The Seidokan Communicator, December 1997

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December 97

The Seidokan CommunicatorAikido for a Modern Way of Life

Strange Attractorsby Ross Robertson

We are strange attractors, you and I.

Physicists have identified many basic forces in the universe, and in somecases, have been successful atproving an underlying unity among them. Butfor our everyday experience, it is useful to categorize all forces intotwogroups of attractive and repulsive powers. This is nothing new. The ancient system of yin and yang ( in and yo,in Japanese) describes a universe of two opposite forces in a dynamic balance, each containingelements of theother. For simplicity's sake, we use the word "ki" to label the underlying oneness that encompasses all forces,whether manifest orpotential. An understanding of these basic forces allows us to manage ourlives more efficiently,in much the same way as our highway system enablesus to make progress. The design of the road and the signsalong it tell uswhich ways are safe to go, and what are the restrictions which would likely cause harm if they areignored.

We as individuals also exhibit these polar forces. We find that we aredrawn to some things and seek to avoidothers. This is a basic part of ourinstinct and is necessary to survival. We also see that we attract somethings to usand push others away. Increasing our awareness of this dynamic is fundamental to our shugyo. Sometimes, forwhatever reason, we may attract harmful forces our way. Ifan attacker identifies you as a target, then their intent toharm maymanifest as a type of psychological gravity. The sooner

you are able torecognize that you have become the center of a gravity well and this personis "falling" in towardyou, the better you will be able to implement aneffective defense strategy.

There is great utility in describing the situation in this fashion. First,we realize that even without any actionon our part, ki is already flowing, our "gravity" is pulling the opponent toward us. Just as important, we seealso thatwe are at the center of the system, we need do nothing to "getthere." But if we continue to do nothing, then westand on a collision course and should expect to receive injury. By moving ourselves we move the center, and thiscan change the vector of attraction in much the same way as the action between planetary or stellar bodies.Properly executed,stepping off the line (hitoashi yokete) has the almost magical effect ofalso altering the course ofthe attacker well before we have made actual tactile contact. By turning the vector into the curve of our choosing,the opponent can enter into a safe and manageable orbit rather than crashing into us.

If we remain calmly at the center (dochu no sei), we may guide the attackertoward the ground, setting our owngravity aside in favor of Earth's attractive pull, which is by far the more powerful and truer force. When weare able

to function as an open conduit which freely directs uke's ki andcreates a ground connection with the Earth, thenbalance is restored, forces are neutralized, and the system is returned to a greater alignment with basic reality(makoto).

On the other hand, if we believe ourselves to be at the center of thesystem while forgetting the larger context, then


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we will try to throw theopponent, to force them down against their will. This will almost certainly result in collisionand will likely escalate the conflict. Worse, if we give our minds over to excitement and fear, then we are likely toreach out of ourselves and try to control things beyond our reach. In so doing, we have forgotten all about range ofeffectiveness. We have given ouradversary their own gravity which pulls at us, and the complexity of the systembecomes far less manageable.

Of course, not everything that comes our way is out to get us. If we seethat we are on a collision course withsomething, we should immediately step aside and evaluate later. If the object continues on by us, staying true to itscourse, then we know that we were not the attractive force affecting its motion, so long as our calmness allows usto avoidinterference. We can simply let it go by. On the other hand, if ourmovement alone causes an alteration in

trajectory, then we know that we aresomehow directly involved, and our actions must now be consistent with thisfact.

Finally, it's worth commenting that all this applies to beneficial forces as well. No matter what the appearance, wemay not know the effect or the truth of a force until we are one with it. Love, health, money,recognition, security,are all things most of us would find desirable. It is tempting to find a path which places us directly in the way ofthesethings, expecting to catch them when they get close enough. Or, we may go chasing after them, forgetting ourown center and seeking balanceelsewhere. But it's important to remember to avoid collision, even with what weconsider to be the good things. Much of the conflict in our lives is caused directly by our involvement with objects ofdesire, and we windup hurt and often hurt those we love.

Fortunately, aikido is a universally appropriate path. That is, its ways are consistent in all circumstances. If we trainwith proper understanding, we should be able to apply aikido in all areas of our lives. The sameprinciples andtechniques apply whether with an armed opponent, in business affairs, recreation, or in love.

We should not find this surprising. After all, the principles of aikido are no less than the laws which govern ouruniverse. As students of aikido,we don't necessarily study gravity in the way that a physicist would; rather, we seekto experience it directly and explore its possibilities with our mind and body as the instrument. Our art is, in its ownway, akind of metaphysics. As we understand gravity, so do we also understand love and hate. The universe isinfinite. So too, its laws... each of them.

Therefore our understanding is never complete. The mission of Seidokan is to continue this exploration for thefurtherance of our understanding andthe betterment of the conditions of being. And this is the force which pulls usforward toward our greater self.

Balanceby Dan Kawakami

It is a reality that we live and move and practice Aikido within a field of gravity. To function efficientlyand effectively within this field, one must be in balance. Balance, I believe, is a pre-condition to beingin control and to being in harmony. It is the basis from which all the principles of Aikido are expressed.Besides keeping one point, there are three inter-related factors that I emphasize in teaching my students

balance: posture, the right distribution of tension and relaxation, and breath.

The most efficient posture to counter the pull of gravity is one that is perpendicular to the horizontalplane. To achieve this posture, one needs to unlock the knees, roll the pelvis forward and upward, andmake the crown of the head the highest point of the body. Critical to maintaining this posture is keepingthe pelvis level, which involves tension of the muscles in the hara (lower abdomen) and koshi (hips), sothe vertebra can correctly align. There is increasing relaxation as one goes up the body because theupright posture is being supported more by the skeletal structure than by the muscular effort.

When posture and the distribution of tension and relaxation are correct, then breathing becomes correct.

Correct breathing entails breathing with the diaphragm. When all of these conditions are met, the centerof gravity falls to the tanden (one point), and mind and body become one, our natural state of being.

Aikido can be viewed as a path to returning to our natural state, becoming one with nature. The waza


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(techniques), kata (forms), and aiki taiso (exercises) we practice foster the development of correctposture, the right distribution of tension and relaxation and correct breathing. However, we are often soenamored with throwing and controlling others that we forget that the focus of our training is ourselves.In a class at the 1996 Seidokan Summer Camp, Steve McAdam spoke of a young woman who, when she

began her Aikido training, walked with one shoulder elevated. In less than a year, her body structurechanged, and she began to walk more naturally, i.e., with her shoulders level. It would have beeninteresting to know if other changes had also occurred. If the premise of the oneness of mind and body isvalid, changes in bodily structure may be expected to result in changes in the whole person, including hisor her consciousness, attitudes, and ways of relating and coping.

Eastern approaches to personal development generally focus more on the body than the intellect. It is saidthat if the body is right, shin (mind) becomes right. This is the reason for my emphasizing balance in myown training and in teaching my students. Gravity provides a constant point of reference to measure mycenteredness and affirms my belief that nature is our ultimate teacher.

Shodo-o-Seisuby Doug Wedell

The term shodo-o-seisu means "control the first move." It is one of the basic principles that SeidokanAikido was founded upon (see issue 1 of The Seidokan Communicator, Spring 1981). In a 1991interview, Kobayashi described how over the years he developed an understanding of shodo-o-seisu. Herelates that in 1968 he was engaged in a three-day misogi training session, and as you might imagine, thepain was excruciating. When Koichi Tohei Sensei sat beside him and chanted during one session, he feltthat he was riding the wave of his teachers ki He felt good, but he felt the pain again when Tohei got up.This incident was an early realization of the power of getting into the flow of ki, but he wasnt sure atthe time how to control it.

The next incident he relates is when after a demonstration at Cal State Fullerton, a city councilman cameup to Tohei Sensei and asked if it was true that Tohei couldnt be lifted. Tohei Sensei replied that yes itwas and said that Mr. Kobayashi was unliftable as well. The councilman tried to lift Kobayashi Sensei,but he didnt budge.

These incidents led Kobayashi Sensei to question whether it was his teacher who controlled the situationor whether his teacher was enabling him to control the situation. He then spent many yearsexperimenting with the concept of controlling the situation first.

For example, in a training session with the Fullerton police, he had a huge policeman attempt to lift him.He experimented by simply thinking "I touched you first!" He found that this worked well. Similarly, in

kokyudosa he taught that you had to have the ki already flowing rather than waiting to be grabbed.

He related all this to Tohei Sensei one day in a private lesson and his teacher said, "Oh yes, thatsshodo-o-seisu." Kobayashi Sensei saw that he was on the right track and continued to developapplications of the principle. He was surprised when his teacher never mentioned it again or described itsimportance to others. Everyone who worked with the concept in LA and in seminars around the countryfound it to be very helpful. We sometimes take these principles for granted, but they are very important.It is the application of the principles to techniques and to everyday life that is at the firm foundation ofSeidokan Aikido.

In many conversations with Sensei, I found him relating the concept of shodo-o-seisu to other important

Aikido principles. Here I will relate it to four other principles. The first is masa katsu agatsu or truevictory is victory over oneself. This principle helps us to understand what is meant by shodo-o-seisu. In


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other arts, the idea might be to hit the opponent before he hits us. In Aikido, it is to have control ofoneself and the situation before the attack begins. When we control ourselves, we are calm, in harmonywith the universe, and have established true victory. As we develop a deeper understanding of thisprinciple, we develop a less limited conception of ourselves until we see that the self extends to the

universe around us.

A second principle that helps us understand shodo-o-seisu is haya katsubi, which means victory fasterthan light. This was a favorite saying of O-sensei. It is often translated as "spiritual victory." KobayashiSensei explained this principle to me by first asking, "If nothing is faster than light, how can we achieve

a victory faster than light?" The answer is to have established harmony before the movement begins.Thus shodo-o-seisu establishes control through our projecting a spirit of harmony wherever we go so thatthere is no possible opening for an attack. We are no longer limited by conceptions of physical reactionsto the attacker because we are already spiritually one with the attacker.

A third principle is ki no myo yo or the proper usage of ki. Controlling the first move does not mean

having your ki pouring out in excess. Instead, it means that you are ready to intercept the ki of everythingaround you and align it properly to maintain harmony. Sometimes we may think of shodo-o-seisu as onlyapplying before the attack begins. The principle of ki no myo yo reminds us to apply it throughout themovement. Thus, after we have already blended with a punch, we must make sure we continue to blend

throughout the application of the technique. This will naturally lead to the application of the technique inline with the proper usage of ki.

A final principle that I will relate to shodo-o-seisu is zan shin, literally left over mind or spirit. We oftenemphasize that even after the attack, one must be calm with ki flowing and still connected harmoniouslywith uke and everything around us. Even though this is at the end of the movement, it is the idea that

there is no end, only the harmonious flow of ki. If one keeps harmony flowing, then one already is inharmony for the next event and has thus established first harmony or shodo-o-seisu.

Kobayashi Sensei was always working to develop a deeper understanding of the principles of Aikido andsharing with us unhesitatingly these important lessons. The best way we can repay him is to continue todevelop our own understanding and share the spirit of harmony with others.

Aiki-Kengi andAiki-Jogiby Joe Crotty

Why should we study Aiki-Kengi and Aiki-Jogi? Isn't the study of weapons contradictory to aphilosophy of "Loving Protection" for all things?

I believe we should ask ourselves these questions and have good answers so that our practice can befocused and self-fulfilling. This past Fall I was invited and sponsored by the Aikido Institute of Mid-America to instruct both Jogi and Kengi #3 at the Seidokan Fall Camp.

The study of either weapon requires discipline and strict precision of movement. Unlike our handtechniques, Kengi and Jogi should look very much exactly the same each time we do a movement. Thisphysical discipline tempers our bodies while repetitive practice helps focus our minds. Our practice is notdesigned to teach us how to fight with these weapons. Seidokan Aikido's approach to weapons teaches usto use them to help us gain a deeper understanding of the Principles of Aikido. Thus our practice is Aiki-

Kengi, not Kenjutsu and Aiki-Jogi, not Jojutsu.

Whenever I teach these forms / techniques, the many specific and varied questions put to me drive me tocontinue to study every


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aspect and detail so that I can share my understanding in a clear, correct and reasoned fashion. Campalways leaves me re-energized and anxious to practice using all of the fresh ideas presented from all of

the very talented instructors who shared their knowledge. I congratulate the Aikido Institute of Mid-America for sponsoring a wonderful Fall Camp, and I thank them for inviting me to be a part of it.

Free Style (Randori)by Stewart Chan

Self defense training in Aikido often uses formal, ritualized technique. One exception to this method of

training is the free style approach found in randori. The use of free style may be against two, three, four,or even six or more attackers. Randori requires you to neutralize these attacks by the use of calmindependence of mind, accurate perception, constant centralization, and the dynamic continuity of yourextension. Ancient masters of the martial arts often defined this state as "no-mind," borrowing theconcept from the Buddhist school of Zen.

The strategic efficiency of any attack will decrease in proportion to the increase in the number of uke,since they will tend to get in each others way and therefore neutralize one another. The

attack by four persons against one person is the most difficult to defend, since each attacker has enoughroom to maneuver and to launch an individual attack. You can neutralize the attack by using a spinning

technique within a certain sphere of action.

The development of the proper state of mind-body is tested in randori by application of techniques ofneutralization against multiple attackers. The moment when the uke are about to converge upon you iswhen you will face the most demanding test of your harmonization and integration of mind and bodyusing the four basic principles of Aikido. Your instinctive response will be to evade a direct attackalmost as soon as it is launched and then direct or guide it away from you. But using Aikido techniquesproperly, you can swiftly and cleanly control all aspects of attack and defense.

Remember that effective self defense is possible without the necessity of inflicting serious injury upon anuke. You must be responsible for not inflicting unnecessary harm to others or profiting at the expense ofuke. The training in randori and the practice of Aikido as a whole reaches a summit of perfection in the

neutralization of multiple attacks achieved through the pure motion of evasion, harmony, and blending,without recourse to any particular techniques.

EDITORS NOTE

The Seidokan Communicator is published quarterly. Please remember, your submissions make thisnewsletter possible. Send articles about your dojo, your instructor, a recent seminar, philosophicalinsights, technical descriptions, and other Aikido related materials to me so we can keep upcommunication in Seidokan Aikido. Send materials to Doug Wedell, 501 Doncaster Dr., Irmo, SC 29063.Email submissions are welcome at [email protected].


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Aiki Poetry

Migi ashiKannagara no michi ni

Hidari ashiMeifumado ni

Atama, kokoro,

Seika no tanden,Subete chudo ni

"My right foot walks the divine highwayMy left follows the course of the infernal

Head, heart, and sacred center

Stride along the middle path"

- Ross Robertson

Calendar of Upcoming Events

January 3, 1998:Misogi Barai at AIA, 7am - 10am.

January 10, 1998:New Years potluck party at AIA.

March 6, 7, 8, 1998: St. Louis Seminar with Doug Wedell, Sensei. This Aikido workshop issponsored by the Aikido Institute of Mid-America. For information contact Richard Harnack, 314-

647-0903.

March 20, 21, 22, 1998: Seidokan Aikido Seminar at the University of South Carolina with DanKawakami Sensei and Doug Wedell Sensei. For information call 803-781-9242.

June 12-14, 1998. Summer Camp hosted by Cal State Long Beach Aikido Club. Mark yourcalendars!

Misogi BaraiAikido Institute of America, 1995

(used by permission)

Ki no miwaza, Misogi waza, "techniques of ki are misogi techniques."

O-sensei

The founder of Aikido stated that the ultimate techniques of Aikido are with ki, and they can be attained


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through misogi training. Misogi comes from Shinto training to purify the mind and body. There are manyways to do Misogi: sitting or standing under a waterfall while chanting to yourself; wading in icy waterduring the coldest time in the winter; swinging the bokken until you can no longer swing it; chantingaway all negative thoughts and evil spirits so that the body naturally follows suit, cleansing itself.

During the most severe misogi training, it is said that one is led to the border of life and death; to thepoint where one would say, "I dont care, go ahead and kill me." Sometimes the trainees are beaten onthe back by the trainer with all his might until blood seeps through the back of the trainees white gi.

The concept is that once one is able to withstand severe torture and hardship, he is able to take anythingthat comes after. In a later day, he will realize that the misogi training has provided the encouragementand support to work through difficult times in life. The result from misogi training is that you will learnto persevere under any situation and learn to appreciate your daily life, your daily meal, your relationshipwith your family and friends.

Misogi barai conducted in the dojo at the beginning of the year is to cleanse the dojo and ourselves so

that we may practice safely and be able to further ourselves in the years to come. It is a Shinto ritual thatbegins with the chanting of the norito by the leader, calling upon the gods of the universe to help purifythe dojo by getting rid of all the evils spirits. The students will follow the leader and his assistants who

are swinging the suzu (bells) with repeated changing: "TO! HO! KA! MI! E! ME! TA! ME!" changinginto "TO!HO! KAMI! E!MI! TAME!" for a minute; then to "TOHOKAMI! EMITAME!" Aftertwenty to thirty minutes of chanting, it will begin to sound "TO! E! -- TO! E!" Watch carefully for theleaders signal to accelerate the chanting before stopping. As the chanting stops, the leader will clap thehyoshigi (wooden clappers) to lead the breathing exercise. Calmly exhale through your mouth and inhalethrough your nose. All students should try their best to remain sitting at seiza throughout this training.

Aikido & Athleticsby Jim Wallace

Sport psychology is a relatively new and growing field. Its blossoming coincides with the proliferation ofinterest in spectator and participant sports throughout the world. Sport psychology is a complex socialscience which is based on research as well as theory and practice; it deals with developmental, media,

motivational, team, personality, educational, and many other issues. Performance enhancement is perhapsthe most widely publicized facet of this fascinating field.

If you were to read texts on sport psychology, you would find that much of what is described has afamiliar ring. Although couched in different words, you would find many of the guiding principles andpractices of Seidokan Aikido: (a) maintain a state of controlled relaxation; (b) practice misogi breathingexercise; (c) let your ki flow, out from your hara and toward your objective; (d) train the fundamentalsuntil they become a part of yourself; (e) perform with confidence; (f) manifest calmness in action.Indeed, our aikido training has much in common with athletic prowess and, in particular, the mental sideof sports. Improved understanding of sport psychology can potentially sharpen ones exercise sessions,

enhance athletic performance, and stimulate more progress in learning the subtle yet powerful arts ofaikido. Let us examine the considerable overlap between the teachings of aikido and just one valuableaspect of the mental side of sports: flow.

Flow refers to a state of effortless performance, a sense of oneness with the activity in which one isengaged. It is a feeling in which a person feels in complete control of his/her abilities and interactionwith a specific activity (Reeve, 1992). Also known as zoning or being in the zone, flow is associatedwith superior athletic performance. A flow state increases the probability of achieving ones personal


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best in an individual sport, or moving in synchrony with ones teammates in a synergistic manner.Whether one wins or loses, being in a condition of flow is a satisfying experience. When definedpsychologically as a confrontation with an optimal challenge, one in which the persons skill levelprecisely matches the tasks difficulty level (Csikszentmihalyi,1990), a flow experience contributes to

feelings of competence and sense of well-being; simply stated, we feel good about ourselves when weare engaged in meeting worthy challenges.

Seidokan Aikido explicitly teaches the value of the flow of ki -- our life force, energy, and power -- andcultivates such flow through our learning arts of self-defense. As in athletics, we acknowledge that we

cannot force ourselves to do our best, coerce an enemy to fall, or pressure an adversary to accept defeatthrough intense effort alone. Instead, we strive to let our ki flow out of our fingertips, eyes, mouths, etc.By maintaining a calm and centered disposition, we best allow our energies to move toward thechallenges of the moment, whether its the need to evade a physical attack, swim in a long and strongmanner, defuse a potential verbal argument, or pass effectively to teammates. We strive to free up our

energies, enabling ourselves to control stressful situations. Lets look more specifically at some of theparticular commonalities which exist between aikido and flow states.

The following is a list of the major attributes of flow states, as presented by Jackson and Kimiecik(1994), along with what I consider to be counterparts from our aikido training:

(1) Arousal / anxiety control -- controlled relaxation: by keeping our levels of muscular tensionrelatively low throughout our bodies in general, we can activate task-relevant muscles just the properamount to make our movements most effective and energy-efficient, without interference from unneededmuscle groups.

(2) Preparedness (physical and psychological readiness) -- unification of mind and body, no-mind

(Mu-Shin): by following the four principles to unify mind and body, and not clouding our thinking andperceptions with preconceptions, we ready ourselves to respond quickly and accurately to any potentiallydangerous or challenging situation.

(3) Focusing and attentional skills -- harmony, oneness with a situation: by concentrating on themoment at hand, without conscious mental effort or thoughts about the past or future, we canspontaneously join our mental and physical energies with the force of an attacker or with the athleticcontest in a victorious manner.

(4) Confidence, self-trust -- true victory is victory over oneself (Masakatsu Agatsu), let your ki flow:when we feel centered by keeping one-point, controlling our arousal levels, and letting our ki flowfreely, we can trust that we will automatically react to any demand to the best of our abilities; we can

respond with optimal physical speed and power, as well as mental and verbal fluency.

(5) Experience increases the probability of flow -- drill and repetition, training after understanding: wepractice the fundamentals, of self-defense, exercise, and athletics, until they become second nature andwe are able to apply simple skills to complex situations; Kobayashi Sensei taught us that advancedtechniques are really well-trained simple ones.

(6) Pre-event conditions can prevent flow -- harmonize and adapt to environmental conditions andself-doubts: we cannot keep one-point during each moment of every day, due to changing biorhythmsand environmental conditions as well as human fallibility; but if we accept the circumstances in whichwe must perform (e.g., swimming in an unusually warm or cold pool), just as we welcome the energy of

an attacker (as in Yokomenuchi Makiotoshi), then we increase the probability that optimal self-controlcan be attained.

(7) Channel anxious energy into performance -- aiki is the power of harmony of all beings, all thingsworking together: it is natural to be nervous when competing athletically or facing a threat, but suchanxiety is ones friend, not enemy; if we maintain self-control and make our anxious energy work with


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that of the attacker, we have all the more power to control the situation at hand.

(8) Process-, not outcome-oriented --- meditation in motion, calmness in action (Dochu-No-Sei):paying undue attention to the score, watching the clock, prematurely basking in anticipated glory, orwishing an opponent would give up is a distracting waste of focus and energy; instead, centered

mindfulness of the absolute here and now is the most practical way to confront any obstacle.

At the top of the runway, the successful high jumper focuses visually on the path ahead, then visualizeshimself executing a successful sequence of movements which culminate in clearing the bar; he takes

several purposeful breaths, then launches toward the objective and merely lets the process unfold. Thechampion figure skater practices the precise, demanding patterns of movement thousands of times priorto the compulsory phase of competition, then shuts out all potential distractions as she takes the ice withconfidence. The competent equestrian rider feels at one with her horse, synchronizing her movementsand commands with both the movements of the animal and the demands of the course as they arise. Theprofessional basketball player knows instinctively and reflexively when to pass or shoot, where

teammates and opposing players are located, in harmony with the flow of the game. And the adeptaikidoka maintains a state of calm readiness when she is about to face the simultaneous attack of fourcomrades in a randori exercise, then moves across the mat and casts attackers aside with minimalawareness of the time, or her appearance, or what observers are thinking.

How can our knowledge of flow states benefit our aikido training? If we attend solely to the process ofblending, leading, and controlling an attack, we increase the probability of a positive outcome. When wefocus visually on ukes mune, or solar plexus area, we have a good chance to be able to recognize thetype and direction of the attack as it is forming. If we think in terms of controlled intensity, not justcontrolled relaxation, we can better accept and utilize our own nervous energy when neutralizing an

attack. That is, for any given activity, there is an optimal level of arousal---e.g., golfers swing best whentotally calm, linebackers tackle best when highly charged, and aikidoka perform best with levels oftension/relaxation that are somewhere in between. We should not shy away from challenge, especiallywhen such challenge is well-suited to our ability level. When we feel self-trust, knowing full well thatwe are at our best when we manifest the four principles to unify mind and body, we maximize ourchances of blending without collision, leading with power, de-escalating any conflict, and meeting anychallenge successfully.

The study of flow states, just one small area of the field of sport psychology, can have practical value.Awareness of what other disciplines have to offer can affirm and augment our understanding and skillsin aikido. Similarly, lets use our aikido training to enhance our appreciation of, and participation in,

various forms of exercise and athletics. Lets apply our aikido training outside the dojo in order toimprove the everyday lives of ourselves and those around us.

References

Csikszentmihalyi, M.Flow: The Psychology of Optimal Experience. New York, HarperCollins, 1990.

Jackson, S. & Kimiecik, J.Flow in Sport: Research Possibilities, Enhancing Performance andBeyond. Unpublished keynote address at the 11th Annual Conference on CounselingAthletes, Springfield, MA, 6/3/94.

Reeve, J. Understanding Motivation and Emotion. Fort Worth: Holt, Rinehart and Winston,

1992.


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SEIDOKAN AIKIDO VIDEO TAPES

Basic techniques in accordancewith Aikido principles

In this video series, the late Seidokan Kancho, Rod Kobayashi, shares his experience of over 35 years inthe Way of Harmony With Nature. Each waza, or art, is not only clearly demonstrated before an actual

class, but he offers an explanation as to why each movement was made.

BASIC ARTS

Part 1

Detailed explanations of Aiki-taisoBasic examination arts

Part 2

Basic examination artsAiki-kengi and Aiki-jogi

DAN ARTS

Part 1

Advanced arts required for shodan and above

Part 2

Continuation of Aikido arts for all yudansha.

Tapes were produced and directed by Dr Mark R. Crapo and Vince Soo.

Copyright and all rights reserved by:

Aikido Institute of AmericaSeidokan Aikido World Headquarters2235 Hyperion Ave.Los Angeles, CA 90027

(562) 861-0043 or (213) 667-2428

To order, send check or money order to Aikido Institute of America and include the followinginformation:

Name_______________________________________________


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(Last) (First)

Phone: _________________

Address: ____________________________________________(Street)

___________________________________________________(City) (State) (Country) (Zip Code)

Qty ____sets Basic Arts(Part 1 & 2)$75.00/set $________

Qty ____sets Dan Arts(Part 1 & 2)$75.00/set $________

subtotal $________

Include $6.00/set Shipping and Handling $________

California residents add 8.25% sales tax $________

TOTAL $________

Recent Promotions:

Congratulations to:

Ross Robertson (Godan, Still Point Dojo,October 97)

Ayal Ron (Nidan, Seidokan Aikido Heisei Dojo,June 97)

Yakov Shimshi (Nidan, Aikido Institute of Jerusalem, June 97)

Daniel Collins (Nidan, CSULB Aikido, October 97)

Ben Kingsbury (Nidan, CSULB Aikido, October 97)

Gal Cohen (Shodan, Aikido Institute of Jerusalem July 97)

Naftali Shimron (Shodan, Aikido Institute of Jerusalem October 97)

Registration

Please register yourself in our Seidokan Aikido Address Book by filling out the following form and sending it to Dr.

Mark Crapo, 13297 9 Mile Rd., Battle Creek, MI 49014. Phone: (616) 963-6699, fax: (616) 969-0424..

Name


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The Seidokan Communicator, December 1997

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Transcript of The Seidokan Communicator, December 1997