The influence of Daito-ryu Aiki-jujutsu in the development of Aikido is now fairly well know and understood. This has led some Aikido practitioners to focus their attention towards learning the Daito-ryu techniques in order to complete what they might regard as a certain lack in nowadays' Aikido teaching. Among these, Olivier Gaurin, a long time student at the Aikikai Hombu Dojo and author of several books on Aikido decided to continue in Mr Pranin's footsteps, to learn the ancient techniques and to promote them to the Aikido public. I had been aware of Daito-ryu Aiki-jujutsu for many years through the work of Stanley Pranin but it is Olivier Gaurin who introduced me to the Daito-ryu teachers of the Takumakai school and it wasn't long before we both decided to document our experience, which eventually came under the form of this documentary.
I had previously reported in an article my first experience learning Daito-ryu Aiki-jujutsu in Tokyo with Kobayashi Kiyohiro Sensei, the chairman of the Takumakai branch of Osaka. More than three years later, I am happy to present you this documentary that we short during Kobayashi Sensei's classes in Tokyo over the past couple of years. It introduces the classes, the practitioners, some technical details of Daito-ryu, and presents you an interview of Kobayashi Sensei where he explains the origins of the Takumakai and its founder Takuma Hisa Sensei, as well as his own personal involvement in both Daito-ryu and Aikido through learning with both Takuma Hisa and Ueshiba Morihei.
