Choose Spines Choose Life, Aikido as a Path to Right Action in the World

Aikido is a way of learning to fulfill the purpose of our existence. When we stand on the mat facing force that comes toward us, we practice precisely that same question: Will I respond in a way that increases the conflict, or in a way that understands its nature and changes it? Will I choose crude force, fear, anger, and the attempt to subdue, or will I be able to feel reality as it is and act within it in a more precise way? Physical training thus becomes a laboratory of moral choice: in every grab, in every strike, in every moment of pressure, the possibility of choosing life appears.
The book explains the purpose of human existence according to Judaism - based on Deuteronomy 30:15-19, "Choose life" - through the study of the Japanese martial art Aikido, whose name in Japanese may be understood as "the way of acting rightly in the world."
Eytan Ben Meir - 80 years old at time of writing this book. Has been practicing Aikido for 51 years. Founder of Israel Aikikai. Proud father of 4 children.