Basic Close With Partner

The Basic Close or Entry is accomplished by Jumping in and using the swing up of the lead arm to strike your partners face. The strike is extremely important because it coordinates Nage's movement and gets Nage into the correct position. Correct position is essential in Aiki. Ariff Mehter, Shihan told me that in Aikido there are three important factors. They are:

1. Position
2. Position
3. Position

The steps for the Entry are shown below.

Uke is in the same stance as Nage but that is not critical. Uke could be in the opposite stance.

Fig. 1 Front Leg Entry Step		Fig. 2 Rear Leg Entry Step		Fig. 3 Rear Leg Adjustment

1. In Fig. 1 Nage's front (right) leg steps forward as Nage jumps toward and to the side of Uke. The lead arm swinging up for the jump strikes Uke in the face. Nage's rear (left) leg then pulls up. It might stop as shown here or step on in for the throw. This is just a single step forward. It is critically important that Nage attack Uke rather than dodging to the side to avoid Uke's attack.
2. Fig. 2 shows Nage's back leg (right) step forward for the entry step as Nage's lead (left) arm swings up with the jump towards Uke. Nage's front (left) foot might pivot as shown but it is not good to try to pivot the foot.
3. In Fig. 3 Nage's left leg has adjusted to a standard Hammi. The left leg would probably just step in for the throw.

If the strike lands properly Nage's job is mostly done. Even if the strike does not land well Uke has to deal with the strike helping to disturb Uke's balance. Depending on what throw Nage is using Nage might strike with the other hand as part of the throw.

This is the most important part of Aikido. If Nage cannot successfully close with Uke nothing else matters. I ask students what is the 1st thing you do when attacked. For some reason it takes them several classes to realize that they do one of these moves unless they have been blind-sided and have to do one of the closer Kuta forms.

Example 1, Front Leg Entry Strike

Movie of Front Leg Entry Strike.

Fig. 4 Start		Fig. 5 Jump		Fig. 6 1st Step

1. Fig. 4 shows the start position. Uke and Nage should be normally spaced so that their extended arms and hands will not quite touch. Here Nage and Uke are closer together. The attack is when Uke moves within this range. At that moment Nage either moves out of range to avoid conflict or Nage attacks. This means that as Nage starts in Nage is not concerned with how Uke is attacking. The Front Leg Entry always starts the same way.
2. Fig. 5 shows Nage starting the jump towards Uke. Some students find it easier to understand this as the Kuta Knee Pop explained in the next chapter. As Nage jumps toward Uke the normal upswing of Nage's lead hand forms the strike to Uke's head. The lead hand coming up for the jump makes an uppercut type strike. The hand scooping up speeds Nage's entry and it also protects Nage from leg dives and cuts to the lower body. Nage's rear hand is coming up to Nage's chest as is typical for Kuta Punches.
3. Fig. 6 shows Nage at the end of the first step forward. Nage's lead hand is striking Uke at the base of Uke's skull. Nage's left hand is at Nage's chest to increase Nage's power and position the hand for further action. Nage does not pause at this point but continues with the move.

Example 2, Rear Leg Entry Strike

Movie of Rear Leg Entry Strike.

Fig. 7 Start		Fig. 8 Jump		Fig. 9 1st Entry Step
Fig. 10 Tornado Twist

1. Fig. 7 shows the start position. Uke and Nage are normally spaced so that their extended arms and hands will not quite touch. The attack is when Uke moves within this range. This means that as Nage starts Nage's action without knowing how Uke is attacking.
2. Fig. 8 shows Nage jumping towards Uke. Nage's front foot does not step or rotate as discussed below in Example 3. Nage steps with the back foot. This movement is facilitated by Uke's lead hand scooping up for an uppercut type strike as part of Nage's jump. The hand scooping up speeds Nage's entry and it also protects Nage from leg dives and cuts to the lower body. At this point Nage's lead (left) hand is striking Uke's face. In the picture Nage is striking just in front of Uke for Uke's health. Nage's hand is extended past Uke's head. Nage's rear hand has come up to strike the back of Uke's head.
3. Fig 9 shows the end of Nage's first step. Nage's rear hand (right) is striking the rear of Uke's head. Nage's lead hand (left) is dropping down to grab Uke's arm. This hand could grab Uke's head.
4. Fig. 10 shows that Nage is continuing to spin with the strong Tornado Twist. This carries Nage behind Uke and away from the knife.

Example 3, Foot Pivot.

Movie of Foot Pivot.

The way Nage's feet are used for the strike is very important. If Nage pivots on the balls of Nage's feet then the pivot will carry Nage off of the line of attack.

Fig. 11 Initial Hammi		Fig. 12 Pivoting on Ball of Foot		Fig. 13 End of Pivot

1. Fig. 11 shows the initial stance.
2. In Fig. 12 Nage has started pivoting on the lead foot.
3. In Fig. 13 Nage has completed the pivot.

The critical factor is to pivot on the ball of the foot. This can be practiced standing facing the edge of a door or doorframe. Have the lead foot beside the door and your body directly in front of the door. When the pivot is complete you will not have hit the door and you will be standing beside the door. You have avoided the attack.

This foot pivot is not useful if stepping with the back foot. In that case jump from the front foot and pivot the hips so that they are parallel to the line of attack. If you try to pivot the front foot you tend to step making your attack into the preparation too slow.

Example 4, Pivot On Heel. What not to do!

Movie of Pivot On Heel.

The following pictures show that when Nage pivots on Nage's heels Nage's body does not move off of the line of attack. Sometimes Kuta uses this type of move but this is not used in Aikido.

What Not To Do!

Fig. 14 Initial Hammi	Fig. 15 Pivot on Front Heel	Fig. 16 Pivot on Back Heel	Fig. 17 End of Pivot

1. Fig. 14 shows the initial stance.
2. In Fig. 15 Nage is pivoting on the heel of the lead foot.
3. In Fig. 16 Nage is pivoting on the heel of the rear foot.
4. In Fig. 17 Nage has completed the pivot and is directly above the line of attack.