Edmonton Aikikai - Strathcona Community Center - 10139 87 Avenue Northwest - Edmonton

CAF History:

CAF President George Hewson summed up the CAF history succinctly in this 2012 letter (PDF): 2012 Greeting

Club History:

The Edmonton Aikikai has been practicing at the Strathcona Community Centre since 2005. The club began in 1976 at the University of Alberta under the direction of P. Scott. In 1979 the dojo was under the direction of D. Holmberg. In 1984 B. Heron, G. Forchner and G. Hilchie assumed responsibility for the dojo under the technical direction of E. Ball who still remains an honorary member of the Dojo.

Overall the club falls under the auspices of the Canadian Aikido Federation, under the direction of the late Y. Kawahara, Shihan. The current acting Shihan for Canada is H. Osawa Sensei, who visits bi-annually from the Hombu dojo.

Instruction:

The Canadian Aikido Federation operates a technical committee and an examination committee chaired by our Technical Director.

Importance of Uke:

The form of the technique is determined by the way uke flows. A technique improves its quality to the best when uke flows on nage's ki. Ukemi is not falling on your own. You must follow nage until you fall naturally. By this, you can understand the formless form of ki movements. This understanding allows you to develop kokyunage from basic forms after appropriate training.
Y. Kawahara

Practicing Attitude:

The strength and rigor of practice must increase gradually within the practitioners' capacities. It is strictly prohibited to develop competitiveness or disharmony in practice.
The utmost hardness of practicing can be attained within the individual's attitude and exercising kokyu-power, which is completely different from practicing roughly or exerting physical strength, disregarding the partner's ability and strength. Strictness in Aikido training must be found in the sincere and harmonious atmosphere where all the participants practice with each other caringly and sensitively. Leave your egocentric and egotistic attachments behind before entering the dojo.
As you practice, always pay attention to your posture. Keep your center down. It is a commonly found tendency that as a student becomes more experienced and more skillful than many other students, he forgets the importance of lowering his center. The better you become, the lower your center should be, thus the more respectful to others you become.
Take a proper ma-ai. This is the key to appropriate movements.
Make ki-ai (vocalization) whenever appropriate. Ki-ai is an expression of your dynamic life energy.
In shomen-uchi especially, nage initiates the movement. Both nage's and uke's hands come from the very center.
F. I. Ishiyama