Daito-ryu Aiki Jujutsu
MASAYOSHI MINAMOTO SOKAKU TAKEDA
(1859-1943) Choku no so (Reviver of the secret art of the Aizu clan)
He was a descendant of Emperor Seiwa, and of Yoshimitsu, and a man strongly attached to the
old ways, the ways of the samurai.
Sokaku Takeda received the advice of his teacher, Tanomo Saigo , to teach the art of Oshikiuchi {Daito ryu} publicly. The secret art of the Aizu clan began to be taught to many prominent members of Japanese society.
Sokaku Takeda kept no official dojo, he travelled through out the Japan training and teaching the art of Daito ryu. Some of those he taught contributed to the survival of the art by becoming teachers in their own right. Among those are; Katoro Yashida, Yukiyoshi Sogawa, Kodo Horikawa, Takuma Hisa, and Morihei Ueshiba.
Takeda did not teach each student in the same way, he taught them according to their individual needs and capabilities. That became the particular trademark for each style of Daito ryu.
Regarless of our lineage, we are still part of the great traditions of the Aizu clan. Training must be done with respect, with a full spirit and never losing the feeling of awe, or the sense of duty. There will be a time in which we might be called to offer something back for what we have received, in order to preserve the traditions, it must be done with honor, or it would cease to be Daito ryu.
