Masters of Aikido: History, Anecdotes, and Oral Instruction

[koyo]

SHIHAN CHIBA KAZUO

Although aikido was introduced to Britain by Abe Kenshiro in the late fifties early sixties it was the appearance in 1966 of Shihan Chiba Kazuo that heralded the true birth of aikido on these shores. Shihan Chiba had trained in karate at the JKA honbu in Japan alongside Enoida shihan and Kanazawa shihan when they were beginning their studies. He had also trained in judo and it was an incident at a judo tournament that was to set him on the road to becoming one of the most respected of O Sensei's uchidechi.
Chiba shihan defeated a third dan judo in a competition and the judoka was so incensed that he remarked that Chiba had " stolen his judo" but he still had kendo and issued a challenge. Giving Chiba shihan a bokken (wooden sword) and taking up a shinai (bamboo sword) proceeded to beat him severly.
Chiba shihan related that this was when he decide to find an art that would be effective against armed or unarmed attack.He went to O Sensei's dojo and requested to be taken on as an uchideshi (live in student). He was turned away being told that O Sensei was not there.
He sat down in the garden refusing to move. On the third day he was invited inside and O Sensei told him that martial arts training was very sever and asked if he thought he could take it. He answered in the affirmative and was accepted as an uchideshi.During his time as an uchideshi Chiba shihan taught at the Kokugakuin (self defence force) Kogaku Kan and Aichi Daigakuin universitys He came to Britain in 1966 when Abe kenshiro approached O Sensei and asked that an instructor be sent here,and remained for ten years spreading aikido until he returned to Japan in 1976 before going to San Deigo in 1981.

Kuden (oral instruction)

I have no time I make my students learn.
Aikido is the confrontation of two spirits.
You must show respect for me by trying to kill me with your attack.
I shall take you to places from which there is no escape.

Known for his incredible martial spirit I feel that this has blinded many to the utter dedication he shows to O Sensei and to his own students and the true compassion of the man.Everything he did or said in the ten years I was his student was always aimed at the progress and growth of his students.

Respectfully koyo

edit

once when asked who would win if an aikidoka fought an exponent of another martial art he answered that if we have no other option we must fight instantly and immediately but to "fight" to simply see who is best is the action of a fool.

Chiba shihan training with O Sensei incedently it was Chiba shihan who first introduced Iwama aiki ken and aiki jo to britain.

[koyo]

Aiki wolfie

I had thought to start a thread on "masters of aikido" with anecdotes and kuden (oral instruction) received from them. Above is the first. If you think this would be of value would you please activate a thread.I would not wish to "derail" this one by including them here as they shall only be of interest to some aikidoka.

Koyo

[aikiwolfie]

Looks like someone beat me to it

[aikiMac]

When was the judo tournament?
When did Chiba begin aikido training?




FYI for the interested: Aikido in America by John Stone and Ron Meyer recounts the early years of, well, aikido in America. It is told in their own words in the form of essays that were actually interviews editted to remove the Q/A divisions. The first part is by aikido instructors who learned directly under O-Sensei. The second part is by aikido instructors who trained in Japan but not under O-Sensei. The third part is by first-generation students of those first two groups.

[koyo]

Aiki mac

The judo tournament had the third dan judo fighting a number of opponents Chiba shihan was near the last in line and only a 1st kyu. It took place just before he became uchideshi that would be 1959 (coincidently the same year I began aikido under Abe kenshiro) who years later requested an instructor be sent to Britain.That instructor was Chiba shihan who was in his early twenties.

regards koyo

[aikiMac]

Ah, gracias.

[koyo]

Chiba shihan anecdote

Sitting on the stirling hills looking down on the Bannockburn (a site of a terrible battle) as we watched the sun rise Chiba shihan asked if I wished to learn "real" aikido explaining that he could not teach hundreds of students properly. There were about three hundred at the seminar.
Aikido cannot be explained with words let alone taught by them it must be learned " through the pores of the skin"

There are many (too many) stories of the brutality of Chiba shihan's teaching in the early days. These are simply not true. It was only those in whom he saw the spirit that he tended to demand more from. Others were allowed to train to their limit.If they chose to push themselves he would teach if not he simply ignored them.

He said that true budoka would always be in the minority.

koyo

Chiba shihan's ude garami not brutal (frightening ??yes!!)

[koyo]

O SENSEI UESHIBA (Early influences)

O Sensei studied many classical martial arts in his early training which may have influenced his creation of aikido. Among these were..
Tenjin shin'yo -ryu jujutsu under Tokusaburo Tosawa in1901
Goto -ha Yagyu shingan- ryu under Masakatsu Nakai from 1903 to 1908
Judo under Kiyoichi Takagi 1911
Daito-ryu jujutsu under Sokaku Takeda from 1915 to 1931

O Sensei received a Shinkage-ryu sword transmision scroll from Takeda 1922
He also was given the Daito -ryu Hiden mokuroku,Hiden ogi and Goshin'yo no te scrolls.

O Sensei spent a number of years teaching Daito-ryu before setting out on his quest to create aikido.
Some "histotians" have attempted to deny the influence Daito-ryu had on aikido.Technically there is a great influence. Spiritually it was Onisaburo Deguchi of the Omoto religion that was to influence O Sensei in his creation of aikido.

below is an "untouched" photo of O Sensei as Daito-ryu instructor. Some copies have had the calligraphy of Daito-ryu removed.

[koyo]

Masters Of Aikido

O Sensei Throws Saito Shihan (iwama Aikido) The Other Attackers Are Gozo Shioda (yoshinkan Aikido) And Koichi Tohei (shin Shin Toitsu)

[koyo]

AIKI BUDO

A quite incredible irrimi nage from O Sensei during his aiki budo period (1930s)

[Dillon]

Wow.

[koyo]

Iinfluences The Swordsmen
YOSHIO SUGINO

A master of Katori Shinto Ryu swordsmanship which he studied along with Minoro Muchizuki and Jiro Takeda. Sugino shihan saw O Sensei demonstrate aiki budo in 1932 and entered training becoming a lifelong aquaintance of O Sensei he would often demonstrate Katori Shinto Ryu swordsmanship for O Sensei. Although O SEnsei had studied Kashima Shinto Ryu ,an offshoot of Katori Shinto Ryu ,and held a mokuroku in Shin kage ryu from Sokaku Takeda, rather than study the sword arts he would observe the training and see the principles.
Kuden
Whatever O Sensei studied became aikido, if it were sword it became aiki ken or spear it became aiki jo. (Sekiya shihan)

Sugino shihan helped O Sensei as he developed his own art from Daito ryu through aiki budo to aikido opening the first dojo to support the kobukan.

Kuden
When O Sensei taught often he would show us four or five techniques and we wished to see just one repeated but he never did this we had to "steal" the technique by observing very closely. People today a very lazy they do not "see" even when it is explained to them. (Sugin shihan)

Obsevation
Many of the first shihan to teach aikido outside of Japan were budoka and saw aikido as budo therefor an understanding of kenjutsu was common among most of them.

Kuden

If a swordsman should be disarmed and must face an expert in unarmed fighting and is defeated then his swordsmanship must be questioned similarly if an exponent of an unarmed art should take up the sword and be defeated in swordplay then his unarmed art must be questioned.(budo principle)

This shows the close relationship between kenjutsu and aikido.

O SEnsei had considered Sugino as a potential heir to aikido but this would have ment Sugino shihan having to leave his wife and family which he could not bring himself to do. Two other men were considered and interestingly both were master swordsmen.Kiyoshi Nakakura (9th dan kendo) and Minoro Mochisuki (founder yoseikan budo)

Kuden
Do not fight when unarmed continue to fence.(aiki ken principle)

Yoshio Sugino

Sugino shihan had a long term relationship with film director Akira Kurosawa and was the swordfight choreographer on a number of his films most famous being seven samurai where he also taught Toshiro Mifune Katori Shinto Ryu and Kashima Shinto Ryu then had him corrupt these arts to his own Aragoto (brutal unsiphisticated) style to fit with the character he played in the Yojimbo films. (koyo)

[koyo]

Speaking of films here is Ken Takakura receiving instruction from O Sensei Ken Takakura is most famous in the west for appearing opposte Robert Mitchum in The Yakuza and Michael Douglas in Black Rain that also had the lone wolf himself Tomasaburo Wakayama.Ken Takakura made many yakuzu films and is one of Japan's most famous actors.

koyo

[Hirotaro]

Originally Posted by koyo

Speaking of films here is Ken Takakura receiving instruction from O Sensei Ken Takakura is most famous in the west for appearing opposte Robert Mitchum in The Yakuza and Michael Douglas in Black Rain that also had the lone wolf himself Tomasaburo Wakayama.Ken Takakura made many yakuzu films and is one of Japan's most famous actors.

koyo

Hello Koyo,

I have seen this picture before and I understand that the deshi who is on his knees executing the waza is a youthful Yoshimitsu Yamada. Is that right?

Best,

PAG

[koyo]

Actually it is Ken Takakura he does look like Yamada shihan. I once commented to Yamada shihan that he looked like the star of the Yakuza but I ment Robert Mitchum!!Hope the photo of Chiba shihan's ude garuma brought back fond memories.

The photo first appeared in a commemorative photo collection celebrating the 100th anniversary of the birth of O Sensei published by the aiki kai in 1983.

regards koyo

Ken Takakura in Asha the demon