Aikido Yuishinkai

Shin, spirit

Our school follows the teachings of Maruyama Sensei, a direct student of Ueshiba Sensei, the founder of Aikido.

Aikido Yuishinkai shares with all the other forms of aikido the foundations intended by its founder. Its identity finds its roots in Maruyama’s search throughout his life, his encounters, his failures and his successes. It offers a singular view of the art, in the same way as there are singular views of Mount Fuji.

Maruyama sensei has engaged in a lifelong search which has led him from sumo wrestling to boxing, from judo to aikido, from health arts to Zen psychology. He has been following a path which has taken him from one master to another, always keeping Ueshiba sensei as a headlight in his progression. His aikido is flowing and soft, yet strong and decisive: water running on rocks. He shares with all aikido masters and students the duty of questioning the depth of his art each day, again and again. Thus it is something one has to practise in order to know, it is a path one has to tread in order to recognise it. This is knowledge that evades capture and then brightens when it is shared.