NHK Morning News Iwama AIKIDO Dojo

Iwama Dōjō, located in Ibaraki Prefecture, is one of the most sacred places in the world of Aikido. Morihei Ueshiba, the founder of Aikido, moved to Iwama during the early 1940s seeking a life of farming, training, and spiritual refinement. It was here, surrounded by nature and daily ascetic practice, that he completed the development of Aikido as a path of harmony and spiritual transformation. Ueshiba personally built the dōjō and the Aiki Shrine (Aiki Jinja), establishing Iwama as the birthplace of modern Aikido technique and the heart of the art’s spiritual roots.

After O-Sensei’s passing in 1969, the dojo was entrusted to Morihiro Saito Shihan, his closest student in weapons and farm life training. Saito preserved the founder’s methods and created the Iwama style of Bukiwaza (aiki-ken and aiki-jō). Following Saito’s death in 2002, instruction continued under senior instructors including Isoyama Hiroshi and Inagaki Shigemi, maintaining Iwama as a living treasure of Aikido.

This video is a segment from the NHK morning news program 「NHKニュース おはよう日本」 (NHK News Ohayō Nippon), filmed at the historic Iwama Dōjō in Ibaraki, the birthplace of modern Aikido. The on-site reporter is 入田直子 (Irita Naoko), a well-known NHK field journalist active on the program from the mid-1990s to 2014.

Hiroshi Isoyama Shihan (born 1940) began Aikido at age 12 under Morihei Ueshiba in Iwama. A direct student of the Founder, he became one of Aikikai’s most respected instructors and a guardian of the Iwama tradition. Isoyama Shihan is an 8th-dan master known for powerful technique and lifelong dedication.

Inagaki Shigemi Shihan (born 1946) is one of the most respected senior instructors of the Iwama Aikido tradition. He began training in the 1960s under Morihiro Saito Shihan and became renowned for his powerful, precise taijutsu and bukiwaza. Deeply connected to the birthplace of Aikido, he has devoted his life to preserving the Founder Morihei Ueshiba’s methods at Iwama Dōjō. Known for strict, disciplined teaching and profound technical understanding, Inagaki Shihan continues to guide generations of students from Japan and around the world.

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