Echoes of the Samurai: The Way of the Sword

When people hear the word traditional, they often think of something old-fashioned, rigid, or outdated. But in Aikido, tradition is not about clinging to the past. It is about preserving the living principles of the samurai — their movement, their weapons, their armour, and their spirit — and carrying them forward into our own practice.

Aikido is not traditional because it resists change. It is traditional because it is grounded in something deeper than trends or sport: the way of the warrior, refined over centuries, and expressed in every movement we practice today.

The Roots in Samurai Culture

Aikido was born from the martial culture of Japan. Its founder, Morihei Ueshiba O-Sensei, trained in classical sword schools and battlefield arts before shaping Aikido as a martial way of harmony.

This heritage remains visible in every movement we make. The open hand in Aikido is not simply a hand — it is the sword. The way we step, cut, and turn all mirror the movements of drawing, guarding, and striking with the blade. Even without a weapon in our hand, our body remembers the sword.

The Influence of Armour

To understand why Aikido moves as it does, we must look at the armour of the samurai.

Samurai armour was strong, but not invincible. It protected the chest, the head, and the outside of the limbs. Yet the joints had to remain flexible, and these were the weak points: the inside of the elbows, the armpits, the wrists, the backs of the knees. Behind each of these weak points lay vital arteries. If they were cut, life could end in moments.

Because of this, a warrior’s movement was shaped not only by the plates of armour but by the need to protect the lifelines of the body:

• The elbows stayed close to the body, never flared outward, so that the armpits remained covered.

• The forearm, strong and round with armour, was lifted to shield the arteries of the neck. When raising the sword, the arm was not only attacking but also guarding.

• Cuts with the sword were made in alignment, with posture upright and balanced. To finish in a twisted posture — with the opposite arm and leg crossing in front — would expose the inside of the thighs, where large arteries ran dangerously close to the surface. No samurai would risk such a stance, because it meant offering death to the opponent.

Thus, even the act of lifting the sword to strike was never only about offence. It was about protecting the body’s weak points while delivering a decisive cut.

When we look at Aikido today, this same logic still guides our movements. The arms flow close to the centreline, the body remains upright and untwisted, the cuts protect as much as they strike. What seems like elegance is, in fact, survival.

Why We Attack the Way We Do

One question often asked is: Why do we attack in Aikido the way we do?

To an outsider, wrist grabs and strikes in Aikido can seem unrealistic compared to the punches and kicks of modern combat sports. But again, tradition explains this.

• Katatetori (wrist grab) is not about holding someone’s arm for no reason. It represents Uke trying to stop Nage from drawing the sword. The sword was always worn on the left side and drawn with the right hand. By grabbing the right hand, Uke prevents the draw.

• Gyakuhanmi katatetori (opposite stance wrist grab) makes sense in this context: Uke grabs with their left hand, leaving their right hand free to draw their own sword.

  
  

• Aihanmi katatetori (same stance wrist grab) does not make sense traditionally, because if Uke uses their right hand to grab Nage’s right, their left hand cannot draw the sword. This is why some Aikido schools, including ours, do not emphasise this form.

Other attacks follow the same battlefield logic:

• Morotetori (two hands on one wrist): Uke uses both hands to overpower Nage’s sword hand.

• Ryotetori (two hands on two wrists): Uke tries to restrain Nage completely, preventing any draw at all.

These are not arbitrary grips. They are traditional attacks designed to make sense in the context of samurai combat.

The Importance of Centre Connection

But it is not enough to simply grab. Tradition teaches us that Uke must connect their centre.

If Uke merely holds Nage’s wrist without intent, Nage can step back and still draw the sword. But if Uke connects their centre — their body, their balance, their energy — then the draw becomes impossible.

This principle reminds us that Aikido is not a game of hands, but a practice of whole-body movement. The grip is not about muscles alone; it is about seizing the centre of the encounter.

Tradition vs. Modern Martial Arts

This is where Aikido differs from modern systems such as MMA or boxing. These arts are constantly evolving, adapting to competition rules and what works in the arena. They are modern, dynamic, and effective in their context.

But Aikido is not built on what is effective in today’s ring. It is built on what was effective on the battlefield centuries ago. Its purpose is not to chase change, but to preserve principles — balance, harmony, sword movement, and centre connection — that remain timeless.

Zen and the Beginner’s Mind

Tradition in Aikido is not only about the body. It is also about the mind.

In practice, it is easy for Uke to anticipate what will happen. Because we repeat techniques, Uke knows what Nage will do, and they adjust. But this is not true training.

True training requires us to forget what is coming. Each attack must be fresh, as if for the first time. This is extremely difficult. The mind naturally wants to anticipate, to protect us from harm. But tradition asks us to cultivate mushin — the empty mind, free from attachment.

This echoes the teachings of Takuan Sōhō in The Unfettered Mind, where he warned of a mind caught by thought or fear. It also recalls Shunryu Suzuki’s Zen Mind, Beginner’s Mind, which teaches us to face each moment without preconception.

In Aikido, this means Uke attacks sincerely, without second-guessing, and Nage responds with the same openness. In this way, both partners train the body and the spirit in the traditional manner of the samurai.

Why Tradition Matters Today

Some may ask: why preserve these traditions? Why not modernise Aikido to match today’s fighting methods?

The answer is simple: because tradition is the heart of Aikido. If we remove the sword, the armour, the etiquette, the Zen, then what is left is just movement. Without tradition, Aikido loses its identity.

By practicing in the traditional way, we connect to something larger than ourselves. We connect to the samurai who once moved in armour, to O-Sensei who refined these teachings, and to our own teachers who passed them to us. In this way, we are part of a living chain.

Conclusion

Aikido is traditional not because it is old, but because it carries forward the timeless principles of the samurai.

Its movements are born from the sword.

Its form is shaped by the armour.

Its attacks are drawn from the battlefield.

Its mind is grounded in Zen.

When we step onto the tatami, we do not merely exercise. We step into history. We place ourselves in the flow of tradition, where every bow, every grab, every cut, and every turn connects us to the way of the warrior.

This is why Aikido is traditional: it is not imitation, but inheritance.

Istvan Koloh

3dan Aikikai

Dojo-Cho