Reports

Balerna October 2008

5th Seminar with Yoshigasaki Sensei

Peace

For the annual autumn meeting with Doshu Kenjiro Yoshigasaki on the tatami of Balerna, numerous "old friends" and many "new friends" from various European countries gathered, intent on participating in a meeting that, as always, proved to be of a high philosophical and technical standard. Our Doshu always surprises us and moves us deeply with its ability to create "resonances" in each of us and/or to awaken very important values in our consciousness, perhaps one of the most important of which is peace, without which our lives would be truly "poor."
But the real problem often lies in the fact that the human mind is overwhelmed by the little things that diminish existence: selfishness, tyranny, lack of love, and so on, so that when we say "Goodbye, peace," we always remain... poor! One wonders why it is so difficult to create peace.
So the concept of peace that Doshu teaches in the seminars actually requires minimal effort to apply it to the techniques of Aikido, why is it so difficult to practice something that should be "so simple"? Probably because our minds are still aggressive, and I see that it is necessary to overcome our inner resistance and that this is the right path to take because it gives us room to breathe!

Lecture

What did the Doshu teach us?
That we choose not to fight in the name of peace. Some think this means that "Aikido isn't effective this way." Well, these people should find peace. On the contrary: The most important thing is — and I believe many others feel this too — that by choosing not to fight, an "opponent" is "disarmed" and cannot fight. Philosophically speaking, it corresponds to the ancient, omnipresent teachings of the great masters of life who have appeared on this planet.
On a technical level, the implementation of the concept was vividly and effectively conveyed on Friday evening with numerous exercises in Kote Oroshi Irimi, Katatekosadori Kokyu Nage, and Katatekosadori Kokyu Nage Tenkan. Even the repeated breathing meditation TO HO KA MI E MI TA ME with the hands and bokken leaves all aikidoka with a great sense of well-being and openness.
For those who followed it from the outside, i.e. the spectators, the emotion was great: probably their "inner strings" were also touched by the resonance that this powerful meditation creates.

Friday night

To round off Friday evening, about twenty aikidoka headed to the Grotto del Mulino (in the Parco delle Gole della Breggia) for an excellent minestrone soup, followed by a "taiada" of local cured meats and the renowned cheeses of the Muggio Valley. There was no shortage of excellent wine from MoMo (i.e., from the vineyards of the Mendrisiotto region). Our doshu didn't hold back either, enjoying everything with a hearty appetite!
That's always a great pleasure.

Lecture

Our training continued on Saturday morning: There were really a lot of aikidoka on the tatami. Doshu explained the concept of peace once again, expanding on it and clarifying that Aikido is not a fight or an "art of defense," but creates situations in which a fight "cannot easily arise."
So what to do? Through the movement of the body, the form must be changed! It's not about moving "points" of the body: you must actually change the form. Got it? There's a lot to do!
For those who aren't artists, musicians, writers, etc., Aikido is an excellent art for expressing one's philosophy through the body. And that's okay.
The master also mentioned the need to respect everyone's need for "space and freedom." Not just physical space, but also mental and spiritual space and freedom that is not separated from responsibility. It is useless, even counterproductive, and not in keeping with the spirit of Aikido to restrict people's space and freedom.
These are concepts that Doshu often revisits, perhaps because they are based on the Tatami and in daily life are not sufficiently internalized and respected: Let us meditate on this. It is also important to be careful not to divide everything into good and bad (+ and -), because there are also aspects of "less good or less good" and "not bad": Well!

Pause

For lunch, almost everyone met at the nearby Ristorante Federale to enjoy a “typically Swiss” menu: St. Gallen Bratwurst (DOC) and Rösti: We deliberately opted for a “light meal” so that we could resume our activities in the afternoon as best as possible.

Children

A large group of children from the Aikido mini-school, accompanied as always by parents, grandparents, and younger brothers and sisters, joyfully rushed onto the tatami and brought an extraordinary KI into the dojo while they waited for the doshu, whose instructions they followed attentively.
Friends from other dojos supported our children's teachers, and we were very touched that Riccardo B. from Valdarno volunteered to "work" with little Kevin, who showed that he was not at all intimidated by the almost 2-meter-tall "giant."

Training and exams

The training for adults continued with exercises for Ushiro Ryokatadori and for the eighth Tsuzukiwaza (Ryote Dori). Everyone worked very intensively and with perseverance.
The planned exams ultimately did not take place: Sven from Frastanz (Austria) was unable to come to Balerna for the Joden exam because he had become a father for the second time at the same time as the seminar. The new little one is called Sally Louise, and she is beautiful! We congratulate him and Sorana, the happy parents.
We were welcomed for dinner at the Grotto del Furmighin in Sagno. As always, Anna's service was exceptionally warm and friendly.

Sunday

Sunday morning greeted us with bright sunshine and T-shirt temperatures. On the tatami, we practiced many techniques, especially those of the 33rd Tsuzukiwaza (Shinken), and then performed the entire Tsuzukiwaza in one go (always beautiful).
The seminar ended with the usual emotions. Many friends headed home, many of them still had a long way to go.
A small group met for lunch with the Doshu, again in the setting of the Breggia Gorges: A delicious risotto with "ucelli scapati" (decapitated birds, not "scappati" "escaped") created a good atmosphere at the table. (Translator's note: these are small veal roulades that look like the bodies of birds without the heads.)
Finally, the group, accompanied by the Doshu, the author of these lines, Andrea, Govert, Roberto, Paola, Bernhard, and David Carter, hiked along the forest path above the grotto to reach the charming village of Morbio Inferiore, where a lively and interesting chestnut festival was being organized. The Doshu attentively watched the roasting of the chestnuts and tasted the excellent white wine from a local producer.

Peaceful

It was a moment of true relaxation: the day was particularly suitable for a stroll through the courtyards of the old houses in the village center, where there were stalls selling artisanal products, demonstrations of ancient farming activities, and tastings of chestnuts prepared in many different ways.
So a beautiful, peaceful afternoon came to an end, and it was time for everyone to go home. Our Doshu said goodbye to us, leaving us with his smile and the fullness of his gaze, which will accompany us in the coming months.
Our association would like to sincerely thank everyone who came to join us, the municipality of Balerna, which made the gym and adjoining rooms available free of charge, dear Harriet, who shared her wonderful creativity with us through the magnificent flower arrangements, and our friends, the chefs, who prepared our meals with love and dedication, "just like it used to be."
I bid you farewell until next year, for an even better seminar! A warm hug, Yvette Voumard, Balerna (CH).

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