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Aikido was founded in 1942 from Morihei Ueshiba (1883-1969). It was the result of a long-standing and intense training and research in many different styles of martial arts of its time.
Regardless of his technical excellence, Morihei Ueshiba discerned the weakness of contemporary styles to avoid the use of muscular power and violence. Furthermore, he questioned the value of a martial art that is based on the victory over the others. It was from these speculations that Aikido, "a rare flower" as he used to call it, came into being.
The aim of the art of Aikido is not to prevail over one or more enemies, but to be harmonized with our own selves and the lows of the universe. The training on the physical level constitutes a process of self-improvement. In other words, it is a path that leads to self-knowledge and not an end in itself. That doesn’t mean that, as a martial art, it is inferior to the others. On the contrary, it is a complete system of
self-defence against any kind of attack and no matter the muscular mass of the aggressor. What is more, according to the founder, Aikido techniques should be true (effective), good (not to induce serious physical damage to the aggressor) and beautiful (to be performed with grace and harmony). The last two constitute the specific distinction between Aikido and other martial arts.
A practitioner of Aikido doesn’t use kicks and punches to defend himself. The basic concept of our training is to harmonize ourselves with the movement of the assaulter and, through the exploitation of his momentum, to break his balance in order to throw or tie him down to the ground. Muscular power isn’t essential for this to happen. What is needed is a calm mind, clear perception, right timing, right control of our body and above all to know ourselves. These characteristics can be cultivated through the often and sincere training in the art of Aikido.
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