Kill Nage; Don't Die!

Being uke for randori is actually a tough and dangerous job.  

During randori, multiple attackers are converging towards the nage simultaneously.  Ukes are flying all over the place.  Everybody is going for openings that are emerging and vanishing in a flash.  Nage is free to use ukes as human shields or throw them into each other.  Clashes occur.  Bad falls happen.  If an uke does not move out and/ or get up fast enough, he may get stampeded.  Everything is so fluid.  It is going so fast.  Ukes cannot count on the mercy of the Nage for survival.  They can only rely on themselves to take care of themselves.

In the last post, we reviewed nage issues that I observed at the randori class taught by Penny Bernath Sensei at Summer Camp.  This time, we will look at issues on Uke's side.

Being too passive

Randori is not a line.  There is no set sequence, no order.  There is no requirement saying each uke has to attack equal number of times.  There is no set location for any person to do anything, or for anything to happen.  "Ran" means chaotic, random.  All participants have to figure out in real time how to play their parts right.  That is why randori is a more advanced exercise than lines.

As we constantly remind students at Capitol Hill Aikikai, there are two rules for Aikido ukes, namely,

1/  Kill Nage, and 

2/  Don't die.

During the randoi class at camp, I found that many ukes were standing around idly to wait for their turn to attack.  The effect of their passivity can play out in different ways:

Since there is no such a thing as "turns" in randori, an uke who waits may never get to attack because a turn will never come.  Uke just failed Rule #1.  he effective number of attackers for the randori session has just gone down by one.  If all ukes behave this way, the randori practice is no longer randori.  Essentailly, it has turned to a line practice.  

An uke who hangs back -- rather than staying on the outskirts vigilantly, ready to enter as soon as the next opening appears  -- tend to be late to attack.  It breaks up the collective effort of the ukes as a mob and throws off the rhythm of the whole group.

Crowding each other

Even though we call randori a multi-person attack. most of the time, only one person can effectively attack at a time because of the limited space around Nage.  The attacking uke needs space to move in.  He and Nage will continue to move around during the technique.  When thrown by Nage, this uke will need room to exit.  

Everything is changing nonstop.  If the other ukes do not keep modifying their formation real time, or fail to observe where the attacking uke's exit point is, they either run into each other or they miss the opportunity to attack.  Nage can easily exploit this kind of weakness by throwing one uke on top of another and disarms two or three attackers in one shot.

While one uke is attacking, the other ukes should be very vigilant and try to figure out what the technique Nage is performing and thus, where the attacking uke will most likely be exiting with his ukemi.  A smart uke would move himself to the opposite side of the exit, meaning, where the next opening may soon appear and be ready to attack.  Having said that, a skilful nage should be aware of all these strategic moves and may change directions to close those openings as surprises to ukes.  Since Nage is in the center and ukes are running around on the outskirts, this will cause ukes extra time to move to the next opening as Nage executes his techniques.

What happens is that some ukes are not adequately self aware or understand the implications of their actions for the rest of the group.  They choose to just drop down and not roll away after being thrown.  They soon find out it is hard to get up when they are caught in the middle of some serious commotion.  It is borderline suicidal.  Being so close to Nage's feet, they risk tripping others and/ or being stampeded.  Ukes who get up way too slowly are not only endangering oneself, but they are also blocking other ukes from approaching, breaking both rules #1 and 2 for ukes simultaneously.

Hitting without clear intent or precision

I guess some ukes are actually extremely aware of the dangerous nature of their roles because it shows in their half-hearted attacks.  The risk involved is so overwhelming that they hold back.  Unfortunately, half-hearted attacks splits the body of ukes.  The more apprehensive they are, the more they put themselves in danger.  

The only way to survive is to attack with clarity and intent.  Go through the center of the movement and exit.  The irony is: Because you are so not afraid to die, you end up staying alive and well.    

[Read: Aikido Sandstorm]

Some ukes are overly polite and nice.  They either cannot get themselves to hit Nage directly, or that they intentionally miss the center so as to be "nice".  They obviously have never had to deal with someone like themselves.  Particularly during tests, ukes who are reluctant to hit is what makes it hell for Nage.  

Nage is already under the stress of a test, busily dealing with multiple attackers at the same time.  And he still has to guess where Polite Uke's attacks are going to land?  A normal chu-dan tsuki, for example, should be readily found right in front of the Nage's stomach, within the perimieter of a softball.  But a tsuki from Polite Uke may be on the left or on the right, could be up or could be down -- more like around the perimeter of a basketball.  All these extra elements introduced by Polite Ukes complicate an, otherwise, straightforward, simple scenario.  In addition, given they come with no intention of actually hitting, they are not ready for a direct, martial response from Nage.  Many expect the Nage to return favor by being "nice", even though Nage is supposed to be dealing with a mob that is trying to kill him.  As a result, Polite Ukes sometimes get surprised . . .    

Apparently, Polite Uke did not get the memo:  The Nage's job is to defend himself, not to protect ukes who act like delicate porcelain vases.  Polite or not, ukes are on their own!

Being ukes for a test is not for the faint-hearted.  The best love and support you can provide for a friend as uke in randori is to attack clearly and move away quickly without needing anybody else to protect you.  If you are not prepared to do that, you should not volunteer to be an uke for someone's test.  

Randori can be really fun and exhilarating.  Invest time to work on your attacks and ukemi to get yourself ready so you can participate safely.  Yes, it is quite a process, but a fun and rewarding one that you will never regret.

At the mean time, find a front seat in the audience and cheer your friends on.  They can use your emotional support.