One of our four basic principles is “Develop your positive mind.” The pandemic has brought untold misery, hardship and stress for many. It has also brought countless opportunities to develop our positive minds. Rather than focus on the serious impacts on our physical practice and our dojo finances (which compared with loss of life and livelihood seem like minor problems), those who teach Aikido and those who continue to practice in pandemic time have been given a great opportunity to adapt creatively, to try new things, to support each other in new ways, and to keep on learning together.
Of course we grieve the fact that we can’t meet in person and throw each other. And we joyfully meet on Zoom to practice together alone. Instructors are experimenting and learning how to teach virtual classes. It’s an opportunity to focus on the basics, which in Aikido are deep: calmness, focus, breathing, posture, balance, movement, ki exercises, new ways to DIY a ki test, ukemi practice, weapons fundamentals and kata. We also do what some people call “air Aikido.” While Zoom classes are not accessible for everyone, they are good for many. People who retired from Aikido due to moving away from their dojos or because of a physical condition preventing full participation are finding virtual practice enables them to reconnect with their practice and with our community. A different format can appeal to a brand new student.
If you have a laptop or tablet with a webcam and a screen big enough to see from a distance, a decent internet connection, and even a small space in which to move, virtual class can work for you! I’ve been able to study with some senior instructors for the first time, thanks to the pandemic. I’ve been able to guest instruct in other dojos. And there have been four 1-day seminars since the lockdowns began in the spring, open to all members of the Aikido Kokikai Federation USA.
Since Allegheny County was designated “green” (a misnomer, if you ask me, since green implies “go ahead, everything’s fine, which it wasn’t!) in June 2020, we’ve been able to have outdoor, socially distanced weapons class once a week in a local public space. In the summer we were in various locations around Schenley Plaza, and since the students returned to Pitt we’ve been in Schenley Park. We spend most of the hour on bokken and jo kata, and no-touch distanced partner exercises. For the last 10 minutes we practice jo tori and jo waza, all but the actual throw at the end of the technique. Just this little bit of touch mediated by a wooden staff allows us to remember what Aikido technique is all about and keep up this practice until we can resume normal practice, someday.
A Zoom class aimed at absolute beginners (one-on-one or group) could be a good way for someone who’s never tried Aikido to receive a basic introduction to warm-ups, ki exercises, breathing, learning how to fall safely at home (albeit not as dramatically as in the photo above)–everything but actually throwing. It would also be a great way to start to gain some of the benefits of practicing Aikido, and would be great for stress relief. If you are interested in such an experience, please contact me!
