Daito-ryu Aiki-jujutsu
大東流合気柔術The school from which aikido came. The Takeda family traces it to the eleventh century, but it was demonstrably established as a public art only by Takeda Sokaku in the 1890s.
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About Daito-ryu Aiki-jujutsu
Daito-ryu aiki-jujutsu is the school from which aikido came. Its own history is shorter than tradition claims: the Takeda family traces it to Minamoto no Yoshimitsu in the 11th century, but it was demonstrably established as a public art only by Takeda Sokaku in the 1890s. Sokaku was an itinerant teacher at a time when the samurai class no longer existed. He travelled across Japan, ran short intensive seminars and kept careful records of whom he taught — which makes his activity unusually well documented. Among his students were Morihei Ueshiba, the founder of aikido, and Choji Nakajima. Technically it works with locks on the wrist, elbow and shoulder, with throws that grow out of breaking the opponent's balance, and with a system of grips that binds him to one's own structure. The central concept of aiki means blending with an attack rather than blocking it. The curriculum covers techniques performed seated (suwari waza), kneeling and standing. The difference from aikido lies in emphasis. Daito-ryu keeps atemi, harder finishes and painful control points, and does not aim at harmony as an ethical goal. Its main present-day branches are Takumakai, Kodokai and Rokuhokai.
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