Founded on Eastern wisdom traditions, the martial art of Aikido focuses on moral and spiritual development through psycho-physiological harmonization of the mind, body and spirit. The purpose of this article is to explain the effects of Aikido practices on enhancing communication and mindfulness in entrepreneurial contexts. In addition, the article introduces research on Aikido aimed at enhancing cross-organizational and cross-cultural exchanges where unmediated, proxemic interpersonal interactions are supplanted by virtual (synchronous and asynchronous) communications media, such as e-mail (...) and voice mail. (shrink)

Drawing on the author’s lifelong practice in the non-competitive and defensive Japanese art of Aikido, this book examines education as self-cultivation, from a Japanese philosophy perspective. Contemplative practices, such as secular mindfulness meditation, are being increasingly integrated into pedagogical settings to enhance social and emotional learning and well-being and to address stress-induced overwhelm due to increased pressures on the education system and its constituents. The chapters in this book explore the various ways, through the lens of this non-violent relational (...) art of Aikido, that pedagogy is always something being practiced and thus holding potential for transformation into being more relational, ecological-minded, and reflecting more ‘embodied attunement.’ Positioning education as a practice, one of self-discovery, the author argues that one can approach personal development as engaging in a spiritual process of integrating mind and body towards full presence of being and existence. (shrink)

This guide offers a no-nonsense explanation of the history and philosophy ofikido that explains the often esoteric maxims and cryptic teachings inimple terms.

This article is currently available as a free download on ingentaconnect.

A mugging can overwhelm our ability to apply moral principles. When words fail, we still need advice that allows us to remain moral in the face of an attack. Self-defense offers just such advice and can be supported by utilitarian, deontological, and virtue approaches to ethics. Self-defense increases safety and security that enhance our freedom and well-being, which, in turn, allow us to survive and flourish as moral agents. Self-defense must, however, itself be qualified because its violent treatment of muggers (...) may produce human time bombs that reduce the safety and security of society.The martial art of Aikido trains our hand to act morally in the face of a physical attack when our mind is otherwise occupied. Aikido teaches self-defense, but it goes beyond self-centeredness to also protect the attacker. Such concern helps build community because it reduces vectors of resentment that spread when violence is perpetuated. The defense-only nature of Aikido teaches virtues in an embodied form on the mat. It offers philosophers an experiential and kinesthetic view of moral conduct that supplements and complements an exclusively intellectual approach. Moral philosophy cannot demand that we learn a martial art since it is only one of many possibilities to assist us in living a moral life; nevertheless, a reasonable attention to those conditions necessary for freedom and well-being entails an awareness of self-defense. (shrink)

This article provides arguments to show that there is a form of syntax specific to the bodily movements of certain martial arts. This syntax of bodily mouvements is different from that usually identified in multimodal conversational analysis which consists of the addition of bodily extensions to speech turns Keevallik (Res Lang Soc Interact 46(1):1–21, 2013) and (Res Lang Soc Interact 51(1):1–21, 2018). Based on an analysis of video extracts from two martial arts (Aikido and Kenpo), the article shows that (...) martial arts movements, accomplished within a martial intercorporeality, acquire syntactic characteristics that make it possible to anticipate trajectories accomplished simultaneously, before and during body contact. The article presents the four movement-units common to these two martial arts and the way participants combine them, in a sequentiality of simultaneity. (shrink)

Este es un documento de lectura a dos niveles de profundización (texto y notas al pie de página) que reflexiona entorno al conflicto y la armonía. Se acerca a la realidad contemporánea a partir de visiones integradoras de la antigüedad, analizando el conflicto desde la perspectiva de la dualidad como concepto básico, con especial referencia al ejercicio del poder a partir del binomio horizontalidad y verticalidad, y una aproximación simbólica a los conflictos que pretende aportar luz a su resolución o (...) transformación. Se realiza a continuación un estudio etimológico y simbólico de los vocablos mediatio, medicatio, meditatio, con raíz común y orientados a la recuperación del equilibrio en las esferas social, psicofísica y espiritual, respectivamente, en un planteamiento de orientación filosófica. Finaliza el estudio con una aproximación a la metamorfosis a partir del arte marcial no violento del Aikido, integrado con las aportaciones realizadas anteriormente. (shrink)

The real way of the warrior is based on compassion, wisdom, fearlessness, and love of nature—as the inspirational teachings in this collection show.

The Tao of Strategy presents an alternative way to stimulate strategic thinking, looking to ancient times and Eastern philosophies to unlock new ways of solving complex problems. It examines Sun Tzu's Art of War, the Baghavad Gita, and the strategic board game Go; studies leaders' obligations and responsibilities via the Gita and the Tao Te Ching; and explores paths to releasing the ego and achieving a state of serenity with Buddha, Ki-Aikido, and mindfulness. The book also offers guidance on (...) cultivating presence of mind, interpreting a wide variety of situational dynamics, and deciding on appropriate action or inaction to most effectively identify and reach strategic goals. (shrink)

6 - Human Cockfighting in the Squared Circle -- 7 - Perfect Praxis in Aikido -- Section III - Reflexivity, Self, and Other -- 8 - Tension, Reflection, and Agency in the Life of a Hausa Grain Trader -- 9 - Reflexivity in Intersubjective and Intercultural Borderlinking -- Section IV - Reflexivity, Democracy, and Government -- 10 - The Latent Effects of the Distribution of Political Reflexivity in Contemporary Democracies -- Postscript - Reflexivity and Social Science -- Index.

Face à l’extension d’un art disséminé, nous nous arrêtons sur un registre de pratiques et de notions malentendues, les arts martiaux japonais, confondus avec des « sports de combat ». Par « art » nous entendons une conduite soucieuse de mener une pratique et une production à la perfection, et foncièrement à la perfection de soi, quelle que soit la manière culturelle locale d’envisager cet état d’accomplissement. En regard de l’art du bouquet ( ikebana ), de pratiques shintoïstes (comme le (...) kototama ), nous examinons des notions comme celle d’art martial ou bugei, littéralement l’art ( gei ) d’arrêter la lance ( bu ). Ce que les Occidentaux ont interprété comme un « art de la guerre » se voulait un « art de la paix ». Les arts martiaux japonais mobilisent en ce sens des notions et des expériences parfois connues en Occident comme le ki, l’énergie, ou méconnues comme le shin (le cœur-esprit), le ma (l’espace-temps) ou l’ aï (l’un). Nous nous proposons de démonter un malentendu à partir d’une pratique artistique, le kino-michi, élaboré par Masamichi Noro, dérivée de l’aïkido, en vue de comprendre en quoi ces bugei sont une éducation, une élévation de l’âme et du corps au même titre que la musique ou la danse. (shrink)

In his final work, Donald N. Levine, one of the great late-twentieth-century sociological theorists, brings together diverse social thinkers. Simmel, Weber, Durkheim, Parsons, and Merton are set into a dialogue with philosophers such as Hobbes, Smith, Montesquieu, Comte, Kant, and Hegel and pragmatists such as Peirce, James, Dewey, and McKeon to describe and analyze dialogical social theory. This volume is one of Levine's most important contributions to social theory and a worthy summation of his life's work. Levine demonstrates that approaching (...) social theory with a cooperative, peaceful dialogue is a superior tactic in theorizing about society. He illustrates the advantages of the dialogical model with case studies drawn from the French Philosophes, the Russian Intelligentsia, Freudian psychology, Ushiba's aikido, and Levine's own ethnographic work in Ethiopia. Incorporating themes that run through his lifetime's work, such as conflict resolution, ambiguity, and varying forms of social knowledge, Levine suggests that while dialogue is an important basis for sociological theorizing, it still vies with more combative forms of discourse that lend themselves to controversy rather than cooperation, often giving theory a sense of standing still as the world moves forward. The book was nearly finished when Levine died in April 2015, but it has been brought to thoughtful and thought-provoking completion by his friend and colleague Howard G. Schneiderman. This volume will be of great interest to students and teachers of social theory and philosophy. (shrink)

The aquatic, the virtual and the zero-gravity medium share some similarities in the way they are experienced by human beings. Present-day realities are uncertain and fluid. As the term ‘Aquaponics’ refers to agriculture and suggest a very static process, I would advance that the metaphors of travel and movement should be more appropriate to describe today’s challenges regarding the exploration and understanding of those medium. I have included in this article a personal interview with Dr Sarah Jane Pell, a researcher, (...) Artist and professional diver, in order to gain some perspectives on the testimonies of Kitsou Dubois, a French Choreographer who conducted zero-gravity performances. Based on their statements, I give further in the text an insight on my personal practice of Aikido, a Japanese martial art and mind–body harmonization technique. Using references from popular Culture, my own experiences and the testimonies of Kitsou Dubois and Dr Sarah Jane Pell, as well as examples taken from ancestral spiritual traditions from around the world, I try to draw a map of contemporary and multi-scalar realities with a critical approach to the concept of aquaponics. (shrink)

While there are avid chess players in Japan, China, Korea and throughout the East, far more popular is the deceptively simple game of Go, in which black and white pieces called stones are used to form intricate, interlocking patterns that sprawl across the board. So subtle and beautiful is this ancient game that, to hear aficionados describe it, Go is to chess what Asian martial arts like aikido are to a boxing match.

Kata, the preset movements forming the backbone of all karate styles, have been a source of endless confusion for the vast majority of karate students. All students learn how to perform the kata, but there has never been an effective explanation of how they are applied. Until now! Nathan Johnson, a third-degree black belt in karate and a fourth-degree black belt in kung fu, has spent two decades on his quest to find the true meaning of kata. In Zen Shaolin (...) Karate, Johnson explains and illustrates in precise detail every subtle movement of two of karate's most common kata, and provides historical testimony for his explanations by integrating his findings with Zen philosophy. The author's unique interpretations of the Nai Fuan Chin and Saam Chin kata will destroy the barriers separating karate, kung fu, and aikido, and will revolutionize how kata are applied in all karate styles. (shrink)

Ueshiba Morihei (1883-1969), créateur de l’aikidō, fonde son « budō » (voie martiale) avec Deguchi Onisaburō (1871-1948), dirigeant de l’Ōmoto-kyō, l’une des « nouvelles religions » japonaises. Ils conçoivent le budō comme « la voie de création et d’ordonnancement de l’univers » en opposition aux « budō corporels » influencés par le modèle occidental du sport. Selon eux, l’Occident, « matérialiste », a profondément modifié les pratiques japonaises de telle sorte que le vécu du corps comme shintai, comme réceptacle des (...) kami (esprits ou divinités) lors des transes de possession est en voie de se perdre, et avec lui tout un monde. Le corps de possession rend communiquant les mondes : avec sa perte, il n’y a plus de transgressions possibles des frontières ontologiques ; l’homme ne peut plus s’unir à sa racine et retrouver sa totalité ; les animaux, les plantes et les pierres ne parlent plus et le dieu originel unique devient inaccessible, caché dans « l’imperceptible de l’imperceptible ». (shrink)