Jan 2 Tues ~ First Class of the Year

Sensei taught the first class of the new year and talked about “breaking the mirror”. Leave the past behind, forget your preconceptions and look with “Sho Shin” (Beginner’s Mind), which was the calligraphy on the kamiza. He spoke of 26 fundamental techniques (Kihon Waza) that serve as the foundation and the walls of Aikido. All of the ‘fancy’ techniques are built on these and cannot be correctly implemented without mastery of the basics. “You cannot have a roof without walls and you cannot have walls without a foundation.” He asked that even though we have done all the techniques before look at them as if you are seeing them for the first time. He also asked that we concentrate on being a good uke. This means attacking sincerely at the edge of what your partner can handle and resist only just enough. He also said that we should let our partner make mistakes; that to talk and try to correct too much is futile. We each should concentrate on one thing and not expect perfection all at once. Let your partner discover the correction to their own errors… “shut up and train!”

Review of 5^th kyu techniques