AIKIDO PRACTICE

AIKIDO THEORY

AIKIDO BOOKS



Attacks in Aikido, by Stefan Stenudd.
Attacks in Aikido
How to do kogeki, the attack techniques, by Stefan Stenudd. All the attack techniques in aikido explained, and how to do them correctly.
See the book at Amazon.


Aikido Principles, by Stefan Stenudd.
Aikido Principles
Basic Concepts of the Peaceful Martial Art, by Stefan Stenudd. Aikido principles, philosophy, and basic ideas.
See the book at Amazon.


Aikibatto, by Stefan Stenudd.
Aikibatto
by Stefan Stenudd. The aikibatto sword and staff exercises for aikido students explained, with practical and spiritual aspects of the sword arts, equipment for training, and more.
See the book at Amazon.


QI - increase your life energy, by Stefan Stenudd.
Qi
Increase your life energy, by Stefan Stenudd. The life energy qi (also chi or ki), with exercises on how to awaken, increase, and use it.
See the book at Amazon.




Me

Stefan Stenudd.
A comprised aikido biography
of Stefan Stenudd



I started to train aikido in 1972, when I was 18 years old. How that happened, you can read on the page called Aikido is true. In those days there were not many dojos in Sweden - I'm not sure, but probably not more than 10-15. Luckily, several of them were in the Stockholm area, where I lived.


Seated and standing aikido techniques, from a seminar in the Czech Republic.

     Actually, there was a dojo in the very suburb where I had my home, Järfälla, at walking distance. The teacher was Allan Wahlberg, one of the few shodan in those days. There was no Swede with a higher grade.
     On Fridays, our dojo was visited by the Japanese teacher Toshikazu Ichimura, who was at that time 5 dan aikido and 6 dan renshi in iaido. After some time, I was allowed to go to his classes, too. By then, I had already been completely mesmerized by aikido. We were a group of students of about the same age, who practiced as much as we ever could, and went to Ichimura's classes in the other dojos in the Stockholm area.

Stefan Stenudd.

     I think it was already after one year of training that I started teaching the children's group in aikido - not doing a very good job with it, I would say. About a year later I started teaching some regular classes, and by 1976 Allan had left the dojo and I got to be in charge of the training. In those days, I was sure that I was skilled enough to do it.
     Shortly before that, I had what I would like to call my first aikido satori, where suddenly everything seemed to be clear as water, and I started to throw people without touching them, and so on. You know the Japanese saying: Three years on a stone...

Stefan Stenudd.

     By 1977 I had moved to another Stockholm suburb, Brandbergen, and started an aikido dojo there - at first as a little section of the local football club, then as a club of its own. In 1991 I moved to Malmö, in the south of Sweden, and started the aikido section at the big Martial Arts dojo Enighet, which was founded already in 1892. I am still there. Here is the website of the Enighet Aikido. The Brandbergen Aikido Club is still active, and so is Järfälla Aikido Club, where I once started.

Stefan Stenudd.

     Since the 1960's, Swedish aikido has been fortunate to be visited by several Japanese teachers. Many of them have come repeatedly to hold seminars, and some still do. I have had the pleasure of traing for most of them, such as Tamura, Saito, Kobayashi, Igarashi, Sugano, Nishio, Endo and Takemori. Nishio sensei held annual seminar at the Enighet dojo for some years in the 1990's. Also Sugano sensei and Tamura sensei have visited our dojo. This has been very inspiring indeed for us, and of immense value for me in trying to progress as a teacher.
     Presently, I have the rank of 6 dan in aikido, which I received in 2003, and 4 dan in the iai of Nishio sensei's Aikido Toho since 1996. In January 2010 I was appointed Shihan by the Aikikai Hombu Dojo. Apart from the regular training at the Enighet dojo, I hold seminars in Sweden, Berlin, Czech Republic and Slovakia. Photos of such events can be found in my aikido album.

Stefan Stenudd.

     Being a writer by profession, I have produced some books related to the Martial Arts. Unfortunately they are all in Swedish: Aikido - den fredliga kampkonsten (Aikido - the Peaceful Martial Art), a Swedish interpretation of Musashi's Book of Five Rings, and of the Chinese classic Tao te ching. I also recently wrote a book on ki exercises.

Stefan Stenudd.

     Whether we like it or not, when people gather there is politics. Aikido is no exception. I have been in the Swedish Aikido board for some periods in the 1980's and 90's, sometimes as its Chairman, and in the board of the Swedish Budo & Martial Arts Federation (as its President since 2009). I am also a member of the Swedish aikido grading committee since 1991. In the International Aikido Federation I was its first webmaster and Assistant General Secretary for a few years in the 1990's, and now I am its Vice Chairman.
     I'm still mesmerized by aikido, have an aikido satori now and then, but always come back to prefering to throw people by touching them.
Stefan Stenudd


Photos by Frank Weingärtner
from a Berlin seminar 2005.



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Stefan Stenudd
Stefan Stenudd
About me
I'm a Swedish aikido instructor, 6 dan Aikikai Shihan, and Vice Chairman of the International Aikido Federation. Now, I've practiced aikido for 40 years. I also teach the sword art iaido. I've written several books about aikido and other Japanese and Chinese traditions.





Tao Te Ching - The Taoism of Lao Tzu Explained, by Stefan Stenudd.
Tao Te Ching
The Taoism of Lao Tzu Explained. The great Chinese classic, translated and extensively commented by Stefan Stenudd.
See the book at Amazon.


Life Energy Encyclopedia, by Stefan Stenudd.
Life Energy Encyclopedia
by Stefan Stenudd. Qi, prana, spirit, and other life forces around the world explained and compared.
See the book at Amazon.


Another great
Aikido website:
AikiWeb: Aikido Information