Budo Net

Budo is the name for the Japanese martial arts, such as aikido, judo, karatedo, kendo, iaido, jodo, kyudo, and many others. The name consists of two parts: bu is martial and do is the Way, the idea of cultivating something for personal growth through life. Budo is a lifetime practice for self-refinement.

Budo Links

On the menu to the left, as well as below, you find a number of links to budo websites and webpages. Most of them are to aikido related material, since that's the budo I practive the most. Eventually, I will expand the links and the material on this website to include more about budo in general.

     Several of the links are to websites in Sweden, since that's where I live and practice mainly. They are in Swedish, of course. Sorry about that, if it's not a tongue you're familiar with.

Aikido

Aikido is the peaceful martial art, without competition and without attack techniques. It's all about joining. Above is a video we made at my dojo with the aikido technique kotegaeshi against various knife attacks. Of course, that's not easy to do in a safe way, and I do it rather slowly for clarity. But you might get an idea about what aikido looks like, if you haven't seen it before. Usually, aikido is practiced against unarmed attacks, though.

    Here's my website devoted to aikido, with a lot of material regarding both practice and theory of aikido:

Aikido Website

Aikibatto

In many aikido dojos, the art of the sword and the staff are also trained, as part of the aikido curriculum. I made a system of ken (sword) and jo (staff) exercises for learning to use those weapons in a budo manner, which I call aikibatto. Above are the ten sword against sword exercises practiced with a partner. Here is my website about aikibatto:
Aikibatto Website

Shinken, the Sword

The Japanese sword is legendary because of its quality, beauty, and sharpness. Shinken is what it's called when forged and sharpened in the traditional manner. There are many other Japanese words for the sword: ken, tachi, katana, and so on. Practice with the real sword is done in iaido, which consists only of solo exercises, for the sake of safety. Here's my webpage about what to consider and look for, when getting a shinken of your own:
Shinken

Ki (Qi) Life Energy

In budo, learning to use one's life energy (ki in Japanese, qi in Chinese) is fundamental. Ki, the breath of life can be stimulated to increase. Thereby the life energy rises to something far more than the mere consumption of oxygen, and extends way beyond the reach of our bodies. You will definitely feel the difference.

     You don't have to believe in ki energy to try it. Keep an open but also critical mind, and make your decision afterwards. Life is a wondrous mystery. What brightens it up is precious, whether it can be seen in a microscope or not. So, give it a chance if you're the least bit curious about what has kept the idea of a life energy present in human minds through thousands of years and in many other cultures than that of Japan.

     Here's my website about the life energy concept qi (ki) and how to exercise it:

Qi Life Energy

Taoism

Taoism is the ancient Chinese philosophy based on the concept Tao (Do in Japanese), the Way. It's also essential in the practice of budo, which is regarded as the way by which to refine oneself through the experience of life. The major source to Taoism is Tao Te Ching, the classic text by Lao Tzu that is more than two thousand years old. It explains how the world is governed by the gentle principle of Tao, and how we humans should act in order to adapt to it.

     Here are my two websites about Taoism. The first presents its principles and major auhtors: Lao Tzu and Chuang Tzu. The second sorts the 81 chapters of the Taoist classic Tao Te Ching into its main subjects (the way of the warrior being one of them):

Taoist Thought and Texts
Tao Themes

Stefan Stenudd