Martial Arts sportification is a result of several reasons. Political and/or economical reasons are often the cause of inspiration for many. The Japanese Military Government during the first half of the 20th century is an example. To survive in an economic-inspired world, Japanese Martial Arts had to change their view and training after WW2. Sport is a significant business that cannot be overlooked.
Entering the WORLD COMBAT GAMES as a step-up to becoming an Olympic disciple has changed the Aikikai’s perspective. (https://www.worldcombatgames.sport/aikido/).
Aikido is a modern Japanese martial art with deep roots in traditional Japanese fighting arts, either empty-handed or with weapons. It evolved into non-violence, becoming a non- competitive martial art with the objective of self-improvement. Aikido is an effective martial art, blending with the force of the opponent without being destructive and, as such, is used by law enforcement agencies in Japan and many other countries. Aikido is categorised as a demonstration martial art by alternating attacks and defences. The sport does not have gender or weight classifications.
This very clever maneuver is blocking the other ‘Aiki’ do methods to become a member and reap the financial and economic benefits.
What is “Martial Art”?
Martial arts are codified systems and traditions of combat practiced for self-defense, military and law enforcement application, physical, mental, and spiritual development, and the preservation of the intangible cultural heritage of a nation. (Wikipedia)
While the term martial arts’ today is typically synonymous with ‘Asian fighting art’, European martial systems existed for centuries. The term martial arts’ is actually derived from Latin – specifically for the ‘arts of Mars’, the Roman god of war. The term martial arts’ was used in regards to fighting skills as early as the 1550s.
Martial arts in Japan
The Japanese word for “martial art” is “Bugei – 武芸”. The translation for Budō 武道 is also “martial art”. Translating Japanese words is always a challenge.
Practitioners are often confused and misled about the meaning and usage of the terms budo, bujutsu, and bugei as appellations for the martial arts in Japan.
Nineteenth-century scholar and philosopher Aizawa Yasushi differentiated budo from bugei in the following manner: “The arts of the sword, spear, bow and saddle are the bugei; to know the etiquette and honor, to preserve the way of the gentleman, to strive for frugality, and thus becomes a bulwark of the state, is budo” (Tominaga 1971, 1)
The evolution in “Kata”
The origin of Aikido can be found in the methods of combat in the old Japan. The Sword Abolishment Edict (廃刀令, Haitōrei) was an edict issued by the Meiji government of Japan on March 28, 1876, which prohibited people, with the exception of the former lords (daimyōs), the military, and law enforcement officials, from carrying weapons in public.
After the abolishment, martial arts became more focused on the development of the mind, nevertheless the methods for combat were still practised as a form of Kata.
Randori became popular when Kano and his Kodokan Judo Institute promoted Judo as a physical education for the Japanese population. But Kata training was still a part of the training.
After WW2, Kata was stripped of the more lethal actions. Kata became an exercise to promote the well being of the practitioner.
It is around this time, Kenji Tomiki created his form of Aikido using Kata as the main method, but soon he started with randori exercises.
Kata has undergone a certain evolution in its practice. To illustrate such an evolution, we will look at ‘Oshi Taoshi’ and ‘Kote Gaeshi’. You will notice the extreme change in Uke’s behavior.
Another aspect of evolution is the lack of martial spirit’ in modern versions in favor of a more’sports spirit’.
Sport spirit is an attitude to do exercise with an exaggeration of certain behaviors. A modern performance is performed with an almost robotic attitude of ‘zanshin’.
Oshi taoshi by Senta Yamada (1958)
Oshi Taoshi by Kenji Tomiki and Hideo Ohba (1975)
Oshi taoshi at 1st International Festival 1989 (Japan)
Oshi Taoshi at the 2023 WSAF
Kote gaeshi by Kenji Tomiki and Hideo Ohba (1950)
Kote gaeshi by Kenji Tomiki and Hideo Ohba (1975)
Kote gaeshi at 1st International Festival 1989 (Japan)
Kote gaeshi at the 2023 WSAF
From a traditional perspective to a spectators perspective
Traditional martial arts is a complete system consisting of:
- Physical combative components, which include techniques/forms, applications, training methods, power generation methods, fight strategy and drills.
- Mental, less tangible or visible components consisting of theory, principles, means of mental discipline which may include such things as meditation.
In the traditional sense, martial skills would include both 1. & 2. Meaning that a person with good Martial Skills would not only be a good fighter, but is also disciplined, calm and has a good ethical code.
However, in the field of Martial Sports and it’s spectators perspective, Martial Skills seem to relate only to item 1. This does not mean that sports martial artist do not have good ethics but it is seen as less important.
A interesting view on Sport by Jigoro Kano
Generally speaking, if we look at sports we find that their strong point is that because they are competitive they are interesting, and young people are likely to be attracted to them. No matter how valuable the method of physical education, if it is not put into practice, it will serve no purpose — therein lies the advantage of sports. But, in this regard there are matters to which we must also give a great deal of consideration. First, so-called sports were not created for the purpose of physical education; one competes for another purpose, namely, to win. Accordingly, the muscles are not necessarily developed in a balanced way, and in some cases the body is pushed too far or even injured. For that reason, while there is no doubt that sports are a good thing, serious consideration must be given to the selection of the sport and the training method. Sports must not be undertaken carelessly, over-zealously, or without restraint. However, it is safe to say that competitive sports are a form of physical education that should be promoted with this advice in mind. The reason I have worked to popularize sports for more than twenty years and that I have strived to bring the Olympic Games to Japan is entirely because I recognize these merits. However, in times like these, when many people are enthusiastic about sports, I would like to remind them of the adverse effects of sports as well. I also urge them to keep in mind the goals of physical education—to develop a sound body that is useful to you in your daily life — and be sure to consider whether or not the method of training is in keeping with the concept of seiryoku zenyo.
“Judo and Physical Training” in Mind Over Muscle : Writings from the Founder of Judo (2006) edited by Naoki Murata, p. 57
Source: https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Jigoro_Kano
Kenji Tomiki as a student of Kano and Ueshiba
We all know the influence of Kano on Tomiki’s thinking, and also why Tomiki became a student of Ueshiba.
- Tomiki was an academic person, and Kano’s view on martial arts as an educator suited very the thinking of Tomiki.
- Some very effective martial arts techniques like “atemi waza” were not really included in Kano’s Jujutsu repertoria and to study those techniques Kano asked Tomiki and other Kodokan students to study with Morihei Ueshiba and of course other martial art masters. For example Shimizu sensei (Shindo Muso Ryu Jojutsu) was invited to teach at the Kodokan.
- Finding the balance between “Aikido” as a sport activity in our modern world and “Aikido” as a form of self-protection in a hostile situation.
As we saw in the history of Kodokan Judo, the sportification towards Olympic Judo became a fact and Judo as viewed by Jigoro Kano became less important.
A question arises regarding Tomiki Aikido/Shodokan Aikido and are they going onto the path of “Olympic Judo”?
The following remarks about kata competitions were written by Fumiaki Shishida of the Japan Aikido Association. His viewpoint is applicable to the Aikikai’s Embu demonstrations at the World Combat Games
Three guidelines for the assessment of kata competitions.
Japan Aikido Association Shihan Fumiaki Shishida Translated manuscript dated August 30, 2023
This document explains three guidelines for judges to consider when assessing judging in ‘kata’ competitions.
Kata is a method of training, along with randori, which Jigoro Kano Shihan taught as a means of judo training, and usually consists of dozens of techniques. These kata are generally prescribed by the founder or his organization, and the practitioner is expected to adhere to these methods. The individual techniques are performed by the receiver and the taker of the technique, who follow the procedure of attacking and defending the technique in an unobtrusive manner.
The founder of ‘competitive aikido’, Kenji Tomiki Shihan, developed these outstanding ideas of Kano Shihan. He recognized the contradiction between the spirit of kata and the spirit of competition, which is the pursuit of victory, but he recognized the movement towards competition and decided to implement it for the sake of the development of this art. However, the history of kata competitions since then has gradually slanted towards the beautification of kata performance through exaggeration and pedantry, and this has led to a greater divergence from the spirit of kata.
Originally, kata demonstrations were meant to express the stages of training, not about competing for skill with the judges’ favorability in mind. On the other hand, kata competitions are judged by judges who are familiar with kata and judge the excellence of the kata performance. Although there are inherent contradictions in kata competitions because they have different purposes, the dice are cast and the Association has traditionally conducted these competitions under the name of Embu Kyogi or ‘demonstration competitions’, mainly among university students or at international competitions.
On reflection on the growing tendency towards beautification, the author, with kata competitors in mind, wrote the ‘Guidelines on the way of Embu Kyogi and evaluation perspectives’ (2019) to provide a single norm for the way kata should be performed. Following on from this, in this paper, with judges in mind, three guidelines for judging and evaluation are presented in Table 1. The name of the competition has also been changed to ‘kata competition’ to more appropriately express the spirit of Master Tomiki’s kata.
The judges will evaluate the contents of Table 1 comprehensively and judge the superiority of the product using a separately defined evaluation form or other means.
Table 1: Three guidelines for the evaluation of judging of kata competitions.
*Gestalt: one coherent, organic and concrete whole structure that cannot be derived from its parts. Form. (Seisenban Nihon Kokugo Daijiten, or The Encyclopaedia of the Japanese Language, precise edition, by Shogakkan)
References.
*Kenji Tomiki, Introduction to Aikido (by Baseball Magazine,1958); Shin Aikido Text (by Tomondo,1963).
Study Group Tomiki Aikido 