only doing 2-3 directions, those directions won’t be as stable as they could be if you were to incorporate in the other ones.  Think of an I-beam.  An I-beam becomes stronger in one direction (up and down) by the addition of a second direction (side to side).  The body is subject to the same laws.  The other way that this video doesn’t get it, is that they’re doing an unMOVEable arm test, not an unBENDable arm.  According to six direction practice, they are both tests of the same thing, but Aikido doesn’t really have this six direction concept, so from an Aikido point of view, they are different animals.  I believe that Tohei and Ueshiba did this intuitively, thus didn’t manage to teach it very well.

He then gave me some exercises.  They are from Akuzawa Sensei, a teacher in Tokyo who teaches a mixed martial arts that combines elements of Tai chi, Hsing-Yi, Yagyu Shingen Ryu, and Daito Ryu:

We actually have a whole series of solo exercises wer’ve stolen from the Aunkai/ Akuzawa Sensei to develop this stuff.  One in particular is called “Ten Chi Jin” (Heaven Earth Man).  This is basically a chi-gung or Hsing-Yi movement.  Basically everything works with the concept of contradictory forces within the body and kaeshi (returning).  So to feel the up down, stand straight in a natural (but straight legged) stance.  Now try to make your spine longer.  Try to find the mucsles that allow you to pull your head up and away from your neck while simultaneously pulling your tailbone down towards the earth.  Try to take all of the curvature out of your spine and use that to create a lenghthening sensation.  This should be very tiring if you’re doing it right.  Then when you’ve straightened as much as you can, release all that tension to get a sense for how much potential energy you’re learned how to store in your core.  ;)  To feel the front/back, take the same stance and reach forward like you’re opening a door.  Your palm should be forward, no bend in the elbow.  Try to make your arm longer, reach forward as hard as you can through the meridian in the center of your palm, but every time you reach, try to pull back through the scapula.  When you start to get it, you will feel like your hand is pulling your scapula forward, and you will feel the scapula’s retraction through your elbow to your hand.  This can be quite uncomfortable, your fingers may even go numb after only a few seconds.

Good stuff.  I can always rely on him to give me detailed explanation of how a technique should work.  Definitely gonna try the exercises.

He also gave me some pointers re: my discussion about center.  More on that later.

The author whose posting was the target of my last post wrote back to me.  I think it’s only fair that I show his response, especially since I don’t think he wrote his posting with any ill intent.  He was just saying what’s on his mind.  That’s what blogs are for, after all.

Anyways, he writes:

The words “unbendable arm” and ki should not be used in the same sentence (when talking to beginners), because in that context they are scarcely relevant to each other. The false implication is what makes it a trick, and the unwary participant a mark. As a demonstration of posture and relaxation, unbendable arm is OK.

I’ll give you that.  It would be confusing to talk about both at the same time to a beginner.  Yet, they are not exclusive.  You can not do unbendable arm if your posture is bad or if your arm is stiff.  One way to straighten and to relax is to imagine ki flowing through you.  I am sure you have heard how the mind tells the body what to do.  If we imagine ki flowing through our arms, our bodies will respond accordingly - straightening our posture and relaxing the muscles.  Granted, it’s contingent on how imaginative and connected a person is to his body.  But for an art as complicated as aikido, it is one method by which we teach students the intricacies of a technique without going into its physics. 

Our dojo hardly ever mention the unbendable arm in classes.  Partly because it is confusing but also because the emphasis in the beginning is on the physical aspects of the art - hand positions, footwork, etc.  But at some point in the practice, you’ll find yourself using it, simply through the act of relaxing and straightening. 

Still, I’m of the belief that it’s never too soon to introduce a concept to someone - even a beginner - as long as you preface it by saying that you may not get it now but you may later.  You will find that to be the case in most aikido dojos and it is why we encourage all levels to attend seminars, especially those taught by high level teachers.  Maybe you won’t get it now but you will one year, five years, ten years, or even twenty years from now.

I said: What’s worse is that the author implied that aikidoka resort to these tricks because we are unable to duplicate O’Sensei’s seemingly magical ability to disrupt an opponent.

He replies: That would be a far more impressive demo.

You should watch our Sensei.  We practice it every day.  From the article http://www.aikidojournal.com/article.php?articleID=600

… and “sensen no sen,” an initiative launched in anticipation of an attack where the opponent is fully committed to his attack and thus psychologically beyond the point of no return. The latter strategy is generally considered to be the highest level in the classical martial arts scenario.

We are taught to move first.  Not before, not simultaneously, and certainly not after.  To do that, we work on sensing when uke is about to attack and to move right before he does.  The practice is very energetic although if you want to spell it out in physical terms, we are basically reading uke’s body language and moving accordingly.  It’s no different than what a boxer does or any other martial artists will do in a sparring situation. 

It is a tricky practice regardless of how your frame it.  It is often difficult to not move early.  As the above paragraph indicates, you want your opponent to be fully committed to his attack.  If you move too early, he’ll have the opportunity to pull back and adjust his attack.  At that point, instead of being there first, you’re there late. 

There’s another way to initiate so that uke is fully committed.  We are taught to pulse.   Sensei describes it as sending energy forward, causing uke to retreat a bit, then pulling that energy back thereby causing a vaccume.  Uke will sense this hole and literally fall right into it.  You would think it shouldn’t work - after all, what dummy will fall for a trick like that?  Yes, I said trick because that’s what it seems like.  But in actuality, the pulse is so quick that uke really doesn’t have time to consciously process it.  Whatever intent he already had to strike will still be there.  Except it’s been interrupted for a microsecond at the subsconscious level.  When he resumes his strike - which he will because his intent wasn’t stopped - he will find that the situation is no longer to his advantage.  The rhythm of the attack has changed.  Where before he was in charge, now he’s not.  Worse, it’s too late for his to stop, having fully committed.

I’m sure I’m not doing justice in my explanation.  Words can’t really describe what you must see with your own eyes and feel with your own body as uke.  Believe me, I’m one of those ukes who will not fall easily to tricks.  Yet, the pulse works on me each time.

Unfortunately, it is not taught at all dojos.  It is a pretty advance concept.   Perhaps that’s why the posting’s author feel some aikidoka must resort to tricks like the unbendable arm.   As with any martial art, aikido is subject to the a teacher’s interpretation.   Sen sen no sen may not yet be in a teacher’s repetoir.  So it is not taught at all to his or her students.  Luckily, our Sensei knows and practices it. 

And also luckily, she feels, as I do, that no concepts are too advanced to be introduced.  She’d rather that you try and fail and maybe succeed later than never try at all.

I guess what I’m saying is that not all aikidoka are alike.  To be fair, there are certainly those who will resort to tricks and heavy muscle manipulations.  These people are not practicing aikido.  Please don’t let them affect your view of aikido as an art.

Finally, I want to apologize to the posting’s author.  I was a bit harsh in my previous post.  Again, I appreciate the link.   We are examples of how hard it is to explain one’s perspective to another, even when there is a common base (martial arts).   I’m writing this response in an effort to open up rather than close down.  I hope it works.

I know, strange title. But it’s how I feel …

Someone sent me this posting: http://www.martialdevelopment.com/blog/how-to-bend-an-unbendable-arm

Though I appreciate the sender for forwarding me this link, I think it gives readers a false sense of what aikido is about.  Unfortunately, it is representative of how the martial arts community view aikido.  Usually, it’s one of three views : 1) aikido is a pseudo-martial art that is based on one person’s mystical beliefs which makes it somewhat of a cult and its adherents, cultists; 2) aikido is a carefully choreographed dance, which of course means it is not a martial art; or 3) aikido is a bunch of parlor tricks which, again, makes it fake and not a martial art.

I can see how these views can be gotten by a layman who has not trained in aikido and whose understanding comes from watching a demonstration or two.  And I can see how, with that vague understanding, comes the need to debunk what, on the surface, seems to be impossible or improbable feats. 

I don’t dispute what the video on that posting shows.  What I dispute is the focus of the posting which makes the reader think that aikido is just a combination of tricks and that its practitioners are charlatans whose training partners are “marks” (the posting actually uses that word!)  What’s worse is that the author implied that aikidoka resort to these tricks because we are unable to duplicate O’Sensei’s seemingly magical ability to disrupt an opponent.

Yes, an unbendable arm is bendable if you break the person’s posture.  I know other ways to bend an unbendable arm - for example, extending the person along his arm by leading his fingers away from him.  He’ll tip right over. 

Posture is very important.  It is the reason why we are taught to keep an upright posture at all times, thus aligning our spine. 

I disagree that relaxed muscles and good posture is irrelevant to the unbendable arm.  They are the reason why it works.   Try stiffening up your arm first.  That immediately connects your arm to your center - all I have to do is nudge you a little and down you go.  Or try doing it bent over. 

What the video doesn’t show is the use of the unbendable arm in motion and as part of an aikido technique.  There are so many factors the video does not go into - timing, maintaining the proper distance (ma-ai), moving the center, making the person believe you’re doing one thing but really something else (atemi), etc.  What the video also doesn’t show is what happens if a technique doesn’t work and how an aikidoka would flow into something else.  Go ahead and focus on trying to unbend my unbendable arm. While you’re doing that, I’ll have switched to another technique, maybe even throwing an atemi to your face or wherever else you’re opened. 

The effectiveness of aikido is not defined by one technique.  It’s true of any martial art.   But for a layman watching the video, that’s what they’ll see. 

In its most basic form, aikido is not magic.  We don’t teach beginners parlor tricks.  We don’t indoctrinate our students with mumbo-jumbo about nirvana and how you can achieve it by practicing aikido.  And most certainly, aikido is not a dance. 

In its most advance form, aikido looks like magic.  I’ve seen teachers who have refined the fundamentals to such a great extent that no motion is wasted and all movements emanates internally.  They throw with a flick of a wrist, a slight nudge in uke’s direction, and even with a stare.   They may not be O’Sensei but I’m certain they understand sen sen no sen, better than myself and certainly better than the posting’s author. Those who are trained in the art often are hard pressed to explain what these very skilled aikidoka are doing.  Can you imagine what it must be like for layman?  It must seem like magic.

Did O’Sensei have psychic or magical power? Or was he an extremely skilled aikidoka?  I read that he dodged bullets.  Is it true?  I do believe there is a realm to which we don’t have ready access to except through practices such as meditation.  Aikido could be one of those practices as well.   Perhaps O’Sensei was part of the .1% of the population that unlocked the gate to that realm.   No one will ever know for sure. 

But really, for 99.9% of the human race, what does it really matter?  I don’t train so I can enter that realm.  I don’t train so I can perform miraculous feat on others.  And I certainly don’t train to deceive others into thinking how great aikido is.  I train because I am a martial artist and there are many lessons, on and off the mat, martial and otherwise, that aikido uniquely provides that other martial arts don’t.

To anyone who has watched that video and who is now skeptical of aikido - come to a dojo and train.  See what it’s really about, not what you (or others) think.