Martial Arts: Learn Akido

When you do Akido you will find that it's all about being spiritual in body and mind and will bring you to a very relaxed state.  Many people think that all martial arts are about aggression but Akido was founded by Ueshiba who was very much a pacifist and wanted to end aggression.  When you read this article you will certainly want to know more about Akido.

Unlike many other martial arts, there are surprisingly no set techniques used in Akido.

You may have heard of the word dojo before but not known what it means.  Well, it's a Japanese word for training structure used for martial arts.  A truly authentic and traditional Aikido dojo is used only as a place for formal and symbolic gatherings, and is rarely used a place to actually train. The actual Aikido training from a traditional dojo is done outdoors in a less formal setting.

Today, Akido isn't nearly as formal as it used to be.  Most of the time, there is no distinction from an Aikido dojo to the actual place of training and practice. In fact, in most cases, the two are one and the same.

When people trained under the Great Teacher Ueshiba, the students were encouraged to spread the tenets of Akido and create their own dojos.  Not only were the students encouraged to do this, they were encouraged to create their own moves so long as no aggression was involved.

Aikido is a technique that incorporates moves that are more defensive than offensive. In fact, it seeks not to injure but to prevent or stop a person. For this reason, you will rarely see any sort of weapon being used. Rather, it's mainly about techniques and mind-set. In saying that, there are those advanced students who move onto using certain weapons. Weapons that are used in aikido are the tanto, the wooden jo and the bokken.  Akido is an amazing martial art that everyone can enjoy.