Ki to the City

About Ki to the City

Exploring Aikido, philosophy and practice kitothecity.substack.com (https://kitothecity.substack.com?utm_medium=podcast)

Publisher

kitothecity

Category

health & fitness · religion & spirituality

Language

en

Explicit

No

First episode

12 Apr 2025

Latest episode

15 Oct 2026

Latest episodes

94 episodes in the feed.

1. 

   15 Oct 2026

   W/David Brown

   When Richard Moon Sensei reaches out and personally recommends a guest like, “You have to talk to this guy, he was one of my very first training partners back in the day”—you don’t hesitate. So I didn’t. His latest brilliant recommendation is David Brown, whose lineage traces directly back to the illustrious dawn of the 70s California Aikido happening. He began his Aikido practice in 1971 at Aikido of Mountain View under Robert Nadeau Sensei. David describes eloquently the Bay Area at a time when Vietnam protests were peaking, Beatniks and Hippies were morphing and flowering further as counterculture movements, and Aikido dojos were few and far between. As he recalls, all his early teachers were Americans who’d traveled to Japan, trained with O-Sensei, Tohei sensei, and other senior Hombu instructors, bringing back a revolutionary, energy-first approach to movement. Before Aikido, David was a Stanford student competing in track and field as a pole vaulter. That unique background gave him a leg-up when it came to ukemi. While most beginners freeze at the prospect of being thrown through the air, David was already accustomed to flinging his body up 14 feet high and landing (relatively, I assume) safely on a mat. Being upside down, inside out, or twisted in mid-air was second nature to him. This aerial aptitude allowed David to become one of Robert Nadeau Sensei’s go-to demonstration uke. He describes being thrown by Nadeau Sensei as a visceral, intoxicating sensation—like a surfer being caught and carried effortlessly by an ocean wave. It was this undeniable, tangible experience of an invisible field of energy that hooked David on Aikido for life. Over the years, he’s had the fortune to take ukemi for a “who’s-who” of legends—including Tohei sensei, Hikitsuchi sensei, Saito sensei, Saotome sensei, and first Doshu, Kisshomaru Ueshiba sensei. During our talk, David dropped this episode’s titular phrase; a gem that succinctly encapsulates martial practice extending beyond the mundane: “Waza to survive, Ki to thrive.” Mechanics, techniques, and forms are essential building blocks—survival tools that can keep us safe when physical pressure arrives/arises. But if training stops at technical execution, we might miss the entire transformative promise of the art. Ki—bringing deep, core-centered awareness and aligning with the life force—is what allows a human being to flourish, connect, and thrive. (I think…) What makes David such a compelling guest is his complete lack of pretension. He doesn’t sanitize history or treat luminary figures as untouchable gods; he regards them as extraordinary human beings, albeit not without flaws and foibles. Here’s a small sample of various vignettes he shares from his eclectic journey: Meeting Coco the Gorilla! While studying at Stanford, David literally met the famous sign-language-trained gorilla in a campus parking lot. This is probably the most jealous I’ve ever been of a “celebrity encounter”. (Spoiler, he doesn’t think he could’ve applied nikkyo…) Rooming with Peter Ralston: During a week-long Dominican College Aikido retreat, Nadeau Sensei assigned David to room with Peter Ralston (the first non-Asian to win the World Full-Contact Martial Arts Tournament). David recalls deep late-night talks where Ralston paraphrased his core life philosophy: “The purpose of life is to be. To increase our ability to be present for the event in the cosmos that is our existence.” That’s what I’m talkin’ about! As president of the Stanford Aikido Club, David hosted Tohei Sensei, taking ukemi for his entire class and sitting next to him at the faculty club. He vividly recalls a poignant evening at the South San Francisco dojo where Tohei—sitting with a tumbler of bourbon after his historic split with Hombu Dojo—pointed to O-Sensei’s portrait and lamented the heartbreak of organizational division. Perhaps most inspiring of all was David’s personal choice of life path… Coming from a prominent background, everyone assumed he was destined for law school, politics, or high public office. But when family upheaval hit and he experienced the profound depth of Aikido, he made a conscious decision to walk away from corporate ambition. He took a job as a medical machinist at Stanford Medical Center—a career that allowed him to work with his hands and earn just enough to fund his true life’s passion: training. I’m grateful to have received a few glimpses of wisdom from this ongoing life-training, and hope to convey and carry it forward as best as I can. Enjoy the episode! Aaaaand… I’m deeply grateful to my (surprisingly) global audience for keeping these dialogues alive. Extra special thanks to Aiki Extensions for their continual support of this podcast. Aiki Extensions is a 501(c)(3) non-profit dedicated to taking Aikido off the mat through grassroots Seed Grants for community peacemaking, outreach, and trauma recovery. Learn more or apply for a grant at aikiextensions.org (https://www.aikiextensions.org/). If you draw inspiration from these weekly conversations, please consider signing up to be a paid subscriber on our Substack. And don’t forget to check out the brand new Bookstore (https://books.by/kitothecity)!!! Get full access to Ki to the City at kitothecity.substack.com/subscribe (https://kitothecity.substack.com/subscribe?utm_medium=podcast&utm_campaign=CTA_4)

2. 

   8 Oct 2026

   W/Nick Walker sensei

   Nick Walker Sensei, chief instructor of Aiki Arts Center (http://aikiarts.com.) in Berkeley, California, did not step into the dojo as a privileged 12 year old looking for an extra-curricular hobby. By his own description, he was small, malnourished, and immersed in intensely violent poverty. Tired of being targeted by bullies, he made the conscious decision to “fight back”. But, circumstances being what they were, getting beat up on a regular basis, he realized he desperately needed some actual self defense skills to survive. Fortunately, he found an Aikido dojo where he was able to develop the physical abilities needed to navigate his neighborhood, while also tapping into something infinitely more magical and profoundly transformative. For the first time in his life, he encountered adults who possessed a clarity and dignity of character he’d yet to witness. As he candidly recalls, they were the very first positive role models in his life—the first grown-ups he could actually stand the thought of becoming like. A passageway opened: he realized adulthood didn’t mean becoming someone who “totally sucks”. There was another path, and Aikido helped him draw the map. I’ve mentioned in many of these conversations how I wish I found Aikido while living through my own adolescent chaos. I grew up poor as well, and while I was fortunate enough to be sheltered/spoiled a bit by Italian grandparents, I still know what it feels like to wake up on the wrong side of the tracks—shouldering a smoldering lingering chip, imagining the odds of success (in any and every endeavor) too vast to overcome. But enough about me, back to Nick Sensei… His development as an Aikidoka was uniquely accelerated because his learning process became tangibly intertwined with teaching from almost the very beginning. Just four years in, at 16, his original teachers relocated, leaving the senior students to take over the dojo. He unexpectedly found himself stepping into an instructional role Being handed the responsibility of teaching so young exponentially cultivated his own growth; it forced him to look at techniques analytically, asking what core principles were truly essential to transmit and how to break them down effectively for new-comers. Rather than simply absorbing precious wisdom for himself, he had to deconstruct it, making instruction an early engine of his technical and personal evolution. Teaching so early in his journey also preserved a rare, immediate connection to the beginner’s experience. When one begins teaching after decades on the mat, there’s a risk that explanations can become overly abstract or disconnected from what a novice actually resonates with. Because he was still undergoing the mind-blowing breakthroughs of early aiki-exposure while simultaneously teaching, his memory of being brand-new remained fresh and vibrant. This allowed him to meet new students with authentic empathy and a genuine “beginner’s mind,” communicating the foundational magic of Aikido in an accessible, grounded, and deeply human way. For the first 15 years of his practice, Nick Sensei didn’t have the luxury of treating Aikido as a merely abstract philosophy or theoretical exercise. Coming up in a rough environment—then working as a bouncer, he repeatedly found himself in situations where he had to rely on Aikido in physical confrontations. Having to utilize the art under “real-world” pressure gave him unvarnished, firsthand proof of its martial effectiveness—confirming that Aikido’s principles and mechanics can hold up when real violence is present. Crucially, his physical application of the art was never about seeking out conflict or indulging in budo-bro bravado; it was for protection and community solidarity. During those formative years, Nick sensei put his body on the line to help defend urban queer communities against street violence and harassment. Facing these crises head-on allowed him to stress-test his technique while using Aikido for its highest purpose: serving as a protector of vulnerable people and spaces when safety was truly on the line. For Nick Sensei, one of the most profound and beautiful dimensions of Aikido lies in the continuous practice of choosing the more peaceful, harmonious option at every turn. He describes this as a perpetual, conscious commitment to be governed by love rather than anger—an internal discipline he readily acknowledges was/is far more difficult than mastering any other aspect of the art. In fact, it’s a level of emotional and spiritual maturity he feels he didn’t fully get a handle on until reaching his early 50s, (so there’s still hope for me) highlighting that non-violence is an active, lifelong choice. By prioritizing what will ultimately foster peace and serve love, he aligns his practice with O-Sensei’s ultimate vision: transcending the obsession with competition and “who can beat who in a fight,” and honoring Aikido as a transformative spiritual discipline of joy, connection, and harmony. Having survived a tumultuous childhood, and intermittent periods of homelessness in his youth, he’s parlayed perseverance forged through practice, putting himself through college in his 30s, earning multiple degrees and becoming a published author and Professor of Somatic Psychology at the California Institute of Integral Studies. This talk definitely inspired me, hope it does the same for you… In the present-day, operating Aiki Arts Center as an independent dojo gives Nick sensei the creative freedom to explore the art without any organizational dogma. Despite the physical aches and expected hardships accumulated over a hard-fought life, his baseline setting is one of deep happiness, groundedness, and profound gratitude just to be alive in his body. His story is a masterclass in what happens when you take the lessons Aikido offers and apply them to the long game of human beingness. But wait, there’s more…. He also brings excellent creative storytelling to life as writer of the super-cool webcomic Weird Luck (http://weirdluck.net). (http://weirdluck.net) The comic blends Jungian themes and explorations of human consciousness into an imaginative, adventurous story world. Aaaaand… I’m deeply grateful to my (surprisingly) global audience for keeping these dialogues alive. Extra special thanks to Aiki Extensions for their continual support of this podcast. Aiki Extensions is a 501(c)(3) non-profit dedicated to taking Aikido off the mat through grassroots Seed Grants for community peacemaking, outreach, and trauma recovery. Learn more or apply for a grant at aikiextensions.org (https://www.aikiextensions.org/). If you draw inspiration from these weekly conversations, please consider signing up to be a paid subscriber on our Substack. And don’t forget to check out the brand new Bookstore (https://books.by/kitothecity)!!! Get full access to Ki to the City at kitothecity.substack.com/subscribe (https://kitothecity.substack.com/subscribe?utm_medium=podcast&utm_campaign=CTA_4)

3. 

   29 Sept 2026

   w/Josh Gold

   Describing Josh Gold Sensei’s impact on the modern Budo landscape is no small task, and can’t be done justly in a social media episode “teaser” such as this. He occupies a rare nexus of deep traditional lineage, perpetual technical fidelity, and faithful stewardship of cutting-edge martial arts media that continues to inform and connect practitioners across the globe. As Chief Instructor, and co-founder of Ikazuchi Dojo (https://www.ikazuchi.com/) in Irvine, California, his martial foundation has been honed through a 35-year deshi relationship with Haruo Matsuoka Sensei. Before starting this podcast project, I wasn’t very familiar with many other Sensei outside my own real life every-day aiki-bubble. This commitment to Ki to the City has opened my eyes to a far vaster (more vast?) universe. Whenever I have a new guest on the show, I research their lineage to prepare. I’ve only glimpsed Matsuoka Sensei’s legacy and it’s incredibly impressive. I’m nowhere near qualified to write even a snippet of a biography for him, but if you listen to the episode, you’ll hear enough to want to look deeper on your own for sure. At Ikazuchi Dojo, Josh Sensei is dedicated to promoting personal transformation through Aikido. Built on a commitment to preserve the heritage, traditions, and spirit of the art, he uses every resource available to innovate, refine, and elevate what it means to be a martial arts dojo in the 21st century. Parallel to his dojo leadership, Josh Sensei serves as the Executive Editor of Aikido Journal. (aikidojournal.com (https://aikidojournal.com/).) This legendary publication, originally founded as Aiki News in 1974 by visionary martial arts historian Stanley Pranin sensei, houses a monumental half-century plus archive of interviews, historical documents, and technical research. Shortly before his passing in 2017, Stan sensei handpicked Josh as his successor to safeguard and modernize this global treasure. Keeping Aikido Journal thriving in the digital age (or whatever age we’re in now) is quite the heavy responsibility, but as he noted in our talk, it’s an essential service to the global Budo community—offering a portal to the historical origins and living evolution of the art. During our conversation, Josh sensei articulated a perspective on Budo that hit deeply. He framed it as a “venue for character development”. Emphasizing that it’s optimized for personal growth, emotional maturity, and societal benefit. Genuine character cannot be absorbed wholly intellectually. One doesn’t build resilience or empathy by passively reading a thread or watching a clip. Character-building requires a physical, somatic venue—a space where we can encounter real friction, physical pressure, and emotional discomfort. Within limits, of course… To turn his philosophical vision into a reality, Josh sensei partnered with Mark Tercek (former Partner at Goldman Sachs and CEO of The Nature Conservancy) in late 2019 to co-found Budo Accelerator, a 501(c)(3) educational non-profit. Supported by an extraordinary board including martial artist, clinical psychologist, and previous guest (!) Ellis Amdur, Budo Accelerator bridges physical dojo training with accredited leadership and life-skills education. While traditional martial arts training excels at forging physical discipline, emotional equanimity under pressure, and ethical integrity, Budo Accelerator creates the bridge required to translate those somatic reflexes into real-world academic and professional advancement—focusing on high school and collegiate students, particularly those from under-resourced backgrounds. By the time this episode airs, Budo Accelerator will have reached an exhilarating milestone: After five years of testing and refining for over 1,000 students across Southern California—partnering with major institutions like UC Irvine—they are now kicking off their Budo Scholar program’s beta test of a nationwide program. With full national access coming in early 2027. Budo Scholar operates through an innovative hybrid model: students continue (or begin) physical training at their local dojos while engaging in weekly online leadership modules centered on core concepts like empathy, courage, and non-violent de-escalation. Paired with real-world case studies from elite martial artists and practical exercises on and off the mat, students connect cross-country through digital cohort discussions. Also, crucially, for young people who desperately want to train but cannot afford dojo tuition, Budo Accelerator provides full scholarships, paying local dojos directly so those students can step onto the mat. By embedding accredited leadership pathways directly into local martial arts schools, Budo Scholar simultaneously equips the next generation with vital life skills while breathing youth, funding, and long-term vitality back into dojos For full details click here: budoaccelerator.org/blog/what-we-have-been-building (http://budoaccelerator.org/blog/what-we-have-been-building) In East Harlem, right outside my dojo window, I see firsthand the immense need for programs like this. Many young people in the neighborhood would thrive with the discipline, focus, and 4-dimensional exercise of Aikido if given the chance. I’m eager to explore how I can personally get involved with Budo Scholar and bring these scholarship pathways into my own community. If you’re a dojo owner or instructor and you’d like to host scholars, click this link to find out how: budoaccelerator.org/partners (http://budoaccelerator.org/partners) This talk with Josh Sensei definitely gave me an enormous surge of hope. Many of us worry about aging demographics, declining youth enrollment, and the insularity of “traditional” martial arts. Budo Scholar completely flips that script. It gives teenagers and young adults promising reasons to keep training, while infusing fresh energy, vibrant youth, and financial support into dojos nationwide. The future of Aikido is not about clinging to dogma or retreating into isolation; it’s about building authentic human connections and extending the vital medicine to the next generation(s). The present is in good hands. Aaaaand… I’m deeply grateful to my (surprisingly) global audience for keeping these dialogues alive. Extra special thanks to Aiki Extensions for their continual support of this podcast. Aiki Extensions is a 501(c)(3) non-profit dedicated to taking Aikido off the mat through grassroots Seed Grants for community peacemaking, outreach, and trauma recovery. Learn more or apply for a grant at aikiextensions.org (https://www.aikiextensions.org/). If you draw inspiration from these weekly conversations, please consider signing up to be a paid subscriber on our Substack. And don’t forget to check out the brand new Bookstore (https://books.by/kitothecity)!!! Get full access to Ki to the City at kitothecity.substack.com/subscribe (https://kitothecity.substack.com/subscribe?utm_medium=podcast&utm_campaign=CTA_4)

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