Morihei Ueshiba, the Founder of Aikido,
was born on December 14, 1883 and died on April 26, 1969. He
is called O'Sensei (Great Teacher) by his many
students and by those whose lives he has enriched through the creation
of Aikido.
And throughout his lifetime he
studied two things: martial arts (fighting skills) and religion (spiritual
skills). His gift of Aikido merged these two seemingly diametrically opposed
worlds into one. By using the guiding principles of all religions - love
and compassion - as a foundation for dealing with aggression, he shifted
the world's consciousness about what is possible when confronted with a
violent attack. Instead of simply destroying an attacker with superior strength
and skill, O'Sensei taught that you could transform the attacker with your
energy and actions.
Through his many arduous years
training in budo (Japanese martial arts), he became very strong
and was considered unbeatable. However, his many years of religious
study left him troubled by the idea of winning at someone else's expense.
He felt that as long as there was a winner and a loser, there was no real
victory. And he came to the realization that true victory is not
winning over others, but winning over the discord and disharmony
within yourself.
"Aikido is not for correcting others. It is for
correcting the
discord and disharmony within oneself." - O'Sensei
He modified the martial movements
he had learned over the years to express this realization. As a
result, Aikido was born as a way to divert harm to one's self
while not having to resort to violence. As you study Aikido, it
becomes clear that it is not only an effective means of self-defense,
it is also a way to understanding life and relationships.
O'Sensei's vision of the world
as one family continues to live today in the minds and the hearts of
all of us who have chosen this path as our own.
|