Buki waza, the use of weapons, is an integral part of Aikido training. Although the emphasis is on bare hand techniques, the use of the stick (jo), the wooden sword (bokken), the wooden knife (tanto), as well as the heavy wooden sword (hojo bokken) are also studied. There are numerous techniques for these weapons, as with the bare hand techniques. However, there are a limited series of predefined movements (kata) conceived by the masters and transferred from masters to pupils whose virtue is to supply the practitioner with the fundamentals of weapon mastery. Even though there are a restricted number of kata, it is difficult for the practitioner to memorise them all in detail. This is why we developed this book.
Aikido sanshinkai is the traditional form of Aikido. It is taught in parallel to two other art forms: the Kashima Shinden Jikishinkage ryu Hojo no kata and the regenerating gymnastics of Genkikai. We call these three arts Aikido sanshinkai and they are complementary to each other.