Tomiki Aikido : a balance between kata and randori

Introduction

Before WorldWar 2, aikido was a rather chaotic martial art. Practitioners had to remember the many techniques which Morihei Ueshiba performed in the dojo. After the war many prominent followers of Morihei Ueshiba setup their system and tried to systemize the many techniques.

It was Kenji Tomiki, who studied judo under supervision of Jigoro Kano and aikido with Morihei Ueshiba, who created a unique system of aikido based on the scientific theories of Jigoro Kano and the intuitive teachings of Morihei Ueshiba.

From judo taiso to randori

Around 1950-1952, Kenji Tomiki developped a trainingsystem for the many aiki-jutsu atemiwaza and kansetsuwaza , it was called judo taiso or judo gymnastics. This trainingsystem was was created according the judo principles.

(Judo Taiso 1954 by Kenji Tomiki)

This Judo Taiso system includes

· 11 solo exercises (Tandoku Undo)

· 8 partner exercises (Sotai Undo)

The Tandoku Undo are exercises to develop good posture and balance. The judo principle shizentai-no--ri is clearly expressed in these excercises. In these exercises the use of the handblade is a reflection of the many aiki-jutsu atemiwaza and kansetsuwaza. We cannot deny the influence of swordmanship in the use of the handblade (tegatana).

The Sotai Undo are exercises which uses the kuzushi-no-ri principle of judo (breaking balance principle). In these exercises the use of good posture, proper balance, correct movement and use of the handblade are further explored. Basically we can say the sotai undo are breaking balance excercises by using the handblade.

(Judo reference material by Teruo Fujiwara - 2005 - former student of Kenji Tomiki)

Nr	Name	Explanation
1	Zengo	forth and back shuffle	unsoku 1
2	Sayu	left and right shuffle	unsoku 2
3	Irimi hiraki	forth and back turn and shuffle	unsoku 3
4	Kihon no kamae	basic posture, concentration on tegatana, unified power posture	tegatana soho 1
5	Uchi mawashi	change tegatana from omote to ura, inside sweep	tegatana soho 2
6	Soto mawashi	change tegatana from ura to omote, outside sweep	tegatana soho 3
7a 7b	Soto modoshi Uchi modoshi	outside turn with tegatana inside turn with tegatana	tegatana soho 4 tegatana soho 5	(*)
8	Uchi mawashi tenkai	inside sweep (5) with turn (demawari)
9	Soto mawashi tenkai	outside sweep (6) with turn (hikimawari)
10	Ko mawashi	small turn, compact form of 5 and 6
11	O mawashi	big turn, change forth and back	tegatana soho 6

* According the book of Senta Yamada (1966) Soto modoshi = renamed to Uchi gaeshi (inside turn)and Uchi modoshi = renamed to Soto gaeshi (outside turn)

Nr	Name technique	Grip to wrist (*)	Movement of tegatana
1	Ai gamae ude hineri	Ura dori	Uchi modoshi (7b)
2	Gyaku gamae ude hineri	Omote dori	Soto mdoshi (7a)
3	Ai gamae ude gaeshi	Omote dori	Uchi mawashi (5) (10)
4	Gyaku gamae ude gaeshi	Ura dori	Soto mawashi (6) (10)
5	Ai gamae tenkai ude hineri	Omote dori	Soto mawashi tenkai (9)
6	Gyaku gamae tenkai ude hineri	Ura dori	Uchi mawashi tenkai (8)
7	Ai gamae tenkai ude gaeshi	Omote dori	Uchi mawashi tenkai (8)
8	Gyaku gamae tenkai ude gaeshi	Ura dori	Soto mawashi tenkai (9)

(*) Omote dori : grip to wrist on inside - Ura dori : grip to wrist on outside

Later on Kenji Tomiki devised a set of 15 techniques from which a new randori method can be done.

It was Jigoro Kano who made a randori method for the throwing and holding techniques of the old jujutsu schools, and it was Kenji Tomiki who made a randori methode for the atemi waza (striking methodes) and kansetsu waza (joint techniques) using the judo principles.In his book Judo and Aikido he described the basic aikido techniques according judo principles. He also added a set of 15 techniques which he called : New Methods of Randori.

These 15 techniques (jugohon no kata) consist of ;

· 3 atemi waza (striking technique)

· 4 hiji waza (elbow techniques)

· 8 tekubi waza (wrist techniques)

(Judo and Aikido 1st edition 1956 - 9th edition 1970 by Kenji Tomiki)

Kenji Tomiki spent his lifetime on the development of Tomiki Aikido, and is rightfully credited as an outstanding innovator in the field of martial arts. What many don't know is that in the shadow of this great educator stood another, Hideo Ohba, who worked alongside Kenji Tomiki as his lifelong assistant, and whose own studies in weapons arts also contributed to Tomiki Aikido.

Around 1960 the 15 techniques were replaced by the 17 techniques (junanahon no kata):

· 5 atemi waza (striking techniques)

· 5 hiji waza (elbow techniques)

· 4 tekubi waza (wrist techniques)

· 3 uki waza (floating techniques)

In July 1961 Hideo Oba wrote to the students of Waseda University, where Kenji Tomiki was a professor at the Physical Education Departement :

“The junanahon no kata has been organized by Tomiki Shihan. Now, we all should do our best to study the openings and kuzushi (balance-breaking) in the limitless variations of atemi-waza (striking techniques) and kansetsu-waza (joint techniques) in order to make the techniques effective, (from a passage written by Ohba to the students of the Waseda Aikido Club, July 1961; Kyogi Aikido Soseiki no Ayumi; Ohba Hideo Sensei o Shinobu (The Early Days of Competition Aikido; with Recollections of Ohba Sensei), Tokyo: Nihon Aikido Kyokai, 1987, p. 1)”

Those students were in the beginning all members of the Waseda Judo Club and Kenji Tomiki introduced them to aikido with the help of Judo Taiso. In 1958 the creation of Waseda Aikido Club was a fact. The Board of the University approved this creation on condition that aikido can be done in a competitive way.

Together with the members of the Waseda Aikido Club, Kenji Tomiki devised a competitve sparring form with an attacker using a dagger and a defender using aiki-techniques.

Today these aiki-techniques are limited to the techniques found in the Junanahon no kata (17 techniques kata).

Sometimes we have today the impression that Tomiki Aikido is all about competitve sparring with a dagger (Tanto randori). During Tomiki Aikido tournaments most of the time is spended on tanto randori and this is probable an evolution which was not the intent of Kenji Tomiki.

According to Fumiaki Shishida, professor at Waseda University and Shihan of the Japan Aikido Association, Kenji Tomiki established the basic seventeen techniques not for Tanto-randori, but for Toshu-randori. Toshu-randori is the randori method in which practitioners apply techniques with bare hands. It was developed not only as a randori method of aikido, but also as a new randori method of judo to develop techniques in the Rikaku-taisei. Rikaku means keeping a distance of Tegatana-awase and Taisei means a situation of fighting. Tomiki thought that aikido techniques should be applied in the distance of Tegatana-awase." (Shishida 2008).

At this moment there is a tendency amongst Tomiki Aikido practitioners to study again the original concept of Kenji Tomiki and incorporate grappling judo in the aikido training.

This idea is not new to the aikido world because in 1930, when Admiral Takeshita was training with Morihei Ueshiba, he took some interesting notes about judo and Ueshiba’s aikijutsu (which later became aikido).

Professor Shishida wrote an essay about this fact :

Counter techniques against Judo: the process of forming Aikido in 1930s
This article will clarify the process of forming aikido in 1930s through analyzing Ueshiba’s 147 counter techniques against judo. This analysis based upon Takeshita’s notes Kon, which were written between spring 1930 and winter 1931. The Kon is a 252-page set of notes, which have not been studied in the academic literature regarding aikido in Japan despite it has been known among aikido practitioners. These notes contain 1,095 techniques classified into 39 forms of fighting Author focus on 147 techniques described as “Tai judo” or counter techniques against judo.
(The complete article :http://www.archbudo.com/fulltxt.php?ICID=855001)

Kata and Tomiki Aikido

The development of the competitive sparring style of aikido founded by Tomiki, and its unified organization, the Nihon Aikido Kyokai (Japan Aikido Association) went on paralel with another interesting development in Tomiki Aikido : the creation of Kata with the purpose to preserve old techniques which were too dangerious to use in randori

Takeshi Inoue, who knows in detail the background of the creation of the kata of the present Association wrote:

In about 1958, we practiced mainly the unsoku, tandoku undo, yonhon no kuzushi (the original version of the present nanahon no kuzushi) as well as the jugohon no kata (fifteen technique kata). In around 1960, the junanahon no kata (17 technique basic kata) and the roppon no kuzushi were created and then the dai-san no kata was devised as a kata of classical techniques. During the mid-60 Ohba Sensei and others worked on the creation of the kata forms of the dai-ichi (first) to dai-roku (sixth), which we presently practice as the koryu no kata, in order to work on techniques for demonstrations and for purposes other than randori. What Ohba Sensei particularly stressed in formulating these kata was the organization of different techniques in such a way that students could learn connections between techniques easily and naturally. After he had organized the techniques to some extent, Ohba Sensei reported to Tomiki Sensei and demonstrated what he had done for him. He received some advice from Tomiki Sensei and then added corrections to the kata. ("Bujin Hideo Ohba," Kyogi Aikido Soseiki no Ayumi; Ohba Hideo Sensei o Shinobu, p. 67)

(Takeshi Inoue is one of those students who studied aikido and judo in the early days of Tomiki Aikido.)

The current syllabus of JAA (Japan Aikido Association) includes the following kata :

· Randori no kata ( Junanahon no kata and ura waza)

· Koryu no kata dai san (self defense kata)

· Koryu no kata dai yon (kata of balance breaking)

The Randori no kata has 2 parts

· Omote waza : 17 techniques which we can apply in the tegatana-awase distance

· Ura waza : 10 counter technique

In the ura waza we find techniques which were incorporated in the jugohon no kata (15 techniques) and which were later removed from the kata. Especially the gyakute kote hineri (kote mawashi) was removed because it was a dangerious technique when it was succesfull. Although it was very difficult to apply.

The Koryu no kata includes 6 kata

In an old film of Kenji Tomiki and Hideo Ohba we can clearly see the origin of the koryu no kata, especially the koryu no kata dai san (number 3). The use of the knife, sword and spear is a part of this kata. The mastery of this kata gives the aikido practitioner the feeling of going back in time and doing old fashioned self defense. The last part of the dai san kata is a sword to sword situation and reflects kendo no kata.

The book Budo Renshu by Morihei Ueshiba, written in 1933 is a source of information for those who are studying the koryu no kata of Tomiki Aikido. It is said that Kenji Tomiki was involved in the composition of this book.

· Koryu no kata dai ichi : traditional aikido techniques which ressembles the techniques of Budo Renshu.

· Koryu no kata dai ni : an extension of dai ichi

· Koryu no kata dai san : a shorter version of the old Kenji Tomiki film. Includes defenses against knife, sword and spear techniques. The spear is used as a vehicle to explain aikido techniques. Introduction to swordmanship.

· Koryu no kata dai yon : advanced study of the original judo taiso sotai undo.

· Koryu no kata dai go : a very dynamic and fluid demonstration of aikido techniques.

· Koryu no kata dai roku : a study of different kind of speed in training, different combination techniques when the opponent tries to resist or escapes.

Conclusion

Sometimes people are asking : is aikido a form of self defense? or is aikido a form of meditation? or a way of life? and we can keep going on.......

We only can answer with the words of Kenji Tomiki :

„Mushin Mugamae“ as an educational concept of modern Budo

„Mushin“ is a state of mind unclouded by emotions. In this sense, it is not a negative, but a positive state of mind. „Fudoshin“, „Mujushin“, „Ku no kokoro“ are all synonymus of this word. The condition of „Mushin“ is the ultimate ideal, not only from the standpoint of Buddhism, and including Confucianism and Shintoism, but also from that of good morals.

In a modern context, establishing a condition of contest through a tournament is the only way to learn „Mushin“. By controlling psychological conflict and transcending the concept of victory or defeat „Mushin“ can be attained. However, to hold a competition, certain restrictions must be put in place and the ideal may be lost through the degeneration of techniques. Training of proper kata is essential to the acquisition of „Mushin“.

Budo does not exist without techniques. Today, Budo techniques develop through Kata and Randori training. „Mushin Mugamae“ is the ultimate ideal and this was attained by superior Japanes budoka.

(Translated by Itsuo Haba)

Author :

Eddy Wolput 7th dan Aikido by Japan Aikido Association, born 1948 Antwerpen/Belgium

Studied : judo and jujutsu (Kawaishi system), Hakko ryu aikijujutsu, Shotokan karate, Muso Shinden Iaido and Shinto Muso Ryu Jojutsu.

Major teachers : Hirokazu Kobayashi (Osaka AikiKai), dr Lee Ah Loi (Tomiki Aikido), Itsuo Haba (Tomiki Aikido), Hideo Ohba (Tomiki Aikido), Fumiaki Shishida (Tomiki Aikikdo), Shizufumi Ishido (Muso Shinden Ryu and Shinto muso Ryu)

www.shobukai.be

http://tomiki-aikido.wikispaces.com/