何も考えない訓練があると知った。考えたくなる癖があることも知った。それをもっと早くに知っていればこんな人生ではなかったかもと、また思考の迷路に入ろうとする。それが私の癖だ。人間の癖だ。人間の脳は考えることで安心を得ようとする。たしかに、事前に考え準備して行動することは、人間の進化そのものと言ってもいい。しっかり起こりうる事態に備えられることは人間の知性の結晶だと思う。しかしそこから、さらに思考は迷路に入る。これが起こったらこうなってしまったら、もしこうだったらと、考える必要のないこと、心配してもしょうがないこと、考えても結論の出ないことまで思考はとどまるところをしらない。そこで訓練する。いまは考えることをやめよう。考えても無駄なことは考えないでおこう。一旦忘れよう。一旦放っておこう。これがなかなか難しい。これは訓練が必要だ。私にとって合気道はその訓練の場でもある。
遊び稽古
１体操
２杖になれる
３ ２５の杖
４相半身片手取り一教裏（杖の手引き）
本稽古
１合気体操
２足捌き
３受け身
４相半身片手取り呼吸投げ（小さい足捌き）
５相半身片手取り呼吸投げ（入り身の導き）
６相半身片手取り四方投げ
７相半身片手取り一教原理
８相半身片手取り一教表
９相半身片手取り一教裏
１０乱取り相半身片手取り呼吸投げ
子供の頃から考えることがすきだった。空想や妄想をふくらましていろいろな世界を思いえがいていた。それが自分を育てた。しかし、不向きなこともたくさんあった。習い事に通うことも、行ってからあれをしてこうしてといろいろと考えて、もう行く前から疲れてしまう。嫌な感じばかり先行して習い事は全く続かなかった。その時の私へ言いたい。何も考えずに進みなさいと。考えることと考えないことのバランスが大切だ。苦労を苦労の前にあれやこれやと想像すると入るまでに疲弊しきってしまう。苦労なんてものは飛び込んでもがいているうちにおわってしまう。そうでないと耐えられないものだ。苦労を苦労と思わないのではなく、苦労のまえにあれやこれや考えないことが大切だ。昔の私に比べて、体も衰え、反応力も落ち、記憶力も低下してきた私に備わった、考えない力。それをいま情報にあふれて、なにもかも１度目からうまくやらないといけない世代の子供達に伝えられたらと思う。
I recently learned that there is such a thing as training oneself not to think.
At the same time, I realized how strong my habit of thinking really is.
Then another thought appears: If I had learned this much earlier, perhaps my life would have been different. And just like that, I begin entering the maze of thought once again.
That is my habit.
Perhaps it is a human habit.
The human brain seeks reassurance through thinking. Certainly, planning ahead and preparing for what may happen is one of humanity’s greatest strengths. Being able to anticipate possible situations and act accordingly is a product of human intelligence itself.
Yet beyond that point, thought often turns into a maze.
What if this happens?
What if that goes wrong?
What if things had been different?
The mind keeps moving, dwelling not only on useful problems but also on things that cannot be changed, worries that accomplish nothing, and questions that have no answer.
So I practice.
For now, stop thinking.
Don’t think about things that gain nothing from being thought about.
Set them aside.
Leave them alone for a while.
Simple as it sounds, it is surprisingly difficult.
It requires training.
For me, Aikido is one place where I practice that training.
Play Practice
- Exercises
- Becoming familiar with the jo (wooden staff)
- The 25 Jo Kata
- Ai-hanmi katate-dori ikkyo ura (guided with the jo)
Main Practice
- Aiki exercises
- Footwork
- Ukemi (falling techniques)
- Ai-hanmi katate-dori kokyu-nage (small footwork)
- Ai-hanmi katate-dori kokyu-nage (guiding through irimi)
- Ai-hanmi katate-dori shiho-nage
- Principles of ai-hanmi katate-dori ikkyo
- Ai-hanmi katate-dori ikkyo omote
- Ai-hanmi katate-dori ikkyo ura
- Randori: ai-hanmi katate-dori kokyu-nage
I have loved thinking ever since I was a child.
I would lose myself in imagination and fantasy, creating entire worlds in my mind. In many ways, that habit helped shape who I am.
But it also had its drawbacks.
Even when I enrolled in an activity or class, I would begin imagining everything beforehand—what would happen, what I should do, what could go wrong. By the time I arrived, I was already exhausted.
Nothing ever lasted very long.
If I could speak to my younger self, I would say this:
Just move forward without thinking so much.
The balance between thinking and not thinking is important.
When we imagine every possible hardship before taking the first step, we become tired before the journey even begins.
Most hardships are not overcome by endless preparation. They are overcome by stepping in, struggling through them, and discovering one day that we have already passed through them.
It is not that hardship ceases to be hardship.
Rather, it is important not to suffer through it twice—once in imagination and again in reality.
Compared to my younger self, my body is weaker. My reactions are slower. My memory is not what it once was.
Yet I have gained something else:
the ability not to think.
In a world overflowing with information, where young people often feel they must succeed perfectly on the first attempt, I hope I can pass on that lesson.
Not everything needs to be figured out before taking the first step. Sometimes, it is enough simply to begin.
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