Aikido North Wind Aikikai

Reminder to join us for our open house event this Friday, the 16th at 5:15pm!

https://redriverhealth.com/event/red-river-cleanup-and-buckthorn-removal-event-april-21/

Red River Cleanup and Buckthorn Removal Event – April 21 Celebrate Earth Day Weekend with Us at MB Johnson Park! Join us on Monday, April 21 at 4:00 PM at MB Johnson Park in Moorhead for an afternoon of community, st

Part of our Origin Stories come through the lens of our college class students:

Aikido 101 Reflections from Concordia College “Intro to Aikido” Students, #1 “The practice and principles of Aikido to me are fostering an energy of presence, curiosity and peace that cultivate a …

In our next installment of our "Origin Stories", we hear Ryan's story and his path onto the mat:

"In 2005, while in college, I saw a flyer for a collage class on Aikido. I signed up and came in blind, knowing nothing about it. However, I had done karate as a kid and wanted to find a martial art to practice as I moved into adulthood. I came to the dojo early before my first class. I saw Sensei throwing Joe and Jerry, in what I would come to know later as kotegaeshi. I knew in that moment that I wanted to do both things - to throw and be thrown. Since that first class, I have continued to practice, learning many techniques. My Aikido practice has helped me develop key skills such as awareness and energy management that I use in my daily life."

In our next installment of our "Origin Stories" series, we hear Jodi's story and her path onto the mat:
"I was first introduced to Aikido when I was seeing Robert Angotti for acupuncture. He mentioned Aikido and the dojo. I had a friend who was practicing Aikido at the time. My awareness of Aikido was minimal. I went on a vision quest out in Montana and watched a woman who was using a staff, I asked what she was doing. She said she practices Aikido, and the staff is a jo. I became more interested in checking out Aikido, so when I got back from my vision quest, I checked out the Aikido dojo. There were a few people I knew who were attending classes. On my first day, we started with stretches in silence. I thought, I can do this. So, I joined. When I attended the next class I was learning to do forward and backward rolls.

What I started learning was that Aikido is different for each person. The fundamentals/foundation is the same but as each person has a different personality so too does the connection with Aikido.

I have been practicing Aikido for 22 years. What I find is that Aikido helps with connecting with my body, mind, and soul. I find that I use Aikido in my everyday life. Learning how the different forces that are coming at me, how do I move with that and how do I find balance with that as well. For example, in body art someone may put force on my arm- I best move with that, I don’t want to be stuck in one position. If someone is coming at me in my everyday life for example, I’m in a store and the clerk is having a bad day and might be snappy with me for whatever reason, I try to find a balance, move with that force that is coming at me. I don’t want to respond with force, that just gets me stuck in one place. Sensei talked about having a beginners mind. I can always learn something new in class even if I’ve done the movement a lot of times. There is always something new: the subtle movement of the wrist, or moving my arm, many things and then I watch for these subtle movements in my life.

I will keep practicing Aikido, because there is always learning happening, a path to find balance."

As we continue our "Origin Stories" series, we revisit our Chief Instructor, Robert Angotti's path onto the mat:

An Aikido Origin Story Robert Angotti, Chief Instructor, North Wind Aikikai I started aikido around the age of 21. I had found my way from Missouri to California and decided to try and establish residency in order to enr…

RA Angotti, Chief Instructor -
Each of the members of North Wind Aikikai bring something unique to our practice. However, one of our youngest members comes to me with some real treasures. Ali is 8 years old which makes him the freshest amongst us on the mat for adult class...

Ali’s Questions, January 19th, 2025 RA Angotti, Chief Instructor Each of the members of North Wind Aikikai bring something unique to our practice. However one of our youngest members comes to me with some real treasures. Ali is 8 yea…

As we embark on a new year, we will be sharing stories and quotes from our dojo members in the form of "Origin Stories". These stories and quotes highlight how we came to be on the mat at North Wind Aikikai and some of our experiences while there. The most fitting way to start is at the beginning of aikido with the story of O'Sensei ("Great Teacher"). We welcome you to come along on this journey via our stories and to visit us at the dojo.

O-SENSEI
Morihei Ueshiba, known by aikido students as O-Sensei ("Great Teacher"), was born on December 14, 1883 in Tanabe City, Japan. As a young man he mastered many martial arts both empty hand styles and weapons. In 1912, he and his wife, Hatsu, moved to Hokkaido where he began studying Daito-ryu jujitsu under the guidance of Sokaku Takeda Sensei. O-Sensei studied intensively, becoming quite technically proficient; however, his spiritual unrest mounted as his awareness of the futility of a path based on victory over others came to light. Transformed by his spiritual insights, O-Sensei’s technical mastery evolved into aikido, a martial art of refinement and astonishing power, fundamentally different from those that preceded it.

In 1927, O-Sensei moved to Tokyo where he founded his first dojo, the Aikikai Hombu Dojo, which still exists today as the Aikido World Headquarters. On April 26, 1969, O-Sensei passed away, leaving his son, Kisshomaru Ueshiba, to become aikido doshu ("aikido headmaster") of the Aikikai World Headquarters. Kisshomaru Ueshiba Doshu was in turn succeeded by his son and O-Sensei’s grandson, Moriteru Ueshiba Doshu in January 1999, who to this day continues to spread the art of aikido throughout the world.

Congratulations to our members, Chrone, Glory, William, Ibrahim, Octavia and Ali, who tested and received their promotions at our end of year practice and gathering! We look forward to our next year of practice together!

As we head into the Independence Day week, reminder to members and visitors that the dojo will be closed July 3, 4, and 5. We look forward to being on the mat together again on July 8th. Have a safe and restful week everyone!