Aikido, My Philosophy

Sensei Picciola said in several occasions that aikido was a philosophy of life and used the allegoric example of the ukemi to make this point: living is like practicing ukemis: you fall and raise, you fall and raise, you fall and raise… with time and practice you learn to fall smoother and to be raise faster, and the blows are less and less hurtful every time. Life is like practicing falls. Sensei's example is clear and very didactic; As I never could find examples like this one, I use others more complicated. I'll try to explain why I consider aikido is a philosophy of life.

First, I should say that since some time now I have been using a very simple concept, based on the precept of Fiedrich Nietzche: everything that doesn't kill me makes me stronger. Applying this to a philosophy of life: each blow received, aither kills me or doesn't kill me; if doesn't kill me, the person that will emerge after the blow will be necessarily stronger than the one that received it. I think of this as a philosophy a posteriori: one recovers from the blow after suffering it.

I found in aikido, through a reflection of Juan Fava senpai, a similar philosophy but a priori: choosing death is living (read Fava's post: Choosing Death is Living (Irimi) for a better understanding of this). Considering this philosophy, I can use it with the last statement: one is prepared for the blow before it happens; if the blow happens or doesn't happen doesn't matter, one is ready for it. If it comes, one can do as Nietzche said.

Why do I say this? Because I consider aikido has a lot to offer beyond the techniques we all like to practice. I allways see in the dojo that –all of us– want to be able to practice like the sensei, and many, in my opinion, want to practice strong like Ruslan, or with the samurai concentration and the poise that Nahuel shows and, some want to be able to elevate their ki like Son Goku and cause the floor and walls to tremble (Personally, I want to practice with the solvency of Garcia Luna, and to do the ukemis like Silvia). That's what I see. I see and I hear sensei saying that he is further from wanting to hit someone every time, and that he practices this in his life, and I ask myself: why don't they want to learn this. Sure one can have a bad day, climbs a bus and the driver doesn't hello back, and you wish you find him in the street and bury his head on the ground with a powerful nikkyo ura, but, generally, this doesn't happen. One don't walk in the street jumping the banks in squares, with tobikoshi ukemi, neither resolves its problems with levers in the articulations (although, I confess, I enter to my house doing kaiten) and still, it is possible to apply aikido daily, in the every day. The philosophy that aikido teaches (respect for the partner, irimi, ukemi, etc., etc., etc.) can be used daily.

If they paid me for practicing aikido, I'd live easier. But this isn't the case. However, wherever I go, I try to put in practice what I learn in the tatami. After all, in life, as in aikido, we are all learning. That's why I say: Kanpai!

Patricio, 29 years

Source: http://unionlaplatadojo-en.blogspot.com/2010/06/aikido-my-philosophy.html