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Author: Christopher Li

  • Morihei Ueshiba, Budo en Kamae – Deel 3 [Dutch Version]

    Morihei Ueshiba, Budo en Kamae – Deel 3 [Dutch Version]

    Tai-no-Henka, Morihei Ueshiba

    ‘Tai-no-henka naar de linker- en rechterkant’ uit “Budo” 1938

    *This is a Dutch translation of the article “Morihei Ueshiba, Budo and Kamae – Part 3“, courtesy of Ernesto Lemke of Seikokan Aikido.

    Meer over zes richtingen…

    Als je “Morihei Ueshiba, Budo en Kamae” nog niet gelezen hebt dan kun je dat beter eerst doen.

    En misschien wil je ook “Morihei Ueshiba, Budo en  Kamae – Deel 2“, lezen die een reactie van John Stevens op het originele artikel bevat.

    En laten we nu eens kijken naar de zin hierboven, ‘Tai-no-henka naar de linker- en rechterkant’, gescand uit Morihei Ueshiba O-Sensei’s technische handleiding ‘Budo’.  (more…)

  • Aikido Shihan Hiroshi Tada – the Yachimata Lecture, Part 1

    Aikido Shihan Hiroshi Tada – the Yachimata Lecture, Part 1

     Hironobu YamadaHironobu Yamada of the Yachimata Aikido Association with Hiroshi Tada
    Receiving 8th Dan from Moriteru Ueshiba Doshu

    Hironobu Yamada, Shihan of the Hokuso Aikikai (北総合気会) and the Yachimata Aikido Association (八街合氣道友会) in Chiba prefecture, started training with Hiroshi Tada sensei in 1963 at his dojo in Jiyugaoka.

    Hiroshi Tada (多田 宏) was born in Tokyo on December 13, 1929. Originally a member of the Waseda University Karate Club , and a student of Shotokan Karate founder Gichin Funakoshi, he began training with Aikido Founder Morihei Ueshiba O-Sensei in 1948. The events leading up to his enrollment in Ueshiba Dojo and his first encounter with O-Sensei can be found in the article “Aikido Shihan Hiroshi Tada: The Day I Entered Ueshiba Dojo“.

    You may also be interested in an eight part interview with Hiroshi Tada sensei conducted by Tatsuro Uchida – “Aikido Shihan Hiroshi Tada: The Budo Body”:

    1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8

    This is the first part of the English translation of a lecture given by Hiroshi Tada sensei at the 15th anniversary of the Yachimata Aikido Association on September 26th 2004.

    (more…)

  • Survey says – this is Aiki!

    Survey says – this is Aiki!

    フル・コンタクト・カラテ Full Contact Karate magazine

    Full Contact Karate at the Aikido Sangenkai? Not really, but many of the quotations in this article originally appeared in the January 1996 issue of the Japanese magazine “Full Contact Karate” (フル・コンタクト・カラテ), in an article entitled “Secret Technique: The Secret of Aiki” (秘技・合気の秘密). They present an interesting survey of comments on Aiki from some of the leading exponents of both Aikido and Daito-ryu.

    You may also be interested in Sagawa-den Daito-ryu Aiki-Budo instructor Masaru Takahashi’s technical essay’s on the nature of Aiki “What is Aiki?” (Part 1 | Part 2  | Part 3). (more…)

  • Morihei Ueshiba and Sokaku Takeda in Shirataki

    Morihei Ueshiba and Sokaku Takeda in Shirataki

    Ueshiba Shirataki

    Morihei Ueshiba in front of a builiding in Shirataki, Hokkaido – 1913

    In the spring of 1910 Aikido Founder Morihei Ueshiba O-Sensei gathered approximately 80 volunteers from 54 families and left Wakayama to establish a settlement in Shirataki Village (Kamiyuubetsu Village at the time) in the frontier lands of Hokkaido, where he was to live for eight years.

    It was while he was living there that he met Daito-ryu Chuko-no-so (“Interim Reviver” / 中興の祖) Sokaku Takeda, at the Hisada Inn in Engaru, Hokkaido in late February 1915. Ueshiba would stay in Engaru for a month, participating in three ten day intensive seminars, after which he invited Takeda to come to his home in Shirataki.

    This article is an English translation of an account in Japanese by Masashi Kubota (久保田雅士), an Aikido student and current-day resident of Shirataki Village in Hokkaido. It presents a number of recollections of Morihei Ueshiba’s teacher Sokaku Takeda through the eyes of the local residents of Shirataki.
    (more…)

  • Hakaru Mori on Kakete and Aiki no Jutsu

    Hakaru Mori on Kakete and Aiki no Jutsu

    Hakaru Mori

     Hakaru Mori demonstrating at the 50th Anniversary of Sokaku Takeda’s passing

     Daito-ryu Aiki-jujutsu Takumakai (大東流合気柔術琢磨会) General Director Hakaru Mori (森恕) began studying with Takuma Hisa in 1962. Mori sensei was instrumental in founding the Takumakai organization, something which Takuma Hisa himself initially opposed, and was eventually designated as the General Director (総務長 – the same title that was held at one time by Sokaku Takeda himself) of the Takumakai by Takuma Hisa.

    This article is the English translation of an article in Japanese written by Hakaru Mori. It originally appeared in issues number 68 and 69 of the Takumakai Newsletter.

    In this article there is some mention of the “Soden”, a large collection of photographs in nine volumes collected by the students at Takuma Hisa’s Asahi Newspaper dojo depicting the techniques taught to them by both Morihei Ueshiba and Takuma Hisa.  Since this type of photography was unusual among traditional arts at the time this involved some small amount of misdirection on the part of Takuma Hisa and his students. According to Hakaru Mori (Aiki News #89, July 1989):

    I understand that Hisa Sensei would take Ueshiba Sensei or Sokaku Sensei for a bath after practice and wash their backs. During that time, his students would perform the techniques they learned that day and take photos. Today it is not very difficult to take photos, but in those days it wasn’t easy and it was only possible because of the Asahi Newspaper Company. There are more than 1,500 photos all together.

    You may also be interested in Hakaru Mori’s article “The Aiki of Tenouchi“.

    (more…)