The Wrong Conclusion

Takeguchi Sensei used to say, whatever happens in people's life, they bring it to practice and act it out on the mat.  

When someone acts like a control freak on the Aikido mat, for example, there is a good chance that he is in a situation which makes him feel powerless.  As a result, during practice, he tries to regain the sense of control that he feels he has lost.

On this day, someone came to practice, acting like he was filled with anger.  He was unusually rough and forceful with partners.  I kept urging people to be careful with partners' bodies.  "Joints are delicate.  They can be easily damaged.  Please be gentle with each other." I pleaded.  

This student did not seem to care for what I said.  He continued to be rough.  When we were doing nikyo ura, he kept shoving partner's elbow to get them to go down.  Before anybody gets hurt, I had to intervene. 

I examined with them the possible ways the nage can approach the technique and the corresponding responses that they would elicit from the uke.  

I demonstrated the beginning part of the technique using myself as uke, practicing with an invisible nage.  I paused at the point after the uke gets cut down by the nikyo pin, just before the nage finishes the technique with tenkan.

"At this point, it is very tempting to push your partner down at the elbow, but if you do, you will find that your partner becomes very heavy.  When you want your partner to move, but it feels like he is resisting.  It is very easy to get angry and think, 'Asshole!  Why do you keep resisting me?' and then proceed to using even more force to press him down.  Everything seems so justified." I looked at that student.  "But you know what?  It is the wrong conclusion!"  

I moved as if someone is trying to force my elbow down to arm bar me.  My body shot forward along the tangent to the nage's circle.  No matter how much I tried to spiral around my invisible nage, I could not.  

"Can you see why it is impossible for the uke to take the ukemi you want them to take?  Uke is not resisting.  He just can't move the way you want.

Instead, if my nage allows my elbow and wrist to stay bent like a chicken wing, it is very easy for me to spiral around him as he does tenkan."  As I was speaking, I spun around the vertical axis of where my elbow was and landed on the mat swiftly.  

"Ahhh!" The student let out a sigh of surprise.  😮

As my beloved teacher, the late Ken Cottier Sensei once said, it is very important to get on the right footing during Aikido practice.  Making wrong assumptions or drawing wrong conclusions can quickly change the dynamics between training partners.  Fun, harmonious practice can quickly deteriorate and escalate into an exchange of aggression.  It is the complete opposite of the goal of Aikido.  

We don't come to Aikido to get upset and pick fights, do we?  If you want to have fun, make it fun for your partner, and they will give you fun back.  

It's a magic formula.  It always works.