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The Examinations Committee received the following comments from Osawa-shihan and wished to pass them on to all members, especially instructors.

At seminars and daily practice:

• Osawa-sensei commented it was important to focus on the basics in training, especially in the beginning. More dynamic practice naturally comes later.
• He said it is important to emphasize the correct connection between nage and uke.
• He added that it is very important to keep students moving during practice and not stop them to talk or discuss technique unnecessarily.
• He said that the technical level he was seeing in the tests was generally improving.

I would like to emphasize:

It is vital that white belts spend most of their time mastering the core techniques: irimi-nage, shiho-nage, kote-gaeshi, kaiten-nage and kokyu-ho. Less time should be spent on other techniques, including koshi-nage and especially kokyu-nage. It is not acceptable that students appear in front of grading panels with an inadequate understanding of the core techniques as applied to all conventional attacks, including proper ma’ai, connection and ukemi.

It is a mistake for students to interrupt their practice with discussion of how a technique “works.” It is much more important that they practice intensely and dynamically, without stopping. If you somehow feel obligated to teach your partner despite this advice, try to do it without speaking, i.e. helping by performing good ukemi. If an explanation is absolutely necessary, ask the sensei on the mat to provide it.

I have been talking a bit about “haste” in class lately. I thought I would explain it at greater length.

I was watching an Iaido demonstration recently, and it struck me that one of the practitioners was truly excellent and the rest were merely “quite good.”

So what made the difference between excellent and good? After all, they were performing the same forms, basically the same way.

It struck me that the excellent practitioner had no “haste” in his movement, though he was quite fast. He was “in the moment” of whatever part of the movement he was in. The other students, it seemed to me, were thinking ahead to their next movement… not living in the movement they were currently performing. The level of “presence” was quite different in the excellent practitioner.

We see this in Aikido. It usually takes the form of students rushing to throw, almost skipping the preliminary movements to try to get quickly to throwing or pinning the uke with force.

The most important part of any technique is the beginning. If you have made the preliminary movements properly, the throw is much easier and more effective.

First you have to use correct footwork to enter and position yourself correctly for the technique. This requires perception and attention.

Next, you have to unbalance the partner. Again, this requires your attention and commitment.

The throw or pin comes after that, and is usually simple if you have executed the first two stages properly.

You have to be “present” in the first two movements to do them well… you shouldn’t hurry through them to rush to your goal of throwing uke.

Once this becomes second nature, the stages become invisible to an uninformed eye since they are executed very quickly.

There is a good article on why kids should practice martial arts at

http://www.ricardoalmeida.com/12-reasons-martial-arts-better-kids-team-sports/

Very well-written and informative.

All members of Aikido Hokuryukai would like to congratulate Yumi Nakamura-sensei on her recent promotion to shihan by Doshu. It is a great honour and a significant milestone in a long Aikido career.

If you are not familiar with the term “shihan,” it is one of the very highest ranks of instructor.

We will take the opportunity of our upcoming Winter Party on Jan. 23 to congratulate her as a group.

We would also like to congratulate our friend George Hewson-sensei of Aikido Seishinkai, who was promoted to shihan at the same time.

With these two promotions, there are now four shihan in the Canadian Aikido Federation: Osamu Obata-sensei of JCCC Aikikai and Ishu Ishiyama-sensei of Vancouver West Aikikai previously received this honour.

Injuries should be few and far between, but they do happen occasionally – sometimes originating from outside the dojo. How can you keep training when injured?

An article in Aikido Journal presents a few pointers in this regard, “Nine tips to help you safely recover from injuries.”

For some reason, the author omits mention of the common practice of rolling up a sleeve on the injured side of the body. When you see that your partner has rolled up a sleeve, make sure you know what the injury is and how to practice safely with him/her, without reinjury.

Nakamura-sensei’s comments on our recent black-belt promotions got me thinking about the meaning of rank in Aikido.

New students sometimes ask me, “How long will it take to get a black belt?”

Sometimes I’m tempted to answer, “How long is a piece of string?” or “You can buy one tomorrow at any martial arts store.”

Respecting the intent of their question, though, I usually say it is up to them. The minimum hour requirements have been published – it is theoretically possible to attain shodan (first-degree black belt) with just over 660 days of practice, though that is almost unheard-of. How often do you intend to come to class? How hard will you practice? How quickly do you learn?

I think the question itself reflects a misunderstanding… These students are really trying to ask, “How long will it take me to achieve mastery of this art?”

A first-degree black belt is not mastery. It is just the beginning. When you are promoted to shodan, it means that your ukemi (attacking, following movement and taking falls) is correct and that you are familiar with a wide variety of standard techniques. Next, you must spend a few more years vigorously training with other black belts and attending seminars with prominent senior instructors to add depth to your knowledge. Without this training, you have no mastery at all.

Some students rarely leave the safety of their own dojo, practicing only with their friends. I tend to think of these students as “hothouse flowers.” When they finally go to a seminar and practice among the weeds, they sometimes get rude awakenings about their technique. Even when such students do go to seminars, they often train only with people from their own dojo! Their knowledge remains shallow.

Shodan is a difficult and remarkable achievement, but it is not an end. There is no end. As your knowledge gets deeper and you age, your practice changes. You are always learning, beginning something new. Aikido is a “do,” a life practice.

It is important to want to progress. It is also important to enjoy practicing and learning at the level you are on.

If all you want is a black belt to impress your friends and family, it is more efficient to buy one at a martial arts store.

Normally, students should arrive at the dojo in time to change into their gis and be sitting on the mat, in line, a minimum of five minutes before class starts.

That has become problem in our dojo recently. People are making a good effort to come on time, but the combination of road construction and rush-hour gridlock on the streets near the dojo is sometimes making it impossible.

• Whenever you do arrive, please join the class without delay.
• Wait at the doorway to the practice area for the instructor to acknowledge you and wave you onto the tatami. (Expect this during the warm-up or during practice – i.e., not during the demonstrations).
• Step on the mat and perform a seated bow to the Shomen (portrait of O-sensei at the front of the dojo). Then, do your own quick warm-up, away from the students who are practicing.

If the scheduled instructor is late, the most senior black belt present should start the warm up promptly at the scheduled time.

If the scheduled instructor still has not arrived after a 15-min. warm-up, the black belt who led the warm-up should start to teach the class, and hand it over to the scheduled instructor when he/she arrives.

If all the black belts are late and the door is still locked when you get there, please be patient. Someone will be along to unlock eventually!

When you see senior students practising jiyu waza (free technique) in the dojo, you sometimes hear us telling nage to be more proactive, rather than meekly allowing uke to attack however he likes.

While it is important to allow uke to take a firm grip in attacks at junior levels of practice to learn the mechanics of the technique (static practice), movement and awareness must be practiced at the higher levels (dynamic practice).

Stan Pranin, the editor of Aikido Journal, has written an article related to this topic and points out that it is a cornerstone of O-sensei’s technique and of high-level practice in general. It is well worth a read.

“I am always going first. I am moving forward first every time. I initiate and let him take my hand. I initiate and let him grab me. It never happens that he grabs me first, after which I start to figure out what to do. I am always going first. I must not wait for the other person to act.”

– Michio Hikitsuchi-shihan

This article by the second Doshu (O-Sensei’s son) appeared online a short time ago and serves as an excellent reminder for us all about what Aikido really is.

We recently had some successful ikkyu (1st kyu) tests. Here are a few comments about this important test.

One of the purposes of the test is to assess a student’s potential for eventually taking a shodan test. It gives us some idea of how much work the student still needs to do to accomplish this aim.

What are we looking for?

• Strong fundamental body movement, including good hanmi and posture, correct footwork and a low centre. It is in the last ten minutes of the test that we can really see whether the student has internalized these elements, after he/she has become tired. If a student has been trying to  “remember” to do them in the first five minutes of the test, he/she usually forgets them at the end.
• Fundamental mechanics of technique are also critical: timing, extension, unbalancing  the partner, correct breathing, zanshin and so on.
• “Tei nei,” or attention to detail, is also critical. This is an understanding of the specific mechanics of each technique and executing them correctly.
• People invariably make a few mistakes in their tests. However, for ikkyu, we should not be seeing the same mistakes repeated over and over again.
• We also expect reasonable physical condition, so the student has the energy and stamina to get through the test without “running out of gas.” If a student has a physical limitation such as bad knees, though, the test can be adjusted to leave out specific techniques.
• The techniques should be authoritative and executed in a martial way. This is not to say the test should be violent or the partner injured. However, all too often we see tests where the only reason uke falls is that he/she is cooperating with nage.
• Ikkyu can be considered a “dress rehearsal” for shodan, and the student should study the video of his/her test closely and discuss with the senseis where improvement  is required.