Aikido and combat effectiveness

samurai69

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This is part of a larger essay on aikido - i think it starts to answer some of the questions many non-aikidoka have regarding aikido

Aikido and combat effectiveness

Many practitioners of aikido (from beginners to advanced students) have concerns about the practical self-defense value of aikido as a martial art. The attacks as practiced in the dojo are frequently unrealistic and may delivered without much speed or power. The concerns here are legitimate, but may, perhaps, be redressed.

In the first place, it is important to realize that aikido techniques are usually practiced against stylized and idealized attacks. This makes it easier for students to learn the general patterns of aikido movement. As students become more advanced, the speed and power of attacks should be increased, and students should learn to adapt the basic strategies of aikido movement to a broader variety of attacks.

Many aikido techniques cannot be performed effectively without the concomitant application of atemi (a strike delivered to the attacker for the purpose of facilitating the subsequent application of the technique). For safety's sake, atemi is often omitted during practice. It is important, however, to study atemi carefully and perhaps to devote some time to practicing application of atemi so that one will be able to apply it effectively when necessary.

Aikido is sometimes held up for comparison to other martial arts, and aikido students are frequently curious about how well a person trained in aikido would stand up against someone of comparable size and strength who has trained in another martial art such as karate, judo, ju jutsu, or boxing. It is natural to hope that the martial art one has chosen to train in has effective combat applications. However, it is also important to realize that the founder of aikido deliberately chose to develop his martial art into something other than the most deadly fighting art on the planet, and it may very well be true that other martial arts are more combat effective than aikido. This is not to say that aikido techniques cannot be combat effective - there are numerous practitioners of aikido who have applied aikido techniques successfully to defend themselves in a variety of life-threatening situations. No martial art can guarantee victory in every possible circumstance. All martial arts, including aikido, consist in sets of strategies for managing conflict. The best anyone can hope for from their martial arts training is that the odds of managing the conflict successfully are improved. There are many different types of conflict, and many different parameters that may define a conflict. Some martial arts may be better suited to some types of conflict than others. Aikido may be ill-suited to conflicts where one would provoke an adversary to fight. While there are some who view this as a shortcoming or a liability, there are others who see this as demonstrating the foolhardiness of provoking fights.
 

pstarr

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Very well done! Yes, O-Sensei once said that, "90% of aikido is atemi." This is an area which many aikido school all but ignore nowadays and I believe that it makes their art so much less effective.

Additionally, it would seem that the current form of aikido (as per the hombu) is not directed at developing combat skills. I wonder if perhaps this has been done to make the art more palatable for Western tastes - to foster the growth of aikido worldwide...?

In any case, your comments are right on the mark!
 

MartialIntent

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samurai69, thanks for posting this!

and it may very well be true that other martial arts are more combat effective than aikido.
Agree with this certainly, simply because combat in general terms equates to *fighting* whereas the point of utilising Aikido in a situation of conflict is not to engage in combat but to resolve it though the techniques which are deliberately non-opposing and instead re-directing.

Aikido may be ill-suited to conflicts where one would provoke an adversary to fight. While there are some who view this as a shortcoming or a liability, there are others who see this as demonstrating the foolhardiness of provoking fights.
I think there are few genuine martial artists who would disagree with that from whatever art and whatever style. To provoke fights deliberately is, imo, contrary to the ethos of most practitioners.

I'd agree with pstarr's comment
pstarr said:
I wonder if perhaps this has been done to make the art more palatable for Western tastes
And again would be slightly concerned that in order to achieve this subtle flavoring of Aikido to suit [dare I say it] unrefined palates in the west, that a great deal of what drives Aikido would necessarily be sacrificed to practitioners who simply seek a quick and probably adulterated fix of techniques.

Good post though!

Respects!
 

Hand Sword

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Definitely a good find! Even sadder for non Aikidoka, or better explained as "new scool" martial artists coming up in a time where Mcdojos and watered down styles were the norm, and their source of reference, is that their styles, also practiced things slow and precise, in the old days. That's how the Old masters got so good..Careful focus on the details of the movements.
 

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