Product Description

At last, the complete and authoritative introduction to all the fundamentals of Aikido, coauthored by the two direct successors to the Founder of the martial art, Morihei Ueshiba. Coauthors Kisshomaru Ueshiba and Moriteru Ueshiba, son and grandson of the Founder, seek to carry on his legacy
and to share with the millions of men and women around the world practicing Aikido today the most important techniques and principles of the art.

This book is the quintessential training aid for all Aikido practitioners-whether beginning or advanced-who wish to further their understanding of the forms and spirit of Aikido.

Underlying the forms, or physical techniques, are the spiritual principles of Aikido, which are based on the notion of ki, or "life force." Ki is the fundamental element to understanding Aikido. But as the authors explain, it cannot be learned merely by watching a demonstration or reading a book.
Rather, one must come to experience it through practice, in unifying body and mind.

Best Aikido helps guide the practitioner to this goal. It offers step-by-step instruction that will complement knowledge learned in the dojo. The text is illustrated with a wealth of never-before-seen photographs that feature Aikido master Moriteru Ueshiba demonstrating the fundamental techniques of
the art.

Best Aikido is authorized by the Aikikai Foundation, the central organization set up by Morihei Ueshiba.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #15840 in Books
• Published on: 2002-07-26
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Hardcover
• 192 pages

Review

"The book is a concise, illustrated guide for how to do the basic aikido techniques, with information of value to practitioners of all levels....As a technical reference for the performance of basic aikido techniques, this book is exemplary and sets the standard." - Journal of Asian Martial Arts
"An excellent introduction to the basics of aikido." -The Hawai'i Herald
"The major part of the book contains excellent photos of fundamental Aikido techniques demonstrated by Moriteru Ueshiba himself, an invaluable reference work which I recommend to all my students and to the general readership who require an authoritative, clearly presented, and extremely well-written
introduction to the art of Aikido." -Cultural News

From the Publisher
Foreword

Best Aikido was written for the following reasons: Although it is a difficult concept for beginning students to understand, the techniques of Aikido are born from the harmonization between the human body and the universal energy (ki) of heaven and earth. Or more simply, all the various Aikido techniques are derived from the principle of natural movement. Since each and every Aikido technique has a special character, open to individual interpretation, the number of Aikido techniques is limitless. Thus, Aikido cannot be taught in strictly set patterns or put into a rigid system. This has been the approach to Aikido instruction since the art was established by the Founder, Morihei Ueshiba.

I received direct instruction from the Founder for many years, and thereafter worked in accordance with his wishes to promote Aikido. Aikido is now an art practiced internationally by millions of men and women, young and old, in many countries.

In order to establish the practice of Aikido even more widely, after careful consideration I selected, from the vast number of possibilities, the techniques most essential to the art. These techniques can be practiced by anyone, young or old, and will make it easier to train and achieve efficiency in the art.

Furthermore, Aikido contains many important principles as a martial art. It is my belief that these principles have universal validity, and the spirit behind Aikido techniques should be even more widely disseminated.

This book is not merely a technical manual. Such manuals only describe the outer form of Aikido. In this book, Aikido is presented as a spiritual path as well as a martial art. Best Aikido contains the essentials for understanding the art, the essentials for training, and the essential forms of Aikido.

I am pleased that this primer, Best Aikido, was co-authored with my son Moriteru, who is carrying on the tradition of developing and promoting Aikido, according to its true principles. We are entering a new era, and I welcome his full participation in the creation of the text and posing for the photographs demonstrating the techniques. It is my sincere hope that this book will aid all practitioners of the art in their further understanding of the form and spirit of Aikido, and facilitate their training.

August, 1997
Kisshomaru Ueshiba

About the Author

KISSHOMARU UESHIBA: the second Aikido Doshu (the person who embodies the spirit of Aikido as inherited from the founder and is the living symbol of Aikido). He was born in 1921, the third son of Morihei Ueshiba, the founder of Aikido. He graduated from Waseda University in 1946, became master of the
Aikido World Headquarters in 1948, and in 1967 was named chairman of the Aikikai Foundation, the principal Aikido organization in Japan and overseas. His formal appointment as successor to his father took place in 1969. He died in 1999.

MORITERU UESHIBA: Aikido Doshu. He was born in 1951, the son of the late Kisshomaru Ueshiba. He graduated from Meiji Gakuin University in 1976, became master of the Aikido World Headquarters in 1986, and in 1996 was named chairman of the Aikikai Foundation. In 1999 he became Aikido Doshu after his
father's death. He also became perpetual chairman of the International Aikido Federation in the same year. He holds several important posts related to the martial arts and is a trustee of the Nippon Budokan, the "hall of martial arts" located in central Tokyo.

Customer Reviews

best so far
I'm a beginner (aren't we all) and have about 5 aikido books in the library so far. I am currently preparing for a kyu test and this book is the most helpful. Period. Not as good as time in the dojo, but very good.

The pictures are clear and they confirm the stuff we all should already know. More importantly for me is that this book has the most understandable presentation of the names and words for the various stances, holds, throws, etc.

Best Aikido
Best Aikido is a book for mid-level students. The pictures are excellent, the descriptions are brief, to the point, and on a level for students who have already mastered the basics. Very easy to understand. I know of no other single book that shows so many different mid-level techniques. This is part one. the Part 2 Book is the master's Course. Together, they are probably the most comprehensive, exhaustive, current, authoritative references for Aikido.

Incomplete
Aikido is Budo, as the authors speak of many times in the beginning. But they do not discuss this any further than that in this book. But there is another book by these authors that discusses that. This strikes me as being a little too Capitalistic. What this book does do fairly well is discuss and show the basic moves and steps in Aikido. And since it was written by the Founder's son and grandson, I respect and trust their words very much.

Now for the unfortunate aspect of Aikido, it requires 2 people to learn it. For many, this is fine. This requirement is because the martial aspect of Aikido is purely defensive, so there are no punches or kicks to practice. The funny thing is, that is what I wanted. I should have thought this out on my own and realized that you need someone to attack you before you can defend yourself, in practice or in reality. So I cannot knock the authors for this failure, it is all mine. Just take it as a warning before exploring this art on your own.

In short, this book should be trusted and respected, but it is incomplete for the entire Aikido experience.