I am very happy to announce that I took and passed the test for first degree black belt. The test was difficult and exhausting, but it was a great feeling of accomplishment when Chino Sensei told me I had passed. The test consisted of:
~demonstrating kihon dosa with a partner
~each partner performing 6 set techniques
~shomenuchi as well as katate mochi jiu waza.
Jiu waza means "free techniques", and it consists of your partner attacking you again and again, and each time you have to throw him down a different way. When we perform the set techniques there is a very mechanical process to it, whereas with jiu waza, the idea is to focus on the timing. Jiu waza was the hardest part of the test for me, because it is a real test of stamina. First you have to throw your partner down something like a dozen times, and then he throws you down a dozen times, and then you both do the whole thing over again in response to a different initial attack. The idea is to do it quickly and strongly, so needless to say I was huffing and puffing by the end. I take my hat off to Masa and Akimoto, who had to begin jiu waza immediately after completing the preliminary part of the test (Bryn and I got to rest while they had their turn at jiu waza first).
So, now I've earned the black belt, but I don't get to wear it until the course is over. It's a great feeling to have jumped this hurdle, but as Mr. Miyagi would say:
"In Okinawa, 'belt' mean 'no need rope hold up pants!'"
This is only the beginning of my Aikido journey. My purpose in coming to Japan was to lay the groundwork for further study, and I think I've accomplished that. However, I have to admit that Aikido's true essence still eludes me. We`ve learned more than 100 techniques, but the real meaning behind them, the reason why we do things the way we do is going to require a lot more examination to understand. Aikido is all about the harmony, the flow of momentum and power between uke and sh'te. The idea is to "trap" the power that uke uses to attack you and then guide him down using very little upper body strength. This light touch is the soul of Aikido; right now I still feel that my practice is rather primitive.
That said, I have had flashes of insight here and there. One day Yanagihara Sensei had us practice katate mochi sokumen iriminage while holding the bokken. (Aikido has its origin in sword fighting; although we generally practice the techniques unarmed, virtually all of them can be practiced while holding a bokken, or wooden sword.) This is a technique where uke grabs your wrist and pulls. The idea is to keep your arms extended as you pivot your hips, leading uke's power in such a way that you can then turn it back on him and make him lose his balance. I find this technique difficult, and just like everything, I really struggle to find the perfect "touch". However, when I held the bokken as sh'te, I found that I could unbalance uke entirely with my hip action and with almost no power from my arms! I think there are a couple of reasons for this. For one thing, in Aikido we are always working to coordinate the movement of our body parts so that all our power can be concentrated into one point. When holding the sword, your two arms essentially become one unit, unifying both the left and right side of the body. The other thing is that we were instructed to direct our attention to the tip of the sword. The effect of this is that I imagined my body's energy extending forward and flowing out. So often it is helpful when practicing Aikido to think of the sword. Sometimes, I try to forget about accomplishing any result with uke and instead imagine that I am just wielding a sword. It might not look like it, but Aikido is all sword techniques. The only difference is that your arms have become the swords!
Incidentally, the cops completed their part of the course at the end of January, so now the only senshusei left are Masa, Aki, Bryn, and me. With so few students, the teachers notice every mistake we make, but I think I've made a lot of progress under these conditions. The other thing is that, since now 50% of the student body are English speakers, the senseis tend to use more English words in their explanations. By the way, we still have one more test to do at the end of March. Among other things, this test will require us to demonstrate a teaching method, and will qualify us to teach basic Aikido.
The last thing that I wanted to mention is that David Sensei (my teacher from LA) is going to be visiting Japan in early April, bringing Paul, a friend of mine from the dojo, and 3 other students along with him. I'm looking forward very much to seeing them and practicing Aikido with them!
