As a former Aikido practitioner, watching videos like these help me maintain an open mind, and not keep getting trapped in social bubbles. Thanks sir, and keep them coming!

@MartialArtsJourney

3 жыл бұрын

Thank you

@rafalongo7

2 жыл бұрын

Thats right, those social bubbles are formed everywhere, its something very typical of people

As a victim of multiple traumas over 23 years, I hear you. You’re doing the right things Rokas. The video you did on aikido being a cult wavered a bit into generalizations. I think the balance needed for that is to admit the bias in those kinds of videos. When talking about trauma and experiences I think it’s important to realize that the people who caused the trauma are to blame, not the vehicle the abuse occurred in. I realize it’s a bit trickier to examine a martial art and not feel that the style failed you. But that style is carried by people who set the expectations for the art and for the students. If aikido had been delivered to you in an honest and open way, and you were to set your own expectations based on your understanding of how the art can enhance your life, perhaps you’d feel differently about the style itself. I went through a similar experience as you for 6 years in a church ministry group. I thought that being a part of that group was my identity. The people failed me, and I wandered into feeling that in addition to the bad people the ministry style itself was bad. Through therapy, I’m coming out of that space. My hurts aren’t healed yet, but I expect they will be. Just as I was leaving that group I entered into my beloved martial art style. The group I’m in has been the complete opposite of the church experience. In addition to therapy my style has helped me overcome and heal. The people are fantastic, honest, and open. My style gets a lot of bad rap from other styles because of ego problems from other teachers and organizations that share the same material. But that doesn’t matter to me so long as I am able to remain healthy in mind and spirit within my organization. As long as you’re working towards achieving balance in mind and spirit, you have my support.

I’m practicing Taekeondo, and everyone there is so nice, and the instructor is amazing. They even encourage cross training :Edit: Thanks, 2 people that commented :)

@SatoshiEK

3 жыл бұрын

Taekwondo is great, man! If you train other martial arts alongside it, it can really be a great addition to your arsenal.

@samchenyh

3 жыл бұрын

Taekwondo is great for keeping most opponents out of punching and grappling range, but it is a bit more energy draining compared to some other martial arts. And have a huge flaw at closer range, when compared to judo, ju-jitsu and some other martial arts with grappling. Especially when they learn to rush a kick to tackle you off balance, I've tried on both being the attacker(the kicking one) and the one being attacked. It will hurt if it lands definitely but it will throw the attacker off balance. So it's wiser to learn a wide range of martial arts, but adapt it to fit you and your style.

@samchenyh

3 жыл бұрын

@@madmoonrabbit in not sure what is being taught nowadays, its different from what i learnt. Having fast kicks with rotation from the feet all the way to the hips and snapping the legs to kick, was mostly how i was taught to do very straight forward kicks. Definitely lesser "flying" than what i see nowadays. For me i was taught to keep it simple and true, meaning not faking before any other movements. Plus, there is a few tempos which every individual will use, there will always be gaps in between if you are willing to wait for it.

@samchenyh

3 жыл бұрын

@@madmoonrabbit all the best, they do a good job at teaching the basics of blocks punches and kicks. Of course it will be fun once you get sparring at later stages.

@hypnoticskull6342

3 жыл бұрын

@@maxzhao8331 I’m trying to practice being a good fighter and a flashy kicker XD

If it wasn't for your honest videos about leaving Aikido, I would have gone back and dedicated a lot more time and money towards it. Thank you for your honesty and your humility.

@MartialArtsJourney

3 жыл бұрын

🙏

With all seriousness now, videos like the ones you make really help spread the word of critical thinking and questioning in martial arts. I don't feel like you "didn't get over Aikido" at this point. I'm sure you know what Aikido really is now and mentioning Aikido is just so you can make people understand your past and how you came to the conclusions you express. It's so easy for us to be enclosed in our social bubbles. So having a lot of information out there about the reality of martial arts really helps as the more content the more likely it will get to those who are still inside the bubble of "fake martial arts". I understand why you took the opinions of people who said you gotta get over Aikido into consideration (which you really should've done) but I disagree and I feel like the videos are beneficial to the martial arts community as a whole.

@jitsroller

3 жыл бұрын

You nailed it. Its a service announcement.

As you may know I can feel exactly what you mean dear Rokas. I am still talking to akidio practionners who are still caught in those beliefs about Aikido. Hearing you talking about that is very important to me, and I believe for many to come. There's never enough for those videos dear friend. Thank you.

@MartialArtsJourney

3 жыл бұрын

🙏

I appreciate your honesty, and it reinforces my own thoughts that I developed forty years ago as a practitioner of Tomiki Aikido. After two to three years of practice and devotion, I still felt the art was not realistic for self-defense, which was the primary motivation for beginning it in the first place. I kept hoping that attaining higher ranks would reveal something new and worthwhile that I was not already getting. However, in reaching the Shodan level, things remained the same and felt stagnant. I felt unprepared for realistic self-defense situations, and this disillusionment led to my exit from Aikido. I feel validated now knowing I am not the only one who feels this way.

I really appreciate you bringing this up. I train in Kendo currently, and have trained in Aikido and Judo both, now sticking to Aikido. Why? Besides being easier on my body, I appreciate the philosophy behind it. The 2 real fights I've been in, I used Aikido philosophy to try to de-escalate, and when that failed switched to Judo technique to survive. I think that if Aikidoka admit that they're a philosophy, not a martial art, then things will improve (along with adding pressure testing to randori). My 2 cents. You were very bold to do this, and I appreciate it.

Thank you again Rokas. We die inside a little when we don't expresse ourselves. This kind of things doesn't happen just in the Aikido World but in another martial arts,as I could experienced by myself at the karate world. Please keep on going with this.

Honestly I truly think any martial can become a "cult" I feel it depends on the teacher, and the intelligence level of the students, if it is a good teacher that teaches unrealistic applications, especially when the techniques are not put into a realistic scenario, meaning simply NO sense of applied force, from BOTH combatants. For example: If the teacher barely uses force and the student just gives in, there is no TRUE practice of the Martial art, Because in a real combat situation both combatants are most likely going to be using all they have to hurt their opponent. So I feel when that "sense of force" from BOTH combatants is usually non existent, than a martial art is a "CULT" or in danger of becoming one if it isn't already.

@SavedSnake

3 жыл бұрын

@Zoot jitsu I truly believe any gym, "dojo", or gathering of any sort of martial art teaching...training without force and pain, is the highway to a "cult" like "Mcdojo"

I loved your video and your constant searching for truth and willingness to challenge dogma, even honestly exploring what's going on for you. Keep it up Rokas!!

@MartialArtsJourney

3 жыл бұрын

🙏🙏

I really do appreciate you bringing up questions and other quirks about the Aikido community. It's really affected my own perspective on the practices as well, and mostly for the better.

@MartialArtsJourney

3 жыл бұрын

🙏

You are so sincere and nice a person!! Don't listen to the negative commentaries people come with - you are a great person and a great resource in both the martial arts, as well as in the spiritual environment. These kinds of videos are sorely needed! Every journey is individual. Thank you for sharing your experiences, your thoughts, and your reflections, as well as your honest and kind personality! :)

Hey I think it’s amazing you are speaking out about this and sharing your experience and information. What’s wonderful is that it does and will genuinely help a lot of people. I was in a similar situation but with an ayahuasca group and lineage, I didn’t know any better and I was being told this was a great lineage and group and when I noticed problems and brought them up they were dismissed, and no one gave me honest genuine answers. There were a lot of cult aspects, and similar to your martial arts journey, when I left that specific lineage and worked with a different shaman and a new lineage I was blown away at how ineffective and at times damaging the other lineage was. If I had been given more information and honesty or if I had been able to find people with similar experiences the experience would have been shorter and far less traumatic. You might appreciate this too, so a few years back I contacted a martial arts teacher who taught aikido because I wanted to learn self defence. I didn’t know anything about martial arts and I was really intrigued by Aikido and the philosophy. When I explained to the teacher that I wanted to learn self defence he told me that Aikido would absolutely not help me at all, and instead he taught me Filipino martial arts. More recently I was interested in learning a martial art again and someone online tried to convince me that aikido is an effective martial art for self defence despite what I had been told previously. Like five minutes after that I found your videos and decided to try BJJ. Even though I probably wouldn’t have tried Aikido your information has really helped me on a lot levels, so thank you! :)

Same in teakwondo we share same experience, to the community of teakwondo i become the traitor let say i live long to be the villain

Thank you for all what you have done... I Support you, I saw all your videos since the beginning of your journey-> (BTW I’m black belt aikido who’s started to loss interest long time ago) and now blue belt bjj👍🏼✌🏼 >>> thank you again

@MartialArtsJourney

3 жыл бұрын

Awesome! Thank you and congratulations on you Blue belt!

Most martial arts with a ranking system would most probably fall into a cult definition. For me, my Sensei definitely does have some root in the traditional sense that you have to follow but he does allow some improvisation and variations on techniques. While I have not used full aikido techniques, i have used the some of the basics thinking to get out of certain situations. While i definitely missed having sparring sessions from my days in Taekwondo. I have been able to practice it with other students and seniors who will resist and try to make it as difficult as possible to do the technique and have to learn to adapt and improvise based on the techniques i learnt. I guess it may not apply to all but in my honest Opinion. It helps to get use to utilising the techniques ive learnt.

@sliderx1897

3 жыл бұрын

I think ppl confuse grade with rank. They are not really ranks they are particularl levels of education. So to say the ranking structure is cultish is to say the school grading system used in publuc school is cultish. One " rank" doesnt hold any kind of power over another. Its just a grading structure. Yellow belt= 1st grade, brown belt = high school

@samchenyh

3 жыл бұрын

@@sliderx1897 good point, but im referring to the definition as given in the previous video. Most senior ranking belts in my experience, will reject learning or practicing with the junior belts because they feel that they are more superior compared to the lower ranking belts, despite maybe having prior experiences in other martial arts. And will only tend to teach but not learn or practice with them. Thus i classified it as 'cult'. Maybe schools are also a cult if referred back to the previous video on this topic.

@sliderx1897

3 жыл бұрын

@@samchenyh good point. This is why it is important to have a soshin mindset

Nice to see you in town.

Hello Rokas, I’m not sure if my aikido dojo will survive. But I think my aikido dojo is a part of the good guys. And I’ve actually asked them certain things like: “have you ever needed to use your aikido in a self defense situation” The answer from my sensei was no, and that you will most likely get punched. Then there was the second sensei who answered that “Aikido may be more of an art than it is martial”. And I think I agree. And I’ve also looked through your points about aikido being ineffective in combat which is true. Though I think the philosophy might be the good thing about aikido. Since it forwards personal development through getting you out of your comfort zone and exploring yourself via the movements. Another win is that most people are able to participate in aikido which makes it a good starting point if you want to get healthier physically and maybe even mentally. I’m frankly confused about if it is effective or not though. But I think my conclusion is that aikido might not be an effective self defense system. Though it perhaps might be better in regards to personal growth via teaching us discipline, respect , humbleness, kindness as well as patience towards our opponent and ourselves (which in a sense could be the same). That’s where I believe aikido is a one of a kind thing. It doesn’t promote (or teach) violent strikes nor physically injuring someone else. And I think it’s a humble goal. Though the only issue is that it is a hard to reach one. If confronted with violence it’s most of the time gonna be hard to end it without having to physically injure someone else to make them back off. My personal thoughts and experience on aikido: I personally enjoy aikido due to it’s availability and since it’s something fun you can do with friends and family no matter the age. It might not turn me into Bruce Lee, but it is through my experience fun and enjoyable with others. It’s also helped me reinforce my own positivity and good vibes towards myself and others. I believe aikido to be a good starting point for martial arts since it loosens you up a lot mentally and physically for challenges in everyday life that aren’t combat related. So the question for me, isn’t if aikido is effective or not. (Since that depends on what you defy as effective) Is aikido an effective martial system? Probably not. Is it effective through it’s philosophy and teachings? Maybe? Who knows. I’ve come to a realization that the only one able to answer that question for oneself is oneself. And I believe aikido to be a beautiful and fun activity. :) Sorry for making this comments so long. I think it helped to get my thoughts out though. Thanks to whoever reads this. Have a wonderful day! :) It famous words of Bruce Lee: “Absorb what is useful, Discard what is useless and add what is specifically your own”. :) Peace out ✌️

I just want to first say that I've thoroughly have become a fan of your videos, your skills and knowledge as an martial artist. I am a Aikido Practitioner and I've been practicing for 19 years along with boxing and jujitsu. Aikido is popularly promoted as a self defense martial art which I can agree and disagree with. For my specific Aikido journey, it's taught me to be more aware of myself mentally and physically. It's taught me martial awareness which is taught in most martial arts schools. For those who don't understand what that means, It is training yourself to be more present of your thoughts and actions. I don't think Aikido should or in most cases can be used in a practical situation without knowledge of other martial arts but I do think the philosophy of Aikido can be used in a non-combative situations. (Verbal Communication) I'm not defending Aikido for being a self defense martial art but I am saying that you presenting a narrative of Aikido that is primarily negative and focused on the physical application of Aikido for some practitioners it's used like active meditation. I agree that you've been in some toxic spaces filled with unbearable, dick swinging assholes but that is not an accurate representation of other Dojos. I wish all practitioners had the courage you showed when debunking what people project Aikido to be and glad you have a space that is not as toxic.

@Cmyimages

3 жыл бұрын

That being said please continue to make content like this. It opens up different dynamics of Aikido

I can see your point. I trained in a legitimate stand up art. But when we all became aware of what grapplers were capable of I didn't like the response from some of my instructors. We were taught to use honesty and humility for growth and I didn't see that in them so I had to move on. But I still respect my instructor and am thankful for him for what I did learn. But if I hadn't learned anything about self defense after 10 yrs I would feel like you.

As an Aikido practitioner i find watching you videos very helpful. Determination without self reflection and some healthy criticism can only lead to delusion.

I have followed this channel since way before the famous sparring match because I like the idea of Akido and want to learn about it. I had valued your opinion on it then and I also value your opinion after. I think that you are in a unique position to criticize the style because of your expertise. This means that as your thoughts on martial arts change and your thoughts on Akido change I am glad to hear your new perspectives because whatever you think about these topics you have that unique perspective and expertise. Even as your monologues on Akido have become increasingly negative over the years I still feel like I am learning about Akido. Now, when someone asks me about it I am likely to bring up cults, delusions, empty promises and means testing whereas in years past I would just say "MMA guys don't use it". My thoughts on it are now very complex because you continue to criticize it from new and unexpected angles. I have still not gotten sick of it

To me, it feels like you show the anger a smart Athiest has toward whatever they deconverted from. The anger, and the one-sided knee-jerk (perfectly accurate) way to address Aikido as a set of systems that are shrouded in deceit from the bottom up. If this is true, you will soften on the set of systems and their practitioners later in life, but you will never be able to partake in those rituals with any earnest again, you will recognize the deceit within the system and you will shy away from it. I had a very rough deconversion from Catholicism. I then leaned fully into materialism as a set of systems that had, at the very least tried to, base their understanding in reality. (with enough psychedelics that becomes clearly partial in its explanatory view as well) I am interested to see, as you grow and share with us publicly, which lessons you learned during your life within Aikido that stay with you and begin to identify as the baby within the bathwater.

hi, can you do a video about how to let aikido go? i agree with you and your ideas, but it is really hard to say that for 8 yers of practice i echived nothing.... it will be great for me.

@MartialArtsJourney

3 жыл бұрын

Hi Yahli! That's a great question. I will do my best to film a video with an answer to your question as soon as I can!

@sliderx1897

3 жыл бұрын

I wouldnt say u achieved " nothing" just maybe not what ur looking for

Having frank discussions about the mysticism of Aikido is very important. So is knowing your reason for practicing Aikido in the first place and knowing how that fits into your life and understanding as a thinking person what Aikido is and what it isn't. It might NYT be surprising for you to consider if it is a cult in your opinion or not. Having practiced it for years and even starting a dojo yourself, it matters how you viewed it and what your goal was in practicing Aikido. It's totally fine if you feel a different art or way suits your purposes and intentions better than one you had practiced for years and seemingly disciplined into and dedicated time into. It's fine if you discover for yourself, BJJ or any other art is a better fit for you. Does not necessarily mean, others view the same arts and disciplines as you do or have the same existential crisis in shifting toward another art or incorporating another art for your purposes. One thing I can say is that in discerning a practice's adaptability to certain situations you anticipate facing, if it's all or nothing, or absolutist or puts down other practices to elevate itself, than the practice hall or instructor or practice might be a cult, by definition. If not, then it isn't. If it pushes onto you and insists on notions that don't resonate with you, then it might be a cult. If it's more an existential crisis of finding a fit for you after having dedicated years of your life to one practice, wouldn't it be more fair to wonder if you would think the same as you do in the present, if you hadn't dedicated a good portion of your life's practice to Aikido? It's as important to to know what you want out of any practice and what your expectations are. For me, BJJ or MMA would for me be more about fitness and preparedness and situational awareness vs what would I do if I got into a bar fight or a rumble in a dark alley. Since my occupation doesn't force me into those situations, I would think less of gearing up for those scenarios in my life. I don't imagine personally I would be a competitive and near professional MMA fighter. But the fitness and awareness benefits would be astounding! So my answer is no. It is simply a martial art and like others, you would pick and choose based on what resonates with you.

@genghisgalahad8465

3 жыл бұрын

Also physical endurance and resilience as well as fortitude in being able to combat essentially within a ring win or lose repeatedly. It's a different "ballgame" and a respectable one. It may not be for everybody. Does not mean one art is the ultimate or renders another martial art as useless. It depends on what your goals, understanding and expectations are. Good journey!

I think the disillusionment to whatever belief you have comes when you start to look at why you are doing it in the first place. Lots of young men take martial arts for self defense, being able to fight, but lots of people train for health, community, structure etc. We feel betrayed when we realize our practice didn't prepare us for what we thought we were learning. I think a lot of that can come down to just facing the reality of what you want to learn. To survive on the street? To control weapons and fire arms? To fight in the cage? To fight one on one? I find lots of people abandon a TMA and go to MMA thinking that they are now practicing the supreme art for self defense and fighting but that is just not the truth. In the end you have to know why you are learning whatever art you are.

Perhaps the reasons why we may feel betrayed by Aikido and its community could fundamentally be misunderstood expectations. (1) We expected Aikido techniques to be highly effective on the street. (2) We expected our loyalty to the Aikido community to be reciprocated. (3) We expected the Aikido community culture to be very different from the traditional Japanese social system. Perhaps, the Aikido techniques we learn are actually not martial techniques, but merely exercises to develop bodily coordination and muscle memory. Perhaps, the Aikido community outlook of not intentionally seeking out new students to join, or seeking out old students who have left. This is the Zen outlook. Let things be. If they come, let them come. If they go, let them go. Let nature take its course. Perhaps, Aikido culture is merely following the traditional Japanese social culture. This will make traditional Japanese social culture a national cult then. Just my two-cents worth.

@MartialArtsJourney

3 жыл бұрын

Hi Randall. I think you are mostly right. But the issue in a way pretty much lies in the same place too. Many Aikido schools promote themselves as an effective martial art for the streets. Many Aikido schools expect loyalty and create a sense that if you will be loyal to the school, the school will be loyal to you. And I think that the Japanese culture aspect - it's normal to expect a difference when training in the West and the Japanese social system may not necessarily be a bad thing. But the issue is when that system is abused, misinterpreted and ends up doing more harm than good.

@Randall_Lim

3 жыл бұрын

@Martial Arts Journey Hi Rokas! That's so true! Aikido schools should never promote themselves as a system of self-defence, but self-development through movement and connection. The best self-defence is merely situational awareness and running away fast! On another note, most traditional East Asian societies are based on Confucianism. Of society over family. Family over self. Japanese society itself is gradually growing out of its own rigid traditional social structure. Some call this westernization. And perhaps, all it will take is the next generation of Japanese to almost fully eliminate this system in their own society. I believe Aikido culture in Japan will also follow likewise by the next generation. So, what is happening ("westernization") in western Aikido Dojos in this current generation, will also happen in Japanese dojo by the next generation. So Aikido Dojos of the next generation will no longer have a Japanese model to follow or abuse

I have a very specific question. From your experience does Aikido sometimes have a little bit of the Law of attraction aspect to it? Do people sometimes feel like they have an inate connection to the moves where to some level they just understand it even more than the people around them? Like the tranquility and good connection to the inner you would guide you in a confrontation or even in life?

@GTMarmot

2 жыл бұрын

It has guided his career. Tall man privilege plus massive dose of confidence. He made money being an aikido guru and now he makes more money as a KZread guru, using the SAME skills, I.e. people skills. Law of attraction in full effect.

As someone who has researched cults and brainwashing tactics, I think this is an incredibly important topics to address pertaining to martial arts.

I'd like to share my personal insight, for what it's worth. I train aikido, I teach aikido. I have an independent dojo. I share / have shared many of your criticism and insights. From cross-training, I became aware that aiki has no ground game. I've always compared aikido to other arts like comparing chess to checkers - it's a thinking man's game. It takes a long time to understand the "when" and "how" of it. But overall, I have to say that many criticisms that we may share are NOT of aikido, but of organizations that teach it. It's the dojos, the organizations, that breed the cult mentality. My students are encouraged to cross-train, to explore, to critique. I encourage them to present "this doesn't work", because it allows me to revisit how I taught it. I'm not above saying "Let's set that aside for now - I need to relearn that so I can teach it better". There is no fear of approaching me, or asking why something isn't working. And there is never blame of the student not doing it right. Perhaps not understanding fully, but that comes with time and practice. When we teach Aiki (we also teach karate), we have a picture of Ueshiba at the shomen that we bow to, but with no religious intent. It's actually a hand drawn picture that I created. It allows me to reference the history of the art, as well as demonstrate personal artistic expression. It also allows me to teach the concept of bowing from Japanese culture. It is not uncommon to bow to "things" to show respect or appreciation - imagine trying to shake hands with a picture of Einstein if you are studying science. Again, it's not religious, it simply opens the door to teaching other things. This grudge against the art sounds really like it's against the clubs/dojos, and not only your willingness to do what was "expected" to fit in, but your disappointment in leaders not living up to your expectation. I don't deny you your experience - and perhaps you encountered bad leaders and dojos. But please don't blame the art. Find a new dojo, new leaders, and examine what was it that makes you feel this way (I'm guessing that's the purpose of this follow up video. Or better yet, SHOW us how to be better. Be the change you want to see. Teach others without them fearing mistakes. Encourage students that mistakes are a process in learning. Share the experience you have been through, and let other benefit. When 1 teaches, 2 learn.

And often fights may arise in public places where very quickly the community can come together to resist or shame the disruptor.

Hi Rokas. First of all compliments on your journey. It takes a lot of courage and it´s no simple task to turn your life upside down and let go of what you thought defined you. Respect for that. As you noticed, it is not just a martial arts but a life journey as well. I do see some similarities between our martial paths and that is why I felt compelled to comment. From the video is apparent that you are hurting. You gave your all and you are disappointed that you didn´t become Steven Segal or whathever your goal was. You feel betrayed and left alone/rejected. That is all normal when you leave something (including with Blood-family not just oraganisations). You had a mutual interest that now doesn´t exist anymore. Your paths have diverged and everyone went their own way. That is life (friendships/family/sport organisations). What I notice is also a trace of anger (probably at yourself for believing you let yourself be duped). Let me confort you. You have not lost anything. I will talk about my journey so you can understand why I don´t think you have anything to regret. I practiced aikido for 17+ years, had my own dojo, etc.... I started with a teacher that was a brawler (with knowledge of Judo and Goshin jutsu) that used aikido to calm himself and swore at it´s effectivness. I spent 11 years practicing with him and trying to apply it to hooks, jabs, low kicks, doing floor drills etc. As we were part of Shin shin toitsu Aikido (also known as Ki-Aikido) we were constantly percieved as heretics or brutes. I pressure tested it also, first as an assailant against different teachers (kick, grabs, punches, multiple attackers) and later as an aikidoka against black belts Tae kwon do and Karate (at that time there was no BJJ or MMA to test). And it worked, splendidly. But as I evolved so did my perspective. I started as a 15 yo kid, now I have reached my 40th birthday. When I was young I attacked without holding back and was thrown about effortlessly, as I developed (both physically as technically) that stopped being the case. I attended some classes with the same teachers about 10 years later and they were not able to do anything without my compliance (In my eyes that was like the Gods had fallen to earth). So in time, some of the things my teachers used to say received a deeper meaning and started resonating differently. "If you want to be efficient, get a gun". That is the most honest truth you will get. If you train martial arts to become an unbeatable monster, you will lose. There will always be someone better, if not at your art, than at something different. You look at Doug Marcaida and you get thinking, great, I can practice like him and always have a Karambit about. So you will be able to defeat almost every unarmed fighter. Until you encounter one with a gun (and so on). Point being, the question is why are you practicing? Aikido is like an oldtimer car, when it was "invented" it was great (medieval Japan), but in the meantime with the advance of technology, cross training, MMA it is not the "go to" martial art if you search for effectivness. None of the Koryu (traditional martial arts- Karate, Judo, etc..) are. But that makes a drive along the coast in said oldtimer none the less enjoyable. Koichi Tohei (in my eyes one of the greatest/and I had the honor of having studied under one of his pupils) used aikido merely as a vessel to improve on one´s health, coordination etc. Most of my teachers also always emphasized the health over the fighting aspect of it. If you are doing it to have fun, develop yourself (be better today than you were yesterday), center yourself... it works wonders. It has helped me a thousand times in my work and personal life. It has also saved me when I was attacked on the street (keep in mind that the average Joe/thug seldom has the discipline and dedication to study any martial art), but it has helped me even more to recognize potentially problematic situations before they arose. As far as being a cult, you can apply that to every Koryu depending on the teacher (to a certain degree we were a cult within aikido itself because we perceived ourselves as the "Though ones" and everybody else was wrong). Enjoy life and what it has to offer, be tollerant, people will believe as they choose to (it is so for Koryu as well as for religion). You are blessed to be able to live off martial arts, in that I envy you. But life is made of "transitions". I used to practice 6 times a week and swore on aikido as the only constant in my life (despite being fully aware of it´s shortcomings), than I became a father and martial arts became secondary. Everything you do defines you, builds you, brings to what you are. Even your aikido journey (whether you like it or not) has steered you to what you are today. It helped you get a deeper understanding. It is a brickstone in the path that is your life. The problem arises only if you are not satisfied with what you are/how you turned out. Aikido is and always will be a part of you (and a reference point), because it is a building block that made you what/who you are today. The moment you accept that, you will be able to take the good it brought your way and move forward (either as aikidoka, or MMA, or wahtever you choose to be). Perhaps in 10 years you will come back to it to search for sanctuary in it´s philosophy, meditation, practice because it will sooth your soul. Perhaps you won´t. There isn´t a correct path. There is only the path that sooths you most (and this path will change during the years). I hope you find your peace first. Everything else is frankly irrelevant. Nothing I have written was meant to be disrespectful and I apologise if it came across that way. Best regards

Hi Rokas. I would be interested to find out if the aikido family you used to be a part of tried to control their students off the mat. For example only eating certain foods, practicing spiritual philosophies that are similar to aikido, shunning most martial arts etc. Or was the cult mentality only when aikido was discussed and everyone put the hakama on? You mentioned as a spiritual teacher you avoided swearing and in a previous video you said you looked the typical aikido guy but cutting things out of your diet (along those lines I think but correct me if I'm wrong) but it does sound like it affected living your life out of the dojo.

@MartialArtsJourney

3 жыл бұрын

Oh yeah, off the mat was definitely a thing. We weren't officially forced to do or not do something, but there were a lot of Strong suggestions regarding food, decisions, opinions, etc

@phanourios1279

3 жыл бұрын

@@MartialArtsJourney just found this video recently released in Japan. I left a comment and would be very interested to hear your thoughts. kzread.info/dash/bejne/g66tmrqBcZmXnJM.html It's great to see an Aikidoka in a MMA gym but it's not stepping out of the comfort zone.

I'll be one of those guy's missing in my schools. But also I see them too. And I see movements in the spaces I go.

I also think you're not alone in this part of the journey I think in martial arts history these things happen a lot. And I think lots of people have and will make transitions like you have. Andbpeople like you cause others to make positive moves.

Rokas you should try a Taekwondo class and make a video on it. That would be cool to see

@hiskandar

3 жыл бұрын

For Tae Kwon Do, check Thanh Le from One Championship MMA, he uses a lot of TKD techniques since his father owns TKD dojo.

@andret3739

3 жыл бұрын

Im not a tkd guy but i have sparred with some people who are, they are good fighters and have some very powerfull kicks so i know it is a legit martial art BUT it does have some wierd cult vibes

@hiskandar

3 жыл бұрын

@@andret3739 IMO, ALL MA is legit. It's just NOT All MA students want to build power, speed and stamina needed for the fight. Imagine Khabib Nurmaginedov now practice ballet dancing, and now he uses ballet technique to fights someone weaker (in power, speed and stamina) than him, but this weak fighter knows all the technique from MMA very well. I still put my money on Khabib. Now question, If being strong in power speed and stamina not important, then why did some fight sport athletes use dopping with performance enhancing drug? Because they want to be stronger.

@Juel92

3 жыл бұрын

I would like him to do both a WT and a ITF class and see if there is a difference. From what I've heard there seem to be a bigger focus on kicks in WT and more on all parts in ITF but would like to see if that is true.

I believe that there should be cross training in order to make Aikido effective. If you think someone is a good guy ask them for help to make a style of Aikido that works. Help people not hurt them.

Competing isn't wrong. Even in Uke Nage the competition is simply harmonized to a pleasant interaction. But that's what we want with competition or in sports. We want to try and be pressed and create in a safe environment. That's what sportsmanship is and it's really good for us. To try and fail and have opposition in a safe supportive space. We want to all walk away happy. We want to walk away happy and we want our opponent to walk away happy. Having had a good day and a good game. Even if we want to win. We don't want to see our opponent dismantled forever ,but living a good life.

Now having watch part 2. Totally understand how you felt betrayed by your old org. That sucks. Do have a question for you. When you say there are some "good" Aikido dojos out there, what exactly does that look like? No etiquette? No dojo-cho? Doesn't talk about all the spiritual BS?

I liked this video very much, as well as the build up to it over the last several months. I think I notice a pattern in them, and therefore in your own personal growth journey, that's been studied in depth in developmental psychology over the past 60+ years, so I'd like to provide you three Wikipedia links that maybe will help you understand your own current life stage, as well as previous ones, a little better. The first is about psychologist Jean Piaget's "Theory of Cognitive Development". It's the basis for the next two links, so it's important to first understand it: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Piaget%27s_theory_of_cognitive_development Psychologist Lawrence Kohlberg then developed his "Theory of the Stages of Moral Development" on top of Piaget's. It has to do not with specific moral practices, but with the cognitive ability to reason morally, which grows in complexity and range as one matures. Kohlberg's theory is one of the most well tested psychological theories of the last century, having been tested in field studies on multiple countries across several cultures, genders, religions, and socioeconomic human groups, and been confirmed be psychometrically sound, so it is as much of a gold standard when it comes to evidence-based psychological research as one may hope to find. It is also a prerequisite for the third link: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lawrence_Kohlberg%27s_stages_of_moral_development Finally, psychologist James W. Fowler built on top of both Piaget and Kohlberg to develop his "Theory of the Stages of Faith". It has much less corroborative evidence than the other two, but it's quite informative all the same, as it provides a framework upon which to properly locate the process of developing a crisis of faith, then _growing_ into an oppositive attitude to that former faith based not on a mere rejection of that faith due to having moved to a different one, but on having overcome the cognitive limits inherent to _all_ faiths with a similar structure, and what follows after that stage, too, is outgrown. Hence why I think you'll find it useful: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/James_W._Fowler I hope this helps! And I surely look forward to your next videos. :-)

Aikido is like playing combatting with style. So why not ? There are teachers who are taking it very serious and occupy themselves with ZEN philosophy. Why not ? Aikido practicing can be contemplative? We understood already that it doesn’t really work for self defense... I strongly recommend to see the movie „The Art of self-Defense“ with Jesse Eisenberg. Funny and it explains why losers turn to martial arts and become dangerous for themselves. Every cult is escapism...

@BorneoHeadHunter666

3 жыл бұрын

Aikido doesn't work by itself.

@danieletrotta5452

3 жыл бұрын

i'm watching the film and i like it thank you for the tip or the advice im not too good in eng

@HardyPlump

3 жыл бұрын

@@BorneoHeadHunter666 There is a great and inspiring Aikido teacher without any cult approach or not trying to be an unreachable or a charismatic leader : Philippe Gouttard . If you find his videos on KZread you will understand...

@BorneoHeadHunter666

3 жыл бұрын

@@HardyPlump, Yes i know him. He is honest about Aikido is not for self defense or combat but as self improvement or enlightenment. That i can respect.

Well you're certainly not a bully for sharing your feelings and experiences and even if you are biased it's your bias because of your bad experiences. I can only imagine thinking aikido is the best self defence art and then after many years having to face the truth. As I said I'm going to start aikido but am under no illusion that if works for self defence very well, but my father thinks it's 5he best self defence art of all time and is going to do it with me and I'm kinda scared he's going to face the same challenges as he has thought this since he was like 18 (he's almost 50 now). PS: Batman is pretty cool.

Testing aikido on an MMA fight er is an insanely ballsy move. Entering chaos where movements aren't well translated, but also just facing down shear muscle y bulk of an ultimate ki test. I honestly think if you had more chances. Or learned to acclimate to that fear, or knew more about what was coming and could come. They MMA fighter could be thrown. Or if you were simply in a crowded bar and and angry guy threw a punch. You could do a simple movement and throw an unexpecting aggressor who has no visible way to be aware of the techniques you know. As individual martial artists training in small schools. We are training to learn, have fun, and have a community. But if we are training to fight ... we aren't training for the muscled giant or the trained fighter, we are training for the angry untrained disruptive person or even a large disruptive person who does not know what we know.

Haven't finished the video yet so I'm not sure if you mention it, but I think it'd be a good idea to go live on YT. That way you'll have real time dialogue with us and it'll be 100% honest between us and you 👍🏼 Like this comment guys if you think it's a good idea for Rokas !

I've thought about getting into aikido but i got a weird vibe from just reading the website info on local place.

@MartialArtsJourney

3 жыл бұрын

Good foresight

Steven Hassan , and Rick Rubben , Ted Patrick cult experts, bite model ,keep up good work.

Hola, creo que hay mucha arrogancia hoy en día en el Aikido, que dista mucho de las enseñanzas de o´sensei. Tener distintos puntos de vista distintas vistas, es lo que nos hace crecer, no solo en nuestras artes marciales sino como personas. Además de practicar Aikido e practicado Bjj, Tae Kwondo, karate, full contac, etc. Y hoy elijo el Aikido en su expresión mas filosófica y tradicional; y reconozco mis falencias como practicante tanto de aikido como en otras artes marciales. Veo gente que se dicen sensei de aikido, retandote, criticando tu punto de vista, siendo muy argresivos,... y eso es muy distante de lo que el aikido es. Espero que cada uno ecuentre su rumbo sin tratar de que el otro cambie de opinion a la fuerza. Saludos, y te felicito por el canal, muy ilustrativo, y se aprende mucho!

And part of being a bad sport is to profess to have something that you do not...which is why we like competition in ideas sports and fights. Professing to have something you don't or spreading false things is detrimental to the well being of people who try to act on those things.

I don’t think the experiences we commonly shared in aikido had anything to do with “Aikido”. There’s only one person that practiced Aikido and that is O’Sensei. Aikido was developed for a specific purpose. O’Sensei probably observed the destructive nature of martial arts as well as the destructive nature of human beings. In no way was aikido developed to have anything to do with self defense or fighting. I believe that’s the biggest falsehood in Aikido is when the instructor gets up in front of the students and describes how to make this particular technique effective. If you watch videos of O’Sensei’s Aikido there is nothing but blending. I believe he thought if everyone learns to blend and not conflict and compete through a physical exercise that practice would eventually translate into better cooperation in life. It is my observation that Aikido today has very little resemblance to the original purpose. Everyone is doing their version of O’Sensei‘s Aikido “ techniques” and attaching it to the Aikido “name”. The abusive nature of Aikido teachers is not the fault of Aikido but many other factors involved. At this point you’ve worked through your own delusions of Aikido as well as bad experiences so it’s time to move on. Take what you’ve learned and start building something good for you and your community. Once you reach your genuine path you seem like the kind of person that will leave your community better than you found it.

In that context you don't need the perfect submission just something to throw them and make a spectacle and offer a "pointy" stick which is not worth challenging again.

My gym said if I want to learn to fight fast take the Sanda class. Otherwise I have to work up 6 months into sparring.

Thank for the excellent warning. However I am thankful I was not in a cult. Also a hard art philosophy failed me.

when u made ur first video, u knew the outcome, or u were actually experimenting still "believing" in aikido?

When you get really good at Muay Thai, BJJ, & other mixed martial arts, you should challenge your former Aikido teachers. Not in a bullying way, but for reasons of 'truth'. Debunking the myths of Aikido. Once you beat them, what can they then say about their effectiveness? That might give you the final closure you need. The circle completed. Your 'Martial Arts Journey' might be the path, of exposing certain Aikidoka, whom espouse that Aikido is an effective martial art, for self defense. Just a thought for you, Rokas :-).

Hi rocas, What do you think of aikijutsu? They also do grappling

@BorneoHeadHunter666

3 жыл бұрын

Judo, Jiu-Jitsu and Aikido derived from Aikijutsu. Judo and BJJ being the most practical and Aikido the worse.

@casvandenberg4250

3 жыл бұрын

@@BorneoHeadHunter666 i personally like judo grappling more. Or do you think bjj kills every judoka?

@BorneoHeadHunter666

3 жыл бұрын

@@casvandenberg4250, Judo is great in throws. BJJ is great on the ground. Both are superior in submission. Both are great martial arts.

@casvandenberg4250

3 жыл бұрын

@@BorneoHeadHunter666 wow...i got so many hates of people. I said judo is superior over bjj. 🤯. But indeed it differs from the person. I owned judo blackbelts. And got beaten by bjj whitebelts. And the other way around

@BorneoHeadHunter666

3 жыл бұрын

@@casvandenberg4250, I'm also a Black Belt in Judo and a Blue Belt in BJJ.

Rokas you should try a kung fu class. I suggest Hung Gar.

carlos gracie was practically the Joseph Smith of Jiujitsu

Yeah, personal growth is important. Rokas, you should say everything that you feel about Aikido and your whole journey isn't the whole channel all about that ? On the topic of Aikido I think it has practical fighting value, unless it's a 'cult-like' that states that it's the best or similar. As other coaches of MMA say - if you wish to mix your martial arts, you learn everything you can for a martial art and then use whatever you personally think is viable. Whoever train any martial art to do some sport, fight boredom, move a bit more in all the sedentary way of living or similar - he has done nothing wrong ... Hell he can even train tap-dancing, as long as he doesn't try to convert others that this is they best way of living your life and preaching on every occasion how this is superior then any other hobby or w/e. Those people are annoying and usually shallow on top of that. I personally have trained Aikido for an year after a lot of other martial arts and the thing I found fascinating in it are not the locks (which are just choreograph usage of body mechanics used in other martial arts as well), but the side-stepping. Side-stepping may be used in other sports, but they were not available to me and I found very interesting and useful how moving a single step can change the whole situation and open whole different types of possible outcomes. Now mix that with any grappling or striking and you are halfway the place you wanted to be as a martial artist. A friend of mine trained Aikido, I was training Kyokushin Karate at that time. After we left the gym (they were in a sports complex) we get to his car which was blocked in the parking lot. He become very frustrated and kicked the side-mirror of the other car and ... the people were just coming to move their vehicle. It was not that big of a deal in the end, but during the small talk the owner of the car stated that it was very unexpected to him that the "Kyokushin" student to be so relaxed and calm, while the aikido one to be so aggressive and spontaneous. I think that after he trained there he become much more relaxed, but his life is on average very stressful etc. but what defines a person is not what he trains, but why he trains it for.

Would you join Kyudo to improve your archery? Clearly not, that's just silly. Same happens with Aikido. It should be done for cultural/social/health reasons.

@MartialArtsJourney

3 жыл бұрын

Yet it's not always promoted like that

I thinknyou understand that there is some realness to what you experienced in aikido and that part of you won't shake off, so it creates a bitterness and internal conflict. I think that there is value in all these traditions. Sometimes they are better practiced in isolation and some things can be melded together. But the value of the tradition is not necessarily in competition or it may work well in one situation and fail in another. But then also as a fighter there is a mental space for bring the fight to your ideal ground. And in many situations in live fights not in cages where opponents are tied to a prize, simple solutions can arise from these practices that are useful or even evade fighting. I think on a basic human level courage is tied to what you are fighting for. Is it a prize. Is it safety or loved one's or a beloved cause? And what strength arises from the meaning and connection to that meaning.

@tip9223

3 жыл бұрын

Meaning can be in increasing that value of these arts. Or for competitors testing and pushing eachother to nee heights and fitness. As a traditional martial arts practitioner, I think that you are bringing value by questioning and helping people to deal with instances of confirmation bias and understand the meaning behind their own unique practice in it's strengths and it's failings. That pressure test is good and I think these arts are also good for many reasons both as defense and a social community and as a pursuit of meaning and spiritual tradition. And I think these are questions were all asking with you.

@tip9223

3 жыл бұрын

I think you're in a stage that I find myself, which is also part of daily life where you are in a state of looking back and assessing what is real of what you gained and what is illusion. What you are as a martial artist and what you have to offer that is somewhat different from what others bring that don't have the depth of experience you have had in aikido.

@tip9223

3 жыл бұрын

I think confirmation bias ocurrs sometimes because we care about the person who is our teacher as a person or the stranger in up in front and we don't want to embarass them. And so it's navigating that space together with shared goal of practicing well and still caring for our friends and co practitioners. And that's what we do in the world in these chaotic times of conflicting perspecive and information. We are caring for eachother, but also we collectively have to sort what is effective and meaningful from what is ineffective and destructive. We have to care for the real people who have value who may be wrong about one thing and right and useful in so many ways.

Guy who had many years fun with aikido: Aikido doesn't work on the Street, MMA is much better Same guy one year later: Hm, okay, perhaps Martial Arts isn't so interesting for me anymore... So why not having fun with Aikido? Nobody asks Kendo practicioners if it works on the street

@sliderx1897

3 жыл бұрын

Well i suppose if you had a stick...

But skill is not easily attained and it is not always easily measured in knowledge etc... Which is why we hold insitutions sacred and people who hold those places in society... Teacher's etc carry a heavier burden and higher expectations and it is not an easy spot to be. People in insitutions are well trained and expected to be. When they start crumbling or failing it is bad and embarassing ... And scary for people who have come to depend on them. They are not easily replaced. And that's what happens in disruptive times and it is costly.

And there is really no prize for that bad interraction. It's just back to daily life. Even people with all the greatest prizes and awards have to return to daily life.

Now a days I think people practice Aikido for all the wrong reasons. If you had a bad teacher then its a good thing to warn people not to be a victim of bad teaching. However I do believe that Aikido can be saved with cross training with kickboxing

this is like bruce lee , when had the fight in oakland and learned the limitation of traditional wing chun, and his real education began

Hi Rokas, I have been watching a lot of your videos the past year and have a lot of respect for anyone who changes tact. Likewise I can understand the frustration you feel if you have been mis-sold what Aikido is, what it is capable of being, and ultimately what it can be. That fault lies solely with the organisation, the instructors, and the way they treated you which is so far in keeping with the 'spirit' of the art itself that it shows in the light of day a lot more about them and their attitude. I have seen this and experienced it both in Aikido and in other arts who gave me the 'closed door' attitude - i.e. if you are not one of us then you are effectively dead to them. I have studied martial arts for over 43 years now - I love what Aikido can be, but rather than buying into the BS side of it I have structured what i teach to a non-standard, style and never assume i know it all. I still teach it and also strip it back for more 'applied' purposes. But i also cross-train and encourage all my students to do the same- Aikido on its own does not function in applicability without the knowledge to support it, but if you can bring in your own experience and make the techniques essentially your own style then some it can be beneficial for many martial arts. To lose oneself in any style and ethos is to give away your power and it is good to see someone like yourself work to try and take that power back. More importantly you get the question out there. Unfortunately Aikido is easily perverted by too much of the spirituality that, being western, we cannot actually understand in full and it is too easy for many to fall into those types of dangerous dojo offering things that lead them into that cult-like status. These guys need to be shut down in my honest opinion as they drag down all the hard working clubs out there that want to just train as effectively as possible (ie a more traditional style more akin to the old Aiki-Budo of Ueshiba, and prior to the individualised and stylised systems offered by the predecessors - it is here i think the problems arise). Keep it up and keep doing what is right for you - good luck on your journey and do not underestimate the good you are doing for martal arts and critical questioning. Remember you are only human so you will get through any bias or experience in time if you do what is right for you.

Do you want reflection? Here is one: You probably don't care for money, once you actually tried to make Aikido teaching your way of living, but you do care about fame, about compliments and about getting people to like you. You actually made a video about a new channel about your new "journey" and, once it did not get much subscribers, you came back here. I suppose you know that your MMA or BJJ techniques videos don't get as much "likes" and views as aikido critics videos, so you keep going again and again around this subject. I think it was good what you did, cause this mainstream Aikido training that you practice really suck martially speaking, and is not even close to what was practiced back on the origins (whatsoever if it worked or not). Challenge for you: once you doesn't really care about it, are you really able to not talk about aikido for a hole year? Can your pride, your ego make it? I really doubt it! Take this as a critical thought.

Lol you are super duper biased. Everyone is. I suggest you embrace your biases and be honest about them. That way you can address how your biases shape your work/journey. The idea that humans can be objective is not realistic.

@TomTom-sm7il

3 жыл бұрын

@@madmoonrabbit it seems to me that everything that is important to us requires an emotional investment. Family, work, politics, etc. Even the sciences are problematic for us. History shows that scientists have made big mistakes while believing they were being objective. For example, eugenicists on the 1950's thought they were being objective. They didn't mean to be racist. From what I understand, rokas started aikido because he wanted to learn fighting/self defense. It didn't work out. That is where his biases come from and that is what shapes his critique of aikido. It's good for him to acknowledge that rather than strive for objectivity. That will make it easier for him to critique his own position because his biases will be clear.

I won a lot of fights with boxing, wrestling and Olympic Fencing.

@TheRubypokespe

3 жыл бұрын

Ok, Train Man

All right Rokas you seem to still be reeling in the experience so I'm going to help you out. Think about this moment right now this is your starting point. Now go back and find a moment before you started training martial arts this is your ending point. Now you're going to in high speed taking only two seconds relive all of your experiences from the end to the beginning . Before you do this I want you to think about your distress level. Give it a number scale of 1 to 10 10 being the worst. Now you're going to run this mental simulation 8 to 10 times and after you're going to retest to see where you're distressed level is. When you're distressed level gets down to below a three you can stop. After that do these to clear it from your body. kzread.info/dash/bejne/eJmJy9F9pa3Qdqw.html Your loss of identity is strictly from the fact that you built up your identity around these concepts and systems. As you've seen when you build up your identity around things that involve other people they will disappoint you in every way imaginable. When you build up your identity around yourself around your knowledge around your skills around your abilities the only person who can disappoint you is you food for thought.

@BorneoHeadHunter666

3 жыл бұрын

Building identity is one thing. But not proclaiming Aikido works as a martial arts.

@ninjaspam2000

3 жыл бұрын

@@BorneoHeadHunter666 what the heck are you talking about?

Thanks for addressing the other side and the difficult position of the art of aikido and clearly admitting that your main motivation for what at times seems to me like a smear campaign is personal hurt. I have to say the cult video was kind of insulting, aikidokas are mostly just ordinary people having hobbies just like within any other arts. I don't know if washing dirty laundry on KZread is the best way to go, it might make you feel better but you are putting others in a difficult position. I encourage you to try to find a someone to talk about your hurt and to find a a way to move on without a chip on your shoulder. I don't think you always fully realize what the consequences of some of the more judgemental attitudes of your videos do for martial arts communities in general, not just aikido. Creating division breaks up the bonds between martial art communities and practitioners and what i'm most worried is that it can make young people insecure or ashamed about their hobbies. It also sets struggling traditional arts against MMA context, and we all know who the losers are in that scenario. We should rejoice the freedom of choice and diverse martial arts making people of all ages and genders move, sweat and to better themselves. This should be the goal of every coach or teacher regardless of art or sport. You have 150k followers and you can be considered a major influencer and you should really think about your responsibility as one. All in all, I think this was your best video to date and despite many of my critical thoughts about your channel, I really understand you better now and thank you for this video.

Honesty is best, I cant imagine what 15 years of bullshit will do

People build cult around soccer teams, sports players, movie stars, politicians, ideologies, etc, so I don't see something exclusive of martial arts, rather a human being void. A personal observation, feel free to disagree.

I may learn HEMA or Judo or MMA.

no one is truly unbiased don't feel guilty for that, u r actually trying very honestly to be objective...

My take on you swearing about aikido... You may at some point be over "it" for yourself, but I'd imagine you'd not or never be over "it" being done to other people. "What is that "it"?" feels to me, like a prominent question for your own personal understanding. You see not all aikido as bad so it doesn't seem "it" is aikido exactly. You seem to swear when angry (no big surprise) and in counselling therapy we talk about anger as a masking emotion - it tends to hide something else. Maybe a clue to what that "it" is? No I don't know or think I know what "it" is. (This is not full professionally considered advice obviously)

@liaozalia

3 жыл бұрын

Btw, thanks for sharing so openly

Wow i have seen so many batman in this channel

Talk all you want to about Aikido or anything else It’s ok

Do you have a grudge against Aikido?

@MartialArtsJourney

3 жыл бұрын

A little bit :)

@user-bd1nr2ss9g

3 жыл бұрын

@@MartialArtsJourney kzread.info/dash/bejne/doZssrN_ktbXfMY.html He is a former MMA fighter from Tomiki Aikido. He is now opening a gym that teaches Aikido and MMA to children and professionals. There is also such a way of life.

The rest is history

All philosophies and beliefs can be used to create a cult, to do wrong things. What you experimented with Aikido not was because the art itself was more because of the instructors you had. Every martial artist that wants to become a real master end creating their own martial art, because it's the conclusions of their paths because everyone's unique and what works for someone doesn't work for everyone that's why my solution for you it's creating your own type of Aikido and only trying to be loyal to the meaning of Aikido and the philosophy of Morihei Ueshiba, the techniques and the rest really don't matter if they're not effective in your opinion. Looks like inside you exists a battle between someone that loves aikido and someone that hates it, try to consolidate both and find peace to going forward in your path like a martial artist. I hope my words can help you.

Teach Me

@MartialArtsJourney

3 жыл бұрын

Doing my best to teach via my videos :)

Now, Rokas, let me ask you this... Is YOUR CHANNEL A CULT? ಠ_ಠ

Bad sports are hated for a reason

Do what you are doing. I was in Kenpo as a kid. It was total BS. I am really enjoying these last few years watching you expose Aikido. It needs to be destroyed.

You know that the non-sparring version of any martial art is not the real version of that art, and that therefore the REAL Aikido is one of the sparring variations - which you never actually trained in. You still owe yourself cross training in Hatenkai, Tomiki or Heinkido. No amount of having famous MMA coaches criticizing those real variations of Aikido will save you from your own conscience, after all the fame you have gotten from criticizing Aikido!

Its a cult...

I think u miss her

@MartialArtsJourney

3 жыл бұрын

😂😂

I don't think you have anything useful to add to this discussion anymore, and that is the reason you should stop. There are others doing terrific and insightful work in modernising the art, like Bruce Bookman. Your journey has been fascinating and now exists for the record. Aikido weapons taught me how to "intercept" my opponent's jab before he threw it. My coach didn't teach me that. It is not an art for direct one-on-one combat, but a set of tools that exist, and remain useful, in windows. A good chef doesn't always add salt. The same is true of great fighters. Combat infantry no longer ride into the field on horseback, but legacy weapons are weapons, not to be deployed perhaps, but of interest in any case, like a Spitfire fighter or a Harrier jump jet. Aikido is now the least interesting thing you talk about and unless you plan to return and add your combat experience, let it go.

again o sensei joined a cult during the death of his father , ripe for cult recruitment!

Why drag religion ito it?

Your Aikido is cult, mine isn’t.

I love your videos but I just sat for 30 minutes listening to you justifying making those videos. Was this video necessary at all? Honestly the worst of your videos. Still looking forward to the next one though :D

@MartialArtsJourney

3 жыл бұрын

Haha 😂 I wasn't sure if this video was necessary or not too. But some people said they found it useful so I guess it wasn't all bad. I see what you mean though 😁 I think you'll find the next two videos much more interesting!

@ahmedrahbeeni1169

3 жыл бұрын

@@MartialArtsJourney Its okay Rokas. I love your style of asking questions and critiquing beliefs and coming up with solid arguments or viewpoints which is why I find your videos thoughtful and inspiring. Is Aikido a cult part 1 was a really good video so when I saw part 2 I thought you were gonna add more arguments or viewpoints to that video but all that happened was you going on the defensive for 30 minutes justifying something that did not have to be justified. Much love and looking forward to the next two videos.

Anyone that teaches Aikido is already not a good guy.

cognitive dissonance, effects

you don't need any training in other martial arts or anything like it... you need therapy.

@MartialArtsJourney

3 жыл бұрын

I'm on it