Training

by Hoa Newenss

​One of the vows that a student in our dojo makes when entering the uchideshi training program is: “My daily life is my practice”. Upon completion of the program this vow is released as “My daily life has been my practice”. Everything that happened in every moment during the committed period was part of their training. Though the vow is released at the end of the program, typically lasting one year, the uchideshi generally maintains the same attitude toward training for a while, possibly through their life. Many of them have probably discovered life’s meaning in the act of training.
 
In this essay we examine what is meant by training, what the purpose of it is, and when the training ends.

What is training?

O Sensei Morihei Ueshiba has this to say about training:
 
“Progress comes to those who train and train. Reliance on secret techniques gets you nowhere.”, The Art of Peace, John Stevens (2010) Shambhala Publications
 
In the act of training, we are re-ordering our life in such a way that we find a new meaning in every moment. Training is not normal nor natural, because it involves doing things that we do not normally do or naturally do. For example, in breath training, we seize control of the autonomic breathing function of the body and modify it to achieve a particular purpose, such as slowing the breath, breathing through the mouth rather than nose, or holding the breath longer than normal.
 
In Aikido, we train by not just repeating the movement that an instructor shows, but we dissect the techniques into segments to understand how they relate with each other; we slow down the movement to take note of how the body feels; we pause at various check points to allow our body to absorb the energy of each move; etc. There is mental work too: we listen to comments by instructors and try to apply them; we read what others have to say; and we ponder on the essence of the techniques.
 
Repeated execution of the movement alone is hardly training. Going to classes only is barely training. Attempting to replicate O Sensei’s movements and techniques is as bad as doing randori and jyu-waza for training.
 
To really train we must take control of the training process and engage the totality of our being - body, mind and consciousness – and make the act of training very personal.

The purpose of training

Why are we training? We train to get to some place other than where we are, that provides more meaning in our life than the present. The urge to train arises from a want of satisfaction. In other words, we feel that there is something missing in our life, and we hope that by re-ordering our life activities in a certain way, that is, training, we will fill this deficiency.
 
O Sensei explained that “The purpose of training is to tighten up the slack, toughen the body, and polish the spirit.” I understand it this way: our energies are chaotic and need to be re-ordered so that we can tighten up the slack and gain cohesion. Our body is not fully utilized and needs to be conditioned and toughened up. Our spirit is tainted with impurities and needs to be polished up to regain its pristine state. Body tempering, energetic cohesion and union with the primal spirit are indeed major stages of martial arts training.
 
Training is a path that takes us from one state to another state: we let go of the present state and move into another state. The deeper we engage into this path, the less clear it becomes since it involves the inner workings of the human being; therefore, it is helpful to point out signposts along the way for students undertaking this journey. For this purpose, we describe below the eight rings of martial arts training along a continuum that takes the beginning student all the way to the ultimate destination.

Eight rings of martial art training

Martial training progresses through eight stages which bring the trainee closer to the ultimate state. It is helpful to view these stages as coils of an upward conical spiral that leads to a summit. We divide the spiral into sections labeled as “rings” for ease of reference; they are, from base to summit:

1. Strength: body conditioning & tempering
2. Skills: technical proficiency
3. Power: mobilization of energy
4. Mastery: control of form, energy and mind
5. Grace: harmony within self
6. Harmony: harmony with Nature
7. Love: realization of oneness
8. Oneness: union with spirit

 
We view these stages as coils of a spiral because they are really one continuous journey represented by a single curved line that leads inward and upward to the center point at the top. At any point along the upward climb, should one choose to remain at that level, then one would circle below the destination and never reach it.

A commitment to martial arts training gets us on the first ring, and we start climbing. The initial momentum gets us to a certain point up the slope then the commitment begins to wane and must be reaffirmed continuously for us to move forward and up. The climb is not arduous, but the effort is cumulative and must be continuous and steadfast. This commitment is a decision that must be made at the outset so that the trainee would not lose steam halfway up.
 
Below we share our personal experience and understanding of this journey. Again, we note that the term “ring” as used in this essay refers to a section of a continuous conic spiral.

Ring No. 1 - Strength

This first ring of training focuses on building a physical body and a mental fortitude that constitute the vehicle with which we undertake the journey. For martial purpose, true strength consists of three components: suppleness, cohesion, and grounding. We explain these elements below.
 
Suppleness/looseness. The human body is designed for mobility and all parts move together in a constant symphony of motion since birth. As our mind grows, it devises increasing complex labor-saving schemes which gradually reduce our physical activities and hence, our mobility. Machines are doing our labor and our bodies are becoming stiffer and weaker. Furthermore, the mind engages in activities that result in unbalanced energy flows (such as emotions) and eventual blockages. These blockages in turn cause further energetic stagnation and stress within the soft tissue, fragmenting the fascial network. We need to restore mobility of individual components to fully utilize the body through regular stretching and deep relaxation practices that include tendons and ligaments stretching and energy dissolving.
 
Cohesion. If left on their own, movements of the body parts that are not part of the autonomic nervous system are naturally chaotic. However, within the body, these movements occur within a matrix of crisscrossing tissue (fascia) that connects the parts and can be trained to coordinate the individual movements to achieve a common goal. Ordering will bring effectiveness. A good way to train for cohesion is to focus on performing deliberately one simple movement at a time to the best of our ability. The earlier-mentioned practices of energy dissolving also liberate fascial tissue from energetic snags and thus enhance cohesion within the framework.
 
Grounding. A force is only as strong as the base from which it was launched. When we push a heavy object and the ground beneath our feet shifts, or the knee joints or ankle joints give out, we will hardly be able to move the object. We need a firm base from which to launch any movement; stance training helps us acquire this solidity. We discussed this subject in more detail in another writing Stances in Martial Arts.
 
Undertaking a training program to build up the strength of the body as explained above requires courage to start, and determination and discipline to see it through successfully. Many exercise programs lead to failure for lack of these mental components. Conversely, completing such a program helps one to build mental strength as well as physical strength.
 
In all worthy training programs, trainees begin with basic training lasting one to two years to prepare the body for the rigors of more advanced training. This is the foundation of any serious physical training program. Advancing to the next stage before the body has acquired the necessary strength will severely hamper our progress due to an overtaxed body and high risk of injury, not unlike a short circuit resulting from putting a high load electrical current through a low resistance path. For example, in Aikido training, subjecting a 4th kyuu student to the tanren practice of nonstop one thousand suburi strikes, or asking them to work on jyu-waza, would only serve to hurt and discourage such student.
 
Unfortunately, it is my observation that in general, Aikido teachers and schools do not offer an adequate basic training program, paying lip service to such basics as stretching, footwork, stances, ukemi, etc. These teachers tend to go directly to complex or flowing techniques in classes. Here lies the reason for our creation of the Kihon Kuren (Basic Training) that is part of the Aikido Foundations Course to get back to basics, while also sowing the seeds for higher training.
 
In traditional martial arts curriculum, within the content of basic training are embedded seeds for more advanced training that will be developed in the advanced stages to take the students beyond the basics, to the ultimate spiritual goals of these arts. These seeds include elements such as central axis, energy centers, dynamic tension, breath work and ki flows. These advanced elements are kept at the nominal level in the basic training and are cultivated as needed in the upper levels.
 
Ring No. 2 - Skills

Once the body has attained the necessary strength to endure higher level training, we can put it through the pace with tanren practices to forge martial skills. At this stage, the training focus is on learning the techniques in the repertoire of the martial art with the goal of executing them effectively and efficiently. We are essentially creating the correct vessels (forms and movements) to prepare for insertion of contents in the next level.
 
At this stage, training consists of numerous repetitions of the forms, both in solo and partner practice format. To achieve proficiency, students should proceed incrementally through these progressive levels:

• Kihon: Repeat the same exact form many times, with no speed or power, minding the number of steps within each movement.
• Katai: Add firmness and limited power to the movements, with kiai as appropriate.
• Yawarakai: Connect the steps of a movement and smooth out the transitions.

 
Concurrently, the student should continue practicing the Kihon Kunren of the earlier Ring No. 1, which should gradually absorb the higher technical skills and acquire a new quality. The absorption of the new technical skills is tantamount to addition of fertilizer to nourish the higher-level seeds contained in the Kihon Kunren.
 
Ring No. 3 – Power

Skills first, then power. That is the only way to ensure safety in the use of power. Train with dummy or non-lethal weapons first before handling the real ones. Power here refers to the ability to gather a large amount of energy to generate a significant force, or to deliver a larger than normal impact, at will. At this training stage we put contents into the vessels that we created in the earlier ring; now we infuse the forms with energy. The overriding principle is that skills must precede power: the wiring must be strong and capable to receive the power that runs through the system. The Power stage includes three abilities: gather, flow and deliver energy.
 
Gather. To gather we must be open, relaxed and centered, just like a funnel is wide open, has smooth surface and has a drain at the lowest point in the center. The low center point draws any content toward it. The three corresponding requisite skills are humility, deep relaxation and awareness of center. Acquisition of these skills is a major part of the Power training stage.
 
Flow. The collected energy must flow, or it will create pathogenic conditions. Channeling movements toward a single purpose increases the chance of accomplishing the purpose but does not provide the control necessary to regulate the impact, that is the amount of energy being transferred. Flow, for our purpose here, refers to the ability to affect the intensity of the movement (the amplitude of the energetic wave) to achieve a desired level of impact. At the practical level, flow refers to the ability to alternately contract and relax muscles and tissues sequentially to create and propagate energy, similar to how food is moved down the esophagus. This ability requires the ability to consciously change the state (contraction or relaxation) of muscles and tissues at will and to the full extent. A good practice for flow is simply to perform movements slowly, with minimum power, and with full awareness, such as in doing a Taichi form.
 
It is appropriate to note here that in Aikido, the emphasis on the slow and precise kihon waza results in improved control of the movement and subsequently, better flow than the flowing training in yawarakai or ki no nagare waza.
 
Deliver. To deliver power to a specific point on our body and transmit it to another entity/body, we need to summon the energy from our reserve or other sources, conduct it through channels in the body, condense it at the delivery point then discharge it on the other entity. This is essentially the process of fajin in internal martial arts. It is useful to note that our bodily functions include natural examples of this process, such as, coughing, sneezing, sexual orgasm.
 
The most difficult part of the process described above is the control of the discharge at the end. The average person has no or little control of the three bodily functions mentioned above. There are a number of practices that allow one to improve this control. First, is awareness of the build-up of energy as it gathers steam: this awareness allows one to depressurize this energy and annul the movement. Second, total presence at the moment of discharge allows one to become aware of this exact point; this awareness of the endpoint puts pressure on our consciousness to dissolve the buildup of energy more effectively. This is probably similar to the pressure an airline pilot feels when aware of the mountain towering over the end of the runway. In addition, this awareness of the endpoint allows one to avoid self-injury by inadvertently suppressing the energy after it has built up rather than at the outset.
 
Effective delivery of power thus hinges on the degree of awareness of our internal energetic flows.
 
In Aikido training, we mobilize power by engaging in tanren, special exercises designed to concentrate and channel our energies and consciousness. When doing tanren, we work on all three facets of gathering, flowing and delivering; however, it is important to remember the principles discussed above, and not dive into the tanren with full force.
 
Tanren focuses consciousness, ki, and breath and intensifies the potential impact of these elements. Examples include regular body tempering such as tanren-uchi (suburi strikes) after every classs; doing a hundred ukemi rolls after class; etc. Tanren is not always about doing something more; it includes refraining from certain activities, such as avoiding food that may affect our health and hinder our training; or refraining from certain behaviors. Tanren also includes adopting a regimented lifestyle, such as taking cold shower in the morning, doing meditation early in the morning, etc.
 
Ring No. 4 – Mastery

To be in total control of oneself, our awareness must reach and wrap around the boundaries of this self. If we view our self as including the physical body, the mind and the energies that move through them, then we must be fully aware of the extent, the states and the changes of these components. This is no small feat, since the average person is barely aware of what constitutes his body, let alone the mind and energies.
 
To begin the road to mastery, a martial artist must first take control of his training, rather than merely signing up at a school and following the standard training program, or just going to class. The student of mastery should sincerely assess himself, that is, his aspirations, weaknesses and strengths, then set training goals to remedy the weaknesses and capitalize on the strengths. From these goals, design a personal training program that includes daily practice.
 
To put it in a different way, training is now becoming a shugyo (修行) or sadhana; it is the beginning of spiritual practices. The road to mastery inevitably leads one on an inward journey. Deep into the mastery stage, there is a point where the martial artist realizes that he has to gradually forsake the outer aspects of forms, skills and power in order to proceed inward.
 
During this stage of training, it is natural for the adept trainee to feel a strong urge to unload knowledge and skills to others in order to get a sense of satisfaction from her training. It is because the knowledge and skills are cumulative energies that are in constant flux in the universe, belonging to none but available to everyone who sincerely seek them. This may be the opportune time to begin teaching.
 
Up to this point in the climb up the rings, we engaged mostly body, energy and consciousness, whereas our heart has had little involvement. In fact, we can successfully go through the mastery stage and become an invincible warrior who keeps knocking down opponents to garner trophy after trophy. No moral compass is required to reach mastery. Mastery allows us to express who we are deep inside masterfully, while doing evil or good. Martial artists who reach this stage will act out their hearts through their martial arts. Those who believe in dominance will be able to dominate. Those who choose to go beyond will begin an inward and transformative journey in earnest. Only those whose who can transcend power and mastery and aspire toward a spiritual goal will go on and change their inner nature.
 
It is our observation that not many martial artists are willing to let go of the achievements that they have worked so hard for. Only those who understand that the ultimate goal of martial arts is not to vanquish but to protect will be willing to let go and transcend; the rest will go on and relish their invincibility. Mastery is the stage where many martial artists are stuck at, because going further involves the annihilation of individual ego and merging with a larger consciousness; and not many masters’ egos are willing to self-destruct.
 
As we climb up the spiral structure, the lower rings become irrelevant and are distractions that need to be offloaded, so that one can concentrate on the arduous training at hand, especially after the fourth ring, when the path leads inward into the invisible realm of training. For a small percentage of masters who have dedicated their lives to teaching the art, it may be necessary to maintain the rings below for purpose of guiding students; these are the bodhisattvas of the martial arts.
 
In my journey up the rings, this is all I can share with some clarity. The path ahead is still long and arduous, and a bit hazy. Though I have yet to walk it, extensive experience in the past five and a half decades helps me form a faint vision of what lies in front. I share this vision below, with no certitude of its realization. I also lean on O Sensei’s words to point the way.
 
Ring No. 5 – Grace

From this ring on up, the martial artist turns the training focus inward and begins an alchemistic transformation. Unfortunately, O Sensei did not leave us specific instructions or concrete techniques to follow for this inner work. We can  only glean some information from his various lectures, which are often obscure due to numerous references to mythic deities and exotic concepts. To our knowledge, there is no extant curriculum covering this phase of training. Therefore, training now becomes a personal quest. In our case, we carried our training momentum forward using O Sensei’s words as beacons and using tools from the Taoist internal energy teachings.
 
The result of continued training at the Mastery level leads to a full awareness of the Self and all its bodies, namely, physical, energetical and mental. The training objective at this stage is to harmonize these various elements within the Self so that they function as an integral whole. The result is that the self becomes transparent and wholesome, with no internal conflict. Integration brings about efficiency and a sense of ease. Integration within manifests as grace without. Training consists of mostly internal energy work.
 
Here are O Sensei’s words on harmony:
 
We must no longer conduct wars. Fighting will destroy us. Consensus is the key. No harmony means no true strength. If you do not attain true harmony, all your training will be to no avail. (p 23) The Secret Teachings of Aikido, Morihei Ueshiba, Kodansha International 2007.
 
Your mind should be in harmony with the functioning of the universe; your body should be in tune with the movement of the universe; body and mind should be bound as one, unified with the activity of the universe. Morihei Ueshiba, O Sensei
 
Ring No. 6 – Harmony

As training continues, harmony within will gradually spread outward and bring about harmony without, in the surrounding environment. The Self grows to encompass all things and beings around the trainee, spreading harmony and peace near and far. Training becomes less physical and consists of advanced internal energy work and meditative practices.
 
O Sensei exhorted us this way:
 
Start with self-improvement, then put one’s household in order. After that, work to improve conditions in one’s nation and strive to establish harmony throughout the world. (p 24) The Secret Teachings of Aikido, Morihei Ueshiba, Kodansha International 2007.
 
This is an advanced state which allows the adept trainee to affect others’ state of being, hence teach, by merely being present.

Ring No. 7 – Love

Continued work on polishing one’s spirit together with the expanded sense of harmony created in the previous ring will bring about the realization that one’s basic nature is the same as that of other sentient beings. This compassion is likely the love that O Sensei referred to when he said that Budo is love.
 
All living beings originate from and are manifested by love. Aikido is the purest expression of that love. It is a means to bring all people of this world together. In order to bring people together, to unite human beings with the divine, to co-evolve, we need to tap into the unlimited creative power of existence. “Bu” helps us do this. (p. 30) The Secret Teachings of Aikido, Morihei Ueshiba, Kodansha International 2007.
 
Mankind's role is to fulfill his heaven-sent purpose through a sincere heart that is in harmony with all creation and loves all things. Morihei Ueshiba
 
From here on, the training vehicle is no longer the body, or its proximal energies; it is our consciousness that is training, which now involves mostly meditative practices aimed at letting go (detachment). Training becomes more of a perspective about life, based on the soft factors discussed further below.

Ring No. 8 - Oneness

O Sensei often referred to standing on the floating bridge of heaven. Below is an excerpt from The Heart of Aikido – The philosophy of Takemusu Aiki, by Morihei Ueshiba, 2013 edition by Kodansha USA
 
I trained in all kinds of martial art styles, but all of them were based on systems created by human beings, and thus provided me with no answers. Then where did I find the answers? Within myself! I was enlightened to this within.  How is this enlightenment to be achieved? Stand on the Floating Bridge of Heaven (p. 81)
 
When you stand on the Floating Bridge of Heaven, place yourself right in the middle, neither stretching toward heaven nor leaning toward earth. Feel the presence of the divine, focus on the source of creation, and progress. If you don’t you will sever your ties to heaven and earth and between yourself and the universe. Stand on the Floating Bridge of Heaven to absorb the spiritual energy of the universe. Stand right in the center of creation. (p. 80)
 
The only training that I can discern at this level is developing the awareness to stand right in the middle of the Floating Bridge of Heaven, touching heaven and earth simultaneously. The Floating Bridge of Heaven [Ame no Ukihashi] is the bridge that connects heaven and earth. As recorded in the Kojiki, the ancient Japanese chronicle, deities stood on this bridge to create the world.
 
O Sensei’s instructions, as I understand them, are for human beings to stand firmly grounded on earth while also being connected to heaven, as these entities are our parents, and fulfill our purpose with their support.
 
This is the poem that O Sensei composed upon his realization of oneness: (p. 21) The Secret Teachings of Aikido, Morihei Ueshiba, Kodansha International 2007.
 
Then I felt I had a mission in life:
How beautiful
this form of
heaven and earth
created from the Source –
we are all members of one family.
 
Qualitative aspects of training

Since we live in a physical world, the tool that we train with is mostly our physical body, with some help from the mind. We absorb new experiences as body sensations and extract lessons by interpreting these sensations. The clearer the sensations the clearer the lessons. In short, we train best when we live fully. There are certain behaviors that are conducive to effective training and a full life. They are the three qualitative ingredients of training.
 
First is awareness. Often, the lesson is right where we are, or in front of us, and our blinders prevent us from absorbing it. If we do not pay attention, we miss the lesson or part of it. When our consciousness is unburdened and unclouded we become fully aware of the experience of the moment and soak it into our core.
 
Second is humility, or openness. Ideally, we want to adopt the attitude that we can learn from anyone and any sentient being; that anything that happens to us contains a specific lesson; and that there is always a new lesson to learn, irrespective of our attainment. We must be willing to let go of a current state and have the courage to move into a new state.
 
Third is perseverance. Life experience causes suffering when our ego resists it, and as a result, we often terminate or run away from the experience, denying ourselves the fruit of the training. The key to standing up again after the fall is to single-mindedly push through. Perseverance eventually leads to acceptance, and the lesson is learned.
 
These three ingredients form the fuel that propels us upward the spiral structure. Awareness reveals to us where we stand and where we can potentially be. Humility helps us recognize our shortcomings and needs in relation to our potential. Perseverance helps to sustain our training effort to reach our potential.

Conclusion

All true uchideshis realize a most valuable lesson, and that is, the meaning of life lies in constantly training and learning. When we are in a training mode, we welcome everything that happens to us as part of our training. When we are not, we tend to be victims of anything that happens to us.
 
Continuous training may not suit everyone’s lifestyle. However, if we do not train, the Almighty has ways to train us in his school of life. If we don’t take the initiative and assume the responsibility to train ourselves, life lessons shall be imposed on us. This is our choice and privilege as human beings.
 
Yukiyoshi Sagawa Soke, Daito-ryu Aikijustsu, 1902-1998, has this to say about training:
 
Intermittent training, no matter how intensive, is utterly useless. You must practice every day for your entire life. That, and only that, is true training, or shugyo.
 
 
Hoa Newens
October 6, 2022