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INTRODUCTION

Not that long ago, aikido books were scarce. You might have found a few classics at a decent martial arts supply store, but not many. Aikido schools were scarcer still—unless you lived in or near a large city, your chances of finding one were slim. Today, however, things are different. Aikido has enjoyed a meteoric rise in popularity over the last twenty years or so. You can find books on aikido at the bookstore in your local mall, and a check of the Yellow Pages™ will undoubtedly turn up at least one school within reasonable commuting distance.

Part of aikido’s rise in popularity can quite simply be attributed to time. In the almost thirty years since the death of aikido founder Morihei Ueshiba O’Sensei, his many students have spread his philosophy and vision across the world, passing it on to a new generation of students who continue to sow the seeds of his legacy. More recently, aikido’s appearance in popular films and on television has exposed O’Sensei’s teachings to a worldwide audience, inspiring many to seek out more information and, ultimately, to study. Aikido’s fundamental philosophy of non-violence is one that today’s increasingly more violent society seems eager to embrace. In addition, aikido’s non-reliance on physical strength or size for effectiveness arguably invites a broader range of students than other martial arts.

Whatever the reasons, aikido’s rise in popularity has come at a cost. Aikido is now subject to the same broad misconceptions that first greeted more established and familiar (at least now) arts such as karate, judo, kung-fu, taekwondo, and so on, perhaps even more so. Because of aikido’s emphasis on non-violence, some people characterize it as more of a spiritual pursuit than a practical means of self-defense. Others argue that aikido will work only if regressed to its more brutal Daito-ryu jujutsu roots, and that spirituality is secondary, at best. These schools of thought are very much like the parable of the four blind men feeling an elephant for the first time. One feels the trunk, and says an elephant is like a snake. Another touches a leg, and says it is like a tree, and so on. While these observations contain some truth, it is an incomplete truth. It is for this reason, among others, that Complete Aikido: Aikido Kyohan was written.

Roy Yukio Suenaka Sensei has devoted his life, beginning at age four, to martial arts study, and has learned at the feet of some of the world’s most celebrated martial masters. His primary instructors include judo’s Kazuo Ito and Kyuzo Mifune; Kodenkan (now Danzan-ryu) jujutsu’s Henry Seishiro Okazaki; Kosho-ryu kempo’s legendary James Masayoshi Mitose; kendo’s Shuji Mikami; Matsumura Seito and Hakutsuru Shorin-ryu karate grandmaster Hohan Soken; and aikido’s Yukiso Yamamoto, Koichi Tohei, Kisshomaru Ueshiba, and founder Morihei Ueshiba O’Sensei. Roy Suenaka is ranked nidan (second degree black belt) in kendo, and sandan (third degree black belt) in judo and jujutsu. He was awarded a rokudan (sixth degree black belt) in Matsumura Seito karate by Hohan Soken, an okuden certificate of advanced Shin-Shin Toitsu aikido proficiency by Koichi Tohei, and a menkyo-kaiden certificate of aikido mastery from Morihei Ueshiba O’Sensei. He is recognized as hachidan (eigth degree black belt) in aikido by the International Black Belt Federation and the Dai Nippon Butokukai. Suenaka was also the first person to open a successful aikido school in Okinawa, and one of the first to teach aikido on the United States mainland. In addition to his martial pedigree, Suenaka has a wealth of street-fighting experience, and as a former military man, he saw active combat duty in Vietnam, and taught unarmed combat to Army Special Forces, Navy SEALs, and other personnel stationed there.

Suenaka Sensei’s rich, extensive experience makes him uniquely qualified to comment on what aikido is and is not, and to dispel the many misconceptions which plague its history, philosophy, and martial technique. Nothing makes him angrier than to hear people disparage the art to which he has devoted his life, or to read uninformed or inaccurate accounts of events in aikido’s history of which he was a part. Because of this, Suenaka’s students have urged him for decades to put his thoughts and experiences down on paper, but he had always declined. He is a humble and modest man, content to teach, not desiring fame or recognition. It is only to address the misconceptions noted earlier that he has finally consented to write this, his first book.

Complete Aikido: Aikido Kyohan is divided into two sections. The first, A Martial Biography of Roy Yukio Suenaka Sensei, is a recounting of Suenaka’s early martial arts training, with a focus on his introduction to and study of aikido, and his martial philosophy. Here you will find a wealth of entertaining and illuminating personal anecdotes from his life, particularly his studies with Hohan Soken, Koichi Tohei, and O’Sensei. This section also contains details of many controversial incidents in aikido’s history, some of which have never before appeared in print. As such, it is acknowledged that there may be some who also were involved whose recollection may differ.

The second section of Complete Aikido: Aikido Kyohan focuses on Suenaka-ha Tetsugaku-ho aikido philosophy and technique. It is possible to skip to the second section without reading the first, but it is not advisable. Only by reading Suenaka’s martial biography will you truly understand the wealth of experience he brings to his technique, and the authority behind it.

Finally, a note on the narrative style. Complete Aikido is the result of over twenty hours of tape-recorded interviews with Suenaka Sensei, and countless hours of casual conversation with him over the past ten years. It is not written in the first-person, at Suenaka Sensei’s insistence, for no more mysterious a reason than he does not feel comfortable writing about his own experiences and achievements. Instead, his biography has been summarized from his discussions and dictation, and is highlighted throughout by dozens of first-person narrative passages taken verbatim from the interviews with him. The entirety of the second section was written from Suenaka Sensei’s personal notes and under his direct instruction, and it is Suenaka himself who demonstrates the techniques. He personally reviewed each successive draft of the text, and made changes as he saw fit. Despite this writer’s byline, you may rest assured that Complete Aikido: Aikido Kyohan is Suenaka’s work alone, and his spirit and authority underlies each and every word. Also, rather than adhere to a strict chronological retelling of events, many of the events and stories Suenaka relates in the biographical portion appear out of sequence, which will appear obvious as you read. This was done to preserve the flow of the narrative, and to group stories and events of like significance.

“Complete” and “kyohan” have similar meanings. Kyohan means master text, or canon. Nevertheless, this book is not meant to be a complete encyclopedia of aikido. It is, rather, a distillation of Suenaka Sensei’s martial history and aikido teaching. It is a canon as it relates to Suenaka Sensei’s life in aikido. On behalf of Suenaka Sensei, I hope you enjoy Complete Aikido: Aikido Kyohan, and that it becomes a valuable and permanent addition to your martial library, and your life.

Christopher Watson

May 14, 1997