ENDS AND MEANS
The corruption of aikido by con-artists is one example of the more general principle that how we train is what we learn. What gets done on the training mat is what we come to know. The process becomes the end- product. If you think, for example, that materialism will lead to spiritual awareness then you are likely to be sadly disappointed. You will only get more of the same, namely, more materialism. If you learn to move in ego-defensive ways then that is what you'll get, namely, greater ego- defensiveness. And so on. How we train has to be designed to get where we want to go, or where we think we want to go, or we won't get there. This is a simple proposition but it's a very important one. Ends create means. This is not only the case for aikido. It applies to life in general. If, for example, our training is mostly about physical technique then that is what we will end up knowing most about. If our training is all about making mental images of stability or supple strength then those things are what we'll achieve. If we train in a way that opens our hearts then our hearts will surely open, bit by bit. Life's the same. If we value order and security then we're likely to think of people as basically bad. We're likely to see life as a battleground where it is the strong and the cunning who mostly win. We'll likely think in terms of beating others before they can beat us. We'll wonder how people can be controlled so that decent lives can be led despite all the selfishness and cruelty in the world. On the other hand if we value justice (as anything more than an eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth), or if we value freedom or equality, we'll think of people as good too. We'll think that life is also about helping each other. We'll look for ways to be just or free or treated equally. And we'll look for ways to understand and help others so they can be treated this way too. If we believe in both order and justice (or freedom or equality) then we will see people as both good and bad. We'll think that life is about finding a balance. We'll look for ways that make the most of both one and the other. We'll practice tolerance, for example, or forbearance, or compromise. All of this is reflected in training. Competitive training (like competitive living) will reinforce our feelings of competitiveness. It will cement our egos and cease to teach us much about love or harmonious living. On the other hand cooperation in how we train (and live) will give us just that - greater awareness of the rewards of reciprocity. Partners who go further, however, who take turns in helping each other, will find in that feeling of collaboration something more. People who give up every idea that they should either compete or cooperate will find there is much more to aikido (and to life) than throws and hold-downs and blending with attacks. They'll find something opening inside themselves onto a bigger and better way of being.
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