06/09/2026
๐๐ก๐จ๐ญ๐จ๐ฌ ๐๐ซ๐จ๐ฆ ๐จ๐ฎ๐ซ ๐ซ๐๐๐๐ง๐ญ ๐๐ข๐ค๐ข๐๐จ ๐ ๐ซ๐๐๐ข๐ง๐ โ ๐ฉ๐ฅ๐ฎ๐ฌ ๐ ๐๐๐ฐ ๐ญ๐ก๐จ๐ฎ๐ ๐ก๐ญ๐ฌ ๐จ๐ง ๐๐ฎ๐๐จ
Aikido is an interesting martial art. From the outside, it can look fake and is sometimes dismissed as โbullshidoโ that wouldnโt work in a real confrontation. If you feel that way, let me share my experience.
Iโve trained in several martial arts since childhood: Judo from age six, Sanda as a teenager, then Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu, Muay Thai, Systema and self-defence. Each influenced me differently. Most are considered effective, but I felt they lacked something: Budo.
With my limited understanding, Budo is the deeper aim of the fighting arts โ presence, flow, intuition and the loss of ego. It comes from the samurai era, when training prepared people for life-or-death situations and every lapse in focus could have grave consequences.
You might argue that all fighting arts are built around this. Iโd argue otherwise. Unlike combat sports such as Muay Thai and BJJ, Aikido is traditional in nature. How you behave matters: saying osu, bowing, staying humble and overcoming frustration. As a blue belt, I feel itโs more about how you carry and project yourself. Technique is the vehicle, not the destination.
Peter and I completed our grading together. It lasted only about 20 minutes, but for those 20 minutes, we were ON. Time and my surroundings seemed to disappear. I tuned completely into my training partner, blended with his movement and maintained constant eye contact. Whatever emotions or opinions I had didnโt matter. Only what was happening right there, right then.
I made mistakes, but the spirit of Budo โ as I currently understand it โ was there.
To me, Aikido is the glue that can hold other martial arts together. It creates a foundation: quiet intensity, relentless presence and acceptance of whatever comes your way.
If you have no martial arts experience, I wouldnโt necessarily begin with Aikido. BJJ, Judo or Muay Thai may offer quicker, clearer experiences of success while building resilience through being hit, thrown and choked.
But if you want to embrace the martial way and strengthen your presence, Aikido may be for you.
