The centre of the cross upon which the feet of the Aikido practitioner move is the Centre of the World, the point where all oppositions are reconciled and resolved. The Centre of the World is not in any given geographical location; it is wherever balance is achieved, and at all times.
In the morote dori grip, the opponent's arm is held like a sword, the back of his forearm embodying the back of the blade.
When the movement of Aikido is performed correctly, it is connected to DNA, to the great cosmic serpent that unites all living beings under the sun.
Tenkan is impossible without irimi, but irimi is powerless without tenkan. There is a tenkan effect on uke which moves him.
‘Kata mo hiji mo koshi mo kimochi o sagete’, which means ‘lower your shoulders, elbows, hips and feeling’.
Every time you do shiho nage, ikkyo is there, and every time you do ikkyo, shiho nage is there. They are like two sides of the same coin.
