Today was the last day in June, and the end of the first of the three hell months of dai ichi (the first quarter of our training, which is devoted to making our bodies suitable for Aikido practice). I think this is an important landmark for me psychologically, because it demonstrates that the time is passing and that this will not go on forever. However, it seems to me now that this first month will have been the easiest of the three dai ichi months. Beginning tomorrow, we are going to have to attend extra classes with the regular dojo students on Wednesday and Friday. Also, we are about to begin suwari waza training, which means doing all the techniques from a kneeling position.
Suwari waza training originates from the fact that, in traditional Japanese culture, people hung out on the floor a lot, so a samurai would have to train for the contingency that someone might attack while he was eating or resting, etc. The practical use of suwari waza training now is that if you can do the techniques from a kneeling position, it becomes much easier to do them from a standing position. Suwari waza training is very painful and difficult, first because the tender skin on your knees gets immediately worn off, and secondly it is very painful for the toes. When you are "knee walking", your toes are tucked underneath your feet because they provide a lot of the power and balance that you need, but it becomes very uncomfortable to have them stretched back like that with your full weight on them. The other thing is that the toes are also used to propel your body forward at times, and this muscle strength is painful to develop. The senseis all have their heels touching each other when they are doing suwari waza which is very difficult for me so far. When you force your heels together when you are sitting in knee-walking position, it puts all the weight on your big toe and that hurts. But when one becomes proficient at these procedures, one finds that one has developed some strong-ass toes. Our sensei in LA was fond of demonstrating his ability to pin a person's foot to the ground using only his big toe, and this was entertaining because it gave that person a sense of what it might be like to be crucified.
I am fortunate thus far to be more or less free from injury. I sprained my ankle when practicing breakfalls one day, and I have some unpleasant abrasions now near my tailbone, but apart from that, my body is just really tired and sore. I know that I am losing weight, although I am trying not to lose the weight too quickly, because I know that can be a bad thing. I would say that my breakfalls have gotten a lot better, and that my ability with the techniques has gotten sharper. Thus far, the techniques we have done are Shihonage, Ikkajo, Nikkajo, Sankajo, Yonkajo, Sokumen and Shomen Iriminage, Kotegaeshi, Tenshin Nage, and Suwari Waza Kokyu Ho. Of course, this includes both the ichi and ni versions (depending upon who is initiating the attack, you or your opponent) and also different versions of these based on the nature of the initial attack, which might be shomenuchi (front strike), yokomenuchi (side strike), kata mochi (shoulder grab), katate mochi (wrist grab), or ryote mochi (both wrists grab), etc. The pace at which we are learning techniques is very fast. We generally learn one new technique per day. After class, we keep a log of what we just learned, which I would recommend to anyone who is studying Aikido. If you take a moment to jot down what techniques you worked on and a few points about what you learned, it really tends to "stick" better. Since this training is designed to make future instructors out of us, I also try to keep track of the teaching methods that I notice them using.
We have been asked to write a number of essays for our instructors, and one of the early ones had to do with our expectations about the course vs. the reality of the situation we now find ourselves in. Of course, a lot of my impressions of what Senshusei training might be like were based upon the book "Angry White Pyjamas" by Robert Twigger. This is a book that all the foreign Senshusei know about, but I don't think the Japanese guys have read because I don't think it's been translated. I would say that the biggest difference between what it's like in the book and what our experience has been like so far is the dojo itself. The book takes place at the old dojo which is not far away, and which is still run by a different faction of Yoshinkan people. I guess that after Gozo Shioda died there was some dispute about how things should be run, so it appears that a couple of years ago, Kancho obtained a non-profit status and opened our current dojo here in Takadanobaba, which is called "Yoshinkai". I haven't visited the old dojo yet, but I understand that our dojo is much smaller, about 1/3rd the size. Everything is new and clean, and the air conditioning is usually running! There is a small locker room with three showers which the Senshusei can use, and we actually eat our lunch with the cops on the mats because there is nowhere else to be. The cops don't have a locker room; they just close the doors to the dojo and change in there. I gather there is a tea room for the teachers, and an office with a small reception area for Kancho, but I have never seen these places.
In addition to the physical aspects of the dojo which are different, I think the main difference is the overall tone or atmosphere of the dojo. My guess from all that I've read and heard about things back in the day is that, when Gozo Kancho was still alive, there was kind of a frantic, obsessive energy in the dojo. People were very inspired by this incredible little man, and there was a lot of competition for his attentions, and there were also a lot of old grudges and bad feelings among some of the senior Japanese people that went way back to before anyone could remember. Where we are training I think it's a lot more tranquil because Kancho is the undisputed ruler, and I also haven't detected any friction between any of the instructors or students there. Further, Masa, who is Kancho's son, is about the nicest kid you could ever want to meet, and everyone tends to follow his lead because he knows everything already. Finally, Bryn and I are the only foreigners, and neither one of us is a particularly hard-edged sort, plus we've both made a strong effort from the beginning to be on good terms with the cops. Because of the limited space we are always together, and no sort of "us vs. them" dynamic has really arisen.
One final note, there actually is a new quasi-Seshusei, James, who will be participating in the course with us for the next month, and who will continue to train with us on Saturdays only once he has to go back to work. James is a cool guy. A former sniper for the Marine Corps, he is an American of Japanese descent who is very helpful because he's perfectly bilingual.
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