by Bill Gleason Sensei (6th Dan) of Shobu Aikido of Boston
This article was first printed in the Shobu Aikido Aiki News newsletter (May 2001, Vol 2, No. 2).
When the founder passed away in 1969, sword training at the Honbu dojo in Japan ceased to exist as a part of the regular curriculum. At that time sword training was only available for select high ranking students and was conducted somewhat behind closed doors. Although the taking away of an opponents weapons continued to be a part of the testing process, teaching the use and handling of sword was, for all practical purposes, suspended completely.
Since that time the controversy over whether or not the practice of sword is really an integral part of, or even valuable to, aikido training has continued to intensify. There is little doubt however that Ueshiba Morihei O-sensei, the founder of aikido, considered it as an essential part of his teaching as well as his own training. He constantly used weapons, especially the sword, to show the principles of aikido. Why is swordsmanship so valuable for understanding the essence of aikido? If we view this question from an historical perspective the answer becomes quite clear.
