Practices
Spiritual Aikido Sword
13 February 2008 10:27 PM
Here at age 72 Strephon demonstrates Spiritual Aikido Sword.
Strephon has developed Spiritual Aikido from regular Aikido. He has trained in regular dojo Aikido since he was 46. Strephon has used his Spiritual Aikido practices in his professional trainings in dreamwork psychology as a regular practice, and in his own life. He has taught Spiritual Aikido courses to adults in spiritual centers.
Here in this ten minute film Strephon shows himself in action with a live Japanese, metal, practice sword.
The Spiritual Aikido principles emphasized are:
- follow the sword, do not lead it
- harmonize your being and body with universal laws of motion.
- do not impose traditional sword moves onto the natural swing and flow of the body holding a live sword
- practice effortlessly with the sword moving you in free and harmonious motion
- do not use muscle strength in your movements
- transfer your weight effortlessly up through the ground into your body and out your sword tip
- practice not by repetition but by internal awareness giving you full energy flow commitment in a balanced and harmonious way
- the natural movements of the sword will be there for you if you let go to them
- do not impose notions of the right and wrong way to do things with the sword
- be totally aware of yourself and your sword as one with your soul and your body, or you might damage yourself through asserting ego control
- the sword teaches the body and being of a person. The person does not teach the sword.
The above principles are all by way of saying that balanced sword practice, following the natural laws of the universe, is Spiritual Aikido, the practices of principles over forms for the experience of centered oneness with the universe in internal and external harmony
Strephon originated this form by simply following the natural motion created by his awareness of energy principles and sword movements. Others may have originated this form as well
Strephon has no ranking whatsoever with any martial arts organization by choice. Seeking external certificates and rankings is by nature contradictory to the principles of spiritual aikido, which is an internal form of the martial arts
When you experience this video of Strephon in his teaching Spiritual Aikido Sword let yourself feel what is evoked in you.
- do you aspire to be in balance with natural, universal law in whatever form you practice in?
- do you continually free yourself of technique, tradition and striving for recognition by others instead of following what feels internally right for yourself?
On a practical level you can see that at age 72, not that old yet, Strephon demonstrates an active body and awareness state achieved through almost daily practice. This practice is based on love, on renewing oneself daily through practice in love, defined as living from greater source energies than ego.
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Strephon teaching Spiritual Aikido to Romanian psychology students
22 September 2006 11:05 PM
Video: Ovidiu Brazdau
Strephon trains his Romanian Psychology Students in Spiritual Aikido Practice and term Strephon uses for teaching Universal Energy Principles that show up in dreams and life.
Here you will see Strephon's students learning not to resist the stick coming at then but to move with it, adapting to its motion.
The opposite is resisting the force and the weapon coming at you in a defensive, rather than blending way. This principle in practice in life and martial arts can make you rigid and therefore susceptible to being broken more easily than if you are flexible and flow with energy coming your way.
Students get to experience directly what their attitudes are as seen in their use of their bodies.
Strephon always has training sessions for students in Spiritual Aikido to use during breaks from the intellectual work and in special sessions.
You do not have to be good at martial arts or sports to engage in this activity. You know immediately through the stick exercises what your attitude is in the body and how to begin changing it so that you act much more in harmony with what is happening to you in the moment, and how you are responding, of course.
Strephon teaches Universal Energy Principles, of Balancing, Centering, Flowing, Receiving and Giving, Intunement, Congruence and Accepting and Creating.
There are physical and mental practices for these so that students learn universal energy principles that they can apply to any area of their lives.
Strephon emphasizes working with these life principles in dreams and dreamwork, personal relationships and in body harmony and flow.
These exercises portrayed here show just a bit of the work with beginning students.
Strephon has sixteen years of on the mat Aikido practice and still does daily practice with the sword and in tennis though he no longer takes falls to save his seventy-two year old body from the trauma of being thrown to the mat at full force.
Daily live sword work is a vitalizing experience for Strephon as he takes breaks throughout the day from writing and researching at the computer.
Budo And Spiritual Aikido Ethics Statements
08 November 2005 10:40 PM
Judo's dojo kun, written by Kyuzo Mifune is one example from a
dojo, or training school:
http://www.aikidojournal.com/article.php?articleID=322
COMMENT
This is clearly, good, practical advice for decent people. But maybe a bit limited in terms of life itself. One's best life must not be lived only in the dojo.
I would write a commitment statement as follows:
The Commitment Of A Spiritual Journeyer
~ As a beginner in living from the Greater Center within and without, I commit myself to develop my whole being from a greater center than the ego's desire for reward and for control.
~ As a beginner in consciousness I consciously choose to live at a daily level the fundamental energy principles of life, such as centering, balancing opposites, giving out and taking in, receiving and focusing, and dealing with everything which comes my way in life with a reconciling and harmonious attitude and practice. I will practice wholeness in all things.
~ As a spiritual journeyer I give up the common attitude of striving to be a winner and avoiding being a loser. I pledge to taking accomplishment and loss in equal measure and seek to maintain a non-attached attitude regarding both.
~ I seek to maintain a positive attitude but without rejecting negative moods and experiences as necessary to life.
~ I commit myself to daily practice of the principles and practices of the form of personal development I engage myself in. I recognize that daily practice is necessary to making any skill, form or value an integral part of my life.
~ I will combine physical practice with spiritual practice in equal measure. I will not hide from myself and others my true nature. I will seek always to take one hundred percent responsibility for myself in everything I express and do.
~ I recognize that I am not alone but live my life in the context of relating to others. This means that I practice, not living through others, but relating to others in a harmonious and balanced way, seeking for those of similar purpose to myself what I also desire for myself.
~ I will seek to solve all conflicts within myself and with others. Failure to do so means that I will seek help where necessary in solving conflicts that anyone has with me or I have with them.
~ I will not teach anything that I have not learned myself. I will give up those attitudes, practices and ego attachments that stand in the way of my practicing and learning the principles and skills that I am devoted to.
~ I will learn from everybody as I can, neglecting and rejecting no one to the best of my ability. I will see everyone and everything in a positive and reconciling light, whether they act or react to me this way or not. I will not act solely for selfish ends no matter how difficult someone else may be making my life.
~ I will review my day and my actions at the end of each day so that I may know consciously what I have done and not done for my spiritual values and journey.
~ I will live as an example to others, but not for others. I will accept myself as I truly am so that I may accept others as they truly are. I will not interfere with others' lives or seek in any way to control them, unless temporarily for their own good.
~ I will reflect clearly on all important actions I take. I will act decisively when dangers are about to overwhelm values. I will act decisively when new values are there in potential to be actualized.
~ I will live for greater purpose in all of my life for all of my life.
~ On this date and in this place I so commit to the above practices and values to the best of my ability.
http://www.aikidojournal.com/article.php?articleID=322
"Have no falsehood in mind. Reluctance and deceit are not conducive to the inner harmony required by judo practice. Do not lose self-confidence. Learn to act wholeheartedly, without hesitation. Show reverence toward the practice of judo, by keeping your mind in it. Keep your balance. The center of gravity follows the movement of the body. The center of gravity is the most important element in maintaining stability. If it is lost, the body is naturally unbalanced. Thus, fix your mind so that your body is always in balance. Utilize your strength efficiently. Minimize the use of strength with the quickest movement of body. Acknowledge that what is called stillness and motion is nothing but an endlessly repeated process. Do not discontinue training. Mastery of judo cannot be accomplished in a short time. Since skills depend on mental and physical application, constant training is essential. Keep yourself humble. If you become self-centered, you will build a wall around yourself and lose your freedom. If you can humble yourself in preparation for an event you will surely be better able to judge and understand it. In a match, you will be able to detect the weak point of your opponent and easily put him or her under control."
COMMENT
This is clearly, good, practical advice for decent people. But maybe a bit limited in terms of life itself. One's best life must not be lived only in the dojo.
I would write a commitment statement as follows:
The Commitment Of A Spiritual Journeyer
~ As a beginner in living from the Greater Center within and without, I commit myself to develop my whole being from a greater center than the ego's desire for reward and for control.
~ As a beginner in consciousness I consciously choose to live at a daily level the fundamental energy principles of life, such as centering, balancing opposites, giving out and taking in, receiving and focusing, and dealing with everything which comes my way in life with a reconciling and harmonious attitude and practice. I will practice wholeness in all things.
~ As a spiritual journeyer I give up the common attitude of striving to be a winner and avoiding being a loser. I pledge to taking accomplishment and loss in equal measure and seek to maintain a non-attached attitude regarding both.
~ I seek to maintain a positive attitude but without rejecting negative moods and experiences as necessary to life.
~ I commit myself to daily practice of the principles and practices of the form of personal development I engage myself in. I recognize that daily practice is necessary to making any skill, form or value an integral part of my life.
~ I will combine physical practice with spiritual practice in equal measure. I will not hide from myself and others my true nature. I will seek always to take one hundred percent responsibility for myself in everything I express and do.
~ I recognize that I am not alone but live my life in the context of relating to others. This means that I practice, not living through others, but relating to others in a harmonious and balanced way, seeking for those of similar purpose to myself what I also desire for myself.
~ I will seek to solve all conflicts within myself and with others. Failure to do so means that I will seek help where necessary in solving conflicts that anyone has with me or I have with them.
~ I will not teach anything that I have not learned myself. I will give up those attitudes, practices and ego attachments that stand in the way of my practicing and learning the principles and skills that I am devoted to.
~ I will learn from everybody as I can, neglecting and rejecting no one to the best of my ability. I will see everyone and everything in a positive and reconciling light, whether they act or react to me this way or not. I will not act solely for selfish ends no matter how difficult someone else may be making my life.
~ I will review my day and my actions at the end of each day so that I may know consciously what I have done and not done for my spiritual values and journey.
~ I will live as an example to others, but not for others. I will accept myself as I truly am so that I may accept others as they truly are. I will not interfere with others' lives or seek in any way to control them, unless temporarily for their own good.
~ I will reflect clearly on all important actions I take. I will act decisively when dangers are about to overwhelm values. I will act decisively when new values are there in potential to be actualized.
~ I will live for greater purpose in all of my life for all of my life.
~ On this date and in this place I so commit to the above practices and values to the best of my ability.