Aikido masters - O'Sensei

 

 (1883 - 1969)

 

Morihei Ueshiba O-Sensei was born on December 14 of 1883 in Tanabe, Wakayama prefecture, Japan.

Aikido founder studied classical Japanese martial arts in his youth. In 1942 O-Sensei moved to Iwama, Ibaraki prefecture and named his art “Aikido”. O-Sensei developed aikido based on classical armed and empty-handed combat methods. Morihei Ueshiba O-Sensei received the Medal of Honor with the Purple Ribbon from the Japanese government in 1960.

 

O-Sensei taught tens of thousands of students during his teaching career, which spanned some 50 years, and is noted for his ethical and humanistic view of the martial arts, which holds the concept of non-conflict, rather than the defeat of an adversary, as the ideal.

 

Morihei Ueshiba O-Sensei passed away on April 26 of 1969. Posthumously he was given a Buddhist name of Aiki-in Seibu Enyu Daidoshi.