The following is an article reproduced here with permission from the Johansson Coaching Blog. There are many similarities between a martial art like Aikido and traveling, such as increased mindfulness and higher awareness of your body, mind and environment when immersed in a travel experience. In addition, learning an eastern art like Aikido at home is surely a great way to understand another culture, which makes traveling an incredibly rewarding experience.
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“Aikido manifests the ultimate reality: the flowing spontaneous movement of nature within which is packed the unmatched power of ki. Its goal is the formation of the ideal human self unifying body and mind, realized through vigorous mental and physical training, and the attainment of dynamic life in both activities and stillness.”
Kisshomaru Ueshiba
For quite some time I sensed I would like to learn what the martial art is all about, but somehow I did not dare the first step. For the past few years I have been exploring a number of body and mind integration techniques and experienced their incredible power and wisdom. I have been moving between and enjoying two opposite poles: stillness and movement. I explored stillness through various meditations techniques, going deep into places, where all our universal power resides, discovering depths I never thought exist within myself. And, on the other hand, I explored the power of body movement – and was amazed how much power is being released through vigorous movement, dancing and improvising. I never thought of myself as an athletic person, but I found myself extremely enjoying dancing and various sport activities. So here I was: drawn to stillness and movement at the same time. I wanted to experience something, where I could combine both. And here it came: Aikido. I read somewhere that this martial art values both of these qualities. And then, magically, I kept meeting people, who were practicing Aikido, everywhere I looked Aikido word was starring at me. OK, Universe, I get it! I needed to try this.
So here I was: I did some research on Aikido dojos in my area. I called one dojo and they invited me for an introduction practice session. With eagerness I came to the first practice. The master Petra, training Aikido since 25 years, welcomed me at the entrance. Aged approx. 50, but looking extremely young and vigorous. After some other participants appeared (all of them experienced, with at least 5 years of Aikido practice), we started the training. We all sat at the mat and began with the silent meditation, followed by warming up exercises of the whole body. Then we were instructed to do a simple backflip. And then I thought: wait a minute, how long has it been since my last back flip? I guess the last time I did one was in the grammar school sport classes. Wow, I thought, but anyway, I trusted my body and backflipped. Surprisingly, my body still remembered this movement. What happened afterwards: I was basically included in the whole training with all those experienced participants. I was thrown into deep water! Scared at the beginning, I followed the flow. All the students were very patient with me, explained me various techniques and supported me. So here I was: backflipping, rolling over on the mat, attacking, being attacked, and experiencing the fluid motion of my own and my partners bodies. After two hours of practice I was exhausted, all muscles sore, but I was also very centered and at peace. Wow, I said to myself – this feels great. To my surprise, though, during this practice I realized also how tense my body was, and how little I actually trusted it. I am sure there is much more to come here with regards to my body awareness.
What amazes me the most about Aikido is that this martial art is actually not about fighting. In the classical fight we direct one strong energy against the other strong energy. And at the end the stronger energy wins. In Aikido one transforms the energy, which comes from the opponent, through certain techniques, making “the fight” a beautiful dance. Both the attacker and the attacked become one, fluid motion.
I am not sure how my adventure with Aikido will evolve. I definitely want to attend some other practice trainings and learn more about Aikido itself and about the wisdom of my own body. But, above all, this experience made me realise how much is possible, when we fully inhabit our bodies.
The beauty about travelling is the way it holds you in the moment. Almost as if you are in a deep state of meditation, your mind is present and your body is aware of its surroundings. When immersed in a captivating travel experience, your mind does not wander – it is still. You do not think about your grocery list, or the birthday present you need to buy. Your day job is completely forgotten.
As often is the case, the first dinner in a new country is especially good. Is the food really that much better than at subsequent dinners? Probably not, but the novelty of the environment makes it easy to live in the moment and forget your worries. Looking back at our first dinner in San Gimignano, a beautiful medieval town in the heart of Tuscany, I can still taste the wine and the excellent parmesan cheese, ruccola and Prosciutto appetizer. At this dinner, I was totally present and the memories are therefore especially vivid.
Often, a heightened awareness is achieved when your senses become reacquainted with long forgotten sensations. After a long winter that did not want to end, the sun and warmth of Mallorca created a greater sense of awareness in the body and mind. I remember feeling the rays of the sun shining on my face, the sound of the waves gently hitting the coast and the olive groves swaying peacefully in the Mediterranean breeze. On a late summer’s day, this might not have been so memorable. But taken in this context – after a long winter bereft of sun and warmth, the sense of awareness was extraordinary.
Hiking is a great way to experience life in the moment. The weight of your pack on your shoulders is hard to fathom, your legs burn from climbing steep precipices, and you long for small comforts like a piece of chocolate. This pain, however, forces you to stay in the moment. There is no where else to go. After a hard day of hiking up the mountain in Lech, Austria, the soup we ordered in the lodge exploded with taste. The soup, which probably came from a can, tasted so good because it felt so rewarding after the strenuous climb.
When I travel, I tend to only book the first night’s accommodation and book the remaining nights on the fly. I like this because it lets me stay flexible and update my travel plans based on tips from locals and other travelers I meet. Normally, this results in a pleasantly serendipitous experience. On a trip to India several years ago, this strategy worked out a lot differently than I had hoped.
