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Part One

The Inner Development of the

Advanced Practitioner

Chapter 1

Omoto Philosophy for

Today's Practitioner

While Daito-ryu aiki-jujitsu was the martial root of aikido, the Omoto cult of the Shinto religion was the spiritual root. O'Sensei created aikido based on a fusion of the spiritual and the martial. The Omoto philosophies are deeply ingrained in the study of aikido. Though a practitioner of aikido does not become a convert to a different religious practice, one does encounter and apply universal spiritual truths to strengthen his or her personal philosophies. Above all, aikido emphasizes physical training and practice; in its spirituality, aikido welcomes people of all faiths, allegiances, and denominations in the name of a higher spiritual truth based on inclusion and the loss of judgmental and dualistic thinking.

SHINTO-SPIRITUAL BEGINNINGS

O'Sensei Morihei Ueshiba was originally a follower of the Shinto religion. Shinto, or Shindo, is a native religion of Japan. It is the way of kami, the spirit, deity, or God. Shinto believes that there are invisible superhuman powers in everything in nature. Spirit and nature become one and emphasis is placed on ancestor worship.