Explore Japan — Season 1, Episode 3: My Life with Aikido

Episode synopsis

Aikido is a Japanese martial art in which the opponent’s attack is redirected to avoid damage, rather than opposing it head-on. Currently, it is said that there are around one million practitioners of Aikido in 130 regions and countries around the world. Many students from overseas come to learn Aikido in Japan. There is an Aikido Dojo in Shinjuku, Tokyo where a number of Aikido students from abroad come to practice every day. One of them aspires to open his own Dojo back in his country. Another student is on a self-finding quest and has dedicated everything for Aikido in the past few years. People with different goals and a variety of reasons in life gather to this place to practice Aikido. What do they hope to achieve? The program features Aikido’s appeal seen through international students’ perspective.

About Explore Japan

Japan continues to thrive as it incorporates cultural elements of music, fashion, cuisine, sports, arts and science from around the world. People’s encounters trigger the fusion of Japan’s and the world’s diverse culture, unceasingly producing a myriad of new phenomena and events. This series will feature how various culture in modern Japan and overseas blend together and influence each other.

More episodes from Season 1

• E1Koshu: The Miraculous Wine
• E2Japan-discovery, Self-discovery: Exchange Students in Tokyo
• E4Delivering to Space
• E5Peru & Japan Fusion of Cuisine
• E6The Somin Naked Festival
• E7The World of Miniatures
• E8The Manufacturing Spirit and Sustainability
• E9Japanese Gardens, Aesthetic Encounters
• E10Going Beyond Tradition: The Challenge of Craftspeople in Kyoto
• E11Innovative Japanese Bread
• E12Capturing Masters’ Workmanship
• E13MUSIC TRUNK: Journey to Discover the Roots of Japanese Sound