The Supplementary Material of Aikido

Ⅱ. How to enter at Tsuki Irimi-nage

( Note ) This Hombu style form of the technique is the old form of O-sensei in pre-war time. After then O-sensei himself changed it into the form above in Iwama style in post-war time at Iwama.

( Aikikai style )	( Iwama style )
Tori enters to the side of Uke (Tori doesn't rotate his body direction. ) and takes one more big step forward with his feet and cuts Uke down with his arm to effect the throw.   This technique is effective in only the case where Tori and Uke pass each other momentarily.   Otherwise there is a dangerous possibility that Uke may stop his Tsuki momentarily and try to elbow Tori's body or grab Tori around the body with his arms. ( Ki-no-nagare )	Tori enters to the side of Uke changing his body direction ( the same direction as Uke's ) and grabs Uke with the back shoulder with his hand and bends it a little. Then Tori throws Uke with his arm bringing his grip slightly below his armpit. Uke can neither try to elbow Tori's body nor grab Tori around the body. ( Ki-no-nagare )

( Note ) This Aikikai style form of the technique is the old form of O-sensei in pre-war time. After then O-sensei himself changed it into the form above in Iwama style in post-war time at Iwama.

⑦ Kaiten-nage

Ⅰ. How to throw at All Kaiten-nage

⑧ Koshi-nage

Ⅰ. How to throw at All Koshi-nage

⑨ Kokyu-nage

Ⅰ. How to Enter at Ryote-dori Kokyu-nage

Ⅱ．How to unbalance in Ryote-dori Tench-nage

⑩ Buki-dori ( Weapon-taking )

Ⅰ. How to Attack at All Buki-dori

(Note) You readers perhaps cannot distinguish the different point of Weapons Attacks in detail on the illustrations, however you will be able to understand that the differences derive from whether Weapons techniques exist or not.

Ⅱ. How to Enter at Jo-dori ( Shiho-nage )

Ⅲ. How to Throw at Jo-dori ( Irimi-nage )

Ⅳ. The Form of Jo-dori ( Kote-gaeshi )>

Ⅴ. How to Throw at Tachi-dori (Kokyu-nage )

3. Summary

The first commentary of the concrete comparison between Aikikai and Iwama style techniques deals with the rationale of the detailed forms of their techniques. We can’t help but draw the conclusion that there are considerable differences  regarding their rationale and sharpness. Although the techniques in Aikikai style are still generally rational in Ki-no-nagare, the detailed parts are rather rough and not precise, while every technique in Iwama style can be explained rationally to the full extent.

The cause for these differences is that Aikikai style only has "Ki-no-nagare (Flowing practice)" while Iwama style has both "Katai-keiko (Solid practice)" and "Ki-no-nagare".

 ( Refer to my thesis Chapt 4 )

 As a matter of fact, many amateurs maybe cannot distinguish the differences between Aikikai and Iwama styles techniques in Ki-no-nagare because they look like almost the same movements. However, once an actual encounter takes place, I believe that the detailed forms of self-defence techniques must become the keystone on which to depend.

( Refer to Chapt.2 Item ③—Ⅰ, ③—Ⅱ, ④—Ⅰ and so on.  )

 Second, in the Ki-no-nagare practices of Aikikai style, we cannot assert that there is never cooperation between Tori and Uke, because they are taught to move harmoniously and not resistingly each other from the first stage.

On the contrary, Iwama style people consider all possible resistances of the opponents in Katai-keiko and the techniques are always performed under the demanding situations which better reflect actual encounters. Therefore, there is no room for cooperation.

 In "Ki-no-nagare" of Iwama style, Tori can confront Uke's free attack by concentrating to harmonize to Uke's movement one-sidedly.

( Refer to my thesis Chapt. 5 )

As a matter of course, we must avoid such cooperation in the martial arts such as Aikido in which there is no competition or matches. Some cooperation are apt to guide to some collusive pitfall unconsciously and causes the practitioners to be unable to have any confidence in their self-defence abilities.

( Refer to Chapt. 2 Item ②—Ⅲ, ③—Ⅴ, ⑩—Ⅳ and so on. )

Third, although this problem is appositive to the previous item, Aikikai style people are not taught the precise way (only ordinary way) to deal with the opponent’s resistance at every phase of the techniques.

On the contrary Iwama style people are taught the ways to deal with the opponent’s resistance in great detail in Katai-keiko ( not say at all ) as I wrote above in Chapt. 2 of this material.

Therefore Iwama style people can anticipate almost of all resistances and dangers in actual encounters and as a result can have confidence in dealing with these situations.

( O-sensei's words : "I am what I am because I had trained Katai-keiko for sixty years. What do you think you can do? )

(　Refer to Chapt. 2 Item ①—Ⅲ, 　⑥—Ⅰ, 　⑩—Ⅱ and so on.　)

Fourth, the attacks of our opponents in an actual conflict are very variable, such as strike, thrust, kick, grab or push, pull, jab and so on. We therefore should expect that the opponents intend to attack us fiercely with every blow. Therefore we never use weak attacks even in our usual practices.

In Aikikai style there is no practice of Weapons techniques so their weapons attacks are apt to become amateurish as a norm. I am afraid that even in the Body techniques, the attacks of their opponents ( Uke ), strike, grab, push and so on, are still apt to become weak, lacking force and sincerity.

In Iwama style there are Weapons techniques and these weapons attacks are really practical and severe. Moreover in Body techniques, the opponents (Uke) consider their opponents to be a certain skill of some martial arts and therefore use very effective attacks.

As a result, Iwama stylist will be able to acquire enough self-confidence in their self-defence abilities due to experiencing these realistic attack scenarios.

（　Refer to Chapt. 2 Item ①—Ⅰ, 　①—Ⅱ, 　⑩—Ⅰ and so on.　）

Well, it is important to determine the origins/cause of these problems within Aikikai style.

You wise readers must already realize, that the cause is lack of the existence of both "Solid practice (Katai-keiko)" and "Weapons techniques" in Iwama style which is absent in Aikikai style.

I would very much appreciate readers understanding this relationship between cause and effect.

To say it a little more concretely, by omitting Solid practice from our practices we cannot help but create a practice which ignores seeking the rationale of the detailed parts of the techniques, include cooperation between Uke and Tori,  excludes dangerous attacks and unbalancing our opponents, and so on.

In omitting Weapons techniques from our practices, we cannot help but ignore key elements gained from Weapons training such as the use of Ki-ai (Shouting), the stability of using Hanmi stance and entering using the Hitoemi stance, the sharpness of the techniques, realistic attacks and so on as a part of the normal Aikido practices.

Of course O-sensei once said: " I'll bring out your charactor (personalities) individually through Aikido. So after then you should go ahead by yourselves ".

However I believe that O-sensei had Katai-keiko and Weapon techniques developed to Aikido's essential and compulsory techniques not optional and auxiliary ones like Aikikai style ( the saying of the 2nd Doshu ) when he embodied the Riai of Ken, Jo and Body techniques at Iwama around 1955. (Refer to the chronological table at the beginning of my thesis Chapt. 10).