Like the commentators on the YouTube site, I couldn't exactly describe what we're seeing here. But I have a feeling it has some things in common with the Aikitaiji video that I posted a few days ago. Interestingly, aikido is about harmony and yoga is about unity, and taiji is supposed to be the 'grand universal principle' or something like that. There should be some overlap between the domains of the three. Perhaps we're seeing part of that union set here - I just can't figure out what part. What do you guys think?
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Photo courtesy of OoohOooh I've talked in a couple of posts this past week about defining and measuring ma-ai very precisely so that yo... -
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Well... there is something mystically impressive about the first couple of rolls he does... I can't quite put my finger on it, but... I am impressed. I will have to watch it a couple more times...
ReplyDeleteI'm just a hard guy trying to soften up. I WISH I could move like that.
ReplyDeleteSome of the guys at my kwoon also are on-again off-again with yoga. They say it helps with the kung fu.
Perhaps we are seeing Yokido in that video?
:)
Interesting. I while back I wrote an article about
ReplyDeleteYoga for Martial Artists!. You may find it also interesting.
Looks like some footwork and ukemi from aiki, some of the flowing/swaying sense of taiji, and the balance and full extensions of yoga. If nothing else it's very "pretty". I'd like to be able to do that too.
ReplyDeleteNamaste ;o)
Beautiful rolls.
ReplyDeleteIt just looks like someone's artistic expression of what they perceive as aikido, taiji, and yoga. It's well performed and probably felt pretty good to do so I wouldn't take it too seriously unless he does, too. Then I might make some criticism like the following.
ReplyDeleteIt's fairly important when looking at a new art to not filter it through your perceptions of the other art(s) you do. If you do aikido and want to learn taiji, for example, give the taiji some space to be its own thing. Don't try to incorporate it into your aikido right away.
I see a lot of "it's all the same thing" type thinking and what people often wind up with is new-agey mush.
If someone goes through the full training that a few different arts have to offer and comes to that conclusion, then the result tends to be qualitatively different IME.
I think these mechanics make his ukemi worse. Not bad per se, but worse then it would be otherwise...confused...like it doesn't know whether it's coming or going. :D
ReplyDeleteHa, You know, I try as a matter of general principle not to agree with Chris Marshall too much ;-) but I think I agree on this one. The ukemi is just not right.
ReplyDeleteIt is smooth, and it is an interesting performance but there is something still wrong with it. Incongrous.
I also agree with Dave, that aiki and taiji and yoga are different things, but they probably all share some common set. Perhaps this is what Steven was saying on the Aikitaiji post - and what Dave was sorta saying - that once you spend some time exploring the entirety of one art or the other, that the union set between them just looks dumbed down.
but on the other hand, There's still this common perception that no art or system is complete - that any artist stands to learn something valuable from an artist in another field - that tiaji has a perspective that would be valuable to aiki players and vice versa. - similar in spirit, I think, to Dave's previous posts on aikitaiji, yoga, and the aiki wristlock-bjj connection...