Some of you have contacted me regarding more from the interview with Kato Sensei that I used in my last article. I’ll check and see if I can find it in a format that I can post in total here.
Until then, here are a few more tidbits:
Question: “Would you tell us some memories you have of the founder?”
Kate Sensei: “He did not say anything in detail about Waza (technique). Rather than listening to his words, I learned by watching him. I haven’t accomplished what I saw—probably less than half of it. When he took my hand, I felt like I was being absorbed into him because of his God-like presence.”
Question: “Sensei, please us know why you decided to learn Aikido?”
Kato Sensei: “I do not have a particular interest in Aikido, but I wanted to learn martial arts. My mother knew someone who did fortune telling. This person also knew the founder of Aikido. The fortune teller read my situation and found that Aikido was the one for me. So, without any specific intention, I started to practice around Showa 28 (1952).”
This is from the article, “Profile of a Master” by the editor of “Aikido Tankyu” magazine. The interview has been translated by Takanari Tajiri, Ph.D. of Sofia University. The subtitle of the interview is titled, “Martial arts cannot be taught.”
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