On
the tiny island of Saipan, Aikido is alive and well under the watchful eye of
Mutsuko Minegishi Sensei. With more than 26 years under her 6th degree blackbelt,
she is one of the highest ranked female Aikido instructors in the world.
"What
is martial art ?," asks Minegishi Sensei. "Martial art means that, without
fighting, we already know who is the winner and who is the loser. Aikido doesn't
believe in competition. We do not recognize opponents or the existence of enemies.
Aikido principles do not allow us to fight. To put the fighting or competitive
mind aside and create a peaceful existence is our ultimate goal in Aikido."
The philosophy of this non-aggressive art is easier stated than understood, especiallywhen one watches Minegishi whirl and twirl her students around the mat and through the air with a mere flick of the wrist.
One of the principles behind Aikido is the harmony between mind, body, and spirit -a harmony whose power is often misunderstood, according to Saipan's chief Aikido instructor. "There are three levels of harmony," she explains. "One is the level of harmony between body and mind; that is the lowest level. The second level is to become one with the opponent's body and mind. The third level, which is the most difficult, is to become one with the movement of the universe."
"True harmony means to absorb an opponent's power into your power, because you are the center of the whole universe," Minegishi Sensei continues. "Harmony means to become one with your opponent. You must read the mind of the opponent, thus becoming the opponent. This means that you and I do not exist anymore. We, (the attacker and the opponent) become completely one, so that there is no opponent anymore."
"Physical
movement is also important in learning Aikido principles," says Minegishi
Sensei. "An opponent's chi flow or direction may be directed by turning one's
body in a variety of directions, using circular steps and arm movements. To accomplish
this, a person must be in harmony with the attacker, this includes breathing as
one.
"We are all parts of nature. Like the trees and animals, we must all breath. Whether we are attacked or grabbed, if we maintain our natural posture, breathe naturally, and move naturally, the opponent will fall."
When asked
to compare Aikido to Judo, Minegishi Sensei notes the difference
between their attitudes toward falling: "If you fall in Judo, you lose. In
Aikido, there is no winner and no loser. Falling is merely part of a procedure.
Rolling is our way of getting back to balance again."
When asked
about the use of kicks in Aikido, Minegishi Sensei (who has a nasty
front snap kick of her own) says that, when you lift a foot to kick, your balance
suffers greatly. She also says that kicking is not the action of a human being
showing good behavior. Striking, on the other hand, is okay.
"Yes we strike," says Minegishi. "We use overhead strikes, and strikes to the temple. We use every possible strike, because we can never predict what kind of attack is coming. It is important to understand that we (Aikido practitioners) are not fighters, and the most difficult thing for us to learn is how to attack. Attacks are taught for training purposes only. Our art is strictly defensive and we don't learn attacks for the sake of attacking."
Minegishi agrees that Aikido and Jujitsu have similar locks, but adds that they have different attitudes. In here opinion, Jujitsu is a sport while Aikido is a lifestyle.Contrary to the "gentle ways" of Aikido and its nonviolent doctrine, Minegishi claims that her art is deadly if used to its fullest extent. "Every Aikido technique can easily kill an attacker," says Minegishi. "Aikido is so decisive and so perfect that, if I apply a technique all the way to the end, you would be dead. O-Sensei says that 'every technique can kill an opponent.' For that reason, he did not introduce Aikido to everybody. To learn Aikido, a person had to be recommended by someone of good character."
Minegishi
Sensei believes so much in the ability of Aikido to improve the quality of a person's
life that she has dedicated her own to the spreading of the word. She picked Saipan
for a very specific reason. "After the war, my home in Japan was completely
destroyed," she says. "The war left many bad feelings especially by
those who had to live through the battles on the islands of Micronesia. Many people
suffered greatly on both sides during the fight for Saipan, Guam and the Gilbert
Islands. People here still remember those days. I would like to use Aikido to
help heal the wounds caused by the war. I want to spread world peace through the
teachings of Aikido, and that is why I am here."
Minegishi Sensei-The Anatomical Bomb!
If there is anyone that embodies 'higher dimensions of moral, mental and spiritual perception and purpose,' it is Mutsuko Minegishi, chief instructor in the Japanese martial art of Aikido in Guam and Saipan. She was born in 1940, in Tokyo, but her family had to move to her father's home village 100 kilometers away because of the air raid during the war.
She holds a 6th degree black belt, the highest among female Aikido practitioners, and is easily one of the world's best instructors in this art.
When questioned about martial art, she responds:
"Martial art means that, without fighting we already know who is the winner. Aikido doesn't believe in competition. We do not recognize opponents or the existence of enemies. Aikido principles do not allow us to fight. Our ultimate goal in Aikido is to put the fighting or competitive mind aside and create a peaceful existence."
Her physical movements are poetry in motion. She combines grace with grit, passion with purity, leadership with laughter.
"We are all a part of nature. Like the trees and animals, we must all breathe. Whether we are attacked or grabbed, if we maintain our natural posture, breathe naturally, and move naturally, the opponent will fall."
Aikido is all about harmony between mind, body and spirit: "There are three levels of harmony," explains Minegishi Sensei." One is the level of harmony between body and mind; that is the lowest level. The second level is to become one with the opponent's body and mind. The third level, which is the most difficult, is to become one with the movement of the universe."
"True harmony means to absorb an opponent into your power, because you are the center of the whole universe. Harmony means to become one with your opponent. You must read the mind of the opponent, thus becoming the opponent. This means that you and I do not exist anymore. We, (the attacker and the opponent) become completely one, so that there is no opponent anymore." Source: Aikido Today Magazine #60, Vol. 12. No.6; November-December '98 (by Terry L. Wilson)
Fluent in English, her lessons blend words from the science and art of life. Fluent in physiology, her movements inspire harmony and enlightenment. Scarred by the devastation of atomic warfare, she has a passion for spreading world peace; I would like to use Aikido to help heal the wounds caused by the war. I want to spread world peace through the teachings of Aikido, and that is why I am here."
The devastation of our planet is threatened by the atomic bomb. But our growth is ensured by the 'anatomic' bomb: when we look beyond the anatomy of the body and mind, to that of the human spirit, we create a powerful triunity of goodness. This is manifested in people such as Minegishi Sensei.
Much like Mother Teresa, she craves neither fame nor fortune. But she is rich in possessing a dream for humankind. Fully aware that the future of our planet rests in the hands of our children, she immerses herself in their education. This is inspired by years of experience as a primary school teacher in Japan as well as a college lecturer in the United States. She maintains that children should start learning the principles and practices of aikido as soon as possible: from the moment they take their first steps in infancy. Enveloped in an atmosphere of friendliness, warmth, and security, without fear, these children grow with physical, mental, and spiritual harmony.
When leadership is directed at the very young, it need never be directed again. Children grow up as leaders. What Minegishi Sensei achieves so beautifully cannot be left as a one-off phenomenon. The world needs more people like her and she needs all the help possible. Resources such as funds, facilities, and fellowship are always in short supply.
She teaches people of diverse ages, disciplines, and nationalities. But she is no ordinary teacher. Every moment in her classes is a sacred experience; and it comes with lethal doses of fun and laughter. A flick of a wrist, a microturn of a hip, and almost instantly, your geographical position has been relocated! I speak from personal experience.
I am
indebted to Sensei George Chang, my Sensei in Singapore, for introducing us to
Minegishi Sensei,\. Their friendship has enabled us, as students of this art,
to realize:
· how little we know
· how much more there is to know
· how wonderful it is to keep on learning!
Martial
Arts, August 1998
(Written by Terry Wilson)
There is a great Aikido dojo on Saipan. The chief instructor there is 6th degree black belt Mutsuko Minegishi. I spent several days watching her class and was greatly impressed. After the appropriate introductions were made I was invited to work out with them.
In the blinking of an eye I knew I was in the hands of a master. Never in my life have I had such a painful wristlock put on me. It was wonderful. Not that I enjoy pain you understand, I was just impressed with Minegishi's skill level.
The philosophy of this non-aggressive art is easier stated than understood, especially when one watches Minegishi whirl and twirl her students around the mat and through the air with a mere flick of the wrist. One of the principles behind Aikido is the harmony between mind, body and spirit. This invisible power is difficult to obtain and often times misunderstood according to Saipan's chief Aikido instructor.
"There are three levels of harmony," she says. "One is the level of harmony between your body and your mind. That is the lowest level. The second level is to become one with the opponent's body and mind. The third level which is the most difficult is to become one with the movement of the universe."
In addition to her Aikido training, Minegishi has also studies Shoto-Kan Karate. When asked about this discipline she says Karate is too violent and it develops a competitive mind-set which is contrary to the philosophy of Aikido.
When asked to compare Aikido to Judo, Minegishi noted the difference between the types of falling used in the two arts. "If you fall in judo, you are losing. In Aikido, that is not so. Falling is merely part of a procedure. Rolling is our way of getting back to balance again. So in Aikido falling is only the means to maintain your balance. In Judo someone wins by throwing. In Aikido there is no winner and no loser. We are training. In order to keep training you cannot afford to take the hard, slap-out type of falls used in Judo. The body will eventually bend to that type of contact and punishment. In Aikido we roll out of our techniques as opposed to landing flat on your back or side."
When asked about the use of kicks in Aikido, Minegishi (who has a nasty front snap of her own) says that when you lift a foot to kick, your balance suffers greatly. She also says that kicking is not the action of a human being showing good behavior. Striking on the other hand, is okay.
"Yes we strike," says Minegishi. "We use overhead strikes, and strikes against the temple. We use every possible strike because we can never predict what kind of attack is coming. It is important to understand that we (Aikido practitioners) are not fighters and the most difficult thing for us to learn is how to attack.
We are so bad at that. Attacks are taught for training purposes only. Our art is strictly defensive and we don't learn attacks for the sake of attacking."
When it comes to the similarities between Aikido and Ju-Jutsu Minegishi agrees that they have similar locks but different attitudes. According to her Ju-Jutsu is a sport and Aikido is a lifestyle.
Life's Discipline
"Aikido
used to be called Aiki-Ju-Jutsu," explains Minegishi. "But jutsu means
technique and do is the way. So if you say jutsu then you concentrate on techniques.
Ju means flexible, jutsu is techniques. In Ju-jutsu the goal is to learn techniques,
in Aikido, do is the way to learn life's discipline."
Contrary to the "gentle ways" of Aikido and its non-violent doctrine, Minegishi claims that her art is deadly if used to its fullest extent. "Every Aikido technique can easily control the attacker," says Minegishi. "It is so decisive and so perfect that if one applies a technique all the way to the end, you would be dead. O-sensei, the founder, says that, 'Every technique can kill an opponent,' and because of that, Aikido was not introduced to everybody. To learn Aikido a person had to be recommended by someone of good character."
Minegishi believes so much in the ability of Aikido to improve the quality of an individual's life that she has dedicated her own to the spreading of the word. She picked Saipan for a very specific reason.
"During the war my home in Tokyo was completely destroyed," says Minegishi. "The war left many bad feelings especially by those who had to live through the battles on the islands of Micronesia. Many people suffered greatly on both sides during the fight for Saipan, Guam, Kiribati, and other Micronesian islands. People here still remember those days. I would like to use Aikido to help heal the wounds caused by the war. I want to spread warm friendship through the teachings of Aikido, and that is why I am here."
With a healthful smile, Ms. Minegishi, owner of the Aikido Dojo, or Hall in Saipan for 2 years, has a mysterious power of making all the people around her straighten heir postures. "It has been 25 years since I started learning Aikido, and I am still a novice. Mastering Aikido is a long and hard way and even 70 year old athletes are still active. " She said while staring straight at my eyes.
She
joined a Japanese "Peace Corps" like organization and had taught Aikido
on a small island in Kiribati for 6 years before relocating to Saipan. Her life
there was filled with the dark tanned, and amiable children. Their naïve
sensitivities could hardly be found in Japan nowadays, she told us. Since she
served without any compensation, she had to leave the island. Then she opened
the Dojo in Saipan, having an enjoyable time. "My dream is that Aikido will
become the "peaceful go-between" among the Micronesian Islands and Japan.
I chose Saipan because it is a sort of hub in the Marianas and it has common historical
experiences with Japan during WWII. I would like to care for the island's growth
and islander's happiness as merely one islander who loves the island, not as the
person who came from the economically advanced country. " It seems Aikido
made her live without any excuse of her age or her environment. That is the fascination
of Aikido, and of course, of herself.