Hi Everyone,
I want to let you know how the presentation by Stan Pranin on the "Two Pillars of Aikido" went. I know a lot of you could not be here and I wanted to give you a sense of the day.
In a word... Fantastic! Having known Stan for 25 years and having followed his research into O'Sensei life, I thought I knew almost everything there was to know about O'Sensei. However, even with everything I knew, I was surprised. And thoroughly amazed.
By the end of the day, I realized that I had been familiar with O'Sensei, The Myth, but not with Morihei Ueshiba, The Man. What a difference a day makes!
Stan has collected documentation and detail that, in my opinion, only he could. As a result, he is able to present O'Sensei in a much broader perspective than previously possible. For example, we all know that he led a group of settlers to Hokkaido to establish a settlement. What is not readily apparent in the available literature is WHY he went to Hokkaido. The initial explaination of this event (based on the available material in print) is very different from the one that I took away by the end of Stan's talk.
It was amazing to me that something as simple as this one example, when researched in detail, could yeild such a different impression of what was happening in Morihei's life at that time. And that was just one example of MANY events in O'Sensei's life that Stan illuminated during the course of the day. By the end of his presentation, it would not be an exaggeration to say that every myth and story about O'Sensei that I had grown up on had a very different meaning to me.
The questions and answer period was particularly instructive and touched on a wide range of subjects that spanned a range which included Daito-ryu history, pre-war Aikido and O'Sensei's private life.
The range of participants was also broad. Represented were practitioners of Daito-ryu Aikijujutsu, Yoshinkan Aikido, Ki Society Aikido and the many styles of Hombu Aikido. And, although most of the attendees came from the Bay Area, some came from Sacramento, San Jose, Monterey, Nevada City and as far away as Philadelphia. Clearly interest in O'Sensei life and the development of aikido cuts across all lines of style and organizational affiliation.
Thank you to everyone who was able to make the time and the trip to attend. You helped make it a day to be remembered.
Tom
Tom Gambell
Chief Instructor
East Bay Aikido
1446 Leimert Blvd.
Oakland, CA 94602
510-531-0303
I want to let you know how the presentation by Stan Pranin on the "Two Pillars of Aikido" went. I know a lot of you could not be here and I wanted to give you a sense of the day.
In a word... Fantastic! Having known Stan for 25 years and having followed his research into O'Sensei life, I thought I knew almost everything there was to know about O'Sensei. However, even with everything I knew, I was surprised. And thoroughly amazed.
By the end of the day, I realized that I had been familiar with O'Sensei, The Myth, but not with Morihei Ueshiba, The Man. What a difference a day makes!
Stan has collected documentation and detail that, in my opinion, only he could. As a result, he is able to present O'Sensei in a much broader perspective than previously possible. For example, we all know that he led a group of settlers to Hokkaido to establish a settlement. What is not readily apparent in the available literature is WHY he went to Hokkaido. The initial explaination of this event (based on the available material in print) is very different from the one that I took away by the end of Stan's talk.
It was amazing to me that something as simple as this one example, when researched in detail, could yeild such a different impression of what was happening in Morihei's life at that time. And that was just one example of MANY events in O'Sensei's life that Stan illuminated during the course of the day. By the end of his presentation, it would not be an exaggeration to say that every myth and story about O'Sensei that I had grown up on had a very different meaning to me.
The questions and answer period was particularly instructive and touched on a wide range of subjects that spanned a range which included Daito-ryu history, pre-war Aikido and O'Sensei's private life.
The range of participants was also broad. Represented were practitioners of Daito-ryu Aikijujutsu, Yoshinkan Aikido, Ki Society Aikido and the many styles of Hombu Aikido. And, although most of the attendees came from the Bay Area, some came from Sacramento, San Jose, Monterey, Nevada City and as far away as Philadelphia. Clearly interest in O'Sensei life and the development of aikido cuts across all lines of style and organizational affiliation.
Thank you to everyone who was able to make the time and the trip to attend. You helped make it a day to be remembered.
Tom
Tom Gambell
Chief Instructor
East Bay Aikido
1446 Leimert Blvd.
Oakland, CA 94602
510-531-0303