Aikido - The Tomiki Way Book by Neil Saunders

Aikido is a Japanese martial art and was developed by Morihei Ueshiba. Aikido primarily includes techniques for unarmed and armed attacks. These techniques include numerous joint twisting and pinning techniques, as well as striking techniques. An advanced student of Aikido has a mastery of these techniques that enables them to disturb an opponent's balance or ward off grasps or strikes. The techniques of Aikido have the power to injure or kill, but primarily their purpose is to control one or more opponents.

A few of Ueshiba's students decided to spread their knowledge of Aikido by opening their own schools. Each of these students interpreted the Aikido that they were taught differently, which has resulted in many different

'styles'. One of Ueshiba Sensei's distinguished students was Kenji Tomiki, who was also a student of Jigoro Kano. Tomiki Sensei devised a systematic and logical curriculum that can be practiced both in kata and randori, which enables a student to make steady progress and regular improvement. The resulting style of Aikido is commonly referred to as Tomiki Aikido.

A beginner is often confronted with unfamiliar customs and terminology. This consequently results in many common questions being asked, such as "how can I learn more about this?" or "isn't there a book available that I can read?" Therefore, Aikido - The Tomiki Way has been written to introduce a new student to Tomiki Aikido, while also providing useful reference material to an advanced practitioner of Aikido, regardless of style.

This book contains over 1100 photographs demonstrating the kata system (including all six Koryu-No-Kata) of Tomiki Aikido, as well as explaining etiquette, basic movements, ukemi, and a general overview of the system. This book also includes a brief history of the origins of Aikido, including the involvement of Sokaku Takeda, Morihei Ueshiba, and Kenji Tomiki.