from dust jacket

'Aikido, the most recent and fastest-growing of the major marital arts, is also the most revolutionary. Supremely physical, it is at essence purely spiritual. It is also eminently practical, with nearly endless applications for home, school, and work.'-George Leonard

He has been a celebrated spiritual teacher and leading practitioner of the marital arts for nearly thirty years. Now award-winning author and fifth-degree black belt George Leonard, the man Newsweek hails as 'the granddaddy of the consciousness movement,' brings together his extraordinary knowledge and experience in a book that translates the principles of aikido directly into our everyday lives.

In The Way of Aikido: Life Lessons from an American Sensei, we enter George Leonard's dojo, a place of limitless possibilities. Here, Leonard shares the secrets of this eastern philosophy that is the most radical and demanding of all martial arts. He shows us how aikido can be applied to our daily existence to help set us on the path to composure, harmony, self-sufficiency, and spiritual centeredness.

In its essence, aikido is more philosophy and meditation than technique or a series of purely physical maneuvers. When confronted with a crisis situation-whether it is an imminent physical attack or a verbal confrontation-the student of aikido does not give in to the pressure. Rather, he enters or blends with the incoming energy in order to restore balance and harmony to the situation. Through mind-body exercises inspired by aikido yet designed for non-aikidoists, Leonard demonstrates the fundamental philosophy behind aikido. Combining illuminating personal anecdotes with practical advice, he describes the ways in which it both protects and energizes, and provides the power to transform our lives while connecting us to the essential unity and harmony of the universe.

Exhilarating, enlightnening, and filled with a unique wisdom, The Way of Aikido: Life Lessons from an American Sensei is an inspiring lesson in balance, confidence, and power.

George Leonard is the author of Education and Ecstasy, The Transformation, The Ultimate Athlete, and Mastery, among other books on human possibility and social change. He is the president of Esalen Institute and co-owner of the Aikido of Tamalpais dojo in Mill Valley, California.

Contents

Introduction: A Revolutionary Martial art
1. Welcome to Our Dojo
2. Stepping on the Path
3. The First Life Lesson
4. 'I Am the Universe'
5. The Centered Life
6. A Transformative Ordeal
7. Owning Your World
8. Adventure, discovery, and a Dojo of Our Own
9. Context and Transformation
10. The Mysterious Power of Ki
11. Taking the Hit as a Gift
12. Blending with Ki
13. Meditation in action
14. Zanshin: Continuing Awareness
15. Aikido Walking
16. Protecting the Attacker
17. The Waages of Optimism
18. The Primacy of Play
19. The Magical Marriage of Practice and Play
20. Under the Sword
21. The Beginner
Appendix: An Experiment in Human Transformation
Selected Readings
Acknowledgments
About the Author