Morihei Ueshiba gave the following instructions to his disciples:

'Aikido cannot be explained with words; one must practice and attain enlightenment of mind and body. Aikido training is not a sport nor asceticism; it is an act of faith based on the desire to achieve total awakening. Do not be in a hurry, for it takes a minimum of ten years to master the basics and advance to the first rung. Never think of yourselves as all-knowing, perfected instructors; you must continue to train daily with your students and progress together on the Path of Aiki.'

Morihei's dictum that ten years are required to get a handle on the basics brings to mind a famous samurai tale.
A young man petitioned a great swordsman to admit him as a disciple. 'I'll act as your servant and train ceaselessly.

- 'How long will it take me to learn everything?'
- ' At least ten years' the master replied.
- 'That's too long'  - the young man protested.
  'Suppose I work twice as hard as everyone else. Then how long will it take?'
- 'Thirty years' - he was told.
- 'What do you mean?'  - he exclaimed.
  'I'll do anything to master swordsmanship as quick as possible!'
- 'In that case' - the master said sharply
  'you will need fifty years. A person who is in such a hurry is a poor student.'

The young man was eventually allowed to serve as an attendant on condition that he neither ask about nor touch a sword. After three years, the master began sneaking up on the young man at all hours of the day and the night to whack him with his wooden sword. This continue until the young man could anticipate the attacks. Only then did the formal instructions begin.

Similarly, in Morihei's dojo, novices were set to work cleaning and doing other chores and taking ukemi for the senior students. At the Kobukan it was often six months before a new trainee could actually try his hand at some of the techniques.

The two factors that distinguish Aikido from the other martial arts and from the competitive sports are, respectively, that (1) the techniques are 'alive', not bound by rules or rigid form, and (2) there are no contests. Classical martial arts insist that the traditional forms be preserved and transmitted intact. The techniques of Aikido, on the contrary, change every time they are performed, reflecting the physical and spiritual maturity of the practitioners. As one's level of understanding deepens, one's technique undergo similar modification and improvement. Aikido is thus created anew each day, and the insights gained in the dojo must be applied to the multifarious problems of life.

Harmonization is the goal of Aikido, and the techniques are the vehicles that enable practitioners to test those principles, not in a show of strength and competition but in mutual accord and assistance.

Other martial artists are often critical of the Aikido bow: 'One should never take one's eyes off an opponent.' Aikido practitioners implicitly trust each other and display that mutual faith by bowing all the way to the floor and, as it were, offering their necks. When one bows before a shrine, one never suspiciously watches out for a surprise attack by the deity. in Aikido, one's partner is a 'living shrine', due the same respect as a holy object. indeed, the practice of Aikido begins and ends with respect.

Once, in the pre-war days, Morihei attended a joint martial arts demonstration held deep in the country. Afterward, he and several other judo and kendo instructors were returning their inn along a farm road. The owner of those particular fields was a notoriously bad-tempered man. As soon as he noticed the intruders, he hurled a big lump of manure at them.
- 'Who do you think you are, trespassing on my property?' the farmer yelled.
- 'Who do you think you're talking to?' several members of the group shouted back as they moved toward the belligerent farmer.
The farmer then grabbed a bucket of manure to defend himself, but Morihei waved the others back and stepped forward alone.
- 'Why are you trespassing on my land?' the farmer demanded to know.
- 'We are sorry' Morihei apologised. 'We were unaware that this is private property. Please forgive us.' Morihei bowed deeply.
The nonplused farmer was speechless as he watched Morihei lead the group away.
- 'Ueshiba Sensei' - the others asked - 'why did you let that hill-billy get away with such rudeness? You should have let us take care of him.'
- 'It is foolish to create disturbances over trifles' - Morihei replied thoughtfully.
- 'repaying violence with violence is always counterproductive; purifying oneself and others of violence and hate is the Way of Harmony.'

Aikido is both harmony and love and must never degenerate into mere fighting and competition. Needless to say, given the instinct to survive at all costs and the innate desire to compete, supreme effort is required to suppress the urge to come out on top. Several of Morihei's senior disciples broke openly with their master on this point, insisting that organised competition was absolutely necessary for the development of Aikido as a modern sport.

hat type of thinking sorely distressed Morihei because, while there are hundreds of arenas in which to fight, athletics that provide guidance in harmonisation and love are precious few. Morihei said:

From ancient times, budo has never beenconsidered a sport.
If there are contests, be must be ready to kill.
Those who seek competition are making a grave mistake. To smash, injure, or destroy is the worst sin a human being can commit.
The old saying 'The martial deities never kill' is true. Real budo is a Path of Peace.

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