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Last week Jean asked a terrific question:
How can I see if someone has an aikibody and can you point to me someone on the net can demonstrate it ?
I answered:
Wow! What a great question!! I think I’ll try to answer that, to the best of my present ability, in my upcoming blog post.
This week’s post consists of three parts. Two of the parts are codependent and mutually arising, those two are: Aiki Body and Aiki Mind. The last part is: How to recognize Aiki Body/Mind in one’s self and others.
AIKI BODY:
Below are listed common attributes typically present in an Aiki Body which are a product of the training necessary to Aiki.
Bones: There is generally a thickening of the bones due to the body’s increased ability to handle load. For long time trainers, there is typically less wear on the joints due to not using the bones in stacked resistance.
Muscles: Muscles will typically undergo two types of redevelopment:
1) Typically while less acute hypertrophy will likely be present (less bumpy, showy muscular development), there is a thickening of overall musculature. In addition to this, there is often slightly less development of musculature typically developed in sports use, and slightly more development in musculature typically developed to sustain prolonged physical labor. Specifically, thickening around the joints, development of the hamstrings, psoas, abdomen, obliques, spinal erectors, serratus, intercostals, etc. (over all thickening of the mid section), development of the trapezius, spinatus, pactoralis minor, rhomboid, and deep muscles of the neck and upper back. (One could probably go into great detail here, but in general think less “showy muscles” and more “deeper musculature.” Think less Arnold Schwarzenegger/The Rock and more 1800’s farmer.
2) The quality of the tissue themselves will change. They will tend to have more of a “long grain” and springy quality.
Tendons: The Tendons associated with the muscles will thicken, and like the muscles will adapt to support increased tension.
Fascia: Fascia is the relative “new kid on the block.” When it comes to amount of research. However, there is a growing body of research that points to facia as a common linkage interpenetrating, surrounding, and interconnecting the body. Fascia too adapts to better support the demands placed upon it. Therefore, one will find that this too thickens and adapts to better connect the stress lines that run along the body as the spiral connections used to better create spiral movement in the body are used more and more over time.
Neurology: The neurological system of the body grows and develops in response to the demands placed upon it. The more activity required in an area the greater neurological development surrounding that area and running back to spinal cord and brain.
Consequently, as one uses their body in the new ways required to Aiki, one’s neurological system will adapt to better facilitate and support the demands of the new usage. The result of this will be strong, faster, and more detailed control of the those areas, plus greater amounts of information will be able to be transferred to and from both ends of the pathways.
AIKI MIND:
New Learning: In order to Aiki (manipulate co-arising, mutually dependent, dual opposing forces via intent) on must first learn how. This is a process that takes time, like any other learning. One example is learning to ride a bike or drive a car. One must necessarily go through a learning process to gain that skill and develop the mental program necessary to implement the skill.
In this case one must first learn to produce Aiki #1, then Aiki #2, and finally Aiki #3. Once this is accomplished one will likely learn simply how to manipulate Yin and Yang to suit their needs.
New Programing: After learning and with repeated practice and usage one will develop “programming” such that much of the thought processes required for learning will be streamlined into only the thought processes required for doing. As with learning to ride a bike or drive a car one eventually gets the the point where one is no longer conscious of the many steps, tasks, corrections and adjustments required to perform the task. One just rides or drives. This is due to the programming built throughout the learning process.
In this case one must develop a program for Aiki #1, Aiki #2, and Aiki #3. Eventually this will result in a new master programming simply to manipulate Yin Yang to suit one’s needs.
When Aiki is applied in different contexts the entire act of Aiki will likely be unconscious. As in the example of riding a bike or driving a car, with time and experience when one is asked, “What are you doing?” One will honestly answer, “I’m riding, or I’m driving.” One can therefore see that it isn’t an overstatement for one with the ability to Aiki to say, “I am Aiki.”
On the there hand, when asking someone beginning to ride their bike or drive their car, “What are you doing?” One is more likely going to get an answer relating to the purpose of their riding or driving. The ability to ride or drive is assumed. So one answers, “I’m going to the store.” or whatever.
New Results: There are some significant, but not commonly spoken of, mental side effects of developing the ability to Aiki. Here are a few:
Fear Reduction: This is huge! Fear reduction occurs because with the ability the Aiki comes less perceived threat. With less fear one has more metal resources online to problem solve and is less apt to suffer from adrenaline dump. They are not super human. They just perceive less threat and so are less apt to have the symptoms that fear produces.
Holistic vs Dualistic: Paradoxically as one learns to manipulate Yin and Yang, one begins to see them as a unity or whole. With this comes the realization (as opposed to idealization) of the interpenetration of self and other. Again, with that realization comes the reduction of perceived threat.
Major Paradigm Shift: In order to Aiki one cannot resist, nor can one retreat, one must instead, Aiki. This is fundamentally different than our normal “fight or flight” type of response and view of reality. With the ability to Aiki the Body/Mind becomes convinced that Aiki, as opposed to fight (resistance) or flight (avoidance), is the most sure method of “self” preservation. It is a whole new way of perceiving reality. And with it comes the ability to “walk freely in the world” as Dan Harden likes to say.
HOW TO RECOGNIZE AIKI BODY/MIND
Now comes the tricky part: (What follows is my best recollection, I may get some facts wrong, but I believe the essence is correct.) When a well known and respected internal Chinese martial arts master first met Dan Harden, he asked if he could feel his body. He was, in my opinion, feeling for the attributes described in Aiki Body section of this post. One cannot hide, nor can one pretend to have, these traits. They are either present or they are not.
Next, he asked to feel Dan in a very different way. He wanted to feel Dan’s body in action, he wanted to feel the presence of Aiki. The presence of Aiki is usually felt in two main ways: Unusual dynamic stability, and unusual power. We have discussed these in earlier posts. Remember the analogy of pushing on a trampoline to dynamic stability? Power is work divided by time. That is, the ability to produce a lot of work in a short period of time. Usually this is manifested martially by the ability to generate a great deal of force (remember the Stanford Study?) while not being impeded by resistance (the ability to “zero out” another’s power.
These are probably the two most sure ways of discerning if one has an Aiki Body, either within one’s self, or within another.
An even trickier methodology would be to try to discern the traits of an Aiki Mind. Usually this would be to look for the physical traits paired with fearlessness rather than bravado. Fearlessness usually manifest as quiet confidence and heightened perception, since one has more resources online. My experience has been that those with True Aiki are far more inclined to worry about protecting others and benefiting them, than they are towards impressing others and/or seeking some kind of reward or self-confirmation.
Unfortunately I know of no fool proof test beyond those mentioned above. Wouldn’t it be nice if we could simply test one’s “midichlorian” count?
This having all been said, please keep in mind that while I have been involved in the martial arts for many, many decades (not too many, just the right amount I think), I have only been straightening out my Aiki misconceptions for the past several years.
Someone further down the path would likely have more experience with their Aiki Body, Aiki Mind than I do!
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No cool pictures this week. I have no time. Next week’s post may, or may not, be delayed by a day or so, as I am traveling and teaching instead of typing!
All the best!
Allen
One cannot see Aiki but one can see the effects of the presence of Aiki.
So I can point to several individuals that have an Aiki Body, and can display the effects of Aiki. But when it really comes down to it, both have to be felt.
If one knows what one is looking (feeling) for one will likely know upon touch. It is hard to hide from one who know what one is feeling for. Both hard to hide ability and inability!
But that is the heart of problem isn’t it? “If I don’t know, how do I tell?”
That is what makes your question both so hard and so good.
I’ll give it a shot!