Everyone who trains in the martial art of aikido has an aikido origin story—how did they find their first aikido class? But I'm also curious about why people come back to train over and over.
I was just talking about your last post to some friends today, and then I get online, and see you have written more about it! My friends and I - who all are or have been yoga teachers - were talking about the importance of a skillfully trauma informed approach to teaching. We were discussing how important it is to be aware that an instruction that is helpful for one student might trigger another student. One of my friends was really struggling with the fear of causing harm to a student because it's impossible to be 100% sure beforehand that the approach you use won't be experienced in a negative way by a student. Your first post about Aikido and falling popped into my mind, and I had this epiphany. In yoga world, we tend to focus on techniques and practices for centering and resourcing that will help us stay regulated, and that approach is generally assumed to be an internal process. What we are missing is exactly what you described as central to your Aikido practice, wherein you assume that external forces will inevitably knock you off balance, and the practice is in learning how to accept the inevitability of that fall, navigate it, and then regain your balance. That's what we're missing in yoga world; there is this overarching, unspoken assumption that if we do it right, we will never be thrown. But that is unrealistic, and can even be detrimental. We need to learn, like you obviously have, that falling is not a failure, but an inevitable part of the process. Nowhere in your words here do I see any indication of self-recrimination or shame about having fallen away from your practice for some time. Instead, you talk about how you found your way back, and to me, that is a refreshing and invigorating perspective. Thank you for every word you share here. I am always so happy to see a new post from you!
I was just talking about your last post to some friends today, and then I get online, and see you have written more about it! My friends and I - who all are or have been yoga teachers - were talking about the importance of a skillfully trauma informed approach to teaching. We were discussing how important it is to be aware that an instruction that is helpful for one student might trigger another student. One of my friends was really struggling with the fear of causing harm to a student because it's impossible to be 100% sure beforehand that the approach you use won't be experienced in a negative way by a student. Your first post about Aikido and falling popped into my mind, and I had this epiphany. In yoga world, we tend to focus on techniques and practices for centering and resourcing that will help us stay regulated, and that approach is generally assumed to be an internal process. What we are missing is exactly what you described as central to your Aikido practice, wherein you assume that external forces will inevitably knock you off balance, and the practice is in learning how to accept the inevitability of that fall, navigate it, and then regain your balance. That's what we're missing in yoga world; there is this overarching, unspoken assumption that if we do it right, we will never be thrown. But that is unrealistic, and can even be detrimental. We need to learn, like you obviously have, that falling is not a failure, but an inevitable part of the process. Nowhere in your words here do I see any indication of self-recrimination or shame about having fallen away from your practice for some time. Instead, you talk about how you found your way back, and to me, that is a refreshing and invigorating perspective. Thank you for every word you share here. I am always so happy to see a new post from you!
I’ve never considered taking part in martial arts and probably never will, but your stories about it sure make me curious!