The crest of American Yoshinkan Aiki Jujutsu was carefully designed to represent our past, our present and our future. Historically, feudal Japan developed a complex system of heraldry with a variety of symbols to indicate family relationships and values, and embodied the ideals and shared values of the group.
The outer shape of our crest is the Yukiwa (snow wreath), a symbol of new growth. Its use in our system is to pay homage to our Daito Ryu Kodokai foundation, the primary art we are derived from. The center of the crest features the Tokugawa kamon, emblem of the Shogun from 1600-1868. The period of Japan's history under the Tokugawa Shogunate's rule is often referred to as "the Peace Period," as war and combat had ceased. As the ultimate aim of aiki is peace and harmony, we feel this is an appropriate representation of our ideals. Of course, the Tokugawa enforced that peace through a show of force, again indicative of what we stand for. While we strive to find a peaceful resolution to conflict, our training prepares us for violence. We train so that we can avoid conflict.
The color scheme of our crest is red, white and blue to represent our identity as a distinctly American martial art system. While we pay tribute to our feudal Japanese origins, we are a system of innovation and adaptation. We pride ourselves on applying the classical teachings for modern self defense and survival, and therefore our mission is one of evolution.
The color scheme of our crest is red, white and blue to represent our identity as a distinctly American martial art system. While we pay tribute to our feudal Japanese origins, we are a system of innovation and adaptation. We pride ourselves on applying the classical teachings for modern self defense and survival, and therefore our mission is one of evolution.
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"Aiki Jujutsu is said to be the Budo of harmony"
Hayashima Masao, student of Takeda Sokaku |
"The methods of war are the methods of peace"
Ienao Iizasa (1387-1488) |