Maruyama sensei, founder of Aikido Yuishinkai
Koretoshi Maruyama sensei, founder of Aikido Yuishinkai
Maruyama Koretoshi sensei
workshop in Alkmaar, Nederlands
Koretoshi Maruyama was born in Nihonbashi, Tokyo, on October 5, 1936.
In his first year of college, he entered the Rikidozan School of Professional Wrestling (Rikidozan was a famous sumotori and wrestler in the 50′s-60′s), and also trained in weight lifting and boxing, while continuing his training in Judo at the Kodokan (World Headquarters for Judo where Kano sensei, the founder of Judo, taught).
In the spring of his third year of college, he began to develop doubts about the martial arts of judo, wrestling and boxing, which emphasised a mere contest of strength. At this point he entered the Aikikai (where Ueshiba sensei, the founder of Aïkido, taught), as well as the Keio University Aikido Club (where Tohei sensei taught). It was here that he found in Aikido what he had been searching for all those years, a martial art which did not depend on strength, and taught the right attitude of the mind. After he graduated from Keio University, he continued his training in Aikido, while working in the family business.
In 1967 he delegated his responsibilities in the family business so that he could become a full time professional Aikido instructor, under the tutelage of the founder of Aikido, Morihei Ueshiba, and dedicate himself to the martial art that taught the principles of mind and Ki.
In 1971 he went to Hawaii for 4 months, to teach Aikido on each of the islands.
In 1972, he resigned from the Aikikai to become the Chief Instructor of the Ki no Kenkyukai, founded in September of 1971 by Koichi Tohei Sensei, who granted Maruyama Sensei the rank of 8th dan.
In 1973 he became responsible for teaching in Hawaii, and for 10 years taught Ki Principles at the University of Hawaii in Hilo, as well as at Keio University Physical Education Research Department in Japan.
From 1977 he studied with Haruchika Noguchi Sensei how to heal and help people with Ki and use Ki in one’s daily life. At the same time, he also studied the psychology of Zen from the Zen Priest Shogen Munou, from whom he learned how to use the mind positively.
During this time, he also travelled extensively to many States, teaching Aikido and Ki Principles, and eventually became the President of Ki no Kenkyukai in 1990. However he began to have reservations about the direction and policies of the Ki Society, and resigned from this position on July 29, 1991. From then on, he undertook a period of 10 years in a temple in Saitama Prefecture, intensively training in the philosophy and practice that ‘You are fundamentally Mind.’ He left the temple on October 9, 2001, during which time he had received permission from the temple priest to establish Aikido Yuishinkai on May 9, 1996, which he has continued to develop until the present day.
Text inspired by Michael Williams sensei, Aikido Yuishinkai.
Photography by Matthieu Verhoeven. Reproduction forbidden. www.matthieuverhoeven.nl
