Aikido Newsletter March, 2004
Volume 3, Issue 3
HAPPY BIRTHDAY, YAMADA SENSEI
Senta Yamada was born 1st March, 1924. In Fukuoka, which
is a town in Kyushu on the South Island of Japan. He started
learning Judo while attending his middle school when he was
11 years of age. He was awarded his 1st Dan at the age of
16.
He took part in the East-West Japan contests and at different
times fought for both sides, being chosen to be Team Captain
on several occasions. He received his 6th Dan in Judo having
defeated five other holders of 5th Dan rank in contests.
 It
was after he attained his 6th Dan that he was invited to stay
and study at the home of the great Aikido Master Dr Ueshiba
in Wakayama and Tokyo. It was when he moved to Tokyo that
he was introduced to Kenji Tomiki 8th Dan Judo and 8th Dan
Aikido at the Kodokan and began to study his system of teaching
Aikido. It was shortly after World War Two, while he was assisting
Mr Tomiki that he acted as his Uke taking part in a demonstration
to convince the then General in command of the armed forces
in Japan, General Douglas McArthur, that Martial Arts were
more a way of life than just training for fighting.
Yamada Sensei came to England in 1959, at the suggestion
of his friend Mr Ichiro Hata and an invitation from the two
senior teachers of the London Judo Society to teach Judo and
introduce Aikido. It was while he was teaching there that
he received his 6th Dan in Aikido from Professor Tomiki. It
was in 1961, in collaboration with one of his older students
a Mr Bill Martin, that he wrote his first book on Aikido in
English entitled “The Ancient Secrets of Aikido”
(This is currently being revised and reproduced) He stayed
at the London Judo Society until mid 1962 when he decided
to open his own dojo in North London. This was called the
Regency Judo/Aikido Club.
He continued to teach at that dojo and at various other venues
until 1965, when he decided to return to Japan. It was not
until 1983 that his senior student, John Waite, paid a visit
to Japan and persuaded him to make a return visit to England
in 1984. Since that time he has been a frequent and very welcome
visitor to our shores, watching over the development of Professor
Tomiki’s system of Aikido and Dr Kano’s system
of Judo. He has also visited many other countries carrying
out this responsibility. America, Australia, China, France,
Ireland, Sweden, Sri Lanka, Tonga and several others that
he has not mentioned.
We wish him a Very Happy Eightieth Birthday and Many, Many
More.
DATES FOR 2004
14 MAR 04 BAA OPEN Competition - Brighton
9/10/11 APR 04 FOLKESTONE EASTER SCHOOL –
Contact Joe McEnroe 07901 900432
18 APR 04 SOUTHERN AREA AGM – NEMCA,
Mitcham, Surry
24 APR 04 BAA Senior National Competition
– Bradford
01 MAY 04 SHUMOKUBETSU KONGODANTAISEN EVENT
– Tony Evangelou
16 MAY 04 BAA AGM & EC Meeting 2
25 MAY 04 BAA SOUTHERN AREA GRADING - Rotherhithe
06 JUN 04 ACCREDITATION COURSE FOR JUDGES
– Contact Paul Wildish 020-8451 6194
19 JUN 04 WIMBLEDON VILLAGE FAIR –
Aikido Demonstration 12.30 – 1.00pm
27 JUN 04 BAA National Dan Grading
18 JUL 04 EC Meeting 3
17 OCT 04 ACCREDITATION COURSE FOR REFEREES
– Contact Paul Wildish 020-8451 6194
14 NOV 04 EC Meeting 4
YAMADA SENSEI’S COMMEMORATION OF PROFESSOR
TOMIKI’s 100th BIRTHDAY - part 1
When I was asked by Mr Futami, the Editor-in- Chief of Shumpu
magazine to write an article to commemorate Professor Tomiki's
100th birthday for his magazine, I was unsure of how well
I could do it. But I took the responsibility of the job because
Sensei Tomiki helped me in various ways for a long time. I
am also writing this article through my responsibility to
Sensei Tomiki as one of his students and as an instructor
of Tomiki Aikido, who have had an honour to introduce his
system overseas, with a particular focus on London.
I have read several issues of Shumpu magazine and am now
once again surprised to see that there have been more than
170 editions. There is no doubt that the magazine has received
strong supports in various ways. But in the meantime, this
could not have been done without Mr Futami's endeavour for
appealing to the world for what is right, which must be highly
appreciated.
Writing was hard to deal with, and I progressed very slowly.
Then, on the 5th of March, I received the news that Mrs Tomiki
passed away. The painful notion that I would never meet Professor
and Mrs Tomiki again and the feeling that I would miss them
deeply made me realise once again the importance of my responsibility
for carrying on his strong will.
Now, it is not easy to correctly understand what Professor
Tomiki thought of and what he wished to convey. This is because,
in order to do that, one must correctly understand the teachings
of both Dr Kano and Shihan (1) Ueshiba's teachings that underlie
his budo. Professor Tomiki, while knowing that the training
is the key to success, decided to make sense of budo to the
world by theoretically compiling both of the chosen Shihans'
God-bestowed ideals.
Professor Tomiki's effort and research results were far
ahead of the others and had gained wide acceptance. However,
his activities were never warmly welcomed neither by the Judo's
headquarter, Kodokan nor the headquarters of Aikido. Thus
his original intention was never fulfilled before his death.
The night before he died, he called in his wife by his side
and said "get my suitcase for me". His wife asked
him why. He replied "I want to go to see Guy-san in Australia
now". When I heard this story afterwards, I could feel
the feelings deep inside him so painfully. He had had Dr Kano's
expectation on his research. He was also the first person
to be awarded 8th dan by Shihan Ueshiba, which indicated trust
gained by him. I could thus see in this act of his, his regret
and sorrow for not being able to fulfil his objectives.
Sensei Okumura, the current Head Instructor at the Dojo Headquarters
was once Professor Tomiki's student at Kenkoku University
in Shinkyo (2). He was also concerned about the relationship
between Professor Tomiki and the Headquarters and made constant
efforts to improve the situation. However, his effort did
not bear fruit.
It can be said that the Tomiki-system of Aikido is originated
from Judo Taiso, a Judo-style exercise, which the Sensei started
compiling during the three and a half years of his time in
Manchuria after the War. I presume that the following ten
years until the year 1959, in which I departed for London
to introduce Tomiki Aikido, is the time when he struggled
the most. Around that time, I accompanied Professor Tomiki
wherever he went to teach, and I listened to his ambition
and sometimes, his struggles. Now, some have become sweet
memories while some are rather painful. But I can now see
in his comportment, the basis of his Tomiki Aikido. Around
that time, the Dojo on the 4th-level basement of the building,
in which the General Macarthur resided, was crowded with high
graded Judoka of seventh and eighth-dan degree.
As it is well known, Dr Kano founded Judo when Jujutsu's
were in decline in popularity. He studied the various schools
of the Jujutsu in order to save these arts and to spread them
around the world as the path to attaining the right use of
energy and co-survival of self and the others. Judo has now
become popular around the world and greatly developed, thanks
to Dr Kano's teaching strategy as well as to his good-natured
personality. However, the art has become completely different
from what Dr Kano originally intended. One example can be
the Sydney Olympics. In fact, Kano was against the idea of
including Judo as an item in the Olympics in the first place.
Moreover, posing in the "Guts Pose” (3) in showing
off their victory had been considered as something to be ashamed
of. This point was also made strongly clear in an article
in the No. 171 issue of Shumpu magazine by Mr Futami, with
which I absolutely agree.
1. Another way of addressing a Sensei
2. Changchun, i.e. then Manchuria
3. This is the posture with posing two fists
in front of them.
...To be continued
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