The following information is a compilation of the thoughts of many of the aikido within Fugakukai International Aikido. This site is only temporary until this can be placed on the Official Fugakukai Website.
DISCLAIMER: The grammar and spelling of the following text has not been edited.
No matter how much experience one does or doesn't have, you do contribute to the whole. The upper belts want to know how you are learning in order to improve their skills and make adjustments and the less experienced may more readily connect with their instructors.
Principles of Aikido as posted by Henry Copeland.
1. Recognize and accept responsibility for your contribution to failure
2. Mutual benefit
2.1. Transcend victory and defeat.
2.2. No unnecessary harm
2.3. Uki provides honest responses
3. Nothing Works
3.1. Two directions
3.2. Every technique has built in a way to defeat it
3.3. Cannot underestimate the human potential
4. Automatic first response (autonomic or conditioned.)
5. Maai
5.1. Response is independent of strength and speed of attacker. (more than a criteria)
6. Techniques are self regulating
6.1. Response is self separating
6.2. Techniques naturally disengage when past endpoint
7. Power from center
7.2. Higher grade of energy
7.3. Tension and compression
7.4. Posture stays centered
7.6. Good body mechanics
8. Stable only when control system can respond
8.1. Feed forward control
8.2. 3 response times
8.2.1. Conscious mind 0.7 sec
8.2.2. Two rooms, one with switches allegory (George Weber)
8.2.3. Conditioned response 0.1 sec
8.2.4. Autonomic response .02 sec
8.3. Skeletal muscles are agonistic /antagonistic
Avoid Attack (1,3,4)
Unbendable arm (6,7)
Grasp (Body mechanics 6,7)
Strategy for survival (1,2)
Rise and Fall of Body
Structural Stability and Instability
Consistent with what Uki is attempting to do. Use his effort.
Regarding giving a shot at defining "recognize and accept responsibility for your contribution to failure," I would like to raise my hand. It would be easiest for me to do so by offering an example of what we did during last Friday's Aikido class.
Our teacher, Jack Bieler, and myself were in the center of the mat. I was asked to perform a two-handed shomen-ate. I placed both of my hands on his chin, with him leaning far back, yet in a static position. Then, as I stepped in to perform the technique he regained balance by grabbing both of my wrists then threw me as in sumi otoshi. We repeated that exercise several times and I remained perplexed as to how he, or anyone, could recover from such an inferior state and then take control of the situation.
Several of us were discussing where things went so "wrong" for me. Our conclusion was that I had defeated myself in at least two ways. First, by initially being in a static posture I was helping Jack retain his own balance. Second, I was leaning forward rather than maintaining my own posture. There are bound to be many other factors involved but those were the first that we've identified. So, using that as an example, I trust my interpretation of this principle is fair.