Why this book?

Aikido is generally taught as a large number, perhaps thousands, of techniques. This makes learning a long, frustrating process. The author's view is that Aikido follows a common Japanese esthetic of taking a very simple principle or action and seeing what can be done. From this point of view everything in Aikido is the application of a very simple principle for getting people to fall down. This includes all of the attacks, all of the movements, and all of the throws. Submissions in Aikido usually happen after the partner is thrown so they do not follow this principle. The term submissions is used because that is how we think in English. In English a pin just holds someone where as a submission threatens damage if the person does not submit. The Japanese language seems to be different. All pins and most arm locks are called gatame.

Most Aikido classes spend considerable time practicing exercises that are not practical as combat techniques. Usually these are not distinguished from techniques and sometimes they are explicitly described as how it is done on the street. Teachers who take Aikido seriously as a martial art frequently do something very different from practice when they show Aikido as self-defense. What people do in real situations is what they practice. For this reason police do not catch empty magazines during range practice because they then get killed in real gun fights because they stop to catch the magazine. It is not unusual to see black belt students playing. One grabs the other and the student does an exercise rather than a technique. It does not work and their play degenerates into a wrestling match. Neither understands what went wrong. The desire here is to have a way of training that is as close to actual combat as is safe and practical.

Aikido is really simple compared to most martial arts. Parts of Judo are very similar to Aikido but Judo includes a great variety of throws that work on different principles and require much more athletic ability than Aikido. Aikido has less than ten basic movements and around 20 basic throws. It probably has about 20 attacks. Because these techniques work on the same simple principle they are similar to each other.

Aikido has standing and seated practice but no practice lying down on the mat as in Judo's Katamewaza. Katamewaza is not desirable in a real fight with many attackers which is what Aikido trains for but it is not unusual, especially for Aikido students, to end up fighting on the ground. Also Katamewaza is just too much fun to not practice.

Aikido has Uke do strikes but they are not usually thought of as Aikido. Ten Shin Nage is probably an exercise to teach striking but I may be the only person in the world to believe this. At any rate Kuta is an art that teaches strikes, kicks and escapes that fit perfectly with Aikido. Kuta teaches principles of generating speed and power that are very important so the two arts have been brought together as one. Kuta is also oriented towards many attackers and self-defense in a way that compliments Aikido and adds depth.