AIKIDO IS A HIGHLY EFFECTIVE, MULTI ATTACK MARTIAL ART. IN ITS TRUE FORM IT IS PURE BUDO (THE MARTIAL WAY) AND EXTREMELY DEVASTATING.

AIKIDO WAS FORMED BY MORIHEI UESHIBA WHO HAS BECOME KNOWN AS O SENSEI ( GREAT TEACHER ).
O SENSEI WAS A GREAT MARTIAL ARTIST, HAVING STUDIED MANY ARTS, INCLUDING KENDO, JUDO, JIU-JITSU, AND SPEAR.
HIS MARTIAL TRAINING WAS COMBINED WITH HIS RELIGIOUS STUDIES. HE WAS A FIRM BELIEVER IN  OMOTOKYO, A NEW RELIGION WHICH BELIEVED IN A HEAVENLY KINGDOM ON EARTH, AND AN END TO ALL CONFLICT.
O SENSEI  DECIDED TO NAME HIS NEW ART AIKIDO IN 1942. THE ART OF AIKIDO HAS GROWN EXTENSIVELY THROUGHOUT THE WORLD.

IWAMA RYU IS THE STYLE NOW HEADED BY SAITO SENSEI;  O SENSEI'S  LONGEST SERVING STUDENT. HE STARTED HIS STUDIES IN 1946, AND REMAINED WITH O SENSEI  UNTIL HIS DEATH. AT THIS POINT HE BECAME GUARDIAN OF THE AIKI SHRINE.
TO THIS DAY SAITO SENSEI TEACHES FROM HIS DOJO IN IWAMA. HIS STYLE AND METHODS ARE THAT OF O SENSEI  FROM, IN PARTICULAR, THE 1950'S.
A GREAT EMPHASIS IS THEREFORE PAID TO BOTH TAI - JITSU (UNARMED), AIKI KEN (SWORD) AND JO (FOUR FOOT STAFF). THE COMBINATION OF BOTH IS REQUIRED TO TRULY DEVELOP IN AIKIDO.

AIKIDO IS A TRULY BEAUTIFUL MARTIAL ART, AND  YET EXTREMELY POWERFUL. IT DEVELOPS BOTH THE BODY AND THE MIND.