General Comments
Contact and Projections
- Always positioned tangential to the partner - projections should be in this position (either in the same direction or 180deg to the partner)
- Projections starts when there's pressure from both side, than release the pressure and move your mind to the floor
- The power should not come from the hands, it must be come from the hips (with relaxed shoulders), breath, and eyes, while the mind is on the axis of the uke.
- Keep contact and pressure at all time to make the partner focus on the pressure, than control his mind with giving up at certain point. The feeling should be as the partner is floating
- Always lead the partner, with no strong power. Make it easy and convenient for him to follow the movements without forcing him to relase the hold - harmony
- Don't think of the parner and his hold. Even if he strongly hold you, there's a lot of freedom and possibilities. Think about the self, your ki and your movements.
- The body is an axis, the hands should be close to it when rotating
- Sometimes the hand finished it's job, in such case don't use it anymore, keep it and move with the body
- Use the palm of the hand, on each technique, the palm goes down in the last moment like cutting. The feeling should be as the entire body rides on the contact point
- On each movement there's always Yin and Yang changes between hands during the movement
- The movement of the body should reach uke. From the hips to the hands and to uke, like a wave
- Hands shouldn't do large movements - they should do the minimum movement possible, all the force should come from the body
- Don't grab - it helps to feel the partner body. Explanation http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vGziI9ZN_dk, http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=etr1qUm-Srs
- When hitting, the body weight should be on the back leg but the balance should be on the forward leg. Like a spring, it's ready to hit. When released hit
- When doing a technique, the balance should always be to the place you want to move the partner. No much movement or force should be used. Just place the balance to the right place
- There is your center, the partner center and the common center. The common center is a special place where you can control the partner with
- The fingers should be released and, like playing a piano, should move. Not to mach loose and not much stiff
- When holding the partner always try to keep to the center. Adjust the body and don't be stiff. If you do that, you could always find places when you could gain control back from your parnter
- If you do a technique from the right hand, the pressure has to come from the left leg, through the body to the right hand and visa versa. Pressure from the same leg is weak - it's considered as double weight in Tai Chi.
- What is freedom? It's not free of something. You learn to be free under a restriction, in the form. With repetitions and practice the restriction, you get rid of the restriction and the movement becomes light.
- The body must be relaxed, all the power is coming from the hips. The hand should not be loose, it must be connected to the body (move together)
Swari Waza
- Sit always low and relaxed in the upper body - sholders must always be relaxed
- Be relaxed all the way and move with the body - don't think about the hand first
- Only when he starts to fall, press down toward him, keeping the pressure so he wouldn't be able to attack
Ki - Koichi Tohei Sensei four Ki principles
- Keep One Point - Calm and focus the mind at the One Point in the lower abdomen
- Relax Completely - Completely release all stress from the body
- Keep Weight Underside - Let the weight of every part of the body settle at its lowest point
- Extend Ki - Keep a positive, open mind all the time
More info can be found in:
http://www.shinichitohei.com/english/2005/09/preface.html
http://houstonkiaikido.org/What_Ki_4prin.htm
Extension of ki is like a ball that expending to the point it can - not toward the resistance. The ball can also move.
Zen In The Art Of Archery - Eugen Herrigel
This book (English version) can be loaded from here
It's talking about Japanese arts in relationship to Zen through the learning of archery.
He describe a long way of learning to reach the mastery where the art became purposeless, there's no aim to hit the target, the mind is clear, egolessness and think very far from the target. The target is only a proof and confirmation for the masery and not an aim by itself.
Interesting book which also give some aspects on the way arts are teached and treated in Japan.
Aikido Principals
Nice article about Aikido principals by Richard Ostrofsky
http://www.travel-net.com/~secthoughts/Aikido%20Essays/Aikido%20Ideas.pdf
Some points to think about
- The first immobilizations are working on the hand (fist) only - less on the body
- Each immobilization has a counter one - could be applied when stucked
- Aikido subjects: Ki, Distance (dynamic), Merging, Calmness, Breathing,
- All movements should be circle, no sharp changes of direction (for example in kotegaeshi)
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