USAF New Student Guide.pdf - Valley Aikido

24 Pages·2010·1.38 MB·English

New Student Guide
Letter from Yamada Shihan DearUSAFMembers:
IwouldliketothankthecommitteeofBoardMemberswhoworkedhardincreatingthisNew
StudentGuide.Iampleasedthatitissuchagoodresourcetohelpyouandthemembersof
yourdojo.Therearemanythingsthatareexplainedinitwhichoftenfeelconfusingwhenfirst
beginningtopracticeAikido.Ithinkhavingthisavailabletoourmembersisagoodwayof
makingsurethatproperbehaviorandetiquetteisunderstoodandobservedinallourdojo.
Thisisimportanttonotonlyme,butwheneveryoneinadojoparticipatesintheupkeepand
showstheirrespectthroughtheirbehavior,itcreatesapureenvironmentwhereitiseasierto
practicewithgoodintentions.ThisGuidegivesclearinformationonhowtofollowthese
ideas.ItalsoprovidesinformationontheUSAF–whichhelpstoshowmembersalittleabout
whoweareasanorganizationandwhatwedotosupportourdojoandthecontinuationof
traditionalAikido.
Ihopeyoufindthisusefulandthatithelpsanswersomeofthequestionsyoumighthave.
Sincerely,
Y.Yamada
President,UnitedStatesAikidoFederation
ChiefInstructor,NewYorkAikikai
USAF|NewStudentGuide|version2.0|1.11 ©2011UnitedStatesAikidoFederation
1.0 Contents 2.0 Introduction
3.0 WhatisAikido?
3.1 HistoryofAikidoandO-Sensei
3.2 GeneralPrincipalsofAikido
3.3 USAFhistory
3.4 USAFmissionandstructure/By-laws
4.0 Etiquetteandthecultureofthedojo
4.1 AboutBowing/enteringandleavingthedojo
4.2 Steppinguponthemat/formalitiesattheopeningandclosingofclass
4.3 Youruniform;do-gi/keiko-gi–thehakama
4.4 Weaponstraining
4.5 Dojocleaningandotherresponsibilities
5.0 Rankingsystemandthepathofpromotion
5.1 Examinationetiquette
5.2 Sixthkyu|Rokukyu;yourfirsttest
5.3 Gokyu|Yonkyu|Sankyu|Nikyu|Ikkyuexaminationrequirements
5.4 Danrankexaminationrequirements
6.0 GlossaryofAikidotermsusedinUSAFdojo
6.1 Glossarycontinued
7.0 USAF/usefulweblinks
USAF|NewStudentGuide|version2.0|1.11 ©2011UnitedStatesAikidoFederation
2.0 Introduction Asanewstudent,youhavemadeacommitmenttostudyAikido;acommitmentwehopeyou
willpursuewithsincerity.Theprocessoflearningthisartisajourneyandonityouwill
experiencenewideas,physicalchallengesandnosmalldegreeoffrustration.Justremember,all
ofushavestoodwhereyouarenowstanding–atthebeginning.Weunderstandhowitfeelsto
immerseyourselfinanewenvironmentthatisexciting,confusingandevensomewhat
intimidating.
PeoplestudyAikidoformanydifferentreasons.Youmaybedrawntotheartforexercise,self
defense,spiritualdevelopment,selfrealizationoranynumberofreasons.Allarevalidandall
haveaplaceinAikido.Theartisinfinitelyflexibleandadaptiveandwillmeetany/allofthose
needsforthesincerepractitioner.Likeanytrulyworthwhileendeavor,itwillnotalwaysbe
easy.However,ifyoupersevere,youwillfindthatyourlifewillbeenrichedinmanyways.
ConsistentAikidopracticeimprovesone’sphysicalconditioning–strength,balance,flexibility,
coordination,cardiovascularhealth–andone’smentalconditioning–self-confidence,
concentration,perception,alertness,andconcernforothers.Aikidoteachesonehowtofocus
mind,body,andspiritintoavital,perceptive,andengagingsenseofawareness.Inshort,
Aikidoisavehicleforphysical,mentalandspiritualtransformation.
Howeverdifferentourreasonsmaybeforcomingtopractice,weallshareacommonmedium,
Aikido,andthroughthatmedium,acommonculture.Inadditiontolearningnewwaysof
movingandbeinginyourbody,youarealsoenteringintoanenvironmentwhichissteepedin
aspectsofJapaneseculturewhichmayseemsomewhatesotericeventomodernJapanese.Itis
thepurposeofthisguidetoprovideyouwithanunderstandingofthedojoenvironmentand
theculturalframeworkwithinwhichourtrainingtakesplace.Itisourhopethatthisguidewill
encourageyouasyoustartonyourpathandhelpyoutofeelwelcomeintheworldofAikido.
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3.0 What is Aikido? Thename“Aikido”iscomposedofthreeJapanesewords:
“ai”(harmony),
“ki”(energy/spirit),and
“do”(wayorpath).
Fundamentally,Aikidoisthe“wayofthespiritofharmony”.However,theword“Aikido”
canbetranslatedasthe“wayofblendingenergy”,orthe“pathofunitywiththefundamental
forceofnature”.
AikidoisatruebudoormartialwaythatevolvedinthehistorictraditionofJapanesewarrior
arts.Studiedinearnest,budoismorethanascienceoftacticsandselfdefense.Itisadiscipline
forperfectingthespiritofthepractitioner.
Aikidoisaparadox:itisanextremelyeffectiveformofselfdefensebutitisalsoconsideredby
manytobeapathofpeaceandreconciliation.Somedojoleanmoretowardsonesideofthis
equationthantheother.Don’tforgetthattheFounder,O-Senseiarrivedathisdeepstateof
understandingonlyaftermanyyearsofrigorous,martialtraining;itwouldbeextremely
presumptuoustothinkthatwecanstartwhereheleftoff!So,isAikidoapathofpeaceora
martialart?Theansweris,ifitisn’tboth,itisneither.
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3.1 History of Aikido and O-Sensei AlthoughAikido’stechniquesarederivedfromcenturiesoldSamuraibattletactics,theartin
itsmodernformwascreatedduringthefirsthalfofthetwentiethcenturybyanextraordinary
martialartist,MoriheiUeshiba(1883-1969).Ueshiba(referredtobyhisstudentsasO-Sensei,
(“GreatTeacher”)wasaremarkableindividual.Asayoungman,hestudiedandbecame
expertatseveraltraditionalformsofJapanesemartialartsincludingswordandspearartsas
wellasemptyhandcombat(Jiu-Jitsu).Adeeplyspiritualman,O-Senseibroodedoverthe
futilityofapathbasedonviolenceanddominationoverothers.Leadingalifeofausterityand
rigoroustraining,hestruggledwiththisdilemmaformanyyears.Inamomentofprofound
awakening,O-Senseirealizedthatwinningattheexpenseofanotherwas,atbest,atemporary
victorywhichultimatelyleadstoone’sowndestruction.Theessenceofthisrevelationis
containedinhisstatement,“MasakatsuAgatsu”(true/correctvictoryisvictoryoveroneself).
Transformedbythisspiritualinsight,O-Sensei’stechnicalmasteryevolvedintoamartialartof
refinementandastonishingpower,fundamentallydifferentfromthosewhichprecededit.
“ThesecretofAikido,”hewrote,“istoharmonizewiththemovementoftheuniverseand
bringourselvesintoaccordwiththeuniverseitself.”Inhislateryears,O-Senseimaintained
thatthewarrior’spathisapathoflove(“AI”),awaytoovercomethediscordwithinourselves
O-Sensei|MoriheiUeshiba|1883-1969 andbringpeacetotheworld.Hesaid,“Aikidoisnotanarttofightwithordefeatenemies.It
isaWaytobringallpeopletogetherasonefamily.TheessenceofAikidoistoputoneselfin
tunewiththeguidingprinciplesoftheuniverse.Thosewhohavegraspedtheinnermeaningof
Aikidohavetheuniversewithinthemselves”.Aikidooffersustheopportunitytoputthese
highidealsintopracticeandmakethemmanifestinthephysicalrealityofourday-to-day
existence.
AfterO-SenseipassedawayonApril26,1969,theJapanesegovernmentposthumouslyde-
claredMoriheiUeshibaaSacredNationalTreasureofJapan.
NidaiDoshu|KisshomaruUeshiba|1921-1999
O-Sensei’sson,KisshomaruUeshiba,inheritedthetitleDoshu(LeaderoftheWay).Hecontin-
uedhisfather’sworkatAikidoWorldHeadquarters(HombuDojo)untilhepassedawayin
1999.Today,O-Sensei’sgrandson,thethirdDoshu,MoriteruUeshiba,continuestoenlighten
thelivesofmen,womenandchildrenfromoverseventycountriesthroughouttheworld.
Youarenowapartofaworld-widenetworkofAikidopractitioners.Assuch,youmaysoon
findyourselfmeeting,interactingandmakingfriendswithAikidopractitionersfromaround
SandaiDoshu|MoriteruUeshiba theworld.
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3.2 General principals of Aikido Aikidoisapurelydefensiveartbasedontheprincipleofactivenon-resistance.Ratherthan
meetingviolencewithreciprocalviolence,theaikidoka(practitioner)learnstoevadeandre-di-
rectthepowerandenergyoftheattackresultingintheattackerbeingunbalancedandsubse-
quentlyeitherprojected(thrown)orimmobilized(pinned).Thus,itistheattacker’sownforce
andmomentumwhichultimatelyneutralizetheaggression.Sincetheaikidokanevermeets
forcewithforce,thetechniquescanbeeffectivelyappliedevenwithalarger,strongerattacker
or(atthehigherlevelsoftheart)withmultipleattackers.Whilealltraditionalartsemphasize
defense,Aikidostandsaloneinthatitshighlydevelopedstandardofethicsaremanifestinthe
techniquesthemselves.Greatemphasisisplacedonusingtheminimumamountofforceneces-
sarytoneutralizeanattacker’swillanddesiretofight,whilesimultaneouslyseekingtoprotect
theassailantfromthemoreextremeconsequencesofhisownviolence.
Partnerpractice:Donotbemistaken;Aikidoisbudo.Aikidotechniquesareextremely
powerfulandsomehavethepotentialtocausepain,injury,orevendeath.Forthisreason,
Aikidopracticemustalwaysbeconductedinaspiritofmutualrespectandcooperation.
Unlikemostothermartialarts,thereisverylittlesoloor“kata”practiceinAikido.(The
exceptionbeingsomeweaponstraining.)Sinceourgoalistheblendingofourenergywiththat
ofanother,practiceisdonewitha“partner”notan“opponent”.Manypeople,whenfirst
exposedtotheart,notethat,“itlooksliketheattackerisjustgoingalongwiththetechnique.”
Thatisbecausethatisexactlywhattheyaredoing!Whilethismaybedifficulttounderstand
inthe“win/lose”contextofmodernsport,itbecomesveryclearwhenoneactually
experiencesthepowerofAikido.Toresistanaccomplishedaikidoka’stechniqueisnotonly
foolish,itisdownrightdangerous.Ifcompetitionwereallowed,wewouldhavetoeliminate
manyofourmostpowerfultechniquesbecauseoftheriskofseriousinjury.
Alwaysrememberthatyourpartneris,inessence,loaningyoutheirbodysothatyoucanper-
fectyourmovement.Youmustalwaysrespecteachindividual’suniquesituation,takinginto
accountdifferencesinage,size,strength,physicalconditionetc.Don’tforgetthatforevery
throworpinthatyouexecute,yourpartnerwillgetto“returnthefavor”sobesuretotreat
othersthesamewayyouwishthemtotreatyou.Everyoneonthematistheretolearnand
helptheirpartnerslearnandimprove.Practiceshouldbeseriousyetjoyful,energeticyetsup-
portive.Remember,Aikidoisnotasportoragame;therearenotournamentsorotherforms
ofcompetitioninAikido.Itiseachstudent’sresponsibilitytobringonlypositive,constructive
energyontothemat.
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3.3 United States Aikido Federation BeginningsoftheUSAF:YoshimitsuYamadaShihanbeganhistrainingasanuchi-deshi
(liveinstudent)ofthefounderin1957.Inthosedays,Aikidowasnotknowntothegeneral
public.Onehadtohaveseveralcharacterreferencestobeallowedtotrain.Asanuchi-deshi,
YamadaSenseilivedinthedojo,tookfourorfiveclassesperdayandwasalsoresponsiblefor
maintainingthedojoaswellastakingcareofthepersonalneedsofO-Senseiandhisfamily.In
1964,YamadaSenseicametoNewYorktoparticipateintheNewYorkWorld’sFair.
BeginningwithasmallgroupofstudentswhowerealreadypracticingAikido,heformedthe
NewYorkAikikaiwhichhestillheads.
In1966MitsunariKanaiShihan,anotheroftheFounder’suchi-deshi,arrivedintheU.S.and
beganteachingattheNewEnglandAikikaiinCambridge,Massachusetts.Aikidohadfirmly
takenrootontheeastcoast.
In1972,AkiraToheiShihanlefthisteachingpostatHombudojoandmovedtoChicago
whereheestablishedtheMidwestAikidoCenterin1975.In1981,KazuoChibaShihan,who
wasalsoanuchi-deshioftheFounder,arrivedinCaliforniaandfoundedSanDiegoAikikai.
ThesefouroriginalstudentsofO-Sensei,alongwithYoshiokaShihaninHawaiiformedthe
YoshimitsuYamada|8thDan|Shihan UnitedStatesAikidoFederationwithYamadaandKanaiShihanrepresentingtheEastCoast,
ToheiShihantheMidwest,ChibaShihanheadingtheWestCoastwithYoshiokaShihan
headingtheHawaiianregion.In1988,SeiichiSuganoShihan,anotheroftheFounder’suchi-
deshiarrivedinNewYork.AftermanyyearsofinstructinginEuropeandAustralia,Sugano
SenseijoinedYamadaSenseiattheNewYorkAikikai.
Unfortunately,ToheiShihan,KanaiShihan,SuganoShihanandYoshiokaShihanhavesince
passedaway.
Thus,whiletheUSAFwasoriginallydividedintofourregions,thisisnolongerthecase.The
geographicregionsbecamelessrelevantasstudentsfromeachregionbecameteachers,many
ofwhommovedoutsideoftheiroriginalregions.Sinceastudent’sprimaryloyaltyistohis/her
teacherandthecentralUSAForganization,itnolongermadesensetomaintainastructure
basedongeographicalboundaries.Hence,in2005,theUSAFwasreconfiguredasone
organization.TherearecurrentlyovertwohundredUSAFAikikaiaffiliatedmemberdojo.
TheUSAFcurrentlyhas25ShihanwithinNorthAmerica.
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3.4 USAF mission and structure TheUnitedStatesAikidoFederation(USAF)isa501(c)3not-for-profitorganization.The
directionandmanagementoftheUSAFiscarriedoutbyaBoardofDirectorsandthe
TechnicalCommittee.ThepurposesandprincipleoftheUSAFascodifiedinitsby-lawsare:
a)tospreadandmaintaintheintegrityofthemartialartofAikido,ascreated,developedand
exemplifiedbyO-Sensei,MoriheiUeshiba,andspreadbytheAikikaiFoundation,Aikido
WorldHeadquarters,Tokyo,Japan.
b)TodevelopandguidethepracticeofAikidoanditsinstructionasitisestablishedatHombu
anddisseminatedbytheUSAF,aNewYorknot-for-profitcorporation.
c)Topromoteanddevelopgoodwillandfriendship,andtoimprovelinesofcommunication,
amongmembersoftheUSAFandotherHomburecognizedorganizations.
d)ToregisterapprovedDangradeswithHombuaslaiddownintheinternationalregulations
ofHombu.
e)TostandardizeKyugradingconsistantwithandasdescribedintheinternationalregulations
ofHombu.
f)Torepresent,defendandpromotetheinterestsofmembersoftheUSAF.
g)TosupportandpromoteAikidoascreatedbytheFounderMoriheiUeshiba,andspread
underthedirectionofHombu.
h)TocarryoutsuchotheractivitiesasarepermittedbythelawsoftheStateofNewYorkand
necessaryorincidentaltotheachievementoftheabovepurposes.
TheUSAFTechnicalCommitteeprovidesguidanceinallmatterspertainingtotechnique,
testingrequirementsandrankpromotions.AllYudansha(blackbelts)arevettedbyUSAF
Shihan(MasterInstructors),Instructors(Shidoin),andAssistantInstructors(Fukushidoin).
WhileShihanareappointedbytheAikikaiWorldHeadquarters,certificationforShidoinand
FukushidoinisgrantedbytheUSAFTechnicalCommitteetoassurethatthequalityof
instructionisconsistentthroughouttheorganization.
TheUSAFalsoprovidesadirectconnectiontoHombuDojo,theUeshibafamilyandthe
InternationalAikidoFederation,ofwhich,theUSAFisthesoleUnitedStatesrepresentativeto
thatinternationalAikidocongress.MembersoftheUSAFareproudthattheAikidobeing
taughtintheirdojoisadirecttransmissionoftheart,passeddownfromO-Senseitohismost
seniorstudents,tous.
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4.0 Etiquette and culture of the dojo Dojoetiquette
Theword“dojo”literallymeans“placeoftheWay”.Inotherwords,itisaspacespeciallyset
asideforthepracticeofaparticularpathorWay.ItisNOTmerelyagymorhealthcluband
shouldnotbetreatedassuch.Evenifthespaceinwhichyoupracticeislocatedina
recreationalcenterorotherfacilityandthematsarestoredinaclosetbeforeandaftertraining,
itisimportantthatyourespectthematareaasaspecialplaceforaspecialactivity.Thedojois
morethanjustaspace;itisacommunityoflikemindedindividualsandalsotherepositoryof
manyyearsofsincereeffortonthepartofalltheaikidokawhocamebeforeyou.
Sincerelyfollowingproperdojoetiquetteisanimportantpartofyourpractice.Youroutward
demeanorisareflectionofyourstateofmindandinnerbeing.Ifyourdemeanorissloppy,
inattentiveoroverlycasual,youarenotintheproperframeofmindtobenefitfrompractice.
Whiletherulesgoverningproperetiquettemayvaryslightlyfromonedojotothenext,the
underlyingprinciplesofsincerity,respectandhumilityareuniversalandimmutable.
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