The Evolution of Basic Daito-ryu and Aikido Curriculum - A Thorough Look Into the Secret Scrolls of Daito-ryu Part 3

In this article, we are going to investigate how Takeda Sokaku actually taught the basic techniques during his seminars. We are going to go through what Ueshiba Morihei actually learned during his first Daito-ryu training and how Sokaku's teaching influenced aikido as well as how it got interpreted in modern Daito-ryu circles.

Sokaku’s curriculum in the late Meiji Period (1899 ~ 1912)

Sokaku kept a record of his teaching activities in his eimeiroku (enrolment booklet) based on which we know that he started teaching Daito-ryu in 1899. Sokaku usually taught seminars of a duration of 10 days. In the early years, he numbered of these seminars in his eimeiroku and the numbers went up to five.

Accordingly, Sato Sadami (佐藤完實), an early student of Sokaku received instruction on five occasions, as listed below:

Portrait of Sato Sadami (1868 - ?) on the left. Sato Sadami’s entry in Sokaku’s eimeiroku recording his 5th Daito-ryu Jujutsu instruction (第五回目大東流柔術教授 marked in red) that took place at the Yoshioka Police Departement in 1904. According to the page, Sato was a member of both the Dai Nippon ButokukaiAn organization established in 1895 by the Japanese Government to promote and preserve traditional Budo and Teikoku ShobukaiAn organization established by Noguchi Seihachiro (野口正八郎) promoting Japanese martial arts through remote education.

After five training occasions with Sokaku, Sato received two scrollsBased on Sato’s profile published in 日本魂, 1906 and became one of the earliest kyoju dairi (教授代理, teaching representative) in the recorded history of Daito-ryuA partial kyoju dairi list was published by Stanly Pranin. As a member of Teikoku Shobukai, an organization promoting Japanese martial arts through remote education, Sato was active in teaching and publishing materials on self-defense including Daito-ryu techniques. In the introduction of one of his publications, he writes:

…旧会津の藩士武田惣角という先生について大東流（会津藩のお留流）を稽古し其免許皆伝を得まして...
“I studied under a teacher called Takeda Sokaku who was a samurai of the old Aizu domain, trained Daito-ryu (otome-ryu “secret art” of Aizu) and received menkyo kaiden in it…” Sato Sadami - “Woman Self-defense lecture” (女子護身術講義), published in Bugei Magazine, July issue, 1915

Sato refers to himself as menkyo kaiden suggesting, as we showed in a previous article, that the five training sessions and the two scrolls he received from Sokaku constituted the entirety of the transmission of Daito-ryu at that time. Luckily, we have information on Sokaku’s technical curriculum in the late Meiji era from another early student of his, Kawamata Kozo (川俣興造), who became Sokaku’s student in 1906. The following page in the eimeiroku records his training in 1906.

The young Takeda Sokaku accompanied by two unknown ladies in Yamagata, in 1906. Entries from Sokaku’s eimeiroku recording Kawamata Kozo’s training in Yamagata Prefecture of the same year. Kawamata’s name is marked in red.

It is a little known fact, but Kawamata kept teaching Daito-ryu in Yamagata even after the war. He was featured in a local newspaper, Shonai Nippo (庄内日報) circa 1954. In this newspaper article, he talks about how and what he had learned from Takeda Sokaku as follows:

(Kawamata Kozo) invited Master Takeda and asked him to stay for two or three months, and at the end of the training, he became Menkyo Kaiden.
Mr. Kawamata is a direct student of Master Takeda and is the only Menkyo Kaiden in the prefecture who was awarded scroll(s). Even today he practices 5 seated techniques (Zatori), 5 half-seated half-standing techniques (Hanza-handachi), 16 standing techniques (Tachidori), 1 umbrella technique (Kasa-dori), 3 techniques against 2 opponents (Futari-zume), 1 technique pinning 3 opponents (Sannin-osae), 2 sword taking techniques (Tachi-dori), 2 rope techniques, 15 attacking techniques (Kakete), Atemijutsu and more, and he is allowed to give Shodan license for those who have mastered these techniques.Kawamata Kozo in in Shonai Nippo (庄内日報) c. 1954

This is another example that in early Daito-ryu one could learn all techniques and become menkyo kaiden in a short period of time. Note that the mention of a dan ranking system is quite unusual. It seems to have been the product of Sokaku's son and successor, Tokimune, and it is the subject of a companion article we recently published.

Kawamata Kozo and the newspaper article introducing him in Shonai Nippo (庄内日報) c. 1954. The part about his training experience with Takeda Sokaku is marked in yellow.

The Daito-ryu curriculum that Kawamata learned and transmitted to his student bears a striking resemblance to the content of the hiden mokuroku scroll. The following table compares the two.

The technical groups and the number of techniques listed in the hiden mokuroku scroll and as mentioned by Kawamata Kozo. To read more on the technical content of the first Daito-ryu scroll click here.

The tachidori (standing) section of the hiden mokuroku scroll describes 27 techniques, 17 defensive and 10 offensive (kakete). Actually, there are two more techniques in the list ending with the note not included in 118 kajo (hiden mokuroku). On the other hand, in Kawamata’s article, 16 tachidori and 15 kakete techniques are listed separately, altogether mentioning 31 standing techniques. Both hiden mokuroku and Kawamata mention three techniques against two opponents. In the hiden mokuroku scroll, techniques against three or four opponents are not written explicitly but it is mentioned that the technique should be executed based on the same principle in these situations. In Kawamata’s list, the word sannin-osae (三人押) is used meaning “three people pin down”. It is not clear, however, if it refers to a technique when tori pins down three opponents (as mentioned in hiden mokuroku) or if the technique starts from a situation when tori is pinned to the ground by three opponents. The latter one is actually described in the second scroll hiden okugi no koto (秘伝奥儀之事).

 Sannin-dori from standing demonstrated by Hisa Takuma at the top, and on the ground by Horikawa Kodo at the bottom.

Sokaku seems to have taught arresting techniques using a rope, which are also described in Hisa Takuma’s own material on Police arrest techniques. The 12 seated and five half-seated half-standing techniques were published by Kawamata in an illustrated technical manual in 1932, titled Gokui Hiden Goshinjutsu Kyojusho (極意秘伝護身術教授書 Secret Self-defense textbook) Part 1 (巻一). Part 1 in the title suggests that there were other volumes introducing the rest of the curriculum, however, they are not found or might have not been published.

Kawamata Kozo’s Gokui Hiden Goshinjutsu Kyojusho (Secret Self-defense textbook) Part 1, a Daito-ryu Jujutsu textbook dating from 1932. Illustrations of shomen-uchi ikkajo (in the middle), and hanza-handachi katate-dori shiho-nage (on the left).

Each technique in the book is shown in three pictures with some additional explanation. The techniques and their order seem to be very close to those written in the hiden mokuroku scroll, supporting the idea that Sokaku taught according to the scrolls (hiden mokuroku and hiden okugi no koto) in the early years of his teaching career. The earliest scrolls (hiden mokuroku and hiden okugi no koto) we know of are from 1899, and in fact, there is no evidence of the existence of Daito-ryu prior to that. If we theorize that Daito-ryu was created (or more precisely, that its curriculum was either compiled or that a pre-existing jujutsu style was renamed) by Sokaku in 1899 based on his earlier koryu jujutsu studies, it is reasonable to think that he taught according to these scrolls he had just created. In this case, the technical explanations listed in the scrolls are extremely interesting since they could be considered as the actual words of Sokaku himself while dictating the scroll. Other scrolls such as Daito-ryu Aikijujutsu okugi, Daito-ryu Aikijujutsu hiokugi no koto, and kaiden no koto, first appear in the 1930s and were most likely created by Sokaku in his later years.

Sokaku’s basic curriculum in the Taisho and Showa era (1912 ~ 1943)

It seems that Sokaku's curriculum grew as he developed and invented new techniques in the late 1900s. Instead of teaching in the order of the scrolls, he moved towards a differently structured and easier-to-remember system of basic techniques that had five levels. In the Japanese version of Aiki News, an article series was published by Takahashi Masaru, a Daito-ryu researcher and student of Sagawa Yukiyoshi (佐川幸義), focusing on the curriculum and content of Sokaku’s seminars. Let us summarize the most important points of Sokaku’s teaching of this era.

Based on Sagawa Yukiyoshi’s statement when his father Sagawa Nenokichi (佐川子之吉) enrolled in Daito-ryu in 1912, the basics of Daito-ryu already had a clear five-level structure and the specific words “ikkajo” to “gokajo” were used to name them. Each “kajo” consisted of around 30 techniques. Depending on the body type and skill of the student Sokaku might have taught more variations of a technique thus it’s difficult to tell exactly how many techniques were in a particular kajo. Sokaku taught these sets of techniques during his 10 days seminars at a rate of around 3 techniques per day.

As Sagawa sensei recalls, the content of Sokaku’s ikkajo seminar was as follows:

The content of Sokaku’s ikkajo seminar as recalled by Sagawa YukiyoshiAiki News 129 and 143 武田惣角先師の旧大東流の技法体系について. Techniques marked in red appear in the hiden mokuroku scroll according to what Sokaku supposedly taught in his early years.

Sokaku always started his seminars with ryote-dori aiki-age (kokyu-ho in aikido) from a seated position. It was followed by ikkajo (ikkyo in aikido) pinning technique from various attacks, first in a sitting position and then from standing. In the list, the ikkajo pin appears in 22 different situations. Once someone remembered this pinning technique, they only had to learn how to apply it against different attacks, which made Sokaku’s curriculum very easy to remember for beginners. In addition, we can see other basic throwing techniques embedded in the curriculum such as shiho-nage, kotegaeshi, juji-garami, or sokumen irimi-nage, in not all, but only specific situations. The following illustration summarizes Sokaku’s ikkajo seminar curriculum.

Summary of Takeda Sokaku’s Ikkajo seminar curriculum. Illustrations from Ueshiba Morihei’s Budo Renshu published in 1933.

Once a student had completed Sokaku’s ikkajo seminar, during the next seminar he would learn nikajo pin from all the above attacks and in addition other variations of throwing techniques. This would be followed by the sankajo, yonkayo, and gokajo seminars similarly.

In light of the above, it's not surprising what Sokaku told about his art to a journalist in a newspaper article that was published in 1930.

この流儀は非常に覚え易いから他人の前で決してやらなかった...といって
"He (Sokaku) also told me (journalist) that since his martial art style was very easy to learn, he had never shown his techniques to the public...Ima Bokuden - Tokyo Asahi Newspaper 1930

Sagawa Yukiyoshi and his father Nenokichi participated and accompanied Sokaku in many of his seminars as his assistant instructors.

Examples of the numerous entries in Sokaku’s shareiroku (payment ledger) mentioning the Sagawa father and son. Records of Nenokichi from 1913 on the top, both Nenokichi and Yukiyoshi in 1924 at the bottom left, and Yukiyoshi from 1939 at the bottom right.

Based on their statements, Sokaku’s basic seminar curriculum from ikkajo to gokajo did not change from 1912 until Sokaku’s final years. Since Sokaku did not teach according to the scrolls anymore, the hiden mokuroku scroll only served as a sort of certificate that was given after someone participated in a set of seminars, and its content no longer reflected Sokaku’s actual seminar curriculum.

Ueshiba Morihei's Aikido Curriculum

Ueshiba Morihei (植芝盛平) first met Takeda Sokaku in 1915 in the Hisada Inn, Hokkaido, where he participated in a 10 days seminar of Sokaku thanks to the introduction of Yoshida Kotaro (a journalist and kyoju-dairi student of Sokaku).

On the left, Hisada Inn where Ueshiba Morihei first participated in Sokaku’s Daito-ryu Jujutsu seminar. On the right, (sitting in the first row) Ueshiba Morihei and Yoshida Kotaro in Hokkaido around that time.

Actually, Sagawa Nenokichi, who had been appointed kyoju-dairi a year earlier, was there as Sokaku’s assistant too.佐川幸義先生・合気写真集 Dou-shuppan, 2022

Sagawa Nenokichi with Takeda Sokaku c. 1914 on the left. Nenokichi’s kyoju-dairi entry from 1914 in the middle. Nenokichi’s teaching booklet recording Ueshiba Morihei’s first training (第一回) from February 20 to March 5, 1915, on the right.

Based on Sagawa’s words reported by Takahashi regarding Sokaku’s teaching, we can assume that the above-mentioned ikkajo curriculum describes what Ueshiba Morihei was exposed to during his first seminar. Ueshiba was so impressed that he stayed for another two seminars where he presumably learned nikajo and sankajo. After that, Morihei invited Sokaku to Shirataki to his home and learned Daito-ryu Jujutsu, together with other villagers合気道 その歴史と技法 Tankobon Hardcover – April 13, 2022. According to Sokaku’s shareiroku (payment ledger), in the next year, Ueshiba participated in four consecutive seminars in February and March after which he received hiden okugi no koto, the second scroll of Daito-ryu. Unfortunately, we do not have a record of Ueshiba’s hiden mokuroku scroll which he must have received a little bit earlier.

Records of payments after 4 consecutive 10-days seminars in Shirataki dated February 6, 16, 26, and March 8, 1916. Ueshiba Morihei’s name is marked in red. On the last two occasions, Ueshiba paid 15 yen instead of the regular seminar fee of 10 yen. Most likely he received his scrolls after these seminars.

In a previous article, we have already summarized what we know about Ueshiba’s Daito-ryu training under Sokaku. It is said that Ueshiba finalized his aikido after his retreat to Iwama where he engaged in budo training and farmingIwama: Birthplace of Aikido by Stanley Pranin Aiki News #130. As we have seen, the educational system based upon the teaching the basic pinning techniques from all types of attacks was created by Takeda Sokaku. Throwing techniques such as shiho-nage, kote-gaeshi, or sokumen irimi-nage were practiced for specific attacks but not all in his basic curriculum. Consistent with Sokaku’s system, modern aikido not only has its five basic pinning techniques (ikkyo to gokyo) practiced from all possible attacks, but it also has the five basic throwing techniques such as shiho-nage, irimi-nage, kote-gaeshi, kaiten-nage and kokyu-ho (sokumen Irimi-nage). The simplicity of the system makes it easy to remember for beginners which likely contributed a lot to the rapid spread of aikido in the world in the post-war period.

Ueshiba Morihei demonstrating suwari-waza shomen-uchi ikkyo at the new Hombu dojo in his final years.

Takeda Tokimune’s Hiden Mokuroku (118 kajo)

As we have seen, Takeda Sokaku most likely taught according to the scrolls during the late Meiji era. The first scroll, hiden mokuroku mentions 118 items of technical explanations of which 88 are explicitly written, describing 36 defensive and 16 offensive techniques, so altogether 52 techniques. Note that defensive techniques are described in two items and offensive ones in one item. 

From the Taisho era, Sokaku already established his basic curriculum of five levels from ikkajo to gokajo. Each “kajo” consisted of around 30 techniques thus the total curriculum added up to at least 150 techniques.

Sokaku’s son and successor, Takeda Tokimune (武田時宗) seemed to imply that the 118 items of the hiden mokuroku scroll were 118 actual techniques since in his system has 118 actual techniques, which are divided into five groups of techniques also known as ikkajo, nikajo, sankajo, yonkajo, and gokajo. Ikkajo, nikajo, and sankajo include 30 techniques; 10 seated techniques, 5 half-seated half-standing techniques, 10 standing techniques, and 5 rear techniques. In his system, however, the seated techniques are called idori and standing techniques are tachiai instead of zatori and tachidori, respectively, as they are written in Sokaku’s scroll. In addition, ushiro or rear techniques constitute a separate group within each kajo. Yonkajo contains 15 standing techniques and gokajo includes 6 standing techniques and a couple of weapon-taking techniques.大東流合気武道百十八ヶ条 by Ishibashi Yoshihisa, Daito-ryu Aikijujutsu DVD by Kondo Katsuyuki

In this precious video Tokimune sensei demonstrates the seated and standing techniques of his ikkajo set. Note that some techniques are different compared to what is practiced in the Tokimune line today.

Another contribution of Tokimune to the Daito-ryu curriculum is that he gave a name to each technique, making it easier for practitioners to remember and practice the curriculum.

In the following, we are going to compare the techniques from Sokaku’s ikkajo seminar curriculum with those of Tokimune’s 30 ikkajo set. The arrows show the correlating techniques in the two systems. The techniques written in red can be found in the hiden mokuroku scroll (i.e. Sokaku’s curriculum in his early years) as well.

As the table shows, Tokimune’s system lost some of the characteristics of Sokaku’s system, namely that a certain pinning technique (ikkajo, nikajo, sankajo…) is applied from a range of possible attacks. More specifically, in Sokaku’s ikkajo seminar, the ikkajo pin was taught from 22 different attacks and situations, while in Tokimunes ikkajo 30 techniques only 5 ikkyo-like pins are included (ippon-dori x2, gyaku ude-dori x2, tateeri-dori). The rest of the techniques are some of the variations that Sokaku taught in his ikkajo or other seminars and probably some of the Tokimune's own developments. Similarly, nikajo, sankajo, yonkajo, and gokajo are a collection of various techniques rather than the same pinning technique applied for various attacks. In this sense, the aikido curriculum can be considered closer in principle to Sokaku’s system than that of modern Daito-ryu Aikibudo. One should also note that variations of some techniques such as shihonage or kotegaeshi are found in several kajo.

Tokimune Soke at his Daitokan Dojo in Abashiri, Hokkaido.

Highlighting the influence of Tokimune, his version of hiden mokuroku (118 techniques) is practiced by the greatest number of Daito-ryu practitioners nowadays. Not only the Tokimune-line but also the Takumakai, which is the second biggest Daito-ryu organization (after Hisa Takuma’s death) incorporated Tokimune’s 118 techniques as basics and requirements of the examination. Other lines such as the Sagawa and Horikawa lines have their own curriculum of techniques.

Summary

Takeda Sokaku started teaching Daito-ryu in 1899. There were two scrolls from the beginning (hiden mokuroku and hiden okugi no koto) and Sokaku most likely taught according to them.

Later, Sokaku introduced a system of basic techniques that had five levels from ikkajo to gokajo. In this system, a certain pinning technique is applied from various attacks. In addition, variations and throwing techniques were added to his seminar curriculum but only for certain attacks.

Sokaku’s son and successor Takeda Tokimune, equated the 118 kajo (items) of the hiden mokuroku scroll as 118 techniques, dividing its techniques into five groups also known as ikkajo to gokajo. In his system, Sokaku’s idea of applying the same technique for different attacks is less explicit.

Ueshiba Morihei kept Sokaku’s idea of doing the same technique from different possible attacks. Building on this method, in aikido not only the five basic pinning techniques (ikkyo, nikyo, sankyo, yonkyo, and gokyo) but also the five basic throwing techniques (shiho-nage, irimi-nage, kote-gaeshi, kaiten nage and kokyu-ho (sokumen irimi-nage)) are taught from all possible attacks in the basic curriculum. The simplicity of the system makes it easy to remember for beginners which contributed a lot to the rapid spread of aikido in the world in the post-war period.