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The British Aikido Board
By Henry Ellis

For many years The British Aikido Board ( BAB ) have shown no interest whatsoever in the true history of British Aikido, to be fair to the BAB, they have shown a great deal of interest and support for the false history of British Aikido for which they have now publicly apologised, the apology by the chairman Mr Vincent Sumpter can be viewed on www.geocities.com/britishaikido. (more…)

This features the founder of Shotokan karate actually performing ippon kumite techniques with Isao Obata. This classic footage has never before been seen by the public. Reportedly it was originally in the archives of the JKA and it was filmed before the JKA was even formed. Pre JKA Masters such as Nakayama, Kanazawa, Okuzaki, and Nishiyama performing when they were in their teens and early 20’s.This footage comes from the 1940’s or early 1950’s…. more info here.

The knowledge and skill in the esoteric aspects of the martial arts have been kept secret from the general population so that those in the upper ranks could maintain their position of authority. Even early writers described how secretive martial arts instructors were about keeping knowledge of these points from the general public. Koyama & Minami (1913) state “the knowledge of jiu jitus (sic) has only recently been made general in Japan.”(p.6) The “upper classes, jealous lest their influence over the populace should wane, tried to keep it to themselves.”(ibid p.6) History is replete with examples of those in power to attempting to maintain their position by the restriction of weapons or knowledge. For example, bronze when it was first used for weapons was vastly superior to other material and its production became a state monopoly. Today, a similar analogy is the knowledge of Nuclear weapons systems and how they are a closely guarded state secrets.

In feudal Japan only the warrior class (bushi) were allowed to carry two swords and practice the various forms of martial arts. Bujutsu was considered to be the exclusive domain of the warrior class. “Commoners, while not totally without weapons, nevertheless were forbidden to possess the types used by the bushi and were refused permission to study the bujutsu.”(Drager 1983 p.53) Kendo can be used as an example of how of Bujutsu techniques were changed in the early seventeenth century to a form of Budo. With this change “the essence of kendo was stated at that time to be more spiritual discipline for the improvement of personal character than an activity directly concerned with combat.”(Drager 1975, p.68) Originally it was designed for situations of life and death it now Kendo looked to the spiritual perfection of the individual. With this shift in emphasis to the non-combative aspect it was “the first time that swordsmanship in any form had been openly offered as available to all classes of people.”(ibid p.68) Thus, the techniques of combat which had been restricted to the warrior class were now being openly taught to the general public. (more…)

He was a perfectionist, a disciplinarian and a traditionalist. But, at the same time, an innovator, an internationalist and a man of great generosity. More important, he was a famous educator and the father of modern sports in Japan. But above all, Jigoro Kano was the founder of judo!

He was born on October 28, 1860, when Japan’s feudal period was rapidly drawing to a close. He was born into a family that was reasonably well off, at least well enough placed to get Jigoro into the elite Tokyo Imperial University. His grandfather had launched the family into the business of making sake in Nada, Shiga Prefecture, near the Biwa Lake in central Japan. In fact, it was this same sake-brewing clan that organized the other sake makers in the area to help finance the Fujimi-cho Dojo which served as the Kodokan in the latter half of the 1880s. (more…)

Inouomono (Dog Shooting)

by Edward McEwen
Journal of the Society of Archer-Antiquaries
Vol. 42, 2000 p. 4

The illustration above has been taken from a triptych depicting one of the sporting competitions of old Japan, inuoumono. It is from an Ukio-e woodblock print by Chikanobu, dated circa 1890. In this form of horse archery, which was codified during the Muromachi period (1333-1568), a set number of archers with blunt tipped arrows shot at (usually) white dogs.

Two circles of rope, one within the other were laid down. The inner circle was laid with sand of one colour and the outer ring formed by the rope was laid with sand of a different colour. This outer ring was for the waiting archers. At a given signal an archer entered the inner circle and broke into a gallop (the ring must have been of considerable size to allow this). A dog was then released and the archer tried to hit it. Points were allowed according to where the dog was hit. (more…)

Additional History of the
Naginata

The naginata is a halberd-like weapon that was used extensively
in feudal Japan. Described by some as simply "a sword on the end of
a long pole", the naginata was actually a sophisticated weapon which
required considerable skill and stamina to use effectively in
battle. It consisted of a curved blade, 1 to 2 feet in length,
mounted onto an oak shaft that was usually 5 to 9 feet long. The
actual dimensions of a naginata were primarily dependent on personal
preferences and battle conditions. Attached to the butt end of the
shaft was a sharp end-cap, or ishizuki, which was used to pierce
between the plates of an attacker’s armor.

Although the exact origin of the naginata is not known, three
theories are prominent today. The first states that the naginata
evolved from a simple farming tool used for chopping. In the early
part of the third century BC, farmers attached sharp stones to the
end of long wooden shafts. Later, metal was used in place of the
stones.

1. Karate begins with courtesy and ends with courtesy. 
2. There is no first attack in karate. 
3. Karate is an aid to Justice. 
4. First control yourself before attempting to control others. 
5. Spirit first, technique second. 
6. Always be ready to release your mind. 
7. Accidents arise from neglect. 
8. Do not think that Karate training is only in the dojo. 
9. It will take your entire life to learn Karate; there is no limit. 
10. Put your everyday living into Karate and you will find Myo (The subtle secrets!). 
11. Karate is like boiling water. If you do not heat it constantly, it will cool. 
12. Do not think that you have to win, think rather that you do not have to lose. 
13. Victory depends on your ability to distinguish vulnerable points from invulnerable ones. 
14. The battle is according to how you move guarded and unguarded (move according to your opponent!). 
15. Think of your hands and feet as swords. 
16. When you leave home, think that you have numerous opponents waiting for you. 
17. It is your behavior that invites trouble from them. 
18. Beginners must master low stance and posture; natural body positions are for the advanced. 
19. Practicing a Kata is one thing, engaging in a real fight is another. 
20. Do not forget to correctly apply: strength and weakness of power, stretching 
and contraction of the body and slowness and speed of techniques. 
Always think and devise to live the precept every day. 

Courtesy of www.karate.org.yu

Sensei Henry Ellis

This article originally appeared in 3 parts on the Cyberkwoon website. It is here published in its entirety.
At first sight of the above title I am sure that a lot of Aikidoist’s will be angry, they will assume that this is yet another attack on the credibility of Aikido by other martial artist’s.
On this occasion they are totally wrong, I have been a student of Aikido since 1956, In those early days I first started Judo in 1955 at the Kenshiro Abbe School of Budo, I studied Karate with Harada Sensei and Kendo with Tomio O’Tani Sensei, so with my background I feel that I have something to offer to this debate.

First Impressions
The Aikido that I first saw being demonstrated by Abbe Sensei in 1956 was without doubt a positive martial art.
I was immediately impressed by its positive techniques and power, and in those days my fellow martial artists and I were in no doubt that we were witnessing a devastating new form of self-defence as demonstrated by Kenshiro Abbe Sensei. (more…)