And then the shodan test came up. I actually wanted this one. The problem was that one year prior, my aikido attendance dropped to about three times per week (from my usual six) because I was training in Brazilian jiu-jitsu four times per week. I was totally immersed in jiu-jitsu, and just didn’t feel comfortable with the material that I needed to know for a shodan test in Iwama style. And then, four months prior I tore the MCL in my left knee, so my training was again limited while I recovered. And, THEN, one month prior, I had a severe episode of vertigo (later diagnosed as vestibular migraine). Obviously, tenkan, rolls, and breakfalls were off the menu until I recovered. Finally, miraculously, I had a window of good health and free time and was able to take the actual exam. Fortunately, I passed and managed to avoid another attack of vestibular migraine until the morning after the test (!)

The whole experience was more meaningful for me that I had anticipated. Set right in the center of a year of bad health and injuries, it was nice to have something positive to strive for and achieve. Also, in terms of my aikido training, I feel as if I closed a chapter and begun a new one. And it was exactly the right time to close that chapter. I don’t perceive a black belt to be a symbol of mastery. It is merely an indication that one has stopped being totally clueless about the art and can actually begin to learn. More time can be spent seriously training, rather than trying to figure out where to put hands and feet. Techniques begin to feel natural, and arise spontaneously. There is more coordination of breath and movement. The intensity of the focus on the basics during the preparation period really burned certain things into my mind and body (even the Japanese names!), and they feel more a part of me.

I think that is the singular thing that differentiates this new chapter from the old—aikido movement/principle actually feels like a part of me rather than something “out there” that I am trying to learn. To really illustrate this point, one can look to Ric’s recent shodan exam: when Hoa Sensei asked Ric to do a jiyu-waza (free technique) demonstration, we were able to witness how aikido manifests naturally at a certain level of training. It was really inspiring to watch this. I look forward to this new phase of learning, even as I look back upon the six and one half years that led to this point.

My Aikido journey cannot be characterized as easy. I was not a fast learner. In fact, I think I was an especially slow learner. But I kept at it. After my initial couple of years of struggling, I became more comfortable with aikido just in time for us to change styles to Iwama. For awhile it felt like I was back at the beginning ,but I am ultimately very happy with the change. I also developed a great curiosity for studying other martial styles. I tried to learn tai chi several times over the years (long story), and spent an amazing year learning jiu-jitsu. Unfortunately, due to health issues, jiu-jitsu is not advisable for me right now. But I haven’t lost my desire to explore different systems, and either kendo or kung fu are the next arts that I am considering. Maybe I’ll even give tai chi another try. I don’t find studying other styles to be an impediment to aikido training, but rather an enhancement.

I feel that as a relatively new dojo (only 8 years), it is especially important when students reach the rank of shodan. It means that as a school, we are growing and moving in a positive direction. It is good for new students, because they are able to benefit from exposure to more experienced students. I can recall the early days when we had a mat full of beginners. It was tough. It also has a way of bringing together the school as a whole during the process of preparation. Our recent four new yudansha have really added to the overall culture of the dojo, and look forward to more people reaching this point in their training.

You can get the background on the fight in the first 2 minutes. The fight is fairly long. You can get the feel of what was happening in the first 4 rounds of the fight with part of round 4 (this part is optional if you have time at 33-35 minutes). Then you can see round 5 from 36-41 minutes or so. It is also helpful to view the interviews starting at 42-43:30 minutes or so.

Then let us know what you think of the strategies used in your comments…

I was never an athletic kid.  A youth soccer league drop out.  Never played sports in school.  I was and continue to be an overweight guy.  I grew up with an Italian grandmother who would stuff me full of meats and pasta until I couldn’t speak anymore.  I no longer have my grandmother stuffing me – but I’m still very pudgy.  Needless to say, I never attempted Aikido instruction when I was younger.  But I never lost interest in it either.

I remember when I was in high school I bought a book about Aikido – Aikido for Life by Gaku Homma.  I read it and it only increased my fascination with the art.  I told myself that I was going to lose some weight and then sign up for classes.  That never happened.

Then when I got to law school, some friends and I almost signed up at an Aikido school.  We found a school right in town.  We sat in on a few classes.  It looked cool.  I never got around to doing it though.  But I did continue my research, adding to my growing Aikido library.

Then life happened.  Started concentrating on a career, then marriage, then children, and after that you find you don’t have time for much of anything anymore.  Those interests that I once had became ancillary to my primary responsibilities of work and family.

It wasn’t until I was seeking an Aikido class for my 4 year old little boy that I actually came to enroll in a class.  I went in, spoke to the Sensei.  I told him of my fascination with the art.  I told him of my desire to one day actually practice it, become proficient.  And then when he asked why I’d never started I told him how I thought I was always too fat and how I’d always set goals for myself which I always seemed to fall short on.  I wasn’t really sure that I could physically handle it. I told him about time constraints and being too busy.  But hell, there was always some excuse that could be used.  Not enough time, not enough money, too fat, too sedentary.  Sensei said that was all nonsense.  I left the dojo that day assuring him that at some point I would enroll, although I wasn’t absolutely sure what I even meant by that.  But the planets were about to align for me.

I don’t think that my drive to practice Aikido was ever based on a desire to defend myself.  I think it always had to do with something much deeper.  It was probably after the first time I got a real ass kicking in 7^th grade that I actually learned how to handle myself pretty well.  You get a few fights under your belt, high school, even law school and you learn a few things… about fighting, about yourself.  With Aikido, I was less interested in the self-defense aspect.  My desire to practice, I think, stemmed from a much deeper desire to, and I don’t mean to be trite or clichéd here, to harmonize with the energy within me, my mind and body, and then harmonize with that energy around me.  I was really looking for lessons that would teach me to view things differently, to attack the problems of life from a different angle, to experience life on a different level.  For me, that is Aikido.

For the most part, I’ve always been a very easy going, laid back and carefree individual.  My job after law school took care of that fairly quickly.  If the ten years following law school graduation, marriage and children, did not do away with it entirely, creating and building my own law practice, snuffed out any stress free lifestyle I once had, and took me in the direct and polar opposite direction.  I had now become an extraordinarily high strung, stressed out, angry, manic, type-A guy that I never ever wanted to be – not for my wife, my children or me.  It seemed as though I needed Aikido now more than ever.  I was in harmony with nothing and nothing was in harmony with me!

It must have been one of my son’s first Aikido classes – nobody else showed up but he and I.  Sensei said, “Well, it appears that you’re going to have your first Aikido class.”  Here?  Now?  I really don’t know what I was afraid of, honestly. Why I was so reluctant, I really don’t know.  But I can honestly tell you now that at that moment I had some anxiety.  No… I’m not ready yet.  I need to think about this a little more.  That probably becomes the problem sometimes.  You get to thinking about things too much, you start over-analyzing things and begin to create and manifest ideas and notions that may not even exist.  Of course, the opposite is true also… when you don’t think about things enough, but that’s another paragraph.  Luckily, through Aikido you learn to strike a balance to everything and anything.  And that’s exactly was I was about to learn.

I practiced that day with my son.  I can’t tell you the feeling I had, the emotion that was within me.  I was finally doing something I had wanted to do for nearly 30 years, and I was doing it with my son.  We were both doing it together for the first time.  The joy and delight I felt that day can only be described as intoxicating.  Again, without being trite, it was as though someone was opening up a door to a whole new world, and at the same time there was an incredible release of pressure and sense of calm and relief.  And the fact I was doing this with my son made it that much more special…it was enchanting.

Little does my boy know that he actually shared that special moment with me.  It was just another day for him.  But I guess he’ll find out someday.  And that was it, the start of my Aikido career and the start of a new love affair.  And little did I know what I was truly in for…

Previously we tended to look at our environment as us vs them, whether the us is just oneself, one’s family, friends, nation, etc. The question we face now is whether this approach will enable the survival of the human race in the face of such challenges and worldwide interdependence. Would intelligent self interest suggest we continue with business as usual, or does our survival mandate we rather take responsibility to feed and cloth everyone without discriminating the clan to which one belongs? Common sense would dictate that the only way we will be able to deal with our challenges at this point is if everyone works together to take responsibility to solve problems faced globally rather than their individual communities.

We are all human and we are all equal. We may be different, some educated and some not, rich or poor, belonging to various religious traditions or ideologies etc. But we are all human and we all have the same wish – to be happy. And no one’s right to happiness supercedes the rights of anyone else.  With the shrinking of the world and increased interdependence, whatever we do will affect people across the globe. Our challenges are great enough that we need nothing but the best form of self interest – the most efficient form. Each civilization needs peace and prosperity to be stable and not act destructively through pollution or other means to harm the planet. The only way we can stabilize these societies is to insure their basic needs for survival are met at a minimum, even if they do not belong to our community. So the best form of self interest here is altruism, and we need it in larger doses than ever. We need to take universal responsibility to create a positive world for all human kind irrespective of the previous borders we thought important.

So we need to look to altruism as the real solution – just trying to get along is not enough. We need to develop it actively, flooding our environment in a positive manner. From this mind comes other positive qualities such as tolerance, forgiveness, confidence, etc. We can take bad situations and transform them into positive ones. The need for altruism is not limited only to those in the particular helping fields such as psychology or social work, etc. It is the responsibility of everyone in all walks of life. Then when critical conflicts arise, through the altruistic mind the impasse can be broken and more serious damage averted.

If we compare ourselves to various animals, such as wolves or bees, they work well in harmony with each other and take care of the group. Yet when we live in large cities, we feel more alone than ever. While we have made great strides forward in improving our lifestyles, it seems an over emphasis on the material aspects of life have removed us from the source of happiness and the ability to solve our more serious problems as they arise. We need to develop a genuine sense of responsibility for all of humanity and only  compassion, a spontaneous feeling of empathy and warm heartedness towards others, will allow us to cross the bridge and truly act on behalf of the people with whom we share this planet.

Next we will look more specifically at how to apply these ideas to solve the problems we face globally.

I had the opportunity to help some of the children prepare, as well as watch some of the tests. This is the sixth year that I have been involved in the children’s testing process, and I thought I’d share some of my observations. I’ve been meaning to put some of them down on paper for quite awhile. Now that I have a knee injury, I have finally found the time!

When an adult watches a typical Scarsdale Aikido children’s class, they may wonder if the kids are learning anything resembling Aikido at all (be honest, you’ve had this thought!) There is a playful, relaxed spirit. There are games. There is socializing. And there is often a lot of noise. The techniques that the children perform often do not look like the detailed, complex, and precise movements that the adults perform. Even when the tests come around, the children are often coached through their techniques to jog their memories. So…what exactly are they learning anyway?

As someone who has observed many tests in the children’s program, I can answer that they are learning a great deal First, I’d like to clarify what a test is. At Scarsdale Aikido, the testing process is another variant of the learning process. It is not an indication of mastery, on any level. We don’t give black belts to children, as the primary emphasis for children is to learn. From a technical perspective, young kids are not able to emulate adult proficiency and are not held up to adult standards. But if looked at from the standpoint of their developmental levels as children, they are indeed learning the art at a profound
level.

It helps to look beneath the literal movements of the technique and look to principle. In doing this, you begin to see increased mind- body awareness, timing, spatial awareness, evasive movements, balance (or base), extension, and the all-important ability to maintain the center. This can be observed with children as young as 5 years old who have been training consistently. On a non-physical level, you can observe improvements in concentration, relaxation, and confidence. The children are also gaining a preliminary knowledge of martial strategy (i.e. inviting the attack/counterattack, invading the space,
etc.) that matures as they mature.

Most importantly, the children are absorbing the core philosophy of Aikido. This can be observed during the part of the testing process known as “the questions.” To the consternation of the parents trying to prepare their children for the tests, there is no magic right answer to “the questions.” These questions are designed to bring forth what the kids have learned, help them to take their lessons off the mat and into life, as well as to open up a dialogue about philosophical and ethical issues. (Parents: if you want to do anything to help your kids prepare for this portion, encourage them to listen to the responses of
their peers’ tests and to think of their own answers.)

Personally, I find the questions to be the most interesting part of the tests. Here are a few:

“What is Aikido?” “Will being angry help you in a self-defense situation?” “During class, what should you be paying attention to/not paying attention to?””When someone wants to hurt us what attitude should we have and why?” “When someone wants to hurt you should you be afraid, confident, or tense and why?” “Is Aikdio purely defensive?” “Can a weaker opponent defeat a stronger opponent?” “How do you react when have something very difficult to do?” “What are the benefits of receiving pain when someone does a technique on you?”

The thoughtful, sincere, and often profound answers that I have heard over the years could fill a book. But I’ll give one recent example to illustrate how the testing process shows what the children have learned, and provides an opportunity to expand upon that learning.

The question was “When you are in class, what should you be paying attention to/ not paying attention to?” Several kids chimed in with different answers: “The teacher” “Your partner” “The teacher and your partner” Sensei then had the kids act out their answers. The child who was paying attention to the teacher, got attacked by his partner. The child who was paying attention to the partner, got attacked by the teacher. The child who was paying attention to both, got attacked by another attacker. You get the idea. It was concluded that you need to pay attention to everything in your environment. What you
overly focus on becomes your weakness.

One child did point out that we did not need to pay attention to the noise from the Irish dancers upstairs. We jokingly admitted that the Irish dancers are probably not a threat, but you never know. I think that groups of people who practice kicking in a line could be a force to be reckoned with. But on a serious note, practicing amidst noise is an opportunity to learn how to not be distracted or disturbed by the unpredictability of your environment.

For some of the children who have been with the program for several years, it becomes even more apparent how much they are learning. And as they grow older, their training begins to take root and branch out into all areas of their lives. My older daughter, Chloe (12), has been training for five years. I recently had a conference with her math teacher in which he described to me a child who was happy to meet challenges, relaxed and confident, and comfortable taking risks (i.e. not afraid to be wrong). I attribute that in part to her training in Aikido, as those are subtle principles that we seek to impart in every class. Along with, of course, the games.

If there are any parents who have similar stories of how their child’s Aikdio training has become part of their lives, feel free to share in the comments!

Which of these two individuals is respected and admired to this day? Both developed a mass of followers. Stalin accumulated power first through ideals and used the power for personal gain, which was destructive to the people he lead. He retained the power through violence and intimidation. But in the context of history how long did his power last? How many people were lead by his example and continued the direction he set even today? History tells us that he was broadly disliked internationally, but even more so his reputation was badly tarnished among his own people.

Gandhi, on the other hand, accumulated followers by peacefully bringing the attention of the world to great injustices and worked to benefit his followers. In reality, by short circuiting the injustices being done, he also stopped the disturbances created in the minds of the people inflicting harm to the Indian people. Everyone respected Gandhi, listened to his advice and supported him. In this way the energy of many people were channeled through him and he was able to overhaul the government of a major world power without any army. History here treats him as someone beloved by his own people and revered for the enormous task he undertook successfully. He is even respected in Britain. This power was more authentic and long lasting.

In our society many who have acquired power have done so through politics or success in business. Our first reaction may be automatic admiration for names such as Bill Clinton, Bill Gates, Warren Buffet or Ronald Reagan. But these leaders are subject to the same criteria as Stalin and Gandhi in evaluating the exercise of their power.  In fact, leaders must be careful particularly about how they exercise their power, as their position allows them to affect far more people than those with little power. If they allow destructive activities, the results will not harm one or two people, but many more. Consider the head of Exxon who put off addressing global warming resulting from fuel consumption. They wanted to increase profits, but the resultant destruction to the environment now threatens far more damage than their profits can cure. Now they and their families must live in this world at greater physical risk, so they did not escape the consequences of their actions. To the extent you make destructive decisions as a powerful person, your consequences will be larger. For this reason, a sincere aspiration to develop authentic power versus temporal power is critical for those who attain leadership positions.

To insure proper use of their power by leaders in our political system, the structure attempts a healthy approach to diffuse absolute power in this country, preventing the Stalins of the world from gaining control. Distributing authority among 3 branches of government, frequent elections and freedom of the press all act to bring transparency and responsibility on the part of politicians towards those they serve. It is important not only for politicians to keep a close eye on their motivations to insure they sincerely serve the people properly, but also members of the press. Any dilution in the sincerity on the part of these groups will certainly lead to problems of the ilk described above. The protections we have against abuse of power in this country are good, but if not implemented with sincerity in our society, we may need something more.

Well, in Aikido we seek an ultimate sort of happiness not only for ourselves, but all beings. In that process we also need to produce a more temporal sense of happiness. For temporal happiness we need peace of mind, good health, wholesome friends and then money – in that order. Peace of mind is key. If you had lots of money, no peace of mind, no friends and poor health, chances are you would not be very happy. But the person with peace of mind who is poor, with few friends and poor health would at least have a fighting chance to find some moments of happiness. In fact, with peace of mind they might improve their health with lower stress and also find some decent friends. But the person with only money and no peace would be less likely to work their way out of their problems. Even in the west we say you can’t buy happiness, or friends and good health for that matter either.

Despite the tertiary importance of money in producing happiness, in the west it takes on a central role in our lives. If our GDP growth rates stagnate, we panic. But look at the people starving in Africa. They don’t even know what a GDP growth rate is!? They just want enough food to make it through another day.  This huge divergence between the wealthy and poor, not only among countries but within them as well, is a serious problem on a global level This gap should inform our views on money. Let’s take a closer look.

The poor countries have problems with low levels of education, population explosion (related to poorly educated women), and the elite often take the majority of the country’s assets. Then should they ever climb out of their abject poverty (think China & India), their new found wealth would place the world’s natural resources under unbearable stress.

In the western world, we enjoy high standards of living (although the rift between wealthy and poor has reached alarming levels) and better education. At the same time we absorb a disproportionate share of the world’s natural resources to support our lifestyle. Again, we spend our time worrying about the rate at which our GDP grows while a large portion of mankind worries about starving.

Low levels of education and dire circumstances in the poor countries act as contributing factors to terrorism in the west. We should not be surprised, as historically the result of a wide rift between rich and poor is typically political instability, of which terrorism is a form. Should everyone in China and India start driving a car, we will quickly find our lifestyles called into serious question as well. Our myopic concerns about individual nation’s GDP growth need to take a back seat to more pressing matters. In the west we cannot divorce ourselves from the poverty of the remainder of the world.

One of the properties of this approach is an ability to provide an endless spring of benefits. If you plant a seed for a strawberry plant, you will get a few strawberries that year. Next year you have to plant a seed again. But this process of replacing a selfish mode of existence with a more altruistic alternative is first of all enjoyable and secondly bears fruit in geometric proportions over time.  For example, Koichi Tohei talked about his experience in World War II as a commanding officer in the Japanese army on a mission to penetrate deep into China. Imagine for a moment the psychological damage one might sustain engaging in warfare and killing other people and losing friends in the name of the Japanese Imperial cause (think Viet Nam Vets). Imagine the damage to the families of those who died. Koichi Tohei used his meditation practice to learn to center himself during combat. Yet as a practitioner of Aikido he found taking life reprehensible. When he caught a Chinese enemy, he was supposed to kill or imprison him. Instead, he disarmed and released the man. The Chinese subsequently realized his wish for peace and would simply wave at his forces in the fields rather than shoot.  He was able to accomplish his mission without losing any of his own men or killing any of the enemy. What better outcome could you desire than have no one die? One simple act of kindness led to saving countless lives in horrific circumstances. (Journey to the Center:  Lessons in Unifying Body, Mind and Spirit by Thomas Crumb pg 79-80)

Morihiro Saito explained that there are two types of people in the world of Aikido, those who talk about it and those who do it. Saito Sensei tended to use very simple language. Given the benefits Koichi Tohei experienced, we can recognize the level of responsibility he took towards his own practice and the wonderful results. Talking about Aikido is simply a lower level of responsibility towards one’s own practice, an aspiration to practice without any application of effort.  Compare for a moment a person who spends their days immersed in anger and a desire for vengeance towards anyone who trespasses their interests, with another person who wishes to develop a more altruistic attitude but has yet to act upon it. If an aggressive person ran into both of these people, clearly their interaction with the vengeful person would spark violence like a match to dry wood. But their interaction with the person who has altruistic aspirations would be far less likely to produce a violent outcome. So there are obviously some substantial benefits to maintaining only an aspiration. But next to Koichi Tohei’s outcome when faced with mortal combat, there is no comparison.

We know practice is difficult; it takes time and effort and further we need to find opportunities to train which do not always abound. We put effort into more mundane activities and find we must constantly work to produce results. The practice of Aikido, however, can produce very positive results and with a geometric response to our efforts. An aspiration to practice is at least helpful, but actually engaging in training is far more powerful.

In this blog we will take an approach that is more casual and looks to relate Aikido principles to our experience in daily life. We will start out observing the state of our world and comparing it to the principles of Aikido noting the differences. Later we will move into more practical individual problems in daily life.We will start with the legal system.

The point of the legal system is to promote the positive use of human activity. Totalitarian systems (e.g. communist) that provide unrestricted power to one ruler generally tend violate human nature. If we look at our history in the west, democracy as a form of protection for human rights began in Greek and Roman times. It was expanded in Europe after the dark ages and we added religious tolerance here in the US. So while our right to life (one named function of Aikido – see philosophy blog), liberty (another benefit of Aikido) and the pursuit of happiness (the other named function of Aikido – see philosophy blog) are clearly on track, the democratic systems may also leave some room for improvement.

Let’s step outside the box a little bit. While protecting human rights is obviously good, what about the protecting the rights of animals and the environment? Pollution in the industrialized society has been virtually unrestrained for 100 years and we are on the verge of destroying our own ability to live safely on the planet. Humans are not the only ones who suffered as a result. No one was imprisoned or penalized in any way for these transgressions against the environment.

What about animals? Obviously, we are somewhat at odds with the interests of animals in that some humans cannot survive on a vegetarian diet for health reasons. I suspect many animals may not feel our eating them conforms to their basic rights and we might have difficulty disagreeing. But if you look at the structure of farming, you will find we eat far more meat than necessary and the impact on the environment is potentially serious. Also, before we kill animals for food, our farms can be violently abusive towards them, again practically without penalty. We have animals work for us and are abusive as well.

The other point to consider is the implementation of these laws. Think about Bill Clinton’s response to the question of whether he had sex with Monica Lewinsky. Another example is a whistle blower who worked at Lehman Brothers and filed a complaint about their shady accounting practices. He was fired for his action, while the firm boldly misrepresented their financial condition, and the perpetrators of this act still were not brought to justice even after the demise of the firm. People in power, politicians and business leaders, seem to be subject to a different set of laws than the rest of society.

The purpose of the legal system is to inspire basic humanitarian values, and in our society many laws do work quite well. But to move more in alignment with Aikido principles, the laws should be applied consistently and some consideration for the rights of animals and the environment should be included as well. Next we move on to money and power…

To Hold Down a Pillow means not allowing the enemy’s head to rise.

In contests of stategy it is bad to be led about by the enemy. You must always be able to lead the enemy about. Obviously the enemy will also be thinking of doing this, but he cannot forestall you if you do not allow him to come out. In strategy, you must stop the enemy as he attempts to cut; you must push down his thrust, and throw off his hold when he tries to grapple. This is the meaning of “to hold down a pillow”. When you have grasped this principle, whatever the enemy tries to bring about in the fight you will see in advance and suppress it. The spirit is to check his attack at the syllable “at…”, when he jumps check his advance at the syllable “ju…”, and check his cut at “cu…”.

The important thing in strategy is to suppress the enemy’s useful actions but allow his useless actions. However, doing this alone is defensive. First, you must act according to the Way, suppress the enemy’s techniques, foiling his plans, and thence command him directly. When you can do this you will be a master of strategy. You must train well and research “holding down a pillow”.

Crossing at a Ford

“Crossing at a ford” means, for example, crossing the sea at a strait, or crossing over a hundred miles of broad sea at a crossing place. I believe this “crossing at a ford” occurs often in a man’s lifetime. It means setting sail even though your friends stay in harbour, knowing the route, knowing the soundness of your ship and the favour of the day. When all the conditions are met, and there is perhaps a favourable wind, or a tailwind, then set sail. If the wind changes within a few miles of your destination, you must row across the remaining distance without sail.

If you attain this spirit, it applies to everyday life. You must always think of crossing at a ford.

In strategy also it is important to “cross at a ford”. Discern the enemy’s capability and, knowing your own strong points, “cross the ford” at the advantageous place, as a good captain crosses a sea route. If you succeed in crossing at the best place, you may take your ease. To cross at a ford means to attack the enemy’s weak point, and to put yourself in an advantageous position. This is how to win in large-scale strategy. The spirit of crossing at a ford is necessary in both large- and small-scale strategy.

You must research this well.

To Know the Times

“To know the times” means to know the enemy’s disposition in battle. Is is flourishing or waning? By observing the spirit of the enemy’s men and getting the best position, you can work out the enemy’s disposition and move your men accordingly. You can win through this principle of strategy, fighting from a position of advantage.

When in a duel, you must forestall the enemy and attack when you have first recognised his school of strategy, perceived his quality and his strong and weak points. Attack in an unsuspected manner, knowing his metre and modulation and the appropriate timing.

Knowing the times means, if your ability is high, seeing right into things. If you are thoroughly conversant with strategy, you will recognise the enemy’s intentions and thus have many opportunities to win. You must sufficiently study this.

To Tread Down the Sword

“To tread down the sword” is a principle often used in strategy. First, in large-scale strategy, when the enemy first discharges bows and guns and then attacks, it is difficult for us to attack if we are busy loading powder into our guns or notching our arrows. The spirit is to attack quickly while the enemy is still shooting with bows or guns. The spirit is to win by “treading down” as we receive the enemy’s attack.

In single combat, we cannot get a decisive victory by cutting, with a “tee-dum tee-dum” feeling, in the wake of the enemy’s attacking long sword. We must defeat him at the start of his attack, in the spirit of treading him down with the feet, so that he cannot rise again to the attack.

“Treading” does not simply mean treading with the feet. Tread with the body, tread with the spirit, and, of course, tread and cut with the long sword. You must achieve the spirit of not allowing the enemy to attack a second time. This is the spirit of forestalling in every sense. Once at the enemy, you should not aspire just to strike him, but to cling after the attack. You must study this deeply.

To Know “Collapse”

Everything can collapse. Houses, bodies, and enemies collapse when their rhythm becomes deranged.

In large-scale strategy, when the enemy starts to collapse you must persue him without letting the chance go. If you fail to take advantage of your enemies’ collapse, they may recover.

In single combat, the enemy sometimes loses timing and collapses. If you let this opportunity pass, he may recover and not be so negligent thereafter. Fix your eye on the enemy’s collapse, and chase him, attacking so that you do not let him recover. You must do this. The chasing attack is with a strong spirit. You must utterly cut the enemy down so that he does not recover his position. You must understand utterly how to cut down the enemy.

To Become the Enemy

“To become the enemy” means to think yourself into the enemy’s position. In the world people tend to think of a robber trapped in a house as a fortified enemy. However, if we think of “becoming the enemy”, we feel that the whole world is against us and that there is no escape. He who is shut inside is a pheasant. He who enters to arrest is a hawk. You must appreciate this.

In large-scale strategy, people are always under the impression that the enemy is strong, and so tend to become cautious. But if you have good soldiers, and if you understand the principles of strategy, and if you know how to beat the enemy, there is nothing to worry about.

In single combat also you must put yourself in the enemy’s position. If you think, “Here is a master of the Way, who knows the principles of strategy”, then you will surely lose. You must consider this deeply.

To Release Four Hands

“To release four hands” is used when you and the enemy are contending with the same spirit, and the issue cannot be decided. Abandon this spirit and win through an alternative resource.

In large-scale strategy, when there is a “four hands” spirit, do not give up – it is man’s existence. Immediately throw away this spirit and win with a rechnique the enemy does not expect.

In single combat also, when we think we have fallen into the “four hands” situation, we must defeat the enemy by changing our mind and applying a suitable technique according to his condition. You must be able to judge this.

To Move the Shade

“To move the shade” is used when you cannot see the enemy’s spirit.

In large-scale strategy, when you cannot see the enemy’s position, indicate that you are about to attack strongly, to discover his resources. It is easy then to defeat hin with a different method once you see his resources.

In single combat, if the enemy takes up a rear or side attitude of the long sword so that you cannot see his intention, make a feint attack, and the enemy will show his long sword, thinking he sees your spirit. Benefiting from what you are shown, you can win with certainty. If you are negligent you will miss the timing. Research this well.

To Hold Down a Shadow

“Holding down a shadow” is used when can see the enemy’s attacking spirit.

In large-scale strategy, when the enemy embarks on an attack, if you make a show of strongly suppressing his technique, he will change his mind. Then, altering your spirit, defeat him by forestalling him with a Void spirit.

Or, in single combat, hold down the enemy’s strong intention with a suitable timing, and defeat him by forestalling him with this timing. You must study this well.

To Pass On

Many things are said to be passed on. Sleepiness can be passed on, and yawning canbe passed on. Time can be passed on also.

In large-scale strategy, when the enemy is agitated and shows an inclination to rush, do not mind in the least. Make a show of complete calmness, and the enemy will be taken by this and will become relaxed. When you see that this spirit has been passed on, you can bring about the enemy’s defeat by attacking strongly with a Void spirit.

In single combat, you can win by relaxing your body and spirit and then, catching on the moment the enemy relaxes, attack strongly and quickly, forestalling him.

What is known as “getting someone drunk” is similar to this. You can also infect the enemy with a bored, careless, or weak spirit. You must study this well.

To Cause Loss of Balance

Many things can cause a loss of balance. One cause is danger, another is hardship, and another is surprise. You must research this.

In large-scale strategy it is important to cause loss of balance. Attack without warning where the enemy is not expecting it, and while his spirit is undecided follow up your advantage and, having the lead, defeat him.

Or, in single combat, start by making a show of being slow, then suddenly attack strongly. Without allowing him space for breath to recover from the fluctuation of spirit, you must grasp the opportunity to win. Get the feel of this.

To Frighten

Fright often occurs, caused by the unexpected.

In large-scale strategy you can frighten the enemy not by what you present to their eyes, but by shouting, making a small force seem large, or by threatening them from the flank without warning. These things all frighten. You can win by making best use of the enemy’s frightened rhythm.

In single combat, also, you must use the advantage of taking the enemy unawares by frightening him with your body, long sword, or voice, to defeat him. You should research this well.

To Soak In

When you have come to grips and are striving together with the enemy, and you realise that you cannot advance, you “soak in” and become one with the enemy. You can win by applying a suitable technique while you are mutually entangled.

In battles involving large numbers as well as in fights with small numbers, you can often win decisively with the advantage of knowing how to “soak” into the enemy, whereas, were you to draw apart, you would lise the chance to win. Research this well.

To Injure the Corners

It is difficult to move strong things by pushing directly, so you should “injure the corners”.

In large-scale strategy, it is beneficial to strike at the corners of the enemy’s force, If the corners are overthrown, the spirit of the whole body will be overthrown. To defeat the enemy you must follow up the attack when the corners have fallen.

In single combat, it is easy to win once the enemy collapses. This happens when you injure the “corners” of his body, and this weaken him. It is important to know how to do this, so you must research this deeply.

To Throw into Confusion

This means making the enemy lose resolve.

In large-scale strategy we can use our troops to confuse the enemy on the field. Observing the enemy’s spirit, we can make him think, “Here? There? Like that? Like this? Slow? Fast?” Victory is certain when the enemy is caught up in a rhythm that confuses his spirit.

In single combat, we can confuse the enemy by attacking with varied techniques when the chance arises. Feint a thrust or cut, or make the enemy thing you are going close to him, and when he is confused you can easily win.

This is the essence of fighting, and you must research it deeply.

The Three Shouts

The three shouts are divided thus: before, during and after. Shout according to the situation. The voice is a thing of life. We shout against fires and so on, against the wind and the waves. The voice shows energy.

In large-scale strategy, at the start of battle we shout as loudly as possible. During the fight, the voice is low-pitched, shouting out as we attack. After the contest, we shout in the wake of our victory. These are the three shouts.

In single combat, we make as if to cut and shout “Ei!” at the same time to disturb the enemy, then in the wake of our shout we cut with the long sword. We shout after we have cut down the enemy – this is to announce victory. This is called “sen go no koe” (before and after voice). We do not shout simultaneously with flourishing the long sword. We shout during the fight to get into rhythm. Research this deeply.

To Mingle

In battles, when the armies are in confrontation, attack the enemy’s strong points and, when you see that they are beaten back, quickly separate and attack yet another strong point on the periphery of his force. The spirit of this is like a winding mountain path.

This is an important fighting method for one man against many. Strike down the enemies in one quarter, or drive them back, then grasp the timing and attack further strong points to right and left, as if on a winding mountain path, weighing up the enemies’ disposition. When you know the enemies’ level, attack strongly with no trace of retreating spirit.

In single combat, too, use this spirit with the enemy’s strong points.

What is meant by ‘mingling’ is the spirit of advancing and becoming engaged with the enemy, and not withdrawing even one step. You must understand this.

To Crush

This means to crush the enemy regarding him as being weak.

In large-scale strategy, when we see that the enemy has few men, or if he has many men but his spirit is weak and disordered, we knock the hat over his eyes, crushing him utterly. If we crush lightly, he may recover. You must learn the spirit of crushing as if with a hand-grip.

In single combat, if the enemy is less skilful than ourself, if his rhythm is disorganized, or if he has fallen into evasive or retreating attitudes, we must crush him straightaway, with no concern for his presence and without allowing him space for breath. It is essential to crush him all at once. The primary thing is not to let him recover his position even a little. You must research this deeply.

The Mountain-Sea Change

The “mountain-sea” spirit means that it is bad to repeat the same thing several times when fighting the enemy. There may be no help but to do something twice, but do not try it a third time. If you once make an attack and fail, there is little chance of success if you use the same approach again. If you attempt a technique which you have previously tried unsucessfully and fail yet again, then you must change your attacking method.

If the enemy thinks of the mountains, attack like the sea; and if he thinks of the sea, attack like the mountains. You must research this deeply.

To Penetrate the Depths

When we are fighting with the enemy, even when it can be seen that we can win on the surface with the benefit of the Way, if his spirit is not extinguished, he may be beaten superficially yet undefeated in spirit deep inside. With this principle of “penetrating the depths” we can destroy the enemy’s spirit in its depths, demoralising him by quickly changing our spirit. This often occurs.

Penetrating the depths means penetrating with the long sword, penetrating with the body, and penetrating with the spirit. This cannot be understood in a generalisation.

Once we have crushed the enemy in the depths, there is no need to remain spirited. But otherwise we must remain spirited. If the enemy remains spirited it is difficult to crush him. You must train in penetrating the depths for large-scale strategy and also single combat.

To Renew

“To renew” applies when we are fighting with the enemy, and an entangled spirit arises where there is no possible resolution. We must abandon our efforts, think of the situation in a fresh spirit then win in the new rhythm. To renew, when we are deadlocked with the enemy, means that without changing our circumstance we change our spirit and win through a different technique.

It is necessary to consider how “to renew” also applies in large-scale strategy. Research this diligently.

Rat’s Head, Ox’s Neck

“Rat’s head and ox’s neck” means that, when we are fighting with the enemy and both he and we have become occupied with small points in an entangled spirit, we must always think of the Way of strategy as being both a rat’s head and an ox’s neck. Whenever we have become preoccupied with small details, we must suddenly change into a large spirit, interchanging large with small.

This is one of the essences of strategy. It is necessary that the warrior think in this spirit in everyday life. You must not depart from this spirit in large-scale strategy nor in single combat.

The Commander Knows the Troops

“The commander knows the troops” applies everywhere in fights in my Way of strategy.

Using the wisdom of strategy, think of the enemy as your own troops. When you think in this way you can move him at will and be able to chase him around. You become the general and the enemy becomes your troops. You must master this.

To Let Go the Hilt

There are various kinds of spirit involved in letting go the hilt.

There is the spirit of winning without a sword. There is also the spirit of holding the long sword but not winning. The various methods cannot be expressed in writing. You must train well.