There can be only one

There is really only one iriminage (入り身投げ). I had thought the short, direct version was different from the long version where you make a tenkan (転換) and a henkan/kaiten (回転), but they're just two continuations of the same technigue, entering. Should one therefore always first attempt the short version and if the uke keeps the contact, only then take a tenkan step and unbalance the uke outwards. Of course there are attacks where you want to use the longer version directly, but still.

(Our cat, Kisshomaru, is trying to eat the curson on the screen again. :)

M showed me something he had studies in Tissier sensei's seminar. First a way of entering where you stay on the attack line, go down and lift you arm above your head, in a similar position to what your hand would be if you were uke in ikkyo and the nage was just about to cut through you with a tekatana. The contact point was under uke's elbow, so you have to be there in time and really had to bend your knees. That was actually a really solid and strong position and place, if you just kept you weight down enough, so that your ura side leg was more or less in the air, ready to kick or take a step. then you just steped to uke's ura side, in a way sneaking under uke's arm pit and cut directly downwards to unbalance the uke. Really strong. And difficult.

The other version was one with an atemi (当て身). Again you stay in the attack line and you just come in with an atemi stright into the face, and the moment uke stops or hesitates, you again go under/past the striking arm. The end effect of the uke hitting hard and you unbalancing when the uke is still trying to dodge the atemi is a really powerful throw.

Yet another was the direction of the "actual" throw. You didn't throw behind and against the uke, but rather continued his movement and the direction was sort of in a 90 degree angle to uke. This enables you to execute a hard throw, i.e. one where you throw the uke over your leg. Initially I found doing this really hard, as you're afraid you're going to break the uke's neck. But the trick seemed to be that you keep the "throwing" arm pretty much in place in front of you shoulder, and initiate and execute the the throw from the hand that holds uke's head. The hold needs to be a good one, not a light grip from the jacket or lower part of uke's neck—control the whole head. Then, just let your weight drop down and guide the uke down from their head. This requires some skill from the uke, that they make a yoko ukemi (横受身) and take support from you by just keeping their nage side arm in contact with the side of your torso.

Tags: aikido, iriminage

Would God be cut?

Went to see Cutting Edge at the British Museum late last year and it was quite an experience. Nothing flashy, just a bunch of old and pretty swords in display cabinets. You couldn't touch them but, as silly as it sounds, they looked really sharp (and who in their right mind would go and touch a sword to see if it was sharp or not). A feeling you don't get from holding a bokken (木剣), or an iaito (居合刀) for that matter. I think just seeing the proper katanas 刀 gave me new inside to aikido weapon training.

When you're swinging a bokken you're basically swinging a wooden bat, something that doesn't cut but rather smashes. And that's all right if that's what you're after— a bokken can be used like a hammer and probably works hideously well. That's how Conan the Barbarian would swing it. However, if aikido bokken training is about studying sword techniques, then you really should try and cut with the instrument, not smash with it. That's what seeing the old katanas reminded me of. When you're a beginner, you should strive for speed, not strength. Sure, you need to have power behind the cut when the opponent has armour you want to cut through, but generally speaking it's enough if the tip of the bokken moves fash and you're relaxed when you cut. (Damn those shoulders, why can't they just stay down.)

I suppose that's it: don't hit with a bokken, cut with it.

Tags: aikido, bokken