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Aikido is a Japanese martial art founded by Morihei Ueshiba aka ‘O Sensei’ or ‘Great Teacher’. He learnt several ancient martial arts and combined all the effective techniques into Aikido. The martial art that had the most influence on Aikido is Daito-Ryu Aikijujutsu. O Sensei removed all the brutal and fatal elements from Daito-Ryu Aikijujutsu leaving only techniques that throw or immobilize. Aikido consists mainly of joint locks and throws. Punching and kicking are taught not as the main technique but to compliment the technique. It is used as a distraction, to imbalance and weaken the attacker. Anyone can punch or kick, it takes skill to be able to apply techniques. Most martial arts consist mostly of punches and kicks, that not only hurts the attacker but that also hurts the practitioner. Instead of clashing head on with the attacker and hurting each other, Aikido practitioners are taught ways to blend and redirect the opponents’ aggressive energy away from themselves and redirect it towards the aggressor. The attacker gets thrown resulting in minimal hurt to him and no hurt to the Aikido practitioner. Aikido is a compassionate and peace-loving martial gentle yet effective arts that aims to protect not only the Aikido practitioner but even the attacker. Continue reading →