One of the things I have found to be so unique about aikidoThe word "Aikido" is made up of three japanese characters: ai - harmony, ki - spirit, mind, or universal energy, do - the way. Thus Aikido is "the way of harmony with universal energy.", and perhaps one of the reasons I enjoy it so much, is the way in which it is taught.

The notion that the burden of learning is on the student to steal from the teacher, rather than the teacher giving his knowledge to the student, allows for self discovery of the art.  I think it is this process of self discovery that allows us to make the art our own.

When I studied Tang Soo Do, I was taught very specifically how each technique should be done, what the correct hand position was at any given moment, the exact position my feet should be in etc, etc.  After only a few years of study, it seemed to me that the only things left to learn were new techniques and new forms.  While this certainly kept me busy, I never paid much attention the basic techniques I had learned, except to make sure I was still doing them the way I had been taught.  I think that is why I eventually stopped studying.  I had become bored with the art because I had not learned anything new in quite some time.  I wasn’t actually studying anymore; I was just rehearsing the forms and techniques I already knew.  Perhaps there was more to that art that I simply didn’t see because I was so young at the time.  But at the time I stopped practicing Tang Soo Do, no one had corrected me on any of the most basic punches or kicks in several years, or in any way let me know that there was more to them than I realized at the time.  So unlike aikidoThe word "Aikido" is made up of three japanese characters: ai - harmony, ki - spirit, mind, or universal energy, do - the way. Thus Aikido is "the way of harmony with universal energy." where after nearly three years of intensive study, I still know that there are many levels of even the most basic techniques I have yet to unravel.

When watching a demonstration during class, I try to find that next piece I’m missing, figure out what senseiTeacher; anyone who gives guidance along the way; literally "born before" is doing that I am not or how he is doing it differently than I am.  It is easy to fall into complacency and think “ok, we’re doing sankyoThird teaching, movement or principle; control of the opponent's center through the wrist and elbow now”, but it is something I try to fight against and always watch closely, always be searching for the aspects of the technique I haven’t seen before.  I try to do the same when working with a partner on the mat.  I try to feel what is happening between me and my partner.  Am I connecting to their center?  Are they denying me their center or am I not finding it?  Is it more effective if I do it this way or that way?  How are they doing the technique differently than me?  Am I giving good ukemiThe art of receiving or taking actions as uke, falling, or just receiving the technique according to my own preconceptions.  It can be very hard to come to any definitive conclusions this way since every encounter is different and every connection with another person unique.  The important thing is to continue searching, to fully experience this encounter now.   For me the greatest joy on the mat comes from discovering something new in a technique, finding a new aspect of it I didn’t realize was there before, or helping someone else do the same.

I have found that my progress in aikido is very circular in nature.  I go through the same cycle again and again as I progress.  I’ll begin to see some things that I was unaware of before, and as I do it will become very clear to me how much my own technique is lacking.  This can be a very frustrating time in the cycle because I know that I’m missing something, but can’t figure out what it is; or I’ll realize that my sempaiAnyone who began the study of Aikido before you; you should respect this person's experience are trying to show me something that I’m just not seeing.   Gradually though I become able to see these new aspects more clearly and start to incorporate them into my own technique.   After some time it will simply become part of my technique and no longer require so much effort or concentration to apply.  At this point it becomes very easy to become complacent or feel as though ‘I’ve got this down.’  Experience however has taught me that this feeling just means I’m not searching hard enough because there are always more aspects that I have yet to see.  Sure enough eventually I’ll start to see or feel something that I was unaware of before.  Then the whole process starts all over again.

I can sometimes see others going through this process as well, and I often struggle with how much I should tell them.  My instinct is to tell them what they’re not doing or how to improve their technique because I want to see them improve and find the answers to what they are struggling with.  At the same time though, I fear that by doing so I will take something away from them.  If I tell them too much, I deny them the chance to discover it for themselves and it will just become a thing; something they do because they were told rather than an organic aspect of their own technique.  There are times though, when it just kills me to watch someone struggling with something.  I can see their frustration and want to help but know that this is probably something they need to find for themselves. I realize that sometimes you do have to help people along and there are times when it is appropriate to correct something they are doing, but not always.  Knowing when to help, and when not to, is the challenge.  Like so many other questions in aikido, there probably is no definitive answer.  We just need to hold the question in our gut, like a koanRiddle in zen, and keep searching.

This is what makes aikido so unique and so beautiful, that we are always searching.  The student is not told explicitly how to do the technique it is simply presented to them.  It is up to the student to take the learning for themselves; if they are not actively searching, it will elude them.  Because of this, every person’s aikido is as distinctive as they are.  There are infinite possibilities in aikido and within this every practitioner finds their own path and their own style.