This week, my wife and I took part in the general class, rather than being given more personal individual instruction as beginners. The class was taught by Payet Sensei, Head Instructor of our dojo in Kyoto and very distinguished Yoshinkan Aikido Shihan. Payet Sensei gave me a lot of constructive criticism and correction over the course of the evening, which I was thankful for and felt truly honoured to be studying under him. As a westerner living in Japan and learning Aikido, Payet Sensei and his assistant instructors are an inspiration to me.
I think most people engaged in learning and studying desire one day to become an expert. At least I do. I know that I don`t want to be a neophyte forever. I have dreams and ambitions in Yoshinkan Aikido, even if they are only pipe dreams. I desire not just to earn my black belt, but to perfect to the best of my ability this wonderful and challenging art. But the path from novice to true proficient and master takes many years of hard work, dedication and rigorous, purposeful training; I am under no illusion. Within Yoshinkan Aikido the emphasis until Nidan (2nd degree black belt) is that of control and connection with your uke, not speed. Yoshinkan means "cultivation of the spirit", so it should come as no surprise that it takes training in the basics and fundamentals very seriously before moving onto more advanced waza.
I have to temper my ambitions and humble myself before every class. I am not the sensei, nor will I be for the foreseeable future. Instead I have to learn to enjoy being a beginner and that is something I am taking genuine pleasure in right now - to be able to attend classes every week and discover a new technique, to be shown something I have not seen before or have had no prior opportunity to practice; to begin to get a feel for how each technique works: it`s mechanics, it`s effectiveness and it`s intention. This is genuinely a wonderful time of excitment and awe for me. That is why I want to savour the experience of being a beginner, to be humble and not make too many demands on myself but just to continue training and continue enjoying the experience of learning new things.
