Aikido masters master gender neutrality

“I think gender is disconnected from bodies — it’s an institution,” said Visiting Assistant Professor of East Asian and Women’s and Gender Studies Linda White. White was introducing a discussion on conceptions of gender in the martial arts. The discussion, titled “Takin’ It Like a Man: Troubling Gender in Japanese Martial Art,” focused on aikido, a primarily defensive martial art studied in Japanese culture.

“It complicates masculinity and femininity,” said Assistant Professor of Education Jonathan Miller-Lane, who co-hosted the dialogue with White. Miller-Lane and White, both students of aikido, spent the hour sharing their experiences with the art form as well as their thoughts on how gender influences life “on the mat.”

Aikido differs from other styles of martial arts in that it focuses chiefly on defensive techniques instead of offensive maneuvers.

“Aikidoists are famous for having terrible punches,” said Miller-Lane.

“It attracts people who aren’t interested in breaking things.” Miller-Lane emphasized the nonviolent nature of aikido, which some choose to refer to as a method of conflict resolution.

“In aikido we take what can be termed a confrontation and turn it into a beautiful interaction between two human beings.”

White prefers putting the emphasis on human beings rather than men or women.

“Gender varies by culture and varies historically,” she explained. “If gender came from nature, it would be equal across cultures.”

According to White, reducing gender to a dichotomy between exclusively male or exclusively female oversimplifies the reality of how it operates.

“The mat was a place where everyone mixed,” said White, recalling her initial experiences with aikido. White, now a first degree black belt, began studying aikido 25 years ago while living in Japan. The sport’s gender-neutralizing uniforms, ban on makeup and jewelry and generally silent environment within the dojo allowed her to forget about gender while practicing.

“Gender is not the first thing I’m conscious of,” she said, referring to her experiences on the mat.

Miller-Lane expressed a rather different take on the role of gender in the martial art. Currently a second degree black belt, he began studying aikido in Seattle under one of the few female instructors in the United States. To him, gender is both present and vital to the way he experiences aikido.

“It’s important that he’s a guy,” Miller-Lane said in reference to practicing with fellow male students.

“To physically explode into another guy — it allows for a different kind of male moment — it’s impersonal.”

For Miller-Lane, overcoming cultural norms of male and female approaches to conflict is an important element of aikido.

“Aikido is a way to make power and compassion in the same moment rather than power and domination,” he said, stressing the importance of leaving behind stereotypes of accepted male behavior. He likes that aikido departs from the pattern of males forcing compliance as a means to end conflict. It differs from conventional American sports such as football, which focus on domination rather than cooperation with opponents.

While their personal opinions differ somewhat, both professors believe in the benefits of aikido for both men and women.

“I can be big in a big way,” said White of her time on the mat. For her, the ability to step outside gender is a key component of this martial art.

“It’s interesting to learn about,” said Avery McNiff ’12, in reference to White’s ideas. Currently studying performance culture in the U.S., she attended the discussion to get a definition of gender within aikido.

Another student, however, remained more skeptical of the sport’s transformative potential.

“I personally think you can never forget your gender,” said Alexandra Vasquez ’12.

“I’m always aware. I’m always different. I’m always present.”

“Can we do it as human beings?” answered Miller-Lane when asked if we can truly leave behind gender in aikido.

According to him and White, aikido is about changing the dynamic between opponents. The emphasis lies not in power, but in balance and centering oneself with respect to the other person.

So, how do you respond to White’s question: “Does gender matter?”

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Sean C.

A small correction:

“one of the few female instructors in the United States”

There are many, many female instructors in the US.
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Joe Curran

Dear Sir,
Mr Miller Lanes assertion that Aikidoka ‘are famous for having terrible punches’ in my opinion is an incorrect statement.I can assure you that during my period of training [over 40 years] I have met aikidoka who can punch /kick with power and efficiency.Most serious minded Aikidoka usually spend time on the subject of Atemi.
Most people believe that Aikido is purely defensive.This is in my opinion a false premise.In order to fully neutralise an attack from someone , you have to be able if required to take the initiative.This can include using a striking technique, therefore one should obviously be trained in strike applications.
In the same manner anyone who studies seirously the use of Aikiken /Aikijo should be able to apply powerful unarmed strikes eg kesagiri/gyaku kesa giri etc to any would be attacker in an effective manner.If not why study cutting movements?Bear in mind that Aikido usually emphasises cutting rather than hitting an opponent.A well placed cutting action on any body is just as effective as a hit motion.
Joe Curran

Dear Sir,
Does gender matter within the aikido community?I dont think so.I see very little evidence of discrimination based on gender within the aikido groups I have worked with.
The bottom line is this the person is /or should considered simply an aikido student not whether he /she is male or female.I have equal respect and admiration for female students who train with me as I have for any male students.
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nev

The more we become artificalized, the less gender matters. In natural, raw, co-operative survival, gender roles polarise strongly and become everything to make all the difference whether a tribe adapts, survives or becomes extinct.
Artificalized people suffer from hubris and ingrained, complacent lack of co-operation where everyone wants to be top of the pile and “individual,” but are deeply unqualified to lead anything because they can not lead themselves, whilst all the time relying on the input of others for their imagined “individuality.” The pile is a pile of fantasies having no bearing in actuality, but propped up by a maze of artificial constructs which crumble instantly, when nature, the great leveller, merely sneezes. Look at the volcano in Europe, for example. Millions of dollars will be lost because planes can’t safely fly. Nature does not care. It is not possible to truly lead from vacuity, opinions, unfounded theories or wishes. There is no “top” or “glass ceiling,” simply ability or the lack of it. Those who subscribe to dysfunctional fantasies end up leading those dumb enough to follow, into disasters. For evidence just look around you.
One of the preeminent pathologies of artificalized people, is that we cripple our true potential with vexatious gender contests and other irrelevant, ego insecurity based gender issues, propped up by artificial “power” that does not really exist, whilst all the while pretending not to. This has nothing to do with suitability to actually perform a task. It gets in the way of simple common sense. For example, in a tribal situation, men prefer to hunt and the women prefer them to, just as the women prefer to gather and cook because they don’t want to lose their mammaries and reproductive organs, especially during pregnancy, to the bone crunching intensity of the hunt. There will be other males wherewith to propagate. Nowadays, where the biggest risk is usually a paper cut, anything can go. And damn near everyone is too lazy to clean up behind themselves or wash the dishes after a meal. This is a good place to start overcoming mental problems and it’s free. In the street and the jungle gender does have relevance. In the Aikido dojo it does not have to, and should not have to. But it may.
http://g-sneed@sbcglobal.net George Sneed

I studied Tomiki Ryu Aikido for many years during the 1980s, as well as Shindo Muso Ryu Jyodo. I hold the rank of Shodan in Aidido and Nidan in Jyodo.

My experience was women had to learn to do the techniques properly against men, as they did not have the physical strength to horse them around. As a result, once properly trained, a woman could turn you every way but loose. Also, men were faster but women were quicker; as a result,it was very difficult for a man to overpower a properly trained woman. In a difficult situation, I would trust a properly trained woman to save my butt over a man who still depended on strength to perform the technique.

George Sneed
Bernard

In a period of great financial distress with many school endowments being cut, and many children worrying about whether they have the money to finish school, I wonder whether a topic like “Takin’ It Like a Man: Troubling Gender in Japanese Martial Art” is rather a symbol of the divorce of academia from society.

Here we have highly paid professors (some with tenure) spending hours preparing to discuss a topic of peripheral interest to society as a whole and aikidoka in particular. There were no reponses / comments to this on Aikiweb. Scanning the article I struggle to see how any of the comments and conclusion were particularly applicable to furthering my understanding of aikido or martial arts in general or even society. Most of them were more observations than conclusions.

Gender does not matter in Aikido… so what? What is the implication? It matters more in other arts… ok … does this really have an implication on society as a whole?
NM

As a Midd alumna, woman and aikidoist, I was curious to read about the Professors’ lecture. I have often been the only woman in my dojo and have struggled to help the dojo find and retain women students. There are many women instructors in the art but in the United States Aikido Federation they seem still outnumbered by men. There are some, but I have’t heard of many women at the highest ranks of the art, especially at the world HQ in Japan.

The practical side of me agrees in concept with Bernard’s comment above, asking what this discussion has to do with contemporary society and our economic woes. However, I also believe that Midd is not a trade school, and that a liberal arts education should also include academic presentations and discussions, at least from time to time, that are designed just to get students thinking about new topics, or about old topics but in new arenas, without immediate practical or economic benefits. I would like to see the two Professors continue their aikido presentations/discussions with one focusing on aikido principles in conflict resolution, and maybe bring in some sponsorship from other dep’ts like Poli Sci, Philosophy, etc. Maybe that would be better fodder for Aikiweb than this story. Also, I just want more people to learn about aikido!
Scruffy Scirocco

Gender is less of an issue that one would expect in Aikio, but it is something we’re aware of. I learn more from the precision that high ranking females bring to the art, because if something goes wrong, they aren’t able to compensate with brute strength to make a technique work. As a male, I’m less likely to make a female partner “work for it” than I am vs. a male. This is partly due to experiences I’ve had with females, I know everybody’s different. But males seem to respond positively to a challenge more frequently than females do. Another aspect is that we all must accept that injury is always possible in Aikido, and I would feel far worse if someone got injured training with me that was a female than a male. This awareness definitely has an effect on how I train.