I trained at the Los Angeles Aiki Kai in the mid 80’s when I was a teen, and they really stressed Ukemi skills. They REALLY came in handy when I started Judo 🥋 in the 90’s. That was one of a few things that stayed with me all the years I trained. That, and Kote gaeshi, ikkyo, sankyo, and a few throws I forget the names of.
Hello dear colleagues, My name is Dmitry Vinnik (6th Dan Aikikai), and I am the head of the Confederation of Russian Aikido Groups (CRAG) and the chief instructor of Pskov Aikikai Dojo. First of all, I would like to thank you for your work on the tatami and for hosting a very interesting podcast. I also host a number of podcasts on the AiVid CZcams channel. Of course, the topic of ukemi in Aikido is key, as this is the main difference between Aikido and other martial arts. In my opinion, there are three main postulates in Aikido, the observance of which is an existential characteristic of Aikido. 1) There are no Uke - Tori pair competitions in Aikido; 2) Every technique in Aikido is lethal (dangerous); 3) Aikido is a practice. Following these postulates in the topic under consideration, it turns out that ukemi should not be the cause of injury, even due to the duration of use, since the third postulate says that practicing Aikido cannot lead to the cessation of practice. From the first postulate of ukemi, this is an obligatory part of the work of Uke and cannot be considered as a defeat, and, therefore, the throws themselves in aikido are rather a separation of the energies of the pair, rather than a combat conclusion. The characteristic of Aikido techniques as budo is inside each technique, which is the common core (postulate number two). If you put these three laws into the technique of aikido, you can see that they are performed in a completely different way than traditional martial arts (Daito Ryu, Jujutsu, etc.). My teachers in Aikido are Hiroshi Tada Shihan, Fujimoto Yoji Shihan, and Giorgio Veneri Sensei (Italy). Sincerely
Vinnik Sensei. Nice to make your acquaintance. I too believe in the 3 postulates that you put forth. I find what you write very inspiring and intellectual. I too believe that ukemi should not result in injury. I do like that if you follow your postulates, you are practicing the art of Aikido which is different than any other martial art. Do you think that your view of 3 main postulates are unique? Do you teach ukemi skills in your dojo or organization? Thanks again for watching and supporting our work!
Dear Colleagues. Your podcast is a rare case when aikido masters honestly discuss pressing issues and answer the most difficult questions. I began my Path to Aikido in 1991, having by that time had 8 years of Sambo training (Russian version of Judo) and 2 years of military service. Now I am 55 years old and I am systematizing the knowledge and experience I have gained, just like you. I have been teaching aikido since 1993, although I received 1st dan only in 1997 (it was difficult in Russia then). I have trained many black belts in Aikido. Four of my students received 5th dan. Of course, I consider the issue of training ukemi to be the most important in aikido. Ukemi is not only the ability to fall safely, but also the entire logical sequence of Uke's actions. Three postulates were more or less stated by the Founder among others, but I have singled out these three as necessary and sufficient to describe Aikido as a unique martial art. If you are interested, I will prepare a translation and send you my work on the postulates and the consequences that flow from them. Sincerely.
Every technique is “lethal?” Come on. Perfectly executed, many techniques will definitely break bones or joints- but lethal? Maybe if you have a sword or a jo.
38:14 - I feel that these types of ridiculous stories that are repeated over and over, and are thus passed on from one generation of aikido students to the next, is what causes so many people to mock aikido and ridicule aikido students. Anyone who actually believes that any human being can simply touch someone's shoulder, and completely destroy their ankle probably also believes in fire-breathing dragons, unicorns, mermaids, centaurs, and that the earth is flat. Assuming that Chiba Sensei did indeed possess such powers (which of course he did not), then regardless if he destroyed that person's ankle on purpose or by accident, I'd call him either: 1) a horrible person for purposely using such powers to destroy a person's ankle or 2) an incompetent person for not being able to control and harness such powers and allowing it to accidentally destroy a person's ankle. Here's a quote from Tohei Sensei that I read a long time ago about telling such tall tales. You can still find it online: "Stories about Ueshiba Sensei moving instantaneously or pulling pine trees from the ground and swinging them around are all just tall tales. I've always urged aikido people to avoid writing things like that. Unfortunately, many people don't seem to listen. Instead, they just decrease the size of the tree in the story from some massive thing to one only about ten centimeters in diameter. In reality, it's pretty difficult to pull out even a single burdock root out of the ground, so how in the world is someone going to extract a ten centimeter pine tree, especially when standing on its root system...The stories have gotten rather incredible since Ueshiba Sensei passed away...I was with Ueshiba Sensei for a long time and can tell you that he possessed no supernatural powers." I feel that everyone (whether you are a martial artist or not) has a responsibility to not perpetuate nonsense stories like this because it ends up damaging and cheapening the the very thing we love so much.
The paradox is that you are quoting Koichi Tohei, who in his Shin Shin Toitsu as a persuasion for the use of Ki energy showed various tricks, such as an unbending hand or a non-moving position.
@@Dimavinn All he is essentially doing with his KI principles is, in a nutshell, getting people to "relax". And baseball coaches, boxing coaches, MMA coaches, basketball coaches, etc. all emphasize, in their own way, to their athletes that they need to play relaxed. "Relaxed" - does not mean "dead". It means loose, but ready. "Extending KI" simply means, that, before you shoot a free throw in basketball, you should visualize yourself making it first. Extend KI" simply means to send your mind forward, which all good athletes know how to do. So when a 100-meter sprinter is running down the track, his mind (that is, his focus, his concentration, or whatever you want to call it) is sent forward. He's focused on the finish line. He's NOT focused on the bad start that he got out of the blocks 5-seconds ago. "Relax completely" is what track coaches do when they instruct sprinters not to clench their fists into a tight ball when running, and to keep their jaws and faces relaxed; baseball batting coaches teach their batters to hold the bat loosely while waiting for the pitch. You only tighten when you start your swing. Same for golf. Same for boxing. You don't clench your fist tightly in boxing until right before you make contact. This is all Tohei teaches. This is why he emphasizes, "relax completely", "extend KI", etc. Tohei teaches no magical superpowers or sorcery. But all of that does not matter. What Tohei said, what he taught, and what he believed in does not matter. Here's the question that matters: Do YOU believe that even a single human being on this planet, past or present, can simply touch a person's shoulder, and immediately cause his ankle to shatter and be destroyed? I would like to hear your honest answer to this question.
Good stuff!
I trained at the Los Angeles Aiki Kai in the mid 80’s when I was a teen, and they really stressed Ukemi skills.
They REALLY came in handy when I started Judo 🥋 in the 90’s.
That was one of a few things that stayed with me all the years I trained. That, and Kote gaeshi, ikkyo, sankyo, and a few throws I forget the names of.
Hello dear colleagues,
My name is Dmitry Vinnik (6th Dan Aikikai), and I am the head of the Confederation of Russian Aikido Groups (CRAG) and the chief instructor of Pskov Aikikai Dojo.
First of all, I would like to thank you for your work on the tatami and for hosting a very interesting podcast. I also host a number of podcasts on the AiVid CZcams channel.
Of course, the topic of ukemi in Aikido is key, as this is the main difference between Aikido and other martial arts. In my opinion, there are three main postulates in Aikido, the observance of which is an existential characteristic of Aikido.
1) There are no Uke - Tori pair competitions in Aikido;
2) Every technique in Aikido is lethal (dangerous);
3) Aikido is a practice.
Following these postulates in the topic under consideration, it turns out that ukemi should not be the cause of injury, even due to the duration of use, since the third postulate says that practicing Aikido cannot lead to the cessation of practice. From the first postulate of ukemi, this is an obligatory part of the work of Uke and cannot be considered as a defeat, and, therefore, the throws themselves in aikido are rather a separation of the energies of the pair, rather than a combat conclusion. The characteristic of Aikido techniques as budo is inside each technique, which is the common core (postulate number two). If you put these three laws into the technique of aikido, you can see that they are performed in a completely different way than traditional martial arts (Daito Ryu, Jujutsu, etc.).
My teachers in Aikido are Hiroshi Tada Shihan, Fujimoto Yoji Shihan, and Giorgio Veneri Sensei (Italy).
Sincerely
Vinnik Sensei. Nice to make your acquaintance. I too believe in the 3 postulates that you put forth. I find what you write very inspiring and intellectual. I too believe that ukemi should not result in injury. I do like that if you follow your postulates, you are practicing the art of Aikido which is different than any other martial art. Do you think that your view of 3 main postulates are unique? Do you teach ukemi skills in your dojo or organization? Thanks again for watching and supporting our work!
Dear Colleagues. Your podcast is a rare case when aikido masters honestly discuss pressing issues and answer the most difficult questions. I began my Path to Aikido in 1991, having by that time had 8 years of Sambo training (Russian version of Judo) and 2 years of military service. Now I am 55 years old and I am systematizing the knowledge and experience I have gained, just like you. I have been teaching aikido since 1993, although I received 1st dan only in 1997 (it was difficult in Russia then). I have trained many black belts in Aikido. Four of my students received 5th dan. Of course, I consider the issue of training ukemi to be the most important in aikido. Ukemi is not only the ability to fall safely, but also the entire logical sequence of Uke's actions. Three postulates were more or less stated by the Founder among others, but I have singled out these three as necessary and sufficient to describe Aikido as a unique martial art. If you are interested, I will prepare a translation and send you my work on the postulates and the consequences that flow from them. Sincerely.
@@dmitryvinnik8591 Thank you for the offer. You can send it to us at aikidocenterla@gmail.com. We appreciate it!
@@AikidoCenterLA I sent the previous message from my smartphone, but there is a different account, it turns out.
Every technique is “lethal?” Come on. Perfectly executed, many techniques will definitely break bones or joints- but lethal? Maybe if you have a sword or a jo.
38:14 - I feel that these types of ridiculous stories that are repeated over and over, and are thus passed on from one generation of aikido students to the next, is what causes so many people to mock aikido and ridicule aikido students. Anyone who actually believes that any human being can simply touch someone's shoulder, and completely destroy their ankle probably also believes in fire-breathing dragons, unicorns, mermaids, centaurs, and that the earth is flat.
Assuming that Chiba Sensei did indeed possess such powers (which of course he did not), then regardless if he destroyed that person's ankle on purpose or by accident, I'd call him either: 1) a horrible person for purposely using such powers to destroy a person's ankle or 2) an incompetent person for not being able to control and harness such powers and allowing it to accidentally destroy a person's ankle.
Here's a quote from Tohei Sensei that I read a long time ago about telling such tall tales. You can still find it online:
"Stories about Ueshiba Sensei moving instantaneously or pulling pine trees from the ground and swinging them around are all just tall tales. I've always urged aikido people to avoid writing things like that. Unfortunately, many people don't seem to listen. Instead, they just decrease the size of the tree in the story from some massive thing to one only about ten centimeters in diameter. In reality, it's pretty difficult to pull out even a single burdock root out of the ground, so how in the world is someone going to extract a ten centimeter pine tree, especially when standing on its root system...The stories have gotten rather incredible since Ueshiba Sensei passed away...I was with Ueshiba Sensei for a long time and can tell you that he possessed no supernatural powers."
I feel that everyone (whether you are a martial artist or not) has a responsibility to not perpetuate nonsense stories like this because it ends up damaging and cheapening the the very thing we love so much.
The paradox is that you are quoting Koichi Tohei, who in his Shin Shin Toitsu as a persuasion for the use of Ki energy showed various tricks, such as an unbending hand or a non-moving position.
@@Dimavinn All he is essentially doing with his KI principles is, in a nutshell, getting people to "relax". And baseball coaches, boxing coaches, MMA coaches, basketball coaches, etc. all emphasize, in their own way, to their athletes that they need to play relaxed. "Relaxed" - does not mean "dead". It means loose, but ready. "Extending KI" simply means, that, before you shoot a free throw in basketball, you should visualize yourself making it first. Extend KI" simply means to send your mind forward, which all good athletes know how to do. So when a 100-meter sprinter is running down the track, his mind (that is, his focus, his concentration, or whatever you want to call it) is sent forward. He's focused on the finish line. He's NOT focused on the bad start that he got out of the blocks 5-seconds ago.
"Relax completely" is what track coaches do when they instruct sprinters not to clench their fists into a tight ball when running, and to keep their jaws and faces relaxed; baseball batting coaches teach their batters to hold the bat loosely while waiting for the pitch. You only tighten when you start your swing. Same for golf. Same for boxing. You don't clench your fist tightly in boxing until right before you make contact. This is all Tohei teaches. This is why he emphasizes, "relax completely", "extend KI", etc. Tohei teaches no magical superpowers or sorcery.
But all of that does not matter. What Tohei said, what he taught, and what he believed in does not matter.
Here's the question that matters: Do YOU believe that even a single human being on this planet, past or present, can simply touch a person's shoulder, and immediately cause his ankle to shatter and be destroyed?
I would like to hear your honest answer to this question.