Recommended Aikido Books

Recommendations by Real People

• "The Sword of No-Sword" by John Stevens (biography of swordsman/calligrapher Tessu Yamaoka - one of his students founded the Ichiku Kai where Tohei Sensei practiced zazen and misogi)
• "Sword and Brush" by Dave Lowry: an overview of the relationship(s) between shodo (calligraphy) and the martial arts. [...] It's quite interesting, and makes for wonderful bedtime "thought bites".

• Most books by Koichi Tohei (such as _Ki in Daily Life_), if anyone can find them.
• Not aikido, but similar philosophy: _The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People_, by Stephen Covey.
  
• William Reed's _Ki: The Road that Anyone Can Walk_ (approx.).

• Ki in Aikido: A Sampler of Ki Exercises by C M Shifflett. (Not available in standard bookstores; you may contact the author, C M Shifflett, at: 71021.744@compuserve.com.)

• I'd like to put in a plug for a couple of clasics. "Zen in the Martial Arts" by Joe Hyams (1979), and "Zen in the Art ofArchery" by Eugen Herrigel (1953).
• While I have not finnished it yet I have read enough of it to recomend it highly. It is Mitsugi Saotome's "Aikido and the Harmony of Nature". It is mostly philosophy.
• On basic philosophy :
  • "The Way of Chuang Tzu", a 2500 year old Toaist clasic.
  • "The Art of Peace: Teachings of the Founder of Aikido", collected quotes.
  • "Peace Is Every Step: The Path of Mindfulness in Everyday Life" by Thich Nhat Hanh. An exilent discussion on fighting mind, and how to avoid it.
  • Using principles of Aikido and Ki in everyday life:
    • "The Magic of Conflict" by Thomas F. Crum. A good follow up to "Aikido in Everyday Life" by Terry Dobson & Vic Miller which has already been recomended.
    • I think I will put "Aikido and the New Warrior" here, although it covers a lot of teritory and could be clasified elsewhere. It is a collection of 18 essays on aikido, covering history, personal growth, social applications, philosophy, and even applications to psycho-therapy.
    • If you looking for a book stricly on the martial art of aikido, I think the best is "Aikido and the Dynamic Sphere" by A. Westbrook and O. Ratti. The text is very good, but what realy makes this book great is the illustrations. They do not show how the technique is done physicly, but how the ki flows through the technique.
    • And of cource, don't forget William Reed's "Ki: A Practical Guide for Westerners".

• "The Intuitive Body: Aikido as a Clairsentient Practice" by Wendy Palmer. [....] I don't think aikido is even mentioned until the last third of the book.... There is nothing new here. But it repeats a lot of old wisdom that we all tend to forget.

• I would add: "Moving Zen - Karate as a Way to Gentleness" by C.W. Nicol, published by Quill in 1982 (ISBN 0-688-01181-0)
• "How to Defend Yourself Without Even Trying" by Dr. Terry Chitwood, published by Polestar (ISBN 0-942044-00-2)
• "The Way of Chuang Tsu" by Thomas Merton (Shimbala has a version out in the "little book" format.
• "Martial Arts, the Spiritual Dimension" by Peter Payne, published by Crossroad (ISBN 0-8245-002307)

• "Soul Sword" by Vernon Turner, Hampton Roads Publishing. [...] Another good way to grasp what we are really about in our study - not defense of the self by beating someone else, but rather by gaining new insight and control over our self.

• Aikido in Everyday Life by Terry Dobson & Vic Miller. [...] It deals with using the priciples of Aikido and Ki in everday (verbal) conflict resolution.
• The Aikido Student Handbook by Greg O'Connor. This was the first aikido book I read. It is a great introduction to aikido for new students.
• The Book of Five Rings by Miyamoto Musashi. This is not an Aikido book but the content is very relevant to the concept of Aikido. Despite the ago of this book (,the author was born in 1584,) the contents are timless.
• The Way of The Peacful Warrior by Dan Millman Another book that has nothing to do with Aikido on the surface but the contents are relevant.

• I've always recommended "Mastery" by George Leonard-sensei as supplemental reading; not about Aikido specificially but uses Aikido & tennis as examples for how to approach mastering a skill.

Note: I think I have everyone's permission to use these quotes. Please contact me if I didn't have your permission to use your quote here.