Aikido, The Latest Martial Art

By Rhys Jones

The sphere of Martial Arts is one of the most important contributions of Asia to the world. Who will forget Bruce Lee and the fact that he was first and foremost a martial arts competitor before becoming a movie star? Martial arts pictures are a huge hit with the ever-increasing popularity of Asian cinema like 'Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon' and more recently 'The House of the Flying Daggers'.

The Chinese are the first nation that come to mind when it you think of such things, but the Japanese are just as sporty with a rich heritage of body contact sports in their past. Modern Japan still gives honor to the martial arts by holding tournaments and promoting their martial arts abroad,

Aikido is one of these. It is interesting to note the fact that the word comes from three Japanese characters from which one derives the meaning of the one word. Ai means 'joining', Ki means 'spirit' and Do means 'way'. From this we can understand why Aikido lies beyond merely the physical skills of it students, particularly since its first proponent, Ueshiba, focused on the spiritual and philosophical development of his students.

In Aikido, one is not trained in violence instead, one is taught to be in harmony with the opponent so that you are able to defeat him more easily. This might appear strange but it actually works. In approaching an opponent, the goal of the Aikido practitioner is to be one with the adversary so as to be able to attack him where he is weakest and in so doing, divert or put him out of action, but never to kill him.

This is where Aikido becomes an art form. Art is something beautiful to look at and something constructive and Aikido is all that. At least one of the contestants involved in the fighting is searching for concord and harmony can only be achieved if there is grace in the movements. The moves may be calculated, but there is an air of finesse in performing these movements. Not a feminine grace, but a grace that emanates peace. The 'art of peace' is what they call it in Aikido and it is one of the most affirmative influences of Aikido on its students and to everyone else who chooses to learn about this Japanese martial art.

Some of the techniques in Aikido embrace the following.

Ikkyo is the first technique. Using this technique, you manipulate an adversary by using one hand to hold his elbow and one to hold near the wrist. This action is supposed to allow you to pin your opponent down to the ground.

Nikyo, the second technique, is when you perform a wrist lock which enables you to twist the arm of your opponent which will in turn cause nerve pressure.

Sankyo, the third technique, is a technique that directs upward-spiraling tension throughout the arm, elbow and shoulder. There are many other techniques but the first three are enough to give you a fundamental insight.

In studying Aikido, it is vital to remember that, together with building physical strength, you will need to improve your mind to be able to overpower your opponent. Just like in any art form, it takes a lot of training and discipline to reach the summit of the art of Aikido. The important thing to remember is, that anyone who wants to get into the art, must have the resolve to give honor to the art by performing it in the best way possible. - 30215

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