The Structure of Aikido: Volume 1: Kenjutsu and Taijutsu Sword and Open-Hand Movement Relationships

I have been into numerous martial arts (Judo, Jujitsu, Aikijutsu, Karate-Do, Hapkido, Kenjutsu, Wakizashijutsu, Tanto-Jutsu, Kobudo etc.) for more than 60 years and though I studied Aikido for a short period of time I never earned any rank in this art; nevertheless, when I saw this interesting 186 page soft cover book (The Structure of Aikido: Volume 1 by Gaku Homma) on Amazon for a bargain price I purchased it.To be honest, this book was written specifically for those who are seriously involved in the study of Aikido and the use of their weapons of sword (Ken) and stick arts (Jo and Bo). This is a very detailed book with hundreds of photographs explaining the numerous techniques; however, the photos are much too small to actually learn anything from without the guidance of an Aikido weapons master.The seven chapters in this volume covers an introduction, basic body movements, Kihon Ken no sosaho: basic sword movement, Kenjutsu to Taijutsu, Ukemi-the art of falling, Ken Tai Icchi no Ugoki, - Kenjutsu and Taijutsu movement in unison and throwing techniques etc. Even though I was familiar with many of the sword and weapon techniques in this book because of my background in Kenjutsu and Jojutsu; nevertheless, one would need to train under an Aikido master to actually benefit from the amount of material in this text.This would be an excellent reference text if combined with training with an Aikido master.Rating: 4 Stars. Joseph J. Truncale (Wakizashi-Jutsu: An official manual of Bushi Satori Ryu)

I love Gaku Homma's books for their straightforwardness. This one is exactly what the subtitle says it is. I wish there were a higher text-to-photo ratio, but mostly I wish Gaku Homma had finished the series of which this was the first book. If you train in aikido already, I suspect there's a good chance you've seen this material already. But if you train in other martial arts and have an interest in aikido, I think this book could be very informative for you.

Aikido is based on the Japanese sword and this book clearly shows where it came from.It is worthwhile for any serious adherent of the art of peace to read repeatedly.The only lack in this work is that one needs good eyesight so as to reveiw this work. The photos are, by necesiisty, a bit small.I highly recommned this work for all who pracitce and/or teach aikido.namaste

The connection between Kenjitsu “sword techniques” and Taijitsu “open hand techniques” becomes obvious through studying this manual. The strength and balance of handling a samurai sword is the same as performing open hand techniques in Aikido. This book quickly explains and illustrates the connections so that both methods of practice strengthen each other.

This book is a great primer on the origin of Aikido. The relationships between the sword movements and the open hand techniques are very well explained without resorting to a bunch of jargon. You can understand the explainations whith only a cursory knowledge of Aikido terminology. Also the pictures are a great guide. I recommend this.

My husband has been a student of Aikido for 21 years. He studies under Carmen Pelusi Shihan of Eight Winds Aikido Society. He loves anything Aikido.

Very helpful and to the point.

Satisfied

Does not really follow aikikai style aikido , great to see the swordtechniques, lot off pictures , sometimes hard to see not very clear due to there size

Un libro molto interessante per chi vuole capire l’origine delle tecniche del l’aikido e la loro relazione con l’uso della spada. Non è un volume per principianti, direi più adatto a praticanti avanzati o istruttori