Aikido Martial Art

Join us in 2 weeks in Barcelona in yet another great seminar with Mike Flynn sensei!

Regarding the passing of Yamada Yoshimitsu Shihan
Yamada Yoshimitsu Chief Shihan of New York Aikikai passed away on January 15, 2023 (local time). (Age 84).
We offer our deepest condolences at this time.

山田嘉光師範逝去のお知らせ
山田嘉光ニューヨーク合気会主席師範が、令和5年1月15日（日）（現地時間）に逝去されました。（享年84）
ここに謹んでお悔やみ申し上げます。

Mark your calendars! November 12-14th Seminar with Mike Flynn Shihan 🥋

The man of principle never forgets what he is, because of what others are. Baltasar Gracian

The warrior’s principles are both set in stone and yet flexible at the same time. This in no way means that his personal integrity is situational. He maintains his integrity without compromise. What this means is that what is right guides his integrity, not a rigid set of rules. Many people have a hard time understanding this philosophy. Hopefully the following example will help make this clear to you.

Let’s say that one of the principles that a warrior lives by is to be truthful or honest. Part of living up to this principle would be that the warrior does not lie. This is a pretty straightforward tenet. Now, someone who lives his life in rigid, legalistic terms would say that it is never okay to lie, that doing so would undermine his integrity. This is a good example of someone who looks at his principles in terms of black and white.

The problem with this is that a rigid view of one’s principles can sometimes run crossways with doing what is right. Let’s continue to examine this concept by looking closer at the principle of being honest and truthful. I think that we can all agree that being honest is a virtue and one of the traits that someone living the warrior lifestyle should adhere to as one of his core principles.

Here’s the difference between the rigid adherence to this principle and the man who views his principles from the standpoint of right and wrong. The man who views his principles from the perspective of right and wrong has the ability to be flexible in his principles. No, this doesn’t mean that he has the option to lie when it is convenient for him, but he does have the option to bend the truth when it is the right thing to do.

An example of this would be lying to save your life or the life of your loved ones. Say for instance that you are the victim of a home invasion and the predator asks you if you are home alone. You are fully aware that your wife is asleep upstairs but you think that you can better protect her by misleading this guy with a lie and saying that you are home alone. The man who lives life in terms of right and wrong will have no problem lying to this predator, and in doing so, will in no way have compromised his principles. Bohdi Sanders ~ excerpt from the #1 Bestseller, MODERN BUSHIDO: Living a Life of Excellence, available from Amazon at: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B008S26INK or from The Wisdom Warrior website at: https://thewisdomwarrior.com.