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TRADITIONAL, YET
SEEMINGLY DIFFERENT,
JAPANESE STYLES.
Karate-do and Aikido
by Tom Muzila.
(excerpts)
Aikido and shotokan karate are popularly viewed as vastly
different styles. Their approaches to the martial arts appear to
come from opposite ends of the hardness/softness spectrum.
Aikido is considered a soft style, while shotokan is viewed as a
hard system. Yet, they share many similarities.
Although many people interpret aikido as a passive style, highranking aikido instructor Steven Seagal disagrees. "Aikido's
fundamental goal comes from the original martial arts concept:
to kill your opponent," notes Seagal, who lived in Japan for 15
years and studied at aikido's headquarters dojo (training hall)
in Tokyo. "All of the mental and abstract spiritual benefits are
acquired from this base. You must have the capacity to kill and
be able to cut off all attachments to life in your mind to be able
to give life."
Seagal also emphasizes that real aikido is extremely
dangerous. An untrained individual does not know how to fall
or go with the throws. In actual combat, the untrained would
surely break their joints, back or neck.
Conversely, most people view shotokan karate as a hard style.
Yet, at various mental and technical levels, shotokan takes on
a much softer appearance.
Let's take a look at the processes by which karate and aikido
practitioners evolve. The beginning karate student usually