Where am I? ............ [ Pic1 ; Pic2 ]Well, for starters, I am not in my book - it is not meant to be about me. I am sure there are others out there that have the same ideas, thus I cannot claim them as my own. What are represented are a particular set of ideas my own unique journey has brought together. As for myself, I am content in that my search has led to continued progress. That is all I can claim, except I like to think that had I had this book way back when, my progress might have been a little faster. I have practised Aikido and related arts for almost thirty years. Unfortunately, or perhaps fortunately, there is no single definitive lineage. Unfortunate, in the sense that I wish I could have found the perfect master and had an easier time of it. Fortunate, in the sense that variety adds spice to life and forces the mind to discern order from an otherwise classical mess. F or a long time, alongside Aikido, I practiced Judo, Jujutsu, and Wing Chun. In my first decade of training I gained black belts in six different arts. The second decade was spent consolidating what I had learned and I also got hooked on the search for the elusive aiki. It is fair to say that my Aikido has a 'jutsu-bent' but for the main part, I call what I do Aikido. I still practice Wing Chun by myself and also coach high school wrestling.My martial journey started in the U.K. where all I earned was spent training almost everyday for over ten years in various arts. This was a time spent chasing-the-grade and culminated in several extended trips to Japan totalling three years. By 1991, I held black belts in six arts. Since then, due to getting a life - study / work / family - the grade-oriented focus has vanished. Instead, the journey has become more of a search to make better sense of what has been learned. To be honest, I was never completely sure that I was learning anything useful. The only measure is comparison with others - in some respects I fared well, in others, not so well. Arriving in the Republic of Korea (the South) in 1994, I found no Japanese arts at all and a Korean psyche dead-set against such. This forced a major rethink and the result was a new discipline of regimented self-training that continues to the present. After a spate of teaching ex-pats here and there, in 1996 I discovered what is now called the Korean Aikido Federation - they had a few dojos but their previous experience was Hapkido and Muai Thai - and it showed. I was immediately invited to be an instructor and have been with them ever since. What with study, work, and family it has been impossible to maintain my previous youthfull zeal to search elsewhere. Thus, now, the search is from within. In 2000 Korea officially opened itself up to Japanese culture and one result has been a slight increase of interest in Japanese martial arts. One thing that attracted Korean attention almost immediately was the notion of aiki - something that I had never really thought too much about. Not easy to explain, but, since all good Aikido is aiki, I made concerted attempts to make sure my Korean students had lots of useful exercises to practice. Useful, that is, in the sense that the exercises have something that transfers over to technique. In 2006 I moved to New Zealand where I continue to train in various Aikido dojos. I also coach high school wrestling. I sincerely hope my little book will provide the keen reader with several ideas to discern where they stand and where they are headed, therein provoking a little curiosity and self-direction. RMJ Atkinson --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Aikido Grades Other Grades
|
