Aikido is a martial art that Ueshiba
derived from several traditional martial arts dating back to medieval samurai
times. In contrast to the traditional martial arts, aikido is considered a
modern art. However, in contrast to contemporary, newly developed,
anti-traditional martial arts, aikido is a traditionalist martial art that
believes that the wisdom of its art is encoded within traditional forms and
training exercises. “More precisely, in traditionalist martial arts, one may
experiment, but only in terms of applying principles. Transgression of the
principles is transgression of the wisdom encoded in the martial art” (Bowman,
2014, p. 17). Even though aikido claims a link with tradition, it does not have
a straightforward origin story. In order to better understand the inception and
the present manifestation of aikido, it is significant to know the
evolution of martial arts from pre-medieval Japan to the 20th century. This
history shows how and why aikido, as a modern martial art, has reinvented
elements and preconceptions inherent in traditional martial arts.
This blog will reveal the history that is relevant to aikido step by step.
| Slightly adapted excerpt from the author’s doctoral dissertation: pp. 14-15. |
Aikido is not traditional, not modern, but traditionalist
 |
| https://bakadesuyo.com/2014/02/samurai/ |
Greet Angèle DE BAETS
Bowman, P. (2014). Instituting Reality in Martial Arts Practice. JOMEC Journal, 0(5). https://doi.org/10.18573/j.2014.10266
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