Shihan John Araujo- An Aikido Journey

Martial Journal- Interview with Shihan John Araujo

Martial Journal: What made you decide to study Aikido over the other arts that are available to train in?
JA: Well when I started back in 1979 I was a young kid about 6 years old and I think at that time there were only a few different styles of Karate. I don’t remember but anyway, my mother worked full time and my father worked two jobs to support the family’s needs and he decided it would be a good idea to utilize my free time and not drive my mother nuts(laughs). Since I was the only child he put me in a Karate Dojo. So that started my martial arts career. So I really had no choice to decide on a martial art at that time. The Karate Dojo that I attended was a strict Japanese traditional martial art called Shotokan Karate which is still run by Hanshi John Almeida and today we are still in contact and great friends. At the time when my father decided to have me join the Karate Dojo, I think it was because it was convenient enough for both my parents to drive me there and close enough for me to walk if needed. Throughout my 10 years of practicing Shotokan Karate, I remember Thursday evenings being my favorite days to practice because it was self-defense night. Every Thursday the self-defense that we were learning and practicing was Judo. My instructor John Almeida Sensei was studying Judo in the Boston area and would incorporate it in our classes. So I decided that since I loved the self-defense classes that when I had a job and was able to drive I’d visit a Judo Dojo and take up Judo. At 16 years old after practicing Shotokan Karate for approximately 10 years, I decided to leave and start searching for Judo. I looked everywhere in my area and I was not able to find a Judo Dojo. What I did stumble upon was a martial art called Aikido. I had no idea what Aikido was. I had only heard and seen it once which was in the movie theater. The movie was called “Above the Law” with actor and martial artist Steven Seagal. The Aikido Dojo was called New Bedford Aikikai and was headed by instructor Jack Leonardo Sensei, I was 17 at the time and I walked in, watched a class, and I was hooked.

Martial Journal: How long have you been studying Aikido?
JA: I’ve been studying martial arts for over 40 years and Aikido for over 30 years.

Martial Journal: What Aikido instructors have you studied under?
JA: Jack Leonardo Sensei, Yoshimitsu Yamada Sensei, Kazuo Chiba Sensei, Mitsunari Kanai Sensei, Hiroshi Ikeda Sensei, Saotome Sensei, Sugano Seiichi Sensei, Donovan Waite Sensei, Takahashi Sensei, David Farrell Sensei, Elliot Freeman Sensei, Luis Santos Sensei, Craig Dunn Sensei, Haruo Matsuoka Sensei, as well as many others.

Martial Journal: Was there ever a critical point in your training career where you made a dramatic change in how you trained and applied Aikido or even thought about Aikido in general?
JA: Yes throughout my Aikido life I was pretty much-doing federation Aikido and in early 2000 I had heard there was going to be a Tenshin Aikido seminar in the Orlando Florida area When I heard that I had done some research about “Tenshin Aikido” prior and knew that it was the Aikido that Steven Seagal Sensei also known as Take Sensei had taught in Osaka Japan and brought it here to the USA. So I packed up and headed to Florida to participate in the Tenshin Aikido seminar. I was immediately fascinated by the practicality of this Aikido. The circles were a lot smaller, the movements were a lot sharper, it was a more direct application, the techniques were a lot tighter, smoother, and very fast, and there were deflections that I had never learned or seen in federation Aikido, footwork was stronger and faster. Every applications of technique was different from federation Aikido or any Aikido that I was taught. I also noticed right away that this Aikido was made to be used in everyday situations. It was a more aggressive and harder style of Aikido. I left all my bad habits, preconceived notions, and ego behind and joined this Tenshin Aikido group. And my Tenshin Aikido began. I was training in Aikido about 4 hours a day 7 days a week until I opened my own dojo in 2007. Then I was training and teaching classes and also doing private classes.

Martial Journal: In terms of Aikido technique what would you say is the most important?
JA: I think your attitude, you should a have good attitude on and off the mat. If your attitude is bad you are bad and your technique is bad. The one Aikido technique I like is irimi which is a direct entry or where I can to get into my opponent. I do like others but if I had to pick one it would be irimi.

Martial Journal: In your opinion can Aikido be aggressive?
JA: Aikido is not easy. Aikido can be very aggressive and it can even kill someone. Aikido was made for the battlefields. I do teach Aikido but a harder more practical application of it. My high-ranking students don’t find it a walk in the park when they’re attacking me.

Martial Journal: Did you encounter any hard times while you were establishing your dojo?
JA: I opened my first dojo and it was in a dumpy part of town. It was cheap rent which I was paying out of pocket until I had some students. It was cold in the winter because there was no heat. I had a small propane heater that didn’t work very well. And hot and muggy in the summer with no ventilation. Within a year I had about 6 students and it was all word of mouth. I think I didn’t have more students at my first location because people were just afraid of the building. At the time I did very little advertising and I had no help. I did it all on my own. I had no one to fall back on for help and I wasn’t umbrellaed under anyone. At that time I had resigned from the Aikikai Hombu Dojo Japan and I was totally independent.

Martial Journal: Can you tell me how you approach training and teaching Aikido to your students?
JA: The first thing I teach is to train with your body, with proper ukemi. It’s good to take a lot of ukemi to get yourself used to what training is, to help not get any injuries, and to condition your body. I emphasize learning and understanding aikido with your body. Usually, we begin practice with warm-ups such as stretches, footwork, body movement, and ukemi front and backward rolls. Instead of going right into throwing techniques, I believe it’s better to ease the body into the training naturally. Then we get into more aggressive training.

Martial Journal: Can you explain the difference between the mainstream methodology of doing Aikido versus what your dojo offers?
JA: Traditional Aikido gets its foundation from Budo, which also acts as the foundation for several other martial arts such as Judo and some forms of Jujitsu. However, traditional Aikido is taught as a form of meditation; the Ketsu-In (or action) portion of the Sanmitsu from Buddism and Zen. The traditional Aikido techniques are often large circles, creating flowing almost dancey types of movements. It is a wonderful and fun way to practice moving meditation. However, trying to perform these meditative movements in a combat situation is where it gets problematic. Even though Aikido’s base is in Budo, O’Sensei’s Aikido in later years was much softer than his earlier practices, when his techniques were tighter, and were known to be quite martial. Current traditional Aikido taught via the Aikikai produces O’Sensei’s later, softer ‘meditative’ form of the art. Both Tenshin and Bushido styles of Aikido focus on O’Sensei’s earlier more martial form of Aikido.  While I spent many years studying traditional Aikido, I was also constantly in search of a form of the art that could be used effectively. I searched for a decade until I experienced and trained in Tenshin Aikido under Shihan Steven Seagal’s direct students and disciples (deshi). After training under such a unique and functional application of the art, I embraced the teachings of Tenshin style Aikido which serves as the foundation of Bushido Tenshin Aikido.
Bushido Tenshin Aikido has evolved into a very unique form of Aikido focused on the martial side of the art. Because of this, it only stands to reason that Bushido Tenshin Aikido blazed its own path as an independent form of Aikido. Currently organized under an independent martial arts federation, Bushido Tenshin Aikido can focus on a functional and practical form of Aikido instead of the meditative. Both forms offer tremendous value and both are valid approaches differing only in what a new student is looking for; art or function. I embraced the Tenshin Aikido methodology. Just as Tenshin Aikido is Take Sensei’s interpretation of Aikikai Aikido, My Aikido is my own interpretation of Tenshin Aikido. My Aikido is built upon the foundation of Tenshin Aikido. This, combined with the addition of my own methodologies and teachings, Bushido Tenshin Aikido is an intense Martial Art for intense situations. Training can appear intimidating at its higher levels. Attacks are fast and powerful, technique is quick and fierce. But fear not, students are not required to do anything beyond their current skill. Proper instruction and guidance will guide each student to the higher levels.

Martial Journal: There is such a disparity in the way techniques are trained and the attitude of many Aikido Sensei from many different affiliations. What is your view on the state of Aikido today and do you think there is any way to bridge the gap between these differences?

JA: I agree Aikido has been washed down a bit. I think there are a lot of immature people teaching Aikido. These people need not worry about everyone else, or what everyone else is doing or are more concerned with who’s better than who, and who has more students. This has nothing to do with Aikido. It doesn’t matter who has how many students or who’s better. These other Aikido instructors just need to set themselves free and I think this will be the only way to bridge that gap.

Martial Journal: What can we as Aikido students and Aikido Senseis do, if anything, to improve the political situation of Aikido?
JA: I don’t get much into the political issues or situation of Aikido. If we could get O’Sensei back then it would be fixed. I think as Aikido students they or we should just train and just worry about our training and don’t get involved with the politics of Aikido. As Instructors, we should just keep moving forward, and just do as we are doing, and teach and guide our students to become better people. Don’t get involved in the nonsense stuff. Aikido politics bend their own rules and like myself, I like to bend and break the rules sometimes. Like I said set yourself free from your surroundings.

Martial Journal: I understand you were part of the Aikikai and the DNBK at one point, but now you are not. Can you explain your reasoning as to why you left them?
JA: Well as you all know the Aikikai is the biggest federation in Aikido and the DNBK falls behind them. As I said me and politics don’t mix very well and these federations are looking for money, and donations and requesting you to have seminars with their instructors several times a year. Something I didn’t want to be bothered with at the time. Then if you don’t you become the bad guy. You don’t need to be under the Aikikai or the DNBK to be good- the federations don’t make you good- your blood and sweat on the mat makes you good. The Aikikai and the DNBK never assisted me. At one time I had some concerns about a few things in Aikido and had requested assistance dealing with something, and they did nothing and never got back to me. So I had made up my mind about being with these organizations. I just wanted to train and teach and not be bothered without all the other nonsense.

Martial Journal: You have created your own organization, the Bushido Tenshin Aikido Federation. Can you tell me about the federation, why you decided to create this organization, and what things it offers to Aikido students, Aikido Senseis, and Aikido Dojos?

JA: The BTF offers everything any other federation and organization offers to their students, instructors, and dojos without the nonsense. The Bushido Tenshin Aikido Federation is dedicated to the support and development of Aikido dojos all over the world. Providing a unique and practical approach to the art of Aikido, we support all schools and clubs interested in learning the skills of this unique form. The Bushido Tenshin Aikido Federation is dedicated to practicing and sharing our Aikido. We are free from politics, egos, and distractions. We provide positive supportive guidance on and off the mat to help everyone succeed and achieve their Aikido goals. Those seeking to convert from other forms will find we honor all ranks and certifications. We seek to provide more skills, not replace the ones you have earned already. Whether looking to start a club, or have an existing school, we welcome you in and will help you grow. Several strategies are available for beginners and those accomplished Aikidoka looking to study the Tenshin ways. Seminars, private sessions, and DVD learning systems are all available to help in the transition to this powerful martial art. Aikido can be effective without having to invest years in practice. Starting at day one, students are trained in footwork and how to manage a fall or takedown without injury. This is immediately followed by in-depth striking and deflection training. This system allows students with only a short period of training to be able to deflect an attack while taking an advantageous position and execute counter strikes. As understanding of techniques increases, so does the student’s available martial tools. Before long, students can not only defend themselves through striking but are capable of complete control over an attacker. Bushido Tenshin Aikido provides a martial approach to the art of Aikido. While honoring traditional Aikido, Bushido Tenshin Aikido takes a different approach by using both traditional and non-traditional attacks and techniques. Built on the foundation of Tenshin deflections, footwork, and ukemi, Bushido Tenshin Aikido forges a different path from the standard traditional Aikido.

Martial Journal: You are the president of the BTF and you have several dojos in the organization. How many dojos’ do you have and how many students are part of it?

JA: There are about 6 dojos and growing and several hundred students.

Martial Journal: What does the future have in store for the BTF and the dojos in the organization?
JA: Right now the big thing for the BTF is looking to be an international federation very soon! We are also going to have our first instructor’s re-certification seminar this year. We also have our own line of training products on our website www.aikidoofbristolcounty.com

Martial Journal: Thank you for the interview Sensei, we all appreciate it!