# Reading the attacker



## Mr. President (Feb 5, 2014)

As I understand it, a substantial amount of Aikido training is about learning how to read your opponent, mainly via involuntary eye movements and body language, thus giving you the half a second required in order to blend or enter your opponent's space in order to neutralize his attack. I heard there is a name of this sort of training. 

Can anyone enlighten me on this?


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## K-man (Feb 5, 2014)

It's part of what is called _irimi_.
:asian:


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## Mr. President (Feb 6, 2014)

K-man said:


> It's part of what is called _irimi_.
> :asian:



I didn't mean so much the physical part of executing irimi. I meant the specific skill of being able to read an attack an instant before it's launched. I assume that if an Aikidoka only starts the technique once the attack is already in motion, it might be too late.


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## K-man (Feb 6, 2014)

Mr. President said:


> I didn't mean so much the physical part of executing irimi. I meant the specific skill of being able to read an attack an instant before it's launched. I assume that if an Aikidoka only starts the technique once the attack is already in motion, it might be too late.


It is no different with Karate. If you are at close range, by the time you see the hands move you are reacting and that will not work. Most times you will be hit. Irimi is entering but it is not a necessarily a physical movement. Irimi begins way before any move. Your mind is out, you are not clashing with your opponent and when you opponent moves you are already mentally ahead of his move. If you wanted to give it a Western name it would be something like awareness training where you are utilising peripheral vision. In Japanese it would be called 'Zanchin' but it is more something you develop with experience more than a training system as such.
:asian:


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## Chris Parker (Feb 7, 2014)

Just to clarify here, zanshin is "lingering mind", or "remaining mind", and refers to after the action, so it's not really what you're describing here... it's more an aspect of mushin ("no mind", a relatively literal and incomplete definition...).


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## K-man (Feb 7, 2014)

Chris Parker said:


> Just to clarify here, zanshin is "lingering mind", or "remaining mind", and refers to after the action, so it's not really what you're describing here... it's more an aspect of mushin ("no mind", a relatively literal and incomplete definition...).


As you said in another thread, words are not exact and translation of words just compounds that situation. Zanchin in some arts is after the event, in others, like Aikido it is awareness of the possibility of another attack after the throw which then really means before the next potential threat, and in Karate it is awareness at all times, including before an attack. 

I would argue that mushin is more the situation during a conflict where there is no ego or emotion, no preconceived defences or attacks, just a mind that is ready to deal with whatever happens.

So in the context of the question and my response, mushin is not what I would call the ability to read your opponent. In fact it would almost be the opposite where you don't think about anything that is happening. You are just prepared for anything that will come.

Zanchin is closer to what I would call the "training' that *Mr. President* is referring to in his question, keeping in mind it is only part of my answer which was irimi. In its simplest interpretation irimi is entering but in reality it is way more than that. It includes recognising the situation, blending with your opponent's mind and blending with his physical action as you enter his space. 

The question then becomes, is reaching that level of proficiency training, or is it the result of training?
:asian:


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## Aiki Lee (Feb 9, 2014)

I think the OP may actually be referring to _sen, __sen no sen_. But that is less about what you physically observe and more about what you can gather from the opponent's intention.


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## K-man (Feb 9, 2014)

Himura Kenshin said:


> I think the OP may actually be referring to _sen, __sen no sen_. But that is less about what you physically observe and more about what you can gather from the opponent's intention.


This link goes to a PDF file that I can't copy. http://www.aiki-shuren-dojo.com/pdf/Go no sen.pdf
It quotes Ueshiba replying to that very question. He says it is not _sen, sen no sen_. He is speaking from a much higher level of practice than we are likely to achieve but he speaks of "masakatsu, agatsu, katsu hayabi". But I would suggest that is a state you achieve through training, not the training itself.
:asian:


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## Aiki Lee (Feb 9, 2014)

The article though mentions _sen, sen no sen_ as the ability that allows one to draw a specific attack or draw specific attention in order to be ahead of the opponent. I would say that having _isshin_ is the first step towards being able to ascertain what your opponent wants, and utilizing the concepts of _sen, sen no sen_ allows us to manipulate it.

As far as I am concerned _masakatsu agatsu_ refers to the ethics of the budoka in the fighting scenario. It's more about having a moral victory than it is about martial skill in my opinion.


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