On January 17th, we are remembering the passing of Kisshomaru Ueshiba, and we are celebrating his life. This article helps us to understand that the problems faced in 1997 are not different than the problems we are facing today. We need to always remember that our aikido training must have meaning and we need to constantly study to further improve our skills and our knowledge. The study of Aikido is endless.
Translation of the Magazine Aikido Tankyu Volume 13-Foreword.-1997.
Doshu Ueshiba Kisshomaru
"Recently, martial arts games in video game arcades have become popular among young people.
I have heard about them, although I have never seen them in person because I do not go to such places.
The development of technology that has made such games possible is astonishing, but I have also heard about the negative effects of such games.
In addition, it is said that more and more martial arts and fighting figures are appearing in magazines and TV cartoons.
There is no doubt that if children are passionate about something, then there is something appealing about it. I do not deny that.
However, if it lacks spirituality, it is very troubling.
In the distant past, when I was a child, I enjoyed watching chambara movies and playing chambara with my friends. It expanded my childhood dreams.
I do not intend to say that it is "outrageous" or "ridiculous" to feature martial arts in games and cartoons.
However, in my case, I was also doing actual kendo. If you are interested in martial arts, you can try it and see if you can do it as in chanbara.
If you are interested in martial arts, you should actually see what it is like.
If you know your own pain when you are hurt, and if you know the pain of others, you will naturally understand the heart that keeps human beings alive, I think.
Without such a heart, a person who takes pride in winning by beating others or enjoys destroying others' bodies may be called an "outsider.
I hear that there are "masters" in the game world. It is certainly a noble thing to accomplish a task and grasp something. However, if one loses one's spirituality in the process, what is the point?
In aikido, there is no such thing as a decisive match. I sincerely hope that the day will come when many people will understand the penetrating insight of the founder who created aikido in this way.
On a different note, I was recently invited to a tournament of a martial arts organization.
I was watching the competition of the group. It was refreshing to see the children beating each other with such naivete, but to me it seemed like a complete pastime.
In other words, although they call themselves martial arts, there is little emphasis on spiritual education.
People tend to be attracted to things that produce immediate results. We tend to be attracted to things that are flashy and visible. However, the depth and weight of the path is determined by something other than immediate results. There are landscapes that can only be seen by walking a long way.
If one is going to devote one's precious lifetime to learning, there must be enough depth to the path to make it worthwhile.
Aikido, which deepens the content of the human being and helps him or her to become one with the great flow of nature, was realized by the founder after studying the wisdom of his predecessors, and the more one studies, the more one feels its depth and weight.
As we devote ourselves to the practice of aikido, we must not forget to seek the "depth" of aikido, or to put it another way, "what contributes to human growth" outside of the practice."
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