Budo Training in Aikido - Preface

by Morihei Ueshiba, O-Sensei

Editor's Note: The following is the preface of Budo Training in Aikido by Morihei Ueshiba, founder of Aikido...

Bu derives from God's own substance and mind, and is a major spiritual component of the truth, goodness and beauty embodied in the founding of our nation. Bujutsu arose along the way of the Imperial nation and lays its foundation on the sincerity of Kotodama expression coming from the Aiki between Man and the hundreds of gods (Kami). Moreover this sincere mind, which we call the Yamato Spirit, is attained through training the body. By trying to unite the body in this spirit, which is oneness resulting from the training of the sincere soul, Bujutsu takes as its purpose the building of the sincere man, possessing the spiritual oneness and unity which allows not the slightest opening between the body and the spirit.

As soon as Man is born, he encounters troublesome times. However, if you train in such as way that every encounter is seen as a major crisis, that is, as true Shugyo or as a vitally important trial, then you can go back and forth between the arenas of the living and the dead and it becomes possible to transcend the very idea of life and death. The main thing is to attain the "Way" which opens up [reality] calmly and clearly, just as in "every-day" situations, no matter what kind of terrible crisis or dangerous events you may face.

In olden times it was said the Bu was conveyed from the gods to the Emperor, and then to the military commanders. There is wisdom in this; namely, that this "Way" realizes the genuineness of the Imperial way. With this in mind, we understand and embody the truth of Heaven and Earth and, for the sake of governing the universe, master worldly affairs inside our stomachs by means of the Universal Kokyu and our own breathing. We come to express the sincerity of genuine spiritual unity and oneness-of-soul which takes charge of the masses with its technique of oneness and instructs us in the way of governing the nation, of pacifying the public, of dispersing evil and of spreading the right law. The main purpose [of Bu, then,] is to enhance the prestige of the Empire and to bring light to the whole nation.

[The contents of] this book were taught taking in consideration the time, place and the mentality of the participants at the summer school of Showa [1933].

As social conditions change and the human mind progresses, [your] Bujutsu should continually shift direction, under the guidance of [your] senior. But, by reading this book and training, understanding of the true meaning of Bujutsu will grow unconsciously and you will become a true master.

Moreover, since this book will be passed down to the trainee who has received its instruction as a sort of certificate of achievement, the author sincerely asks the trainees to build up [a store of] hard training experience every day under [qualified] instruction [in order to] master the essential techniques and to proceed onto more advanced ones.

Excerpt from Translator’s Introduction

… Due to the historical nature of this work certain difficulties arose, especially in deciding to what degree we should try to produce clear and precise English. Any precise translation could easily become a personal translation, limiting the contents and range of the translator's individual understanding at this particular point in his or her training. Therefore, after consulting some of the highest Sensei in Aikido and other arts it was decided to strive for a translation that would both preserve the simplicity of the original expression and at the same time leave open to the reader at least the possibility of coming up with the broad set of ideas and associations indicated in the Japanese.

This book appeared in 1933 and is the first published account of O-Sensei's art. Although not actually written down by him, it is a transcription of lectures and explanations which was later reviewed by the founder and approved as a teacher's manual. The political and historical context of the times should be kept in mind. No attempt has been made to edit the text.

The original copy has O-Sensei's title which was simply "Budo Renshu", i.e. "Budo Training". Later the second Doshu annotated this with the word "Aikido". The Dojo decided on using the original name here despite the fact that most Japanese copies are entitled "Aikijujutsu Ogi", or "The Secrets of Aikijujutsu". The latter is actually an interpretive heading used by the copyists.

The original was hand-written and illustrated. Later this was copied out several times, using tracing paper to reproduce the illustrations. During this process errors easily crept in…. In this edition these obvious errors have been corrected to match the illustrations…

Please note that the parentheses indicate the insertion, for your reference, of a Japanese word used in the text for the preceding English word (except for a few cases in the technique section where O-Sensei used parentheses in the original). Square brackets are the translator's insertions for the sake of the English. By simply deleting the sections enclosed by them, they allow readers to refer to O-Sensei's exact words, if they choose to do so.

Although not for the beginner, it is hoped that access to this historically important text will be useful in understanding Aikido and its origins for those who have taken Budo as their 'Way'.

Larry E. Bieri & Seiko Mabuchi