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Morihei Ueshiba, Aikido's founder, introduced Jo techniques. The Jo is a wooden staff about four feet long and practiced according to the principles of Aikido. Jo is regularly taught in the Aikido classes at Austin Aikikai.
"Aikido is performed by blending with the motion of the attacker and redirecting the force of the attack rather than opposing it head-on. Aikido has not competition. The goal of Aikido training is not perfection of a step or skill, but rather improving one's character according to the rules of nature." -Aikido World Headquarters
Aikido and Martial Arts Dojo
Austin Aikikai is a traditional dojo providing training in a community focused on helping members develop strength in every aspect of their lives. We have classes six days a week, a beginners program, a shinkage practice, and a zazen group.
Aikido
The goals of Aikido are there for all to achieve. To become a person in harmony with others, to become an integrated and balanced individual, and to explore our full human potential should be the aims of the Aikido student. It is obviously a lifetime pursuit.
Yoshimitsu Yamada, (Chairman and Chief Instructor, United States Aikido Federation (USAF)), Ultimate Aikido
Shinkage Ryu
Shinkage is a form of kenjutsu (Japanese sword martial art) originating in the sixteenth century. Austin Aikikai is one of only a handful of dojos in the United States to provide training in this art from the traditional Yagyu Shinkage Ryu Heihou, with the opportunity to practice under the direct supervision of Yagyu Koichi Sensei when he comes to the US. Read more.
Zazen Practice
Hard it is to train the mind, which goes where it likes and does what it wants. But a trained mind brings health and happiness.
The Dhammapada
Austin Aikikai supports students in their meditation practice by providing a structured zazen period. Forms used are from the Rinzai Zen school and we practice under the guidance of Shinge Roshi of the Zen Center of Syracuse Hoen-ji. Read more.
About the Sensei
Damir Jamsek Sensei is the head instructor at Austin Aikikai. He is a rokudan (sixth degree blackbelt) and shidoin (certified instructor), in aikido and a student of Yamada Sensei, chairman of the United States Aikido Federation. Jamsek Sensei has studied aikido since 1984 and has also trained in aikido under the late Akira Tohei Sensei and instructors from the aikido headquarters in Tokyo. Before beginning his training in Aikido, Jamsek Sensei studied karate and tae kwon do for seven years and attained the rank of nidan.
In addition to his training in aikido Jamsek Sensei trains in shinkage (Yagyu Shinkage Ryu Heihou, a form of kenjutsu originating in the sixteenth century) under the direction of the late Yagyu Nobuhara and now Yagyu Koichi Sensei. Jamsek Sensei has also studied Western fencing. Read more.