Karate vs. Aikido *

*A.K.A. "THE FIGHT THAT WOULD NEVER HAPPEN"

I am used to being asked a variety of questions regarding the arts I practice, and often take notice of the comments and beliefs held by others regarding them. Like most upper ranks, I try not to interject too much of a personal viewpoint in such situations, preferring to hear what others think and believe.

One of the questions I hear often is 'which martial art is the best?". This question takes many different forms, including 'who do you think would win in a fight? the person who does X, or the person who does Y?' or "which is better, karate, or aikido?" I have found in almost all cases, these questions and comments are posed by those possessing no true knowledge about the arts. I don't mean reading about them in books. I don't mean watching movies or instructional videos or YouTube. I mean they haven't gone out there, run five miles to warm up, and practiced forms of personal warfare hours at a time several times a week for years. The small group that does, are usually involved in the 'sport' forms of martial arts, namely, ninjitsu, taekwondo, and mixed martial arts. It is for this reason, among others, that those who are involved in traditional martial arts generally do not like participating in such discussion outside of a dojo. There is simply so much wrong with the question, that it is difficult to answer.

First of all, at it's heart, the karate vs aikido battle is one that, were each art practiced true to it's belief system, would NEVER HAPPEN. Let me stress that again: IT WOULDN'T HAPPEN. But why, you ask? Well, lots of reasons, and here are a few: Aikido, or 'the way of Aiki' is a defensive art. Guess what? So is Karate. At it's heart, there is 'Karate ni sente nashi', or "there is no first attack in karate". This is not to say that offensive techniques do not exist, it means that those techniques would never be used in an unjustified manner, but only those in which the karateka's life, or their family, were in danger. This is true for most of the Eastern Traditional martial arts. Why? Because the are, at their root, all the SAME THING. They share a common ancestry, a common lineage of tradtion and technique. All the arts of Asia came from one of two forms originating in China. They traveled from there to Okinawa, where it merged with the native Te to become Shuri-Te, or Naha Te. All karate, kung fu, and Aikido, become the same art at some point in their practice. Both Aikido and jujitsu are descended from Shaolin Chin-Na, the chapters of Chinese Kung fu dealing with grappling, holds, and pressure point fighting. Aikido is a system based on techniques from these oder styles, taught from a particular philosopical stance, just as are the other arts. All those videos you see on YouTube and other places where the Aikido practitioner throws the karateka around - - don't believe a second of it. Oh, the techniques work all right, against the basic punch and kick techniques shown in the video. The problem is, after the lower beginning levels, those techniques are rarely used any more, and the art begins to become more fluid, looking more and more like, well, aikido. Karate, Kung-fu, Chin-Na, all have these techniques, or variations of these techniques. Also, what Karateka at any level would be foolish enough to use punches and kicks against an aikido practicer? The answer: none worth anything, plain and simple. In a real encounter, between masters of both arts, I would imagine it would go something like this: The two warriors meet, bow to each other. . . stand there in ready position for awhile. . . then bow to each other again. . . and go home. Or out to drink Sake. That's the true spirit of those arts, boys and girls. So don't be surprised if we don't answer those questions in the way you expect. It comes from having run the miles, from doing the kata, from living the lifestyle, and practicing the principles inherant in the art itself.

This article was written after attending a martial arts conference in 2007. A number of lower belt ranks began discussing various styles, and when I was asked the inevitable question of 'best style', this was my answer. - the Author

© Michael Vain. All Rights Reserved. May not be reproduced in any way without express written permission from the author.