Aikido Yoshinkan Saudi Arabia

"What greater thing is there for two human souls than to feel that they

are joined for life, to strengthen each other in all labor, to rest on

each other in all sorrow, to minister to each other in all pain..." -- George Eliot

"By perseverance, study, and eternal desire, any man can become great.”

- George Patton -

"Are we all born with innate self-esteem that erodes over time or is

self-esteem something we were supposed to pick up along the way?" --

Oprah Winfrey

"A man must know his destiny. if he does not recognize it, then he is lost. By this I mean, once, twice, or at the very most, three times, fate will reach out and tap a man on the shoulder. if he has the imagination, he will turn around and fate will point out to him what fork in the road he should take, if he has the guts, he will take it."

"The belief that becomes truth for me... is that which allows me the best use of my strength, the best means of putting my virtues into action." -- Andre Gide

"Life is a culmination of the past, an awareness of the present, an indication of a future beyond knowledge, the quality that gives a touch of divinity to matter." — Charles Lindbergh

Every Warrior of the Light has felt afraid of going into battle.

Every Warrior of the Light has, at some time in the past, lied or betrayed someone.

Every Warrior of the Light has trodden a path that was not his.

Every Warrior of the Light has suffered for the most trivial of reasons.

Every Warrior of the Light has, at least once, believed he was not a Warrior of the Light.

Every Warrior of the Light has failed in his spiritual duties.

Every Warrior of the Light has said 'yes' when he wanted to say 'no.'

Every Warrior of the Light has hurt someone he loved.

That is why he is a Warrior of the Light, because he has been through allthis and yet has never lost hope of being better than he is.

Everyone’s life has its own story to tell. It may not be exactly as one would expect or want to hear, but behind the story are reasons that one may have the right to question yet judge not for their being...

Prepare for the unknown by studying how others in the past have coped with the unforeseeable and the unpredictable - George Patton -

“If you say that person’s technique is fast…that person is slow,” you are only seeing the form of the people. You must scrap such thoughts.

In blending with the person’s energy (timing), at the moment when youare really together with that person, both fast and slow are gone. This is what Ueshiba Sensei called “becoming one with nature.”

-gozo shioda-

You may think “How should this technique be done,” “How should that technique be done,”. But the thing to remember is, although there are many techniques, you must grasp the principles that underlie them. It comes down to shifting your balance quickly, moving your hands, feet, and hips as one. The basis of it is shiho-nage.  As Ueshiba Sensei said, “To throw to the four directions, this is the essence of aikido. Therefore, shiho-nage on its own, if performed correctly, is sufficient.” This is what he taught.

-gozo shioda-

"Kokyu power is produced when we push ourselves to the limit, making the most efficient use of the capabilities that lie within our own bodies. Consequently, anybody, no matter what kind of person, can use kokyu power. The only problem is whether or not you practice in such a way as to develop it."  -- Gozo Shioda

"There is always a tendency to envy the leadership. There is the tendency to bring him down to the common man's level. If he is brilliant, they degrade him: if a leader, they turn him into a common part of the common mob."   -Ferdinand Edralin Marcos -

A story is told of a young man filling out his college application.

One of the questions on the form read, “Are you a leader or a follower?”

He checked “follower.”

A few weeks later the dean telephoned him. “I don’t normally

call students to congratulate them on their acceptance to our college,”

he said. “But in your case, we’re particularly glad to have you.

We’ve accepted five hundred students for the coming year—499 of

whom identify themselves as leaders.”

Recently, as I was preparing to teach on the topic of

“following,” I went to a nearby Barnes & Noble to do a little

research. At the help desk I asked the attendant how many titles

the store carried on the topic of leadership. She checked the

computer and quickly found 125, telling me they probably carried

more.

Then I asked how many titles they carried on the topic of

“followership.”

A puzzled look came across her face. “Followership?”

“Yes,” I answered. “Leaders need followers, right? I want to

know how many books you carry that could help someone become

a great follower.”

She turned back to her computer and searched for several minutes.

“Two,” she said.

I was pleasantly surprised, as I hadn’t expected to find any. But

my surprise quickly turned to disappointment when she told me

the titles of the two books, each of which included the word leadership.

Both books were written for leaders and focused on leadership

issues—I’d already read one of them. Each made only a brief mention

of the role of followers.

Why do we place such an emphasis on the topic of leadership?

It seems everyone likes to think of himself or herself as a leader—

and wants to be considered a leader by others. No one, it seems,

wants to be called a follower. Leadership is where it’s at.>>>>>> Don Cousins

“If a book told you something when you were fifteen, it will tell you it again when you're fifty, though you may understand it so differently that it seems you're reading a whole new book.” — Ursula K. Le Guin

'One of the basic failures of any political, economic and social leadership is the failure to help mold those who follow them." - Ferdinand Marcos-

“The function of leadership is to produce more leaders, not more followers.” - Imelda Romualdez Marcos -

Marcos addressing the Chinese Community

"But while the late President Magsaysay had to ask for your support for his administration, I did not need to ask you for support- you voluntarily came to me when I was first elected President in 1965 and offered your support for my administration and the Republic. For this I will be eternally grateful."

"Aikido and life are one" - probably the most famous of all proverbs in the Yoshinkan.  This was Shioda Sensei's motto - he believed that this saying was the most apt expression of aikido itself.  

Every morning, Shioda Sensei would wake up at exactly 5am.  He would take his dog, Ryu, for a walk in the park and then come back and eat breakfast.  After breakfast, at exactly 8am, he would do some cleaning.  He would be home by 9pm every night and in bed by 10pm at the latest.  He continued with this routine for I don't know how many decades.  

Shioda Sensei said that it was due to this lifestyle that he had never had any serious illnesses and that, even in his old age, he didn't have any significant infirmities.  Prevention is better than cure, he said, and the key to that lies in your daily regimen.  Think about alcohol, for example.  If you drink until you're ready to pass out every day... your poor liver!  But if you make a firm decision not to drink at least three days out of the week - this alone is better than any medicine.  You have to stick to that decision though!  

Ando Sensei writes that probably almost everybody aspires to live that kind of healthy lifestyle and that we all possess the knowledge to do so.  For example, everybody knows that getting up early in the morning is essential for a healthy lifestyle and most people determine to do so; yet somehow circumstances always prevent them.  Some people are influenced by the people around them.  For some people, it is simply because of their own inertia or habits.  How to create this kind of daily regimen?  

The key lies in the development of your character and the most important thing is to have independence.  Always make your own judgements.  Don't take too much notice of what other people think about you and always take responsibility for your own actions.  This kind of independence of character requires great inner energy and prompts all kinds of mental and spiritual activity in you.  

Inner weakness leads to a disordered life.  This is where the pith of "aiki soku seikatsu" is to be found.  You can not succeed in life or in aikido without great inner energy.  This is because inner energy is required for self-victory - victory over your own inner weakness.  

Of course, people don't overcome inner weakness quickly or easily.  But if you get knocked down (or can't get up in the morning) you have to get back up; keep trying; never quit.  It is through trying and trying and trying again that we become stronger.    In aikido we may have techniques we can't do so well or we might have a partner that is difficult to train with.  These are representative of some of the trials and adversities we might face in life.  

Shioda Sensei was a master in aikido but Ando Sensei writes that he was also a master at living life!  

"I want considerate people to listen to the voice of Aikido. It is not for correcting others; it is for correcting your own mind." -- Morihei Ueshiba Sensei, 1883-1969

“The book is an experience that allows you to witness your feelings without having to surrender to them, to succumb to them, or to be battered by them. It gives you access to a deep knowledge of how you would respond to things you would never, thank goodness, have been required to experience.” 

 — Michael Silverblatt