Philippine Combat Aikido Federation
Parañaque Chapter
Recognized by Philippine Combat Aikido Federation, Inc.

The secret of being able to take advantage of the opponent's physical strenght in aikido lies in the principle of marui ('circular') motion. Almost no movement in aikido follows a straight line: movement of feet, trunks and arms all describe an arc and, furthermore, are three-dimensional in that they follow the lines of a sphere or at times a spiral. Circular motion enables the aikidoka to add his weight and power to the opponent's pushing or pulling movement without fear of collission.

Changing direction illustrates the efficacy of circular movement. If initial movement of the body is in a straight line it is necessary to pause to change direction; but if the initial movement is circular it is not necessary to interrupt the flow of movement. Pivoting the hands as though following the contours of a globe are frequently occurring examples of circular motion.

Spherical Movement

Circular movement is not confined to one plane; it can range from front to rear, right to left, upward or downward, i.e., a competent aikidoka must be able to aplly it in any direction along the surface of sphere if he wishes to negate an attack from any quarter.

Centripetal and Centrifugal Force

Circular (or spherical) movement naturally embodies both centripetal and centrifugal force. The former is the force that draws things into a whirlpool or typhoon; the latter is the force that throws things off a spinning top. Analysis of a perfectly timed and executed technique shows that aikido makes use of these forces.

In the majority of cases where an opponent's balance has been completely broken, it has been by a spinning or turning movement rather that a direct attack. To consider this movement in more detail, suppose the opponent strikes directly from the front. Instead of meeting the attack head on, if one moves out of its path and without opposing the opponent's movement, applies light upward pressure spirally, with very little effort it is possible to change the direction of the attack, destroy the opponent's balance and deprive him of his strenght. This is analogous to the power of a tornado as compared with that of a wind blowing in a single direction.

(About the Article: from the book DYNAMIC AIKIDO from Gozo Shioda, born in Tokyo in 1915, one of the outstanding student of Morihei Ueshiba. He is a 9th Dan Black belt holder.)

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