Aikido (pronounced "eye-key-dough" with even accents) was developed in Japan in the early part of this century by Morihei Ueshiba who as a young man, studied and mastered many of the traditional "bujutsu" or warrior arts. These included kenjutsu ("sword arts"), jojutsu ("staff arts") and forms of jujutsu (the "gentle" or weaponless arts). Ueshiba came to believe that the true essence of the warrior path lay not in winning battles but in the encouragement of cooperation and harmony among people. He developed aikido, which means "The Way of Harmony with Spirit," out of this basic insight.

Unlike most martial arts, aikido is primarily defensive. Ueshiba taught the importance of harmonizing with and redirecting the force of an attack to immobilize the attacker without harm. He instilled an ethical philosophy encouraging self-development and cooperation.

Shin Shin Toitsu Aikido

Shin Shin Toitsu Aikido, or Ki-Aikido for short, was developed by one of Ueshiba's greatest students, Koichi Tohei, who believed that the essence of Ueshiba's aikido was the way it fostered the coordination of mind and body. Tohei called the development of this coordination Ki Development. In 1971, he founded the International Ki Society to foster Ki training and Aikido training based on Ki principles.

Ki Principles

"Ki" is a Japanese word that does not translate easily. It is used in many common Japanese expressions to mean "attention," "energy," or "heart." One common example is the phrase, "ki o tsukete kudasai" which literally means "Please apply your ki" or "Be careful." More philosophically, ki means a basic energy that pervades the universe. Closer to Western perspectives, ki can be viewed as the mental directing of the body's energy without muscular tension.

Tohei taught the importance of ki development training in both aikido and in everyday life. The heart of ki development is expressed in Koichi Tohei’s "Four Rules of Mind and Body Coordination." These are:

1. Keep One-Point
2. Relax Completely
3. Keep Weight-Underside
4. Extend Ki

Rules 1 and 4 are rules for the mind, while 2 and 3 are rules for the body. The rules are really different expressions of the same principle, so that achieving any one achieves the other three.

Keep One-Point refers to the concentration of the mind at a single point, termed the "one-point" or "center," which is located in the center of the body, about two inches below the navel. This point roughly corresponds with the body's center of gravity. By focussing one's mind on the one-point, an individual increases the stability of his or her posture and removes mental distractions.

Relax Completely means eliminating unnecessary tension. This means a dynamic relaxation that is very different from going limp. Dynamic relaxation produces a state of calm readiness that allows more immediate and efficient use of the body's energy.

Keep Weight-Underside refers to the stability that comes with dynamic relaxation. Muscular tension makes the body more rigid. For example, most people, when told to take a deep breath, will raise the chest by tensing the shoulders and upper body. This stiffening of the upper body produces "weight upperside," making a person easier to topple. Dynamic relaxation, on the other hand, lets the upper body be more responsive and adaptive. This is "weight-underside." It creates a much more stable posture than rigid muscular tension.

Extend Ki refers to the mental direction of the body's resources. In performing an aikido technique, or any task in daily life, two problems can arise. First, the mind can be distracted by thoughts other than the task at hand. Second, the mind can become overly focussed on or caught by some small detail. It is common for the beginning aikidoist to focus attention on an attacker's grasp, and to struggle against it. Ki extension lets the student think beyond the point of attack to the larger sphere of attention. Extending ki and being centered allows a person to avoid the pushing and shoving that comes from attention being caught at the point of attack.

Combining these principles with aikido practice leads toward a physical posture and mental attitude that is stable, calm, relaxed, graceful, and powerful. This unification of mind, body, and spirit is the primary goal of Ki-Aikido.

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