19/09/2025
Au-un, Heng-Ha, Yin-Yang, In-Yo, and Aiki - some thoughts from a recent discussion about breathing exercises in Aikido, why so few folks realize what they are, and why they're important.
So...breathing exercises have nothing to do with breathing out when you throw, this is generally a bad habit to develop, since it instills an unconscious timing that's too easy to disrupt and too easy to predict.
They certainly don't have anything to do with breathing out forcefully, which is also generally a bad habit, since it introduces tension, unless we're talking about kiai, but that's a specific practice that has to do with momentarily producing a full body pull in a specific manner, that is done in a specifically trained manner - which is also not really taught in modern Aikido. There are also some specific psychological effects on the attacker involved, but that's also a separate topic.
There tends to be a lot of confusion because folks talk about "kokyu-nage", usually translated as "breath throw", and think that it means throwing while exhaling.
Classically, breath training is an important component of many martial arts, including Daito-ryu, which was Morihei Ueshiba's art.
There are also times where it crosses over into health and meditation practices, as well as some more esoteric practices, but that's another topic.
In terms of martial training, "kokyu-nage" would better be translated as "throwing with the strength/power that comes from breath training". "Kokyu-ryoku" would be better translated as the "strength/power that comes from breath training".
In other words, breathing exercises, in the context of Morihei Ueshiba, Aikido, and Daito-ryu, are internal power training practices meant to condition and connect the tissues of the body by increasing pull on the fascial/tendon/muscle chains (basically, without getting into the more esoteric practices, which are also important, but leads to a much longer discussion).
They are what Aikido is named after, "Aiki in-yo ho" - "the Yin Yang method of Aiki".
Here's some references for breath training in Aikido and Daito-ryu:
https://www.aikidosangenkai.org/blog/solo-training-kokyu-ryoku-ki-daito-ryu-aikibudo/
https://www.aikidosangenkai.org/blog/aiki-iki-kokyu-heng-ha-aun-part-1/
https://www.aikidosangenkai.org/blog/aiki-iki-kokyu-heng-ha-aun-part-2/
https://www.aikidosangenkai.org/blog/sagawa-yukiyoshi-masaru-takahashi-breath-training-daito-ryu/
