David Scott © 2016

Introduction

Sugano Sensei taught a specific series of five so tai dosa patterns with the bokken – the Ichi No Ken – Go No Ken Sequences.
Within the evolution of Sensei’s teaching, this series of exercises seem to have been introduced (amongst other reasons) to place emphasis upon the importance of precision.

The sequences themselves have evolved over the years and must continue to do so. Although here, they may seem to be rigidly defined, Sensei would never have intended them to be fixed. As we continue to study them they will continue to evolve to reflect our understanding and the intentions as Instructors we weave into the practice.
Although it is perhaps an anathema to Sugano Sensei’s Aikido method, I do believe there are some lessons still to be discovered in practicing and studying the “forms” he left us.

I first learnt the set when they were taught by Sensei in Australia in the year 2000 and I wrote a poem to help me remember them. There are five patterns.

Number One – is Ichi No Ken.
For Number Two – With mikiri we do it again.
On Number Three
We cut the knee.
While Number Four is like the second one
Done ura – just for fun.
On Number Five
I save my kidney to stay alive.

But Sensei - Where is Six?!

As a sequence, the five movements encourage the freedom to move either omote or ura, as you choose. They also teach the most basic cuts, defenses and tactics. They encourage the combining of attack and defence as a unit, and teach subtle differences in distance, direction and timing. A great deal can be learnt from making an inquiry into these movements.

There are patterns of similarities and differences to be found in the sequence from Ichi, to Go No Ken.

The second pattern (Ni No Ken) is the same as the first but with mikiri – “watching the cut” and “moving back out of reach”. On the first two, oshiete initially moves to the omote line and manabite finishes the sequence as if to “kill the teacher” with a kiri tsuke also on the omote line. On the third, oshiete moves initially to the omote line and on the final move, manabite can move either omote or ura (usually omote). On the last two patterns, these initial and final moves are on the ura line. I believe there are still other patterns to discover and invite you to investigate them.

There are several recordings of the five No Ken series. Some superb archival material on Sugano Shihan’s Sword System in which he demonstrates the No Ken series is commercially available and I would highly recommend people study this material (Sugano Sensei, 2000 and Sugano Sensei 2005). Obviously other examples can also be found on the extensive World Wide Web. Interestingly, in Australia Sugano Sensei was rarely happy to have things recorded. When he did allow it, he usually emphasized that the patterns were still evolving and/or noted that the record made was best considered as a historical marker pertaining to a specific time and place only. Indeed it is evident that most of the recordings available are early versions of the training patterns and that before his death, Sugano Sensei had already moved away from the forms demonstrated in these records. The movements evolved into new forms that more clearly illustrated Sensei’s intention in the practice at the time.

An essential Aikido lesson is emphasised here: the art is constantly evolving. The form is not intended to be fixed. As with this material, be careful not to engrave anything in stone. It is important to be training in a class with someone who knows what they are doing and who is connected to the Master (Sugano Sensei) in order to follow the evolution of this teaching. If you are not, while you may well be doing something very worthwhile it will likely be outside the direction of Sugano Sensei’s teaching. The only way to learn these patterns (and discover what else Aikido has to offer) is to be training regularly in a class with someone who teaches this material and continues to follow Sugano Sensei’s Aikido.

Once you have developed what Sugano Sensei called a “mechanical understanding”, of the practice of the No Ken series, it is important to study the timing involved and to add precision to the practice that is implied by incorporating information provided about the structure of the Japanese sword and the application of the various sections of the blade. The learning takes place as a transition through different levels (for example, static, slowly, moving, changing direction, and so on). Once you really understand what you are doing, you can develop the freedom to do what you want.
Initially, I believe it is important to punctuate each move with a pause at the correct distance. I think of placing a comma (not a full stop) after each move, giving both manabite and oshiete the opportunity to check that the distance is correct. There are some degrees of freedom in the maai adopted but it is important to be as precise as you can in order to discover the lessons in the patterns.

When you learn to juggle, the basic skill is to throw one ball up into the air with one hand and catch it in the other with both your hands staying mostly in the same spot. If the throw is inaccurate the catch will occur out of position, so it is important to correct this position before making the next throw. If you do not correct your position and instead throw from where you catch, most likely, your error will be compounded. You will likely find yourself running forward all over the place trying to catch the ball. This is the experience of most people who endeavor to teach themselves juggling without a teacher. Practicing error upon error makes it less likely you will ever master juggling. So it is with the No Ken series. In order to maintain the flow of the practice, make a move and put in a comma (rather than a defined stop) just long enough to check that the distances are correct, for example, such that on contact the middle of manabite’s blade is parrying the middle of the last third of oshiete’s blade when manabite is defending. These points are used to define the correct distance for the basic forms of this practice.

Beyond this, I aspire to find greater flow in the practice (move more “like a river”) elevating the quality of the practice and my connection with my partner.