Reflections on the 2015 Birankai North America Aikido Summer Camp

Reflections on the 2015 Birankai North America Aikido Summer Camp

 by Jon-Paul Oliva, Sandan

Author’s note: As a bit of background, beyond the technical instruction at camp, the commemoration of Chiba Sensei’s life and particularly the devotion and commitment shown by his Kenshusei and lifelong students was very moving to me. In this devotion I recognized the special nature of the teacher-student relationship, and the opportunity that relationship provides us with; to study ourselves through our training.  It strikes me that this is one of the great gifts of Aikido and that we all owe a great debt to Chiba Sensei as someone who gave a great deal of his life to make the study of ourselves through Aikido possible.

I have found that the Way of the samurai is death. 

This means that when you are compelled to choose between life and death, you must quickly choose death. 

There is nothing more to it than that.

- Yamamoto Tsunetomo, Hagakure

This was a special summer camp for us all.  Many longtime students, friends and kenshusei of Chiba Sensei came to honor and celebrate the life of our teacher. Through their instruction and words of commemoration this weekend, these people literally embodied Sensei’s dedication to Aikido and commitment to his students.  

Even among those of us who only experienced Chiba Sensei indirectly through our teachers, or occasionally at seminars, there was an extra spark to training and commitment in running camp, created by the motive energy of Sensei’s lifelong commitment to Aikido and his students.

George Lyons Sensei taught a Dan weapons class at summer camp this year.  During the class, we practiced kiriotoshi with bokken.  I noticed that neither he nor his uke used a tsuba on their weapons.  He remarked that at the culmination of the kiriotoshi exercise, the domination movement, that nage must hold the line and penetrate deeply with full intention into the attack of his opponent in order to successfully dominate their attack.  Moving into a killing strike against all odds, nage must abandon all hope of survival in order to succeed in this encounter.  His exact words were “It’s crazy”, to advance into the oncoming strike, rather than retreat from it.  This is the way of Budo.

Although I only had the opportunity to train with Chiba Sensei occasionally over the years at seminars and summer camps, it was abundantly clear to me from the first time I met him that Sensei embodied the spirit of Budo and carried it forward for all of us like a lamp to show us the way.  He could radiate ferocity that was palpable to anyone he approached, and he brought forth the same commitment and spirit from anyone who was lucky enough to be his student.  

Through his conduct, Sensei showed us how to embrace our fear and move through it.  Above that, he dedicated his life to transmitting this spirit to his students. His legacy to all of us is a system of study and a cadre of teachers that, through our own diligent practice and sincere commitment, will make his passing a less difficult endeavor for all of us who must now follow in his footsteps.  

What a gift this is to all of us! Speaking personally, I struggle with fear on a daily basis. I sometimes find myself unable to move forward decisively when a situation demands it.  I am often reluctant to be vulnerable with others.  When I do find the strength to act without attachment to fear, I know that it is because of the great gift of Aikido that I can find the calm center within me and embrace a situation as it presents itself.  

This is the great gift and responsibility Sensei has charged us with; to honor his life work by devoting ourselves to the system of study that he has laid out for us.  Now, as always, it is up to us to accept this gift and continue our practice in earnest.  It is my sincere hope that each of us, in the spirit of self-sacrifice, find the courage within ourselves to renew our commitment to forging the spirit of Budo within our hearts and carry it forward like a light into the world.

Loyalty and devotion lead to bravery. 

Bravery leads to the spirit of self-sacrifice. 

The spirit of self-sacrifice creates trust in the power of love. 

- O-Sensei, Morihei Ueshiba