The Aikido Student Manual

A New Generation's Guide to Traditional Martial Arts

The Aikido Student Manual is an invitation. It invites those Millenials and younger who have ever wondered what the purpose is of training in traditional martial arts? Why not just practice modern fighting arts? Why not just become a monk? It invites those older folks who may or may not have studied traditional martial arts to reflect on what this practice and path offers.

The goal of The Aikido Student Manual is not to conflict with any other style of martial art, teacher, or method of achieving your goals, but instead to give beginners an outstretched hand to help them enter this strange world of bows, throws, and joint locks. It seeks to find the commonalities between all disciplines so that there is more, not less, freedom in our lives.

This book's challenge to you is to establish a strong foundation and never stop reinforcing and building on that foundation. A dojo should be the one place you can delve into yourself without judgment and find a community, a family, of like-minded practitioners who are on the same path as you. Make your mistakes boldly so that you may revel in the victory they bring.


Anata no tabi ni ganbattekudasai! (Good luck on your journey!)