The Unique Martial Arts Tradition of Aikido
Martial arts films have been well known in the U.S since the 1970s, and this is how many men and women are exposed to martial arts. If it wasn't for the flicks starring Steven Seagal, the martial art of Aikido would not be nearly as famous as it is now. This martial art has gone from relative obscurity to being pretty well known and liked all around the world. Although several of the martial arts date back centuries in Asia, Aikido is actually one of the modern ones, having been invented in Japan in the 1940s.
As a youth, Morihei Ueshiba watched thugs beating up his father, which gave him an intense motivation to learn self defense. The young boy, growing up in modern-day Japan, sought payback, so he decided to make himself formidable. By applying himself diligently, he turned out to be a skilled and feared martial artist. In addition to unarmed fighting strategies like jujitsu, he perfected the use of weapons such as the sword and spear. He found that he was not content with his skills, though his abilities were very extraordinary. As opposed to merely focusing on physical training, he also wanted to incorporate a spiritual element into it. He resolved that the spiritual and physical aspects of martial arts mustn't be split up.
Ueshiba combined a variety of martial arts with his new religious understanding and came up with Aikido, a new martial art. Aikibudo was the first name of the new martial art, but he ultimately chose to call it Aikido. Aikido borrowed moves from jujitsu, in addition to traditional types of sword and spear fighting but blended them together to form something completely new. Despite the fact that it's a really effective martial art, the principles of Aikido are harmony and balance. The moves are circular, and involve moving the opponent using little effort and applying joint locks and throws. The objective of Aikido is being able to guard yourself effectively while imposing as little harm as possible on your enemy.
Aikido was intended to be versatile, so it is not a single-minded dogma but open to numerous interpretations. It believes in harmony and peace of the spirit. Ueshiba's aim was to come up with a martial art that allowed men and women to improve themselves both physically and spiritually. He was looking for revenge originally, but he wanted Aikido to be a way to reconcile the world, instead of being about fighting.
There have been remarkable results with the development of Aikido to America. With his flicks, Steven Seagal has been the most famous in displaying the power and harmony of Aikido around the world. Mixed Martial Arts Or MMA - How To Get Maximum Results Today there are many martial arts facilities in North America that teach Aikido.