Daito-ryu Aiki-jujutsu
大東流合気柔術A Japanese art of locks, throws and atemi from which aikido emerged. It was created by Sokaku Takeda, is learned in paired kata, and progress is certified by scrolls and licences.
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About Daito-ryu Aiki-jujutsu
Daito-ryu Aiki-jujutsu is a Japanese art of joint locks, throws and atemi strikes from which aikido emerged. It was created by Sokaku Takeda (1859–1943) from the Aizu domain, who combined the Aizu teaching of oshiki-uchi with other skills. The school itself derives its origin from Minamoto no Yoshimitsu of the 11th century. However, no records of the art before Takeda are known, and according to an analysis by Mihály Dobróka the earliest version of this story appears only in a newspaper interview with Takeda from 1936. The sources give no single year of origin, and Takeda’s teaching is documented from the end of the nineties of the 19th century.
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Takeda travelled around Japan and held seminars for officers, police officers and other interested people. For about 45 years he kept records of students (eimeiroku). His students included Morihei Ueshiba, the founder of aikido, Yukiyoshi Sagawa, Kodo Horikawa and Takuma Hisa. It is learned mainly in the form of paired kata. Atemi serve to prepare a lock or a throw, the techniques are based on work with the sword, and some branches also teach kenjutsu and other weapons. Instead of belts, progress is traditionally certified by scrolls and licences, for example Hiden Mokuroku with 118 techniques. Dan grades were introduced only by Tokimune Takeda, the son and successor of Sokaku Takeda. Daito-ryu does not hold competitions. Today’s branches include Takumakai, Kodokai, Roppokai and the main line of Katsuyuki Kondo. Grades and curricula differ between them.
History
Daito-ryu Aiki-jujutsu was created by Sokaku Takeda (1859–1943) from the Aizu domain, who combined the Aizu teaching of oshiki-uchi with other skills. The sources give no single year of its origin, and Takeda’s teaching trips are documented from the spring of 1898. The student records name as his teacher Saigo Tanomo, a former adviser of Aizu, and the sources place the transmission of oshiki-uchi in 1897 or 1898. The origin from Minamoto no Yoshimitsu in the 11th century is a tradition of the school, and no records of the art before Takeda are known. Mihály Dobróka found the first written version of the story in a newspaper interview with Takeda from 1936 and describes gaps in the lineage and a family register from 1876 that lists the Takedas as farmers. Takeda taught for over 50 years, held seminars for military officers and police, and kept records of students (eimeiroku) for about 45 years. Morihei Ueshiba met him in Engaru in 1915.
How it differs
Daito-ryu is one specific school within a broader discipline that Britannica collectively calls jujutsu, that is, the combat systems of the warrior class, the bushi. The aikido historian Stanley Pranin describes it as a collection of several hundred techniques with joint locks and holds. Tokimune Takeda stated that the difference from judo is that Daito-ryu holds no one-on-one matches. Aikido grew out of Daito-ryu. Ueshiba Morihei met Takeda Sokaku in February 1915 in Engaru, and his prewar certificates were scrolls of Daito-ryu aiki-jujutsu. According to Pranin he kept a large part of the repertoire but modified it, and after 1935 he was no longer in direct contact with Takeda. In the Iwama years he developed aiki ken, aiki jo and the concept of takemusu aiki, that is, the spontaneous execution of a technique according to the situation. The art received the name aikido in 1942, and before that it was called aiki budo. Tokimune Takeda said that people use aikido to mean techniques used only when attacked, whereas Daito-ryu calls such techniques aiki. Britannica describes Korean hapkido as self-defense based on traditional tae kyon, with circular sweeps, kicks, strikes and throws. Like aikido it uses a yielding approach and circular movement. Britannica does not mention a relationship between hapkido and Daito-ryu.
Technique
The basis consists of joint locks and throws in the sets shoden waza and aiki-no-jutsu. Atemi strikes serve mainly to prepare a lock or a throw. Tokimune Takeda preferred to immobilize a fallen attacker with a knee on the joint, so as to have the hands free. Tokimune Takeda stated that the techniques are based on the sword and that the study of the sword is essential for Daito-ryu. According to him, the names shihonage and kotegaeshi come from Daito-ryu, the technique known in aikido as kokyunage is called aikinage in Daito-ryu, koshinage is called koshiguruma, and tenchinage is among the aikinage techniques.
Training
Techniques are learned mainly in the form of kata, that is pre-arranged exercises in pairs. The Daitokai states a programme of three parts: aikijujutsu (strikes, throws, joint locks and pressure on points), kenjutsu and other weapons. Tokimune Takeda stated that in the Daitokan one no longer practises with opponents but only kata. He described the teaching of Daito-ryu as completely different from other schools and the training as harder than the soft practice of aiki, and this is his statement. We have not found free randori or a description of the lesson structure in the sources.
Ranks and progression
Progress is traditionally certified by scrolls instead of belts. After mastering a set of techniques the student receives a certificate: Hiden Mokuroku contains 118 techniques, Aiki-no-jutsu 53 and Hiden Okugi 36. The teaching licences are kyoju dairi (teacher’s deputy) and menkyo kaiden (full transmission). Kyoju dairi was received, for example, by Morihei Ueshiba on 15 September 1922, Kodo Horikawa in 1931 and Yukiyoshi Sagawa in 1932, and menkyo kaiden from Tokimune Takeda by Katsuyuki Kondo in May 1988. Under Sokaku Takeda dan grades did not exist. They were first awarded by Tokimune Takeda, and after the war only some branches adopted them. The Daitokai states that its students study jujutsu and kenjutsu up to 2nd dan and the other weapons up to 3rd dan and that its certifications are recognized by member dojo. We have not found a common system of grades across the branches.
Who it suits
Sokaku Takeda spread Daito-ryu at seminars throughout Japan. He taught military officers, police officers and people of often high social standing. Stanley Pranin states in the Aikido Journal (1995) that around 1903 he taught members of the 2nd Division of the Japanese army for several years. We have not found current conditions of entry. The Daito-ryu branches do not state a children’s programme, a starting age or children’s competitions, and competitions are not held in Daito-ryu. We have also not found data on the instruction of women, older beginners or protectors. We have not found a study of injuries or load in Daito-ryu, and the training consists of paired kata with joint locks, throws and atemi.
Gear
The Daitokai curriculum includes kenjutsu with the kata Kendo-no-kata, Gogyo-no-kata and Ono-ha Itto-ryu and other weapons: kodachi, tessen (iron fan), shuriken, bo, jutte and tanken. Both Sokaku and Tokimune Takeda also issued scrolls for techniques with the sword and with the long and short sword. We have not found whether weapons are mandatory in all branches. We have also not found a description of clothing and protectors in Daito-ryu.
Philosophy
The concept of aiki is explained by the statements of the heads of the school. According to a surviving definition, Sokaku Takeda said that the secret of aiki is to overpower the opponent mentally with a mere glance and win without fighting. In an interview with Stanley Pranin, Tokimune Takeda described aiki as pulling when one is pushed and pushing when one is pulled. According to him, aiki corresponds to go no sen, that is a reaction to an attack, whereas kiai is sen sen, attacking first. According to him, the techniques were designed so as to leave the opponent no gap, and he called the study of the sword essential for Daito-ryu. Aikido differs from Daito-ryu in its aim: after 1919, under the influence of Onisaburo Deguchi, Morihei Ueshiba combined the martial studies with philosophy and religion. We have not found a coherent ethical doctrine of Daito-ryu.
Today
Daito-ryu today has no single headquarters and operates in several branches. The teaching of Tokimune Takeda is spread by the Daitokai, and the Nihon Daito-ryu Aikibudo Daito Kai was led by Shigemitsu Kato and Gunpachi Arisawa. The Takumakai follows Takuma Hisa (1895–1980), the Kodokai was founded in 1950 by Kodo Horikawa and is now led by Yusuke Inoue. The Roppokai of Seiga Okamoto (1925–2015) emphasizes throws with minimal movement. The main line is led by Katsuyuki Kondo (born 1945), a student of Tokimune Takeda since 1960, who received menkyo kaiden from him in May 1988. In 2000 he published a bilingual handbook of 30 techniques of the ikkajo series, and in 2002 he demonstrated Daito-ryu at the Aiki Expo in Las Vegas. His branches operate, among others, in Italy, Russia, Slovakia and the USA. We have not found a dojo in the Czech Republic or competitions in Daito-ryu.
Did you know
Takeda Sokaku taught for over fifty years and, per Pranin, reached about 30 000 students. He kept the student registers eimeiroku and the payment ledgers shareiroku for about 45 years, together over 2 000 pages. In 1904 he helped the municipal court in Hakodate in a dispute with local gangs that ended in arbitration, and in 1905 he met on a train in Sendai the Briton Charles Parry, who became his student. The rumor that Takeda fled to Hokkaido after being implicated in a killing does not hold up, according to Pranin, because he had earlier taught for almost a year in Akita. The kyoju dairi certificate of 15 September 1922 obliged Ueshiba to enter every student in the register and to pay Takeda three yen at enrollment. Pranin lists 29 kyoju dairi holders from 1902 to 1941. Tokimune Takeda recalled that in the nineteen-thirties today's aikido was called Daito-ryu aiki-jujutsu.
Frequently asked questions
What is daito-ryu aiki-jujutsu?
Daito-ryu aiki-jujutsu is a Japanese martial art that historian Stanley Pranin describes as the traditional art of the Aizu clan, passed down by Takeda Sokaku. It consists of several hundred jujutsu techniques with joint locks and holds, and it became the technical basis of modern aikido.
Who was Takeda Sokaku?
Takeda Sokaku (1859–1943) from the Aizu domain gave Daito-ryu aiki-jujutsu its present form. He taught at seminars across Japan, among others members of the 2nd Army Division in Sendai from 1903, and his students included Ueshiba Morihei, Sagawa Yukiyoshi and Horikawa Kodo.
What is the difference between daito-ryu and aikido?
Aikido arose from Daito-ryu. Ueshiba Morihei studied with Takeda from 1915, took over a large part of the repertoire and modified it. According to Pranin, Daito-ryu consists of several hundred techniques with joint locks and holds and has no competitions, while aikido added sword and staff work (aiki ken, aiki jo) and an emphasis on spontaneous execution of techniques.
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