The Aiki Dojo 2 Minute Technique - Nikyo

The Aiki Dojo 2 Minute Technique - Nikyo

Nikyo - the only joint lock you will ever need!

Ito Sensei demonstrates Nikyo kotemawashi (二教小手回し). The first line of defense for any Aikidoist are joint locks and Nikyo is the gold standard technique. Nikyo is the most versatile and  effective joint lock and it is also the easiest to learn. All frontal attacks are either gyaku hanmi (逆半身) or “opposite hand” grabs on the same side or ai hanmi (相半身) or “same hand” grabs on the opposite side and from this video one can see how easy Nikyo is to execute. In olden times, a samurai wore a sword and so attackers had to be able to immobilize the samurai’s drawing hand in order to successfully defeat them. So a samurai would have to be able to defend their right or drawing hand from an arresting grab. Thus, the easiest technique would be Nikyo done with one hand. Doing sword work makes the samurai’s hands strong and so they’d be able to execute a joint lock with just one hand. Understanding and practicing Nikyo enables us to defend any attack from either hand. Nikyo can be done from any attack.  

Sometimes there's no time to read a lengthy message or watch a long documentary. So we've created these quick and easy 2 minute techniques to help you improve your Aikido technique and knowledge. Keep an eye out for them every Wednesday. 

Enjoy!