The Old Timer’s Weird Ways

Below you will find another question from a long time True Aiki reader (and seminar participant) and my answer. Again, I am posting it here for the enjoyment of other True Aiki readers.

frederic veer · May 15, 2021 at 11:50 am 

Hi Allen, good video to study and I think a good approach to learning. One question, If I look at Tom’s feet it looks like they are further apart than in the hanmi I was taught. More like hito emi. Is there a reason for this ?
regards, Fred

Allen Dean Beebe · May 16, 2021 at 1:58 pm 

Hi Fred,

There are several reasons, and some implications from the reasons. First, you might notice that most of the people that trained during the era when Ueshiba Morihei was actively teaching used this broader Hanmi stance. You might also notice that these same people don’t stand in the broad stance when actually performing techniques. There is a reason for this. The broad stance is beneficial for training, but a narrower stance provides more freedom in application. The broad stance is more taxing since the legs are less vertically aligned. Of course using this stance one could develop both muscular strength and endurance, but as you know, that is not really the focus. The focus is on carrying one’s mass in a new and more efficient manner that can involve internal power and Aiki. Furthermore, the legs are turned out from each other, and the body is squared forward. Obviously this is less “Hanmi” than an angled Hanmi. There is more than one reason for this, but the training reason is that it tends to immobilize or lock the lower body, which would normally be disadvantageous. However, for training, like sitting in seiza, it is advantageous for training. In order to twist the upper body from the inguinal folds on up, one cannot use the knees. Due to the constriction, one is forced to develop greater mobility and strength in the tissues surrounding the femoral heads, the lower abdomen and lower back and to some degree the mid abdomen and mid back. In time, with proper practice and adequate training, one can develop (it takes time for the neurological and anatomical adaptation to occur) a strong 1 to 1 connection from the around the feet to around the legs, through the hips and waist, around the torso up to the neck and head. Of course this same conveyor belt connection of force can also be developed from the torso through the shoulder complex, around the arms and out through the hands.

In addition, if one has properly trained one’s self to maintain this stance and structure rising from the ground to standing and back again, one will develop a comfort using the spiral connection to move easily from the ground up and back again.

Furthermore, when in locomotion, either linear, circular, or pivoting, the stance and its usage of twisting the entire leg helps one to develop spiral movement from foot to head and hands while performing these movements as well. 

After enough proper practice, training and development, the spiral transference of force will occur naturally without having to twist the skeleton so extremely. 

So. this raises an interesting question. If Ueshiba Morihei thought that this kind of stance and movement training was so useful for developing internal power and Aiki that he taught it to several of his leading students during the period when he was actively teaching and those students went on to become known for their ability to express internal power and Aiki at will, why didn’t later students learn the same and also become known for their ability to express internal power and Aiki at will? If Ueshiba Morihei’s technique and performance remained consistent throughout his life, how is it that there was such disparity between his early students and those that came later? Furthermore, why did so many of his early students choose to maintain their early form of training rather than change to what later became the norm. And finally, what do we know about Ueshiba Morihei’s ongoing relationships with these earlier students. Did he try to convert them to a new way of doing things while he remained the same?

If Ueshiba Morihei didn’t change his practice, then who did? And to what result?

All the best,
Allen

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