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The British Aikido Board
Disastrous National Nepotism Seminar 2004 - 99 Students
By Henry Ellis Co-author of Positive Aikido.
( BAB Founder member - now resigned )
For many years The British Aikido Board ( BAB ) have shown no interest what-so-ever in the true history of British Aikido, to be fair to the BAB, they have in the recent past shown a great deal of interest and support for the false history of British Aikido for which they have now publicly apologised, the apology to Henry Ellis by the chairman Mr Vincent Sumpter pictured left, can be viewed on this site. www.geocities.com/britishaikido.
Kenshiro Abbe Sensei 1915 - 1985..
When Kenshiro Abbe Sensei first stepped on British soil in 1955 he brought with him the knowledge of many Budo arts, Aikido being one of them. Abbe Sensei also brought his Aikido based philosophy of Kyu-Shin-Do. This was the inception of British Aikido. Yet no where in the BAB literature will you find any reference to Kenshiro Abbe Sensei by name or the origins of Aikido within the UK. In the year 2000 the BAB were happy to help promote Mr Pooles proven fraudulent claims to 47 yrs of Aikido, I am plesaed to add that the BAB have now taken this claim by Mr Poole from the BAB Associations information website. I personally received my invitation from the BAB to attend Mr Poole’s event, that was the start of the long running British Aikido Board Controversy which was resolved at the mediation meeting 6th July 2005 with Sport England/BAB/Ellis. Yet sadly, the BAB have never ever recognised or promoted the true history of British Aikido or its founder Kenshiro Abbe Sensei. The reason for this article is that following the success of the great Kenshiro Abbe Sensei Celebrations 14th May 2005 I am informed that the BAB plan a similar event next year which would be an insult to the memory of Abbe Sensei and to the handful of Abbe Sensei direct students.
It should be pointed out that the spate of attacks on the credibilty of British Aikido History - Kenshiro Abbe Sensei and Henry Ellis have all come from within the BAB, some are executive members along with prominent members of the British Aikido Board associations. These are the very people that the BAB members would expect to promote and protect their proud lineage. Below are a few examples.
One: Ms Shirley Timms the British Aikido Boards secretary, totally ignored the facts-photos-evidence against Mr Jack Poole’s false history which were personally handed to her by Henry Ellis, prior to Mr Poole being presented with his coveted bronze samurai statue in Oct 2000.
Two: Mr Toni Davies the previous BAB chairman, deliberately lied at a general meeting to protect Mr Poole’s false history. Read the Sport England meeting minutes.
Three: Mr Vincent Sumpter The BAB chairman once supported the claims of Mr Poole by stating ” We have no formal records to prove or disprove either claim ” DUH < There were four of Abbe Sense's direct students within the BAB at that time.>
Four: Mr John Burn.* BAB Executive *- *BAB Communications Officer* - Very Serious libel attack on the name of Henry Ellis. renews his attack 10th June 2005 stating ” This only serves to amuse me “.
Five: Jim Johnston. The then *BAB Press Officer*. Promoting the fraudulent claims of Mr Poole whilst fully knowing the truth.
Six: Mr Dominick Foster.* BAB Executive * - Attends the Kenshiro Abbe Celebrations and states to a VIP guest “What is this Celebration all about ” he then states that next year is the true celebration of British Aikido by the BAB.
Seven: Mr Jack Poole.* BAB Senior Principal Coach *. The Jack Poole Biography..( a catalogue of lies. ).
Eight: The KenShinKai.* Prominent BAB Association*. Gave 100% Support for the JP Bio..Their open letter taken from the NACD is an absolute classic and can be read on this website.
Nine: Mr Gwynne Jones.* Prominent BAB member *. Dis-credits 6 of the first 8 of the early dan grades in MartialArts Illustrated article ” Bends the Branch..Issue June 05. visit the National Aikido Database forum for more information.
British Aikido Board Statement Damned Forever
Ten: This is without doubt the most disgraceful of them all.. * The BAB Chairman *Toni Davis stated in the year 2000
“We the British Aikido Board are not the custodians of British Aikido History and
therefore have no interest in the same”
Eleven: Sadly, with the arrival of the new BAB chairman Mr Vincent Sumpter nothing changed, he made the statement below despite the factual information available to him and his executive, We must not forget that Mr Sumpter had the only four surviving students of Abbe Sensei for Aikido within the BAB.
Twelve: On the 17th April 2002 The *BAB Chairman * Mr Vincent Sumpter wrote to Henry Ellis with reference to the history of British Aikido. He then made the following crass statement in his support for the BAB stance on Mr Jack Poole.
“The period in question predates the creation of the BAB by a significant amount of time and therefore we have no formal records to prove or disprove either claim.”
Thirteen: The Kenshiro Abbe 50th Celebration Seminar
May 14th Crystal Palace London
720 Participants -Guests - Spectators
At the Sport England / BAB / Ellis mediation meeting 6th July 2004 where the BAB were reprimanded by Sport England and instructed to give Henry Ellis a full public apology.
At the end of the meeting ( The minutes for this meeting can be viewed on this site .( www.geocities.com/britishaikido ), Henry Ellis appraised Ms Sadie Mason of Sport England of the proposed plans for the Kenshiro Abbe event, Ms Mason suggested that we should involve the BAB in our plans as part of the reconciliation of British Aikido, Henry Ellis agreed.
Henry Ellis offered Ms Mason’s suggestion to the Abbe Event Committee, the suggestion was unanimously accepted 100%. The BAB executive were then approached and invited to send a representative ( any one of its 15,000 members ) of the BAB to attend our meetings and report back on our progress, this offer was rejected out of hand.
Mr Vincent Sumpter
“No matter your Pretence, you are what you are and nothing more!”
Kenshiro Abbe Sensei
Not deterred, we then invited the BAB chairman Mr Vincent Sumpter to attend The Kenshiro Abbe 50th Celebration as a VIP guest, to pay the respects of the BAB membership of which he represents . There were many BAB members attending, proving that this event was not about personal differences - styles or what organisation you belong to, I was pleased to see students from Mr Poole’s organisation who were also made very welcome. This event was about one thing and one thing only ” Kenshiro Abbe Sensie ” with demonstrations of the early aikido and its proud standards, with Sensei Eastman showing various techniques to show the influences that the different early teachers brought to the UK in those early days.
Students trained with other students of various styles and associations with a friendliness not often seen in modern Aikido circles. this event went a long way to promote all that is good in Aikido. I believe that the spirit of Abbe Sensei would be very proud of this special day to his memory.
Another crass statement from Mr Vincent Sumpter 27th March 2004 made before the Sport England Mediation meeting 6th July 2005. In an unwarranted attack on the genuine aikidoka who supported the British Aikido Controversy debate in its defence of the true history of British Aikido and the Aikido history of Abbe Sensei and his disciples.
Mr Sumpter bleats.
“The Boards conscience is clear. like all the practitioners of Aikido who contribute to this “controversy ” Mr Humm appears to have forgotten the meaning of the word “Aikido ” - Harmony of Sprit to find a Way ” The “Controversy ” website feeds hatred, ill - feeling, bitterness and discord. For my part, as an aikidoka who is passionate about the art and the etiquette that goes with it, I will therefore not add to the feeding frenzy this website generates. I can’t stop what is going on but I can turn the other cheek.”
With reference to the above statement by Mr Sumpter I should remind the reader to visit on this website www.geocities.com/britishaikido to read both the Sport England minutes and Mr Sumpters apology to Mr Ellis which can only be considered an apology to all those that supported the “Controversy ” in the name of Kenshiro Abbe Sensei including the named Mr David Humm.
In response to our invitation to attend as a VIP guest to the Abbe event Mr Sumpter replied stating that he graciously accepted our invitation. Just before the event he changed his mind without explanation, suggesting that we allow Mr Ralph Reynolds to represent the BAB.
Mr Reynolds had a far more important role to play as one of the main teachers at this event where he was delighted to take part as an original student of Kenshiro Abbe Sensei.
This was such an important event with many good students who were members of the BAB, yet, the British Aikido Board were not represented at this event to pay tribute to such a great master and the founding father of British Aikido.
If Mr Sumpter had attended he would have seen a Martial Arts Spectacular never before seen in the United Kingdom, where students from many organisations met and renewed old friendships, there were many more that made new friendships.
In almost 50 years of Aikido I have never before experienced the special atmosphere that electrified the great hall at Crystal Palace from the moment the Taiko Drummers started to play on this day of celebration in the name of Abbe Sensei. I never ever thought in my life time that I would ever see an event to eclipse the great event at The Royal Albert Hall in 1963 with Abbe Sensei. I knew on Saturday the 14th of May that I was now witnessing the greatest Aikido event in my 48 years of Aikido. I am not an emotional man but I will admit that as I looked over the balcony of the concourse onto the tatami area with the sound of the Taiko Drummers and the hundreds of students and guests gathering below I was unable to stop the trickle of a few emotional tears as I realised I was witnessing something very special.
MR SUMPTER, you too missed something very special, whilst you sat 40 miles away at home ignoring the tribute to the father of British Aikido, others travelled from all parts of the UK - USA - France - Holland - Germany - Czechoslovakia. etc.
Whilst you sat at home it was a wonderful moment when Sensei Bill Woods who was the personal aide to Kenshiro Abbe Sensei and without doubt the most influential force in the history British Martial Arts, made a supreme effort despite his serious illness to pay his respects to the memory of Abbe Sensei.
Also whilst you sat at home, Sensei Bill Stopps the personal Aide to Matsutharu Otani Sensei who despite his age and ill health also attended and thanked me wholeheartedly for inviting him as a special guest, and for the wonderful day he had experienced.
Whilst you sat at home just 40 miles away, Sensei Robin Otani and his two sons, the descendents of Matsutharu Otani Sensei travelled all the way from Devon to attend.
Sensei Joe Curran travelled all the way from Newcastle and Sensei Mike Nery travelled from Bristol. Sensei Dave Rogers travelled 7000 miles from New Mexico USA as did Sensei Al Montemar and Mr Chad Hatcher who flew over from Texas USA to pay their respects. Whilst you sat at home there were many others that travelled long journeys to attend.
Unlike you Mr Sumpter these people wanted to attend.
You missed some of the finest displays of the Budo arts that any martial artist is ever likely to witness at any one event, a truly lasting experience for all those that made the effort to attend.
I was always under the impression that it was the sworn duty of any chairman to always do what was best for his organisation and its members.
As the previous BAB chairman Toni Davies will always be rembered for nothing more than his lies and unswerving support for Mr Poole.
The present chairman Mr Sumpter will always be remembered as the BAB chairman who snubbed the Kenshiro Abbe Memorial to pay tribute to our founding father on behalf of his membership.
Try Try Try Again
After the disastrous “British Aikido Board Nepotism Seminar 2004″ with only 99 students attending out of a membership of approx 15000, the BAB have decided not to hold it’s 2005 National Seminar .
They are of course fully aware of the fantastic success of the Kenshiro Abbe Celebrations. With 720 participants - honoured guests - spectators.
The BAB having failed miserably in its four year support for Mr Jack Poole to change the history of British Aikido. They now appear to have a renewed interest in the true history of British Aikido and its founder Kenshiro Abbe.
No matter whatever the British Aikido Board do, that damning statement below will hang over their shameless heads for ever and a day.
British Aikido Board Statement Damned Forever
The BAB Chairman Toni Davis stated in the year 2000
“We the British Aikido Board are not the custodians of British Aikido History and
therefore have no interest in the same.”
“No matter your pretence - you are what you are - and nothing more.”
Kenshiro Abbe
http://www.EllisAikido.org - -http://www.geocities.com/britishaikido
Henry Ellis co-author of Positive Aikido. Principal of the Ellis Schools of Traditional Aikido UK - USA. Ex-assistant National Coach for Aikido. Direct student of the legendary Budo master Kehshiro Abbe Sensei from 1957.
Henry has written many articles on the history of UK Aikido, many articles have been published in International MartialArts magazines.
When it comes to samurai swords, there is quite a bit of terminology for the new collector to understand. But we want to make it easy for anyone to find a good quality samurai sword that will last a lifetime, no matter if you’re looking for one of the very sought after Paul Chen Katana swords for battle or just a quality sword to hang over the mantle.
The first thing to consider for your new samurai sword is the type and quality of the blade. If you’re looking for a you want to be sure and choose a full tang blade, which all of our authentic samurai swords feature as well as all of our battle ready swords. The term “full tang” means that the blade and the part of the sword under the Tsuka (handle) is one long piece of steel. If you get a sword that is not full tang then you’re basically buying it to hang on the wall and nothing more.
The next thing to consider when choosing a sword is the type of steel that the blade is made of. There are basically 3 types of steel, 420 J2 (Stainless steel), High Carbon, and Folded steel. If you are looking for a battle ready sword you’ll want to stay away from the 420 J2 Stainless. High carbon steel is very high quality steel; however folded steel is the strongest. Actually it’s not that the folded steel is a different type of steel, but how the blade is forged.
A folded steel blade is typically made from high carbon steel. The difference is that a folded steel blade is just like it says; the steel is folded over and over again until the smith believes that it is adequate.
Some people say that a good high carbon steel blade can be just as strong as a folded steel blade. The smiths for the Thaitsuki Nihonto Swords claim to have mastered a form of forging high carbon steel blades that is just as strong if not stronger than many of the folded steel blades.
When choosing a sword samurai sword there are basically 3 different styles to consider, the katana sword, the Wakizashi sword and the Tanto sword. The Japanese Katana Sword is the most popular among collectors and martial arts students alike.
The katana sword was the first and is still the most popular of all samurai swords. The blade is typically 29″ long with an overall length around 40″
The Wakizashi sword is the shorter companion blade of the katana sword. We first see the Wakizashi sword during the Muromachi period (1568-1603). The Wakizashi was about 18″ long and only allowed to be carried by a samurai. Carrying both the katana and the Wakizashi was popular for the next few hundred years.
The smallest samurai sword would be the tanto sword or dagger. Originally tanto swords were 12″ in length or less but it’s not out of the ordinary to come across a Tanto that is 15″ long.
Samurai sword collecting is a very popular past time for many Americans. Something that is becoming even more popular is martial arts that make use of samurai sword for fighting and cutting exercises. The most popular and affordable authentic samurai swords are the Paul Chen Swords. You can find a decent Paul Chen Practical Katana Sword for under $200. However for less than a hundred more you can get yourself a Paul Chen Practical Plus Katana. If you’re looking for something a little more pricy the Paul Chen Bushido Katana or the Orchid Katana will last a lifetime and can take quite a beating. The Orchid and Bushido also come in a Wakizashi and Tanto.
In conclusion, the most important thing when buying your sword is that you know what kind of blade you’re getting. If you want a functional sword be sure that you’re not getting one that’s only made to hang on the wall. If it’s not clearly stated on the page for the sword, don’t hesitate to contact the store to ask any questions you might have.
At Japanese Swords 4 Samurai we have a samurai sword expert waiting to answer any questions you might have.
Want to own a real Japanese Samurai Sword come and check out our store.
You can find us online at www.japaneseswords4samurai.com
Preface
There are many different ways to understand Aikido philosophy and perceive, utilize, and benefit from energy. What I offer here is one of many ways. Indeed when I do other kinds of activities I perceive of and work with energy in quite a different manner. What follows is my experience of energy while performing Aikido over the course of more than twenty years. Certainly there are likely to be many other Aikido practitioners that would explain their experiences and beliefs in a manner that is somewhat different than mine. I offer you here, one experience, my experience, and thus all that I say is part of my belief system, and not at all necessarily THE truth.
Aikido
Aikido is a Japanese martial art, and it does not have an attack form. We do not kick, punch, or in any other manner, attempt to hurt our opponent.
The meaning of Aikido:
“Ai” To gather or harmonize.
“Ki” Universal life force/energy.
This is the energy that we share with nature and all living beings.
“Do” An artful path of discovery.
“Aikido” An artful path of discovering how to gather and harmonize the energy of the universe.
When we sense and move with the energy that is manifesting throughout the universe we find that we have a greater ability to live a life that is healthy and fulfilling.
“Ki”
In Aikido we believe that all human beings utilize and share a common energy source (ki) that helps to run and maintain our environment as well as our individual human systems. We believe that since we all share a common energy source, that in some important way we are all truly members of the same family, and truly sharing our lives with all of nature. We do not have an attack form in Aikido, because attacking an opponent would be like attacking a family member that you love. Attacking an opponent would also be like attempting to damage the flow of Universal energy in the world, and such acts are likely to have many far reaching consequences.
In the Japanese language words that use the concept of “ki” are common.
“Gen-ki” means “root energy” or one’s “personal health.”
“Ten-ki” relates to “heavenly energy” or “the weather.”
“Hon-ki” relates to “original energy” or “the truth.”
“Yuu-ki” relates to “brave energy” or “courage.”
“Ki o tsukete” means “attach your energy to what you are doing, or “be careful.”
The origin of ki?
Where does ki originate from? In Aikido the answer is poetic in nature rather than scientific. It is suggested that ki was “born” at the same instant as the rest of the universe, and that we are all born from the ki of the universe. Ki is considered to be an energy that we all have equal access to. It is an energy that courses through our system if we do not restrict it. In Aikido we believe that excess tension physically and emotionally, fear, hate, greed, and anger, all cut us off from the universal source of ki. Our daily practice involves working at maintaining a balanced state physically and emotionally, and indeed, practicing ways to cultivate physical and emotional balance is much of what the study of Aikido is about. In Aikido physical and emotional balance are meant to be two sides of the very same coin. Physical balance helps to engender emotional balance and health, and vice versa as well. Often in my professional work with individuals I find myself first addressing the clients physical balance when they come wanting to resolve emotional issues, and I do the reverse as well. I often first address or explore how emotional imbalance might lead to the physical difficulties they are experiencing.
“Ki signature” mind, spirit-Energy manifests as spirit, spirit manifests as mind
Energy manifests within each individual as spirit, spirit manifests in each individual as mind. In some way that is a mystery to all of mankind, the freely available energy of the universe is transformed by each person into one’s own unique “ki signature”, spirit, mind. No two people have the same exact “ki signature”, just as no two people have the same exact written signature. No two people have the same exact spirit, no two people have the same exact mind. The unique way that we each take in, utilize, and expend energy, can be considered to be our “ki signature”, mind, or spirit. Each person starts with the same source of energy, and manifests this energy in a way that will never exactly be duplicated by any other human being.
Thought, body structure,and movement, shape the flow of ki, into spirit/mind
Think of the freely flowing water of a powerful river that comes upon a series of fairly large rocks spread out across the river bed and extend up beyond the water’s surface. These rocks affect the flow of the river but they do not change the nature of the water itself. Ki flows through the river bed of our brain and body. Our thoughts, body structure and movements, are like the rocks in the river bed. These are the main elements that shape ki into individual mind, or spirit The flow of ki is uniquely transformed by each human being, but the nature of the ki itself, is not altered in the process. Just as the pattern of rocks spread out along the river bed is never exactly duplicated in any other place on earth, the pattern of our thoughts, body structure, and movement is also never exactly duplicated. All mind is similar, but no two minds are exactly alike.
A heartfelt understanding of the nature of our spirit will help us to create a healthy alignment of our thoughts, body structure, movements, and actions. When every aspect of our self is fully aligned we have a much greater ability to think, feel, and act in accordance with what is best for us in any given moment. We are better able to adapt and change in a manner that is supports the well being of our entire self and our surroundings.
The misnomers of “mind-body” and “mind and body”
A definition of “mind” that I often use it in my work, is the following:
“Mind is a dynamic, self-organizing, creative system, capable of overcoming physical and temporal constraints. Mind uses and manufactures energy in order to support the self and one’s surroundings, trade information, and adapt to change.”
When considering this definition of mind, we can say that mind manifests equally in the body and in the brain in the skull. Because of this I believe that the terms “mind-body” or “mind and body” as used in the Western world, are somewhat missing the mark and tend to lead to a certain degree of misunderstanding. If you ask a Japanese person to point to their mind, usually they will point to the area of their heart, or they will point to their lower abdomen. If you ask the average Westerner to point to their mind they will point to their head. This is why I think the terms “mind-body” and “mind and body” were developed in the Western world. I believe that the average Western person thinks of the term “mind” in relation to “thinking” or “thought”. Oriental philosophy considers “mind” to be immanent in both the body and the brain. In Aikido we say that we practice in order to calm the mind, by coordinating our thoughts, the actions of our body, and our breath. Or we say that we practice in order to further empower and actualize our mind by coordinating our thoughts, physical actions, breath, and spirit.
When looking to calm our mind we give our primary attention to calming our breath and our heart beat, which will tend to lead towards a relaxing of our musculature and a slowing down or cessation of our internal dialogue. If we calm our body we will tend to calm our cognitive thought processes. Calming the mind can also be accomplished by giving primary attention to the speed, rhythm, and tone of voice of our internal dialogue. If we calm our cognitive thought processes we will tend to calm the body. When we calm both our cognitive thought processes and our body, then we calm our mind. Cognitive mind and somatic mind are part of a recursive feedback loop. You can’t affect one without affecting the other.
Charlie Badenhop is the originator of Seishindo, an Aikido instructor,
NLP trainer, and Ericksonian Hypnotherapist. Benefit from his thought-provoking
ideas and a new self-help Practice every two weeks, by subscribing to his complimentary
newsletter on the website Seishindo: Accessing
Your Body Wisdom. On the website, you can also find out more about Aikido
Philosophy and the importance of understanding the
internal language of your body.
So you are thinking of starting to train in okinawan karate. There are a lot of choices as far as okinawan karate schools are concerned. Which school do you choose ? What is the best school or system? If you are a parent, what okinawan karate school is best for your children?
Karate began in Okinawa, which is one of the many islands which make up Japan. Okinawa was invaded by the highly organized samurai clans from the larger Japanese islands. The islanders developed okinawan karate to defend themselves. Okinawan karate was kept alive, passed down from master to student through the generations and eventually became integrated into the school system for all of Japan
Original Okinawan karate wass divided into styles which were named after the cities in Okinawa that they were developed in. Shuri-te, Tomari-te and Naha-te are all derived from cities in Okinawa. Okinawan karate is heavily influenced by Chinese kung fu or kempo. Okinawans often traded with mainland china and maintained friendly relations.
Today, there appear to be a enormous number of karate styles. However, all are derived in one way or another from okinawan karate. One okinawan master, Gichin Funakoshi introduced karate to the japanese school system. His shotokan style became one of most popular karate styles in the world. Often students would leave to create their own style. Many honoured their teachers instruction to preserve the art but often, students would have disagreements with their teachers and move out on their own.
Regardless of original okinawan karate style or mixture, it is important that the style has a detailed curriculum, chance for future advancement to ranks above black belt and lots of students and many instructors. You want to be sure if the school is going to be around for a long time if you are going to be devoting years of study.
Some schools are run for profit while others are not. You could say not-for-profit schools are closer to the Original okinawan karate system where karate was passed from father to son, master to student. Of course, If we trained like they did in original Okinawan karate, there would only be 1 or 2 students!
So long as the karate school has the students welfare at heart, operating for a profit is not a bad thing. My own experience has been with not-for-profit schools, and I have had great instructors but there are just as many dedicated teachers in for-profit schools.
True okinawan karate is more about self defence than tournaments and competition but competition is often important to young karate-ka. If you are going to involved in tournaments then be sure the school is affiliated with other karate organizations and provides proper coaching and tournament instruction. Many large governing bodies issue teaching and coaching certification to karate judges and officials. You want to be sure you or your children will competing in a safe and controlled environment and not a slugfest or free for all. So seek out qualified people.
Okinawan karate can improve your health and well being, develop great self confidence and life skills such as persistence and self control. Do your research and find the club that you feel most comfortable with. If you are interested, try out a couple of styles. See if okinawan karate is for you. Most clubs will allow 1 or more free visits to help you make up your mind.
Adrian Dunevein is a karate instructor with Mississauga Parks and Recreation and helps with karate instruction at the South Common and Rivergrove fitness centers in Mississauga, Ontario, Canada. Check the website at: http://home.cogeco.ca/~adunevein/
A new book with a practical look at Aikido and its history. The Co-authors are direct students of the legendary master Kenshiro Abbe Sensei from 1957. the following is an indepth look at how the book came into being.
OUT NOW!
Derek Eastman - Aikido instructor helps write book
Bracknell Standard newspaper visits local dojo
To Order this book from within the UK and EU countries:
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This book, an in-depth look at Ellis Schools of Tradtional Aikido’s special brand of technique, strategy, philosophy as well as unique history, has taken about 15 years to compile, but will soon be offered in print by the world’s leading publisher of martial arts material.
Trafford Holdings Ltd; is a privately-held corporation, registered in British Columbia, Canada. There are over 120 shareholders, including many authors and all the permanent employees. It was incorporated in 1991. In late 1995, Trafford opened it’s doors and website. They are the first company in the world to offer an “on-demand publishing service,” and they are the best.
The production of Positive Aikido has gone through numerous stages. The hand-drawings describing each of the positive techniques in traditional Aikido were begun in 1987 with the intention of providing new students with a reference guide - at the time to be photocopied for students in the USA and later possibly for the UK students as well. That plan however, never took hold as more and more drawings were produced. The drawings of the first four groupings were finished in 1991 and in 1993, the second four groupings were added, along with some transcripts from a recorded conversation between Sensei Ellis and Rogers on a long roadtrip between Dallas, Texas and Alamogordo, New Mexico. Rogers made his 1st Dan during that trip, and Positive Aikido picked up a lot of its histories and background information. Still, it was no more than a bunch of papers cobbled together from various sources.
In 1999 however, with the advent of digital photography, Sensei Rogers decided to augment the drawings with some digital photos and possibly put together a proper booklet for students in all the Ellis Schools. The photos however, required some supporting text - and there was a lot of other material which needed to be conveyed as well. The transcripts were re-written and cleaned up and the photos were digitally processed for the first four forms. During another visit to New Mexico, Sensei and his assistant Anita Wilson along with Sensei’s son performed the demonstrations needed for the last four forms. Later, the first four forms were re-shot with Sensei Rogers and one of his first USA students, Jeff Glaze of New Mexico. By this time, Positive Aikido was being developed as a book.
The agent and publishers we first contacted agreed, but the material was still fairly rough. More photos were shot and extensive digital work was done on them to clarify technique. Additional sections were added to describe combat strategy and the philosophy behind “Positive Aikido”. Sections on ethics and morals within the arts were developed along with material dealing with the selection of a martial art for beginners, and of course, the history section was strengthened and sharpened.
Lastly, a complete re-organisation of the material was accomplished with an addition of a section on pins and control and weapons (jo and sword). The finished work is comprised of more than 1000 photos, 600 hand-drawings and complex explanations and tips to make the techniques of Aikido work properly. It includes detailed writing on the “Positive” mindset as well as complete sections geared to beginners, intermediate students and advanced practitioners.
Although several traditional publishers expressed interest in printing the book, and initial negotiations were entered into with one California-based company, the advent of “print-on-demand” technology and the resulting new publishing market, made for a better alternative.
Of this book as it stands now, the authors say this - “There are a lot of books on Martial Arts out there, and this one fits into the crowd well - but it also stands alone in the sheer comprehensiveness of the work. It is a nearly complete representation of a single school’s technique - it is a historical marker - a book of strategy - an ethical guide - a technical manual - and it is a chart, graph and manifest of all the things which make martial artists as a whole stand together as sisters and brothers with the same warrior spirit.”
This letter of recommendation is from William (Bill) Woods Sensei. Sensei Woods was in the 1950’s and 60’s Aide and personal secretary to Kenshiro Abbe Sensei. At that time Sensei Woods was considered the most influential and powerful figure in British Martial Arts. In 1955 he was the British Judo Champion. He was the first person to be graded by Abbe Sensei to 1st dan in Kendo, holding certificate No 1, he was a key figure in the creation of the British Judo Council ( BJC ) and the International Budo Council ( IBC ). There are too many credits to the name of Sensei Woods to be listed here. I am very proud to have known Sensei Woods for almost 50 years. signed: Henry Ellis.
The new book is published by Trafford Publishing and avaIlable from all good book shops and online with Amazon, priced around $18.95 or £10.00. 156 pages : ISBN number 1-4120-4668-8.
The Positive Aikido book can be ordered in the UK through Trafford Publishing www.Trafford.com. Phone your order to Trafford UK Tel: 01270 251396
http://www.geocities.com.britishaikido
Henry Ellis a direct student of the legendary master Kenshiro Abbe Sensei from 1957 a student of the old traditional style of Aikido.
Do not believe that practicing “by rote” 1-2-3,etc. type “responses” to street attacks is a viable or particularly useful training exercise. Example: He does this, I do that. For attack A I use Defense A.
Realize that in a street fight there are far too many variables, too many contingencies. Uncle Murphy rules the roost. Terrain, weather, injuries, any number of unforeseen deficits is one major concern.
The variety of assailants (size, number, weight, height, mental state, tolerance to pain, clothing) is another major stumbling block.
Train your “tools”, study your “targets” and master your “opening gambit”, anything “rehearsed” past that point, that initial sudden and explosive action is unrealistic.
ANYONE with real experience knows this. Whatever can go wrong…….WILL! So your training must emphasize instinctive and spontaneous “reactions” as opposed to attempted by rote “responses”. You “take” whatever the attacker gives you, or make whatever opening you need, but there is NO way to know this before hand!
Many so-called “combative” systems miss the most fundamental principle of training……..K.I.S.S.!
A padded syllabus may “look” impressive and “complete” but in light of the stark realities of survival, they are counter-productive.
Get your “tools” in the Old School Series. Those of you who practice with Video OS1, Fundamentals of Unarmed Combat know what I am talking about. Remember to Practice REACTIONS not RESPONSES! Practice to react a certain way. That’s a few combinations of two or three techniques practiced over and over again.
HOMEWORK: Take the combination of a Short Axe Hand, Long Axe hand, Chin jab and a Knee (from Video OS1). on a SparPro or heavybag- what ever you can hit Practice this 300 times a day. After 5 days let me know what you find.
Copyright 2003 www.thetruthaboutselfdefense.com ©
Carl Cestari began his study of the martial arts with judo at the age of 7 under the direction of Yoshisada Yonezuka. During the past forty plus years Carl has dedicated his life to studying the martial arts, hand to hand combat systems, history and religion. He is continually improving himself through his studies. What makes Carl unique is his combination of martial arts, law enforcement, military and real world experience. Carl has been exposed to a multitude of people with a wide variety experience. The following is a list of some of Carl’s ranks and honors.
Shinan (Founder) Tekkenryu jujutsu
Ryokudan (6th degree) Koshinkai Karate under John Burrelle
Godan (5th degree) Jujutsu under Clarke of the World Jujutsu Fedaration (now defunct)
Sandan (3rd degree) Nippon Kempo under Narabu Sada
Nidan (2nd degree) Judo under Masafumi Suzuki
Shodan (1st degree) Judo under Yoshisada Yonezuka
Shodan (1st degree) Shukokai Karate under Kimura, Kadachi and Yonezuka
Shodan (1st degree) Daitoryu Aikijujutsu
Instructors Certificate- Charles Nelson System of Self Defense under Charlie Nelson
How many times do you practice techniques with your training partner and you stay in the same spot? Next time you are training, see how much you and your partner move. You will find you move very little or not at all. You see, when you are training, or doing ANYTHING for that matter, you always try to seek the path of least resistance. This is natural and can be viewed as a good thing (more on that later). Because you concentrate on the repetitions and the minutia of the detail, how hard we are hitting, what we look like, you are forgetting the big picture. And its easier to stand in the same spot. I am constantly reminding my guys- MOVE FORWARD!
If you don’t, you are neglecting a fundamental truth in the world of combat. I don’t care if your boxing, wrestling, playing football or engaging in combat- one thing is ALWAYS TRUE. Those who are winning are ALWAYS TAKING GROUND. Every time I look at a techniques demonstrated it is always two guys standing there with one guy doing the move and the other guy standing there. This is good for demonstrations sake, but when you drill it you do it with movement. One of the mistakes I see Judo Players, Karate Practitioners and Wrestlers make is that they practice technique without any movement. Do you actually fight like that- NO. When you fight, you are constantly moving and adjusting. When you fight for real you are always moving forward. If you are moving backwards- you are loosing. But don’t worry, it will be over soon.
In the Old School Series Carl explains and demonstrates how to take ground in this simple explanation- Always be where your enemy is standing. Meaning you are constantly moving forward and taking ground once you have started your assault. Think about any boxing match. Not when people are stalking and feeling each other out. I’m talking about when a guy gets a good shot and the blood is in the water and he just starts throwing bombs and running the guy over. If the ropes weren’t there, his opponent would be in the cheap seats!
Take the Greek Phalanx for example. The majority of the casualties didn’t happen when both sides were pressing against each other. It was only when one side broke and retreated that most of the deaths occurred. Even in modern combat- during the first contact, it is uncommon to incur a lot of casualties. Once the enemy tries to break contact and retreat, most of the casualties occur.
When you train you must program yourself to take ground. When you are practicing make sure your foot work is stomping and deliberate. This accomplishes 2 things.
1. It will allow you to compensate for a wide variety of terrain and
2. You will be delivering stomps and scrapes to your enemy’s shins and feet.
Simply start at one end of your training space and work across the floor- always take ground. If your partner doesn’t move… MOVE HIM! Deliver a smash with your shoulder (OS 2 Advanced Strikes and Blows) and just keep driving.
Like Carl talks about through out the series- you take bits and pieces until you start taking off larger chunks. This happens rapidly and violently. You keep taking ground overwhelm and overrun your enemy.
Remember- Keep moving forward. Like my college football coach said,”If you’re gonna go, go. If you’re not gonna go, don’t go!
Copyright 2003 www.thetruthaboutselfdefense.com ©
Damian Ross is the owner of Zenshin and instructor of Tekkenryu jujutsu and Kodokan Judo. He started competing in the combative sport of wrestling in 1975 at the age of 7 and began his study of Asian martial arts with Moo Duk Kwan Tae Kwon Do at the age of 16 in 1984. In 1989, Shinan Cestari gave a seminar at Sensei Ross’s dojo. Sensei Ross has trained under Shinan Cestari’s direction ever since. In addition to Tekkenryu Jujutsu, Judo and Tae Kwon Do, Sensei Ross has also studied Bando. Sensei Ross continues his study of Judo under the direction of 8th degree black belt Yoshisada Yonezuka and Tekkenryu Jujutsu under it’s founder, Carl Cestari. Below are is a list of some of his title ranks
Yodan (fourth degree black belt) Tekkenryu Jujutsu under Carl Cestari
Shodan (First degree black belt) Kodokan Judo under Yoshisada Yonezuka
Varsity Wrestling Lehigh University under Thad Turner
2nd Degree Black Belt Tae Kwon Do
I’m chomping at the bit to get this one out. It’ll give you a head start to either strongly agree with me, or think that I absolutely don’t understand your situation (I do, and I’ll address it in a minute. Keep reading.) Here we go:
The martial arts student who doesn’t regularly and diligently study and practice basics, and who hasn’t been taught how,
* From where can they be expected to develop the discipline to work through the tough times?
* Can they have the humbleness to continue learning and growing in martial arts?
* Can that student display effective leadership in your school?
Teaching students - and instructors - to slow down their minds and manage their world’s noise for each class is important. They have to know exactly what’s expected of them, what’s right and wrong. We teach discipline when the ‘right and wrong’ is re-enforced and corrected. For disruptive children’s behavior, obviously; “If you continue to talk during this exercise, ten push-ups!”
How, and why, do we teach discipline for the ages of about twelve and up, including adults? And, in fact, to bring the younger children’s behavior along to where the negative threat is rarely needed?
To give direction to my claim-in-bold, I looked up the word discipline(1).
1 - Training expected to produce a specific character or pattern of behavior, especially training that produces moral or mental improvement.
2 - Controlled behavior resulting from disciplinary training; self-control.
I’m stating unequivocally that the study of martial arts basics through repetition is how we should foster it. (Those two definitions and my statement apply to any discipline.) One has to practice a pattern of behavior to learn it, to repeatedly show self-control to understand and use it.
Can the student who doesn’t regularly study and practice (correct) basics develop the humbleness to continue learning and growing in martial arts? Some of the drop-outs don’t understand how and why to train with diligence; if they did some might still be training. I’m personally witnessing high ranked students who are not interested in looking at their basic problems, bad habits that will likely never be corrected. And, in my opinion, it has stunted some of their advanced learning potential. It’s disheartening to watch.
Some of these students are very good, even with bad habits. Can these high ranked karate-ka provide the leadership needed to build a strong school? The up-and-comers in line behind them, following the bad habits because the ‘right and wrong’ is not re-enforced and corrected, leave your school’s foundation weaker. The lower ranks, many who might not be as talented, need every bit of discipline they can get to be successful. They all know good martial arts when they see it, are taught it, and practice it. They need to be shown how discipline will carry them through those awkward beginnings; we all use discipline to “stick with it” during the tough times. So no, the improperly trained high ranks do not provide the leadership that they could, do not contribute to their school’s foundation in as meaningful a way as they should.
We instructors have to learn to teach our students how to build their strong martial arts foundation through the study of basics. There is a lot of talk about repetitive practice being boring. I realize we live in a fast, noisy world. Designing and practicing new combinations is fun for instructors and students; there are infinite ways to keep the study fresh. I’m with you on all that. But unfocused worry and reaction to dealing with boredom itself is avoiding the most important point, a point with a large influence on your, and your school’s, development. In learning a martial art,
(1) http://dictionary.reference.com/search?q=discipline
Gimme an “Amen, Brother!” Or slam me if you think I don’t get it.
Here’s the blog entry:
http://www.practicekarate.com/blog/index.php/2006/01/25/sweat-blood-ezine-january-repeat-basics/
My Contact Page:
http://www.practicekarate.com/blog/index.php/contact-page/
Copyright © 2006, Bryan D. Hix, http://www.PracticeKarate.com All rights reserved. You may reproduce this article by including this copyright and, if reproducing it electronically, including the above live link to the ‘Practice Karate’ website.
In the 80’s I was a short, skinny eight-year old. You know the type. Always picked on but never picked for the team. When I started high school, things didn’t get much better. We had just moved to central New Jersey and I was the new kid on the block with no friends. My grades dipped. My guidance counselor thought I was so weird that he measured my head. In those days, they had never heard of Attention Deficit Disorder or ADD.
Because of my disability I attended classes with no more than six students. These “special classes” helped me get through high school but I still had trouble focusing. I didn’t make the baseball team because of this. I felt I lacked something internally, even though I managed to get my driver’s license which increased my social opportunities.
Whey my family moved to South Florida in 1992, I was ready for a new life. I was able to get into a college, but was still having trouble focusing and studying. I considered a career in Occupational TherapyFinally, one day at a party, I asked someone who I knew had studied the martial arts, whether they could recommend a good school. That person recommended “Stephen’s Karate and Fitness Center” in Boca Raton.
I tried a few classes and loved it. It was a workout I had never experienced. In my teens years, I had lifted weights but found that boring. At Stephen’s Karate, I learned a unique style of mixed martial arts that combines traditional Tae Kwon Do with boxing.
There was also the exposure to the group dynamic that I enjoyed. As I slowly but surely moved up through the ranks, my instructor Barry Stephen asked me if I wanted to become an assistant instructor. I said yes without hesitation. At the time I was a red belt, which in our school, is half-way to black belt.