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Hayate
18th May 2001, 23:12
Hi again, long time no see huh?
Now and then i hear in the dojo calling the gokyo technique rokyo and sometimes hiji-kime-osai,specialy when someone comes for a seminar.
I mean why do they have different names for the same technique?The UKA says rokyo and the AAI-AAA says gokyo!!What is going on?
Ok some of you may say:why to bother it's the same thing only called differently...yes but if gokyo is rokyo then what technique is gokyo????? :-))))))))))0

Mike Collins
19th May 2001, 17:54
If I have any idea what you are referring to as rokyo, there are many teachers who say there is no such thing, it is simply a variation on nikkyo.

Gokyo is more like an ikkyo where the grip with the hand is upside down (I think that's an accurate way to describe it), to prevent getting cut, should your partner be armed with a tanto. It puts your hand on the top side of your partners hand rather than the bottom side where you'd be vulnerable to a cut. It kind of requires that you immobilize the partners elbow momentarily so you can get the appropriate grip.

Hope that helps. Hope it's accurate

PRehse
19th May 2001, 18:24
The wide wild world of Aikido terminology - and just wait until you start looking beyond the one organization.

Ikkyo, nikkyo, sankyo, yonkyo are pretty standard within the Aikikai but even here they are not the formal names. As mentioned before gokyo could be a weapons variation of ikkyo but I have heard it described as referring to all weapon disarming variations and rokkyo - an arm bar.

Shodokan Aikido does not use the numbering sequence, each technique has a formal name which can be modified to more specifically describe the variation. I had thought that Tomiki had invented the names but then was told that the names he uses are recognized by the old guys. Nikkyo is kotemawashi for example.

More confusion is that the Ikkajo of Daito-ryu is a group of techniques taught at a certain level not a class of techniques like Ikkyo. Its like comparing apples and oranges.

So what can I say. Learn the terminology from your organization and expect to be confused when when you train with another. The price you pay for exploration.

George Ledyard
19th May 2001, 21:12
I am in the amusing position of not knowing any more than the most basic terminology for describing Aikido technique. I often have trouble deciphering these discussions as they use terminolgy with which I am unfamiliar. This is due to the fact that Saotome Sensei didn't usually call the techjniques anything, he just did them. Often in deminstarting he'd do several variations without pointing out that he had actually done several different versions. hard for the beginners but excellent training in the end.

My Assistant Chief Instructor is a man named Kevin Lam. He is a direct student of Imaizumi Sensei who puts a lot of emphasis on naming the techniques and their variations. So now when I teach class I will demonstrate a technique and ofetn look over at Kevin Lam and ask "Now what is the name for this?" It's funny but my students are starting to know more of the technical terminology than I do. A good case of the students going beyond their teacher.

When I first trained with John Stevens Sensei, who trained under Shirata Sensei, they had all of their techniques broken down and numbered. There was shihonage number one through five etc. It wasn't as if there were any of these variations that I didn't know, it was just that Saotome sensei never broke things down that way. They were all just shihonage variations that would occur based on the energy the partner gives you or your need to position yourself relative to other attackers.

Naming and numbering systems are good for keeping track of your training and setting up rank requirements etc. but they don't have much to do with whether you can really do the techniques. I am much more interested in the students understandiung the priciples that underly the techniques than in their having exhaustive knowledge of the treminolgy.