Big shout-out to budo buddy Craig Boyd for the invitation and many thanks to Komei Juku Sydney for making us welcome at their recent seminar. We really appreciated the opportunity to observe training at the November 2017 Sydney seminar of Komei Juku Muso Jikiden Eishin Ryu taught by Sekiguchi Komei Sensei. It was fascinating to watch the body positioning, footwork and handwork… Read more →
This Thursday 7 December we’ll hold our end of year gradings and go out for pizza after. There was excellent preparation on Monday night and I think everyone is looking forward to showing what they can do. A highlight will be Bob Withers (3-dan) putting in an appearance to do a bit of teaching and inspire our cohort of new… Read more →
Why Aikido? It’s hard to describe why I practice Aikido, although I do know what I like about it and no doubt these are the things that keep me coming back. Aikido is Skills! Not tedious, boring skills — exciting, satisfying, some might say life-essential skills. But wait, there’s more… Aikido is Strength. It’s true I notice some physical strength… Read more →
Anyone who has watched TV recently might well believe their best option is to lock the door and never set foot outside again! It may be a pretty tough world we live in, but that’s a long way from reality. Australia, like many countries in the developed world, is a really safe place to live. Terror attacks are highly unlikely,… Read more →
I’m currently learning to type and realising it’s a great analog for learning in the dojo. I’ve been typing for a long time, mostly with two fingers, and wanted to take my skills to the next level. It’s been tough because there is so much unlearning to do. Daily activities involve lots of repetitive mechanical drills to bed in a… Read more →
The ba-roq-stars at the Australian Brandenburg Orchestra are offering one enterprising member of Aikido in Sydney a double pass to the opening night of Bittersweet Obsessions next Wednesday. This is their newest show featuring instructors Melanie Lindenthal and Andrew Sunter — fighting . to . the . death! If you want to see the show, you only have to do three things: write… Read more →
The samurai of the early Edo period were known as much for their pursuit of art, beauty and learning as they were for their skill and ferocity on the battlefield. A prominent example is the great sword-saint Miyamoto Musashi (c. 1584 – 1645), writer, calligrapher and artist. Aikido is sometimes described as the thinking person’s martial art. When the opportunity came… Read more →
Congratulations to our Aiki Teens who graded at the end of last term. Certificates were presented on Monday. We’re stepping up training in Term 4, introducing bigger throws, more joint locks and other cool stuff. Really looking forward to working with you all again this term. Welcome also to our new starters. Read more →
Morihei Ueshiba, the founder of Aikido, is famously quoted as saying that aikido is 90% . Yet atemi is absent from much of modern aikido. Aikido today is known for its beautiful flowing movements. In our roles as and we practice the of, and defences to, aikido techniques. In the pursuit of this beauty, aikido often omits the atemi built… Read more →
If aikido is so damn good and superior how come we don’t see it in MMA? It’s a great question. You see the founder of aikido travelled Japan taking on many challengers in the development of his art, and his teacher honed his skills on the battlefield. In a way, aikido began as the very definition of MMA: that is,… Read more →
We get a lot of enquiries at the dojo for kids classes and for increasingly younger students. It seems parents are looking for classes for kids to help fulfil a need or aspiration. Benefits for kids The study of traditional martial arts has a lot to offer kids. At a physical level there is the development of strength, coordination and… Read more →
I think we have all had that experience of the dojo ‘gorilla’ striking to injure or grabbing our wrist so that our hand turns red and then varying shades of purple! It’s discouraging and we wonder if we are really learning a martial art when it’s so difficult to perform the technique we are meant to be practising. So what’s… Read more →
This month Sensei is focusing on the kokyu (breath power) techniques of aikido. These are techniques that, at the highest levels, do not require physical contact with your training partner (or assailant). Kokyunage, one of the six pillars of aikido, is one of the more famous categories of aikido techniques and comes under intense scrutiny, particularly from other martial arts.… Read more →
Violence doesn’t discriminate, and nor do we. If you need to protect yourself or a loved one from unavoidable violence, it’s nice to know that the physical universe has your back. The laws of physics (and the principles of TFT) work for everybody, regardless of sexuality, gender identity, genetics, socialisation, culture, ethnicity, spirituality, size, age, health, wealth and dress sense. There’s only… Read more →