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As AI (harmony) is common with AI (love), I decided to name my unique
budo "aikido", although the word "aiki" is an old one. The word which
was used by the warriors in the past is fundamentally different from
that of mine.
Aiki is not a technique to fight with or defeat the enemy. It is the
way to reconcile the world and make human beings one family.
The secret of Aikido is to harmonize ourselves with the movement of
the Universe and bring ourselves into accord with the Universe itself.
He who has gained the secret of Aikido has the Universe in himself and
can say, "I am the Universe."
I am never defeated, however fast the enemy may attack. It is not
because my technique is faster than that of the enemy. It is not a
question of speed. The fight is finished before it is begun.
When the enemy tries to fight with me, the Universe itself, he has to
break the harmony of the Universe. Hence, at the moment he has the
mind to fight with me, he is already defeated. There exists no
measure of fast or slow.
Aikido is non-resistance.
As it is non-resistance, it is always victorious.
Those who have a warped mind, a mind of discord, have been defeated
from the beginning. Then, how can you straighten your warped mind,
purify your heart, and be harmonized with the activities of all things
in Nature? You should first make Gods heart yours. It is a Great
Love, Omnipresent in all quarters and in all times of the Universe. A
mind of discord, thinking of the existence of an enemy is no more
consistent with the will of God.
Those who do not agree with this cannot be in harmony with the
Universe. Their Budo is that of destruction. It is not constructive
Budo.
Therefore to compete in techniques, winning and losing, is not true
Budo. True Budo knows defeat. "Never defeated means never
fighting."
Winning means winning over the mind of in discord in yourself. It is
to accomplish your bestowed mission.
This is not mere theory. You practice it. Then you will accept the
great power of oneness with Nature.
Dont look at the opponents eyes, or your mind will be drawn into his
eyes. dont look at his sword, or you will be slain with his sword.
Dont look at him or your spirit will be distracted. True Budo is the
cultivation of attraction with which to draw the whole opponent to
you. All I have to do is to keep standing this way.
Even standing with my back toward the opponent is enough. When he
attacks, hitting, he will injure himself with his own intention to
hit. I am one with the Universe and I am nothing else. When I stand,
he will be drawn to me. There is not time and space before Ueshiba of
Aikido... only the Universe as it is.
There is no enemy for Ueshiba of Aikido. You are mistaken if you
think that Budo means to have opponents and enemies and to be strong
and fell them. There are neither opponents nor enemies for true Budo.
True Budo is to be one with the Universe; that is, to be united with
the Center of the Universe.
A mind to serve for the peace of all human beings in the world is
needed in Aikido, and not the mind of one who wishes to be strong or
who practices only to fell an opponent.
When anybody asks if my Aiki Budo principles are taken from religion,
I say, "No, my true Budo principles enlighten religions and lead
them to completion." I am calm however and whenever I am
attacked, I have no attachment to life or death. I leave everything
as it is to God. Be apart from attachment to life and death and have
a mind which leaves everything to Him, not only when you are being
attacked bu also in your daily lives.
True Budo is a work of Love. It is a work of giving life to all
beings, and not killing or struggling with each other. Love is the
guardian deity of everything. Nothing can exist without it. Aikido
is realization of love.
I do not make a companion of men. Whom then do I make a companion of?
God. This world is not going well because people make companions of
each other, saying and doing foolish things. Good and evil beings are
all one united family in the world. Aikido leaves out any attachment;
Aikido does not call relative affairs good and evil. Aikido keeps all
beings in constant growth and development and serves for the
completion of the Universe.
In Aikido we control the opponents mind before we face him. That is
we draw him into ourselves. We go forward in life with this
attraction of our spirit, and attempt to command a whole view of the
world. We ceaselessly pray that fights should not occur. For this
reason we strictly prohibit matches in Aikido.
Aikidos spirit is that of loving attack and that of peaceful
reconciliation. In this aim we bind and unite with the will power of
love. By love we are able to purify others.
Understand Aikido first as Budo and then as the way of service to
construct the World Family. Aikido is not for a single country or
anyone in particular. It's only purpose is to perform the work of
God.
The "Way" means to be one with the Will of God and practice
it. If we are even slightly apart from it, it is no longer the
Way.
We can say that Aikido is a way to sweep away devils with the
sincerity of our BREATH instead of a sword. That is to say, to turn
the devil-minded world into the World of the Spirit. This is the
mission of Aikido. The devil-minded will go down in defeat and he
Spirit rise up in victory. Then Aikido will bear fruit in this
world.
Without Budo a nation goes to ruin, because Budo is he life of loving
protection and is the source of activities of science. Those who seek
to study Aikido should open their minds, listen to the sincerity of
God through Aiki, and practice it and improve without hindrance.
Willingly begin the cultivation of your spirit.
I want considerate people to listen to the voice of Aikido. It is not
for correcting others; it is for correcting your own mind.
This is Aikido.
This is the mission of Aikido and should be your mission.
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