Following: Inside, Outside, Guide

Sunday, October 18, 2015

Inside, Outside, Guide

I am writing this on Sunday morning so we have now been gone for one week. In some ways it feels like much longer and in some ways it feels like we just left.

I don't practice Aikido. I still get a lot from listening and watching at seminars. Jan Nevelius Shihan is an excellent teacher. He comes to a seminar with a plan to build understanding and he explains his ideas clearly and then helps students explore and refine those ideas. Much of what he has been talking about has been about being in the present moment, really being there with the person (or situation) you are meeting and then looking for an opening and deciding to take action: move inside, move outside or guide your partner into something new. He teaches with a white board at hand to draw diagrams, he uses visual aids to explain ideas, he asks students of all levels to take ukemi in front of the class because everyone's Aikido is important.

If you think I sound like a big fan, you should hear Evie. She is soaking it all in and reveling in the opportunity to play with some of her favorite people. Glenn Leichman Sensei from Aikido Seattle is one of her favorites, he is so generous to her and grabs her before class every time to practice and explore and laugh a lot. She has been folding his hakama after class and last night she kidnapped it to bring it home for ironing and repair. This will surprise none of you who know her.

I also went to Stumptown Coffee yesterday and Crumble and Flake Patisserie. I got groceries, we went to a gnocchi bar for lunch (there was gelato too). We spent a quiet evening at home doing laundry and packing because we are on our way to Portland this afternoon!

What is next? (Besides Voodoo Doughnuts, of course!)

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Aikido Glossary

These are the most common terms you'll see here. We've also prepared a more detailed glossary (see below).

Dojo: “The place of the way”. The training hall where we practice our art. In the US, many dojo are decorated with a Japanese aesthetic, but some are in racquetball courts or gyms. In the end, the dojo is wherever the people are who show up to practice.

Gi: Training uniform consisting of jacket and pants (normally plain white for aikido) and an obi, or belt. In our federation, belts are either white or black, but in many federations, there are colored belts, most commonly blue and brown, but sometimes there are more gradations. Some aikido practitioners also wear a hakama.

Hakama: The pleated pants (that look like a skirt) worn by some aikido practitioners. In some organizations, it is (or can be) worn by students of any rank. In others, it is reserved for black belts, and in still others, there are different rules for men and women (which are derived from some interpretation of Japanese ideas of modesty). It has no real practical purpose, but serves as a sort of historical link to samurai tradition.

Hanmi: “Half body.” We use it to mean an aikido stance which is sort of triangular. Front foot faces the partner, back foot points out at about a 45 degree angle. It provides a great balance of agility and stability, while offering only half the body as a target for attack.

Musubi: “Connection” or “joining”, although the word is also used to mean “knot”. A key principle of aikido because it helps avoid confrontation and collision, which lead to destruction.

Nage: The person “doing” the technique, generally the person being attacked in some way.

Seiza: Formal sitting posture, kneeling with a straight back. Tough on the knees if you are not used to it.

Shomen: The focal point of the dojo, the proper direction to face. Most aikido dojo have some sort of shrine to the founder on the shomen. Shomen is also shorthand for Shomen uchi, which is an overhead strike to the forehead with an open hand, like a classic karate chop. It's a stylized attack when performed with an empty hand, but would be devastatingly effective with a weapon.

Uke: The person taking ukemi. A good uke is more precious than gold, because he or she will help you learn better aikido not by teaching, but by creating the conditions that allow you to discover how to make sense of Sensei's teaching.

Ukemi: “Receiving” is the closest translation from Japanese. When someone performs an aikido technique on you, your are taking ukemi. It encompasses a lot of stuff, including the punches, grabs, and kicks that we use to simulate attack, as well as the falling and rolling we use to keep ourselves safe.
On a deeper level, it refers to the act of connecting with and following your partner. Great ukemi keeps you safe, allows you to be alert for opportunities to reverse a technique, and helps your partner learn better.