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A
- Ai
- meeting, joining, harmony
- Aikido
- the way of being one with energy
- Ai hanmi
- mutually agreeing stance (both uke and nage lead with same foot)
- Aikidoka
- person who practices Aikido
- Aikitaiso
- mind-body coordination exercises
- Atemi
- strikes to vital areas, used as a part of Aikido technique
- Awase
- meeting or coming together
- Ayumi ashi
- normal stepping, as in walking
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B
- Bo
- wooden staff, usually 72"
- Bokken
- wooden sword
- Bokken tori
- sword taking technique; also called tachitori
- Bokuto
- wooden sword
- Bu
- martial
- Budo
- martial way
- Budoka
- a practitioner of budo
- Bushi
- warrior class
- Bushido
- way of the warrior
- Butsudan
- "Buddha shelf"; a Buddhist shrine, often placed at the front of a dojo influenced by
Buddhist tradition
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C
- Cho
- chief or head
- Chudan
- middle position
- Chuden
- middle hand stance
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D
- Dame
- incorrect, bad
- Dan
- black belt ranks
- Do
- way or path
- Dogi
- training uniform
- Dojo
- place of enlightenment; training hall
- Dori
- sieze or grasp
- Doshu
- master of the way; currently Kisshomaru Ueshiba
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E
- Eri
- collar
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F
- Fudo
- immovable e.g. - fudoshin, immovable mind; fudo not shisei, immovable posture
- Funa kogi undo
- rowing exercise
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G
- Gaeshi
- reversal
- Ganmenuchi
- thrust to the face
- Gedan
- low position
- Gi
- training uniform
- Giri
- cut
- Gokkyo
- fifth teaching
- Gyaku
- reverse or opposite
- Gyaku hanmi
- mutually opposite stance (nage and uke lead with different feet)
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H
- Hai
- yes
- Hakama
- divided skirt
- Hanmi
- half-body stance
- Hantachi
- half-standing (kneeling position)
- Hanmi hantachi waza
- techniques performed by a kneeling nage against standing uke
- Hantai
- opposite or reverse
- Happo undo
- eight direction exercise
- Hara
- the lower abdomen; the seat of correct breathing and of internal power
- Hasso
- a stance with the bokken or jo held vertically extending up from the shoulder
- Heiho
- strategy
- Henka waza
- "changing technique"; changing between various applications of a technique in practice
- Hidari
- left
- Hiji
- elbow
- Hitai
- forehead
- Hito e mi
- one layer of the body
- Hiyoshigi
- wooden clapper
- Hiza
- knee
- Ho
- method
- Hoho
- check
- Hombu
- headquarters
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I
- Ii
- good
- Iie
- no (interjection)
- Ikkyo
- first teaching
- Irimi
- entering
- Iriminage
- "entering throw"
- Irrashaimasu
- welcome
- Isshin den shin
- "from mind to mind"; the way in which knowledge is said to be transmitted from teacher to
pupil.
- Itai
- painful
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J
- Jiyu
- free (as in free technique)
- Jo
- short wooden staff (usually 50")
- Jodan
- upper position
- Jo dori
- jo taking technique
- Jo nage
- throwing with the jo
- Joseki
- upper (senior) side of mat area; facing shomen, joseki is the right side
- Joza
- upper seat, where the instructor sits
- Jujinage
- crossed arms throw
- Juji Garami
- entwined arm throw
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K
- Kaeshi waza
- counter technique
- Kaitso
- founder
- Kaitennage
- rotary throw
- Kakarai geiko
- group practice
- Kamae
- stance or position
- Kami
- diety, spirit, divine being; a Shinto term
- Kamiza
- "god seat"; shrine or front of dojo, if Shinto influenced
- Kan
- a house or hall; also, intuition
- Kata
- shoulder; also, a form used in training - e.g. bokken kata
- Katatori
- grasping the shoulder or lapel
- Katate
- forearm area
- Katate kosa
- cross hand grab with single hand
- Katate ryotetori
- on wrist grabbed by both hands
- Katame waza
- pinning technique
- Katana
- a type of long sword, worn edge upwards
- Ken
- sword
- Ki
- spirit, vital force, energy
- Kiai
- explosive projection of energy in the form of a shout or yell; also refers to the energy
level or feeling of a person or thing
- Ki musubi
- linking one's energy with that of the opponent
- Kiri
- cut
- Kirigaeshi
- a suburi exercise of continuous yokomen and gyaku yokomen strikes
- Ko
- back or rear when describing an object
- Kohai
- junior
- Kotai
- movement to the rear
- Kote
- back of hand
- Kotegaeshi
- "back of hand out-turn", a throwing technique
- Kokyu
- animating breath; also used to imply timing
- Kokyudosa
- breath or timing exercise
- Koshi
- hip
- Koshinage
- hip throw
- Kuden
- oral instruction
- Kubi
- neck
- Kubishime
- choking the neck
- Kumitachi
- sword against sword
- Kumijo
- jo against jo
- Kyu
- ranks below dan grade
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L
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M
- Mai-ai
- distance
- Mae
- front or forward
- Meiso ho
- meditation exercise
- Men
- head
- Migi
- right
- Misogi
- purification practices; often refers specifically to a breathing technique
- Mochi
- grasp
- Morote tori
- see Katate ryotetori
- Mune
- chest
- Mune tsuki
- thrust to the chest
- Mushin
- "no-mind"; a state of mind free from obstruction or attachment to thoughts or happenings
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N
- Nage
- throw; also, the person executing the throw
- Nikkyo
- second teaching
- No
- an article indicating possesion or connection e.g. - chudan no kamae: "stance of middle
position"
- Ni
- a directional indicator e.g. - shomen ni rei: "bow to the front"
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O
- Obi
- belt
- Omote
- front
- Orenaite
- unbendable arm
- Osae
- pin e.g. - ude osae: arm pin
- O-Sensei
- "venerable teacher"; refers in Aikido to Morihei Ueshiba
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P
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Q
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R
- Randori
- multiple man attack (lit. "siezing chaos")
- Rei
- bow
- Ritsurei
- standing bow
- Ryote
- both hands
- Ryotetori
- grasping both hands
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S
- Sama
- formal term of respect
- -San
- suffix, expression of respect (informal)
- Sankakutal
- triangular stance
- Sankyo
- third teaching
- Sayu
- side
- Seika no itten
- the "one point"; see tanden
- Seiza
- formal kneeling position
- Senpai
- senior
- Sensei
- instructor (lit. "born before")
- Shikko
- walking on the kneew
- Shihan
- teacher of teachers (6th Dan and above)
- Shihonage
- four corner throw
- Shime
- choking or strangling
- Shimoza
- lower seat; place where students sit; the wall opposite from kamiza or shomen
- Shimoseki
- junior area of mat; facing shomen, the left side
- Shinai
- bamboo training sword
- Shinken
- a live, stell swork; figuratively, implies seriousness and commitment
- Shinken shobu
- a fight to the death; figuratively, implies a situation requiring total abandon and
concentration. The spirit of good practice should be shinken shobu.
- Shinto
- the native Japanese religion
- Shisei
- posture, body alignment
- Shomen
- front; the wall towards which students bow
- Shomenuchi
- overhead strike to the front of the head
- Shugyo
- intense physical/internal training to perfect character and realize one's true nature
- Shuto
- cutting strike with the edge of the hand
- Sokumen Iriminage
- side of the head entering throw
- Suburi
- "empty swing"; individual striking practice with a weapon
- Suburito
- A heavy bokken used for suburi, and sometimes for kumitachi
- Sumi ashi
- glide step
- Sumi otoshi
- corner drop, a throwing technique
- Suki
- opening or weakness, mental or physical, in an opponent's defenses
- Suriashi
- sliding foot
- Suwari waza
- techniques with both uke and nage in kneeling position
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T
- Tachi
- a type of long sword; technically refers to swords worn edge downward
- Tachitori
- see bokken tori
- Taijitsu
- unarmed body arts
- Tai sabaki
- body movement e.g. - irimi, tenkan
- Tanden
- (Chinese: tan tien); the "one point", the center of the body's gravity and source of
spiritual power, located two inches below the navel in the center of the hara
- Tanto
- knife
- Tanto dori
- knife-taking technique
- Tatami
- mat
- Te
- hand (tewaza = hand technique)
- Tegatana
- "hand sword"; the manner in which the arm and hands are used in Aikido to move and strike
- Tekubi
- wrist (lit. "throat of the hand")
- Tekubitori
- wrist grab
- Tenkan
- "spinning change"; a turning body movement
- Tenchinage
- "heaven-earth throw"
- To
- sword; also, the article "and"
- Tori
- to grasp or sieze; also, the nage or defender
- Toshu
- without a weapon
- Tsuba
- sword hilt
- Tsugiashi
- slide step
- Tsuki
- thrusting attack, with fist or weapon
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U
- Uchi
- strike
- Uchideshi
- "inner disciple"; students living in a dojo and committed to full-time training, 24
hours a day
- Ude
- arm
- Ude garami
- arm-entwining technique
- Uke
- one who is thrown (lit. "one who receives")
- Ukemi
- "receiving body"; the art of falling and receiving techniques without injury
- Undo
- exercise
- Ura
- behind
- Ushiro
- from behind or rear
- Ushirotori
- any rear attack; often refers to bearhug. Other rear attacks include ushiroeridori,
ushirotekubitori, ushirokubishime, ushirohijitori, ushirokatatori, etc.
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V
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W
- Wa
- harmony
- Wakazashi
- companion sword
- Waza
- technique
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X
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Y
- Yame
- stop
- Yoko
- side
- Yokomenuchi
- a strike to the side of the head or temple
- Yubi
- fingers
- Yonkyo
- fourth teaching
- Yudansha
- black belt holder, pl. yudanshi, group = yudanshakai
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Z
- Zanshin
- "remaining mind"; a continued extension of concentration, energy awareness at the conclusion
of a technique and immediately afterward; the "follow through" of a technique
- Zarei
- sitting bow
- Zazen
- meditation posture, crosslegged with spine aligned
- Zen
- (Sanskrit "Dhyana", Chinese "Ch'an"); literally "meditation"; a school of Buddhism
emphasizing personal, intuitive experience of reality, having a strong influence on Japanese
thought and the martial arts
- Zengo undo
- forward - backward pivot exercise
- Zori
- sandals
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