What is the difference between competition and conquest? And why is it important for us who practice Aikido?
Let’s start with an example to better understand the difference between these two words:
“Senseiiiiiiiii… Can we get the big mat to play falling? Please, please, pleaseee!”
“Senseiiiiiiiiiiii… When will I take my next teeeeeessssst?”
The first question is asked to obtain something. The second is asked to know something. Notice how, if you imagine the sound of a child’s voice saying these lines, you’ll hear the difference between a nagging voice and a curious one.
Here, in our world, we all practice a Japanese discipline whose language has roots tracing back to ancient Rome. Competition and conquest are words that derive from then.
Yes, we practice a Martial Art that is often, and sometimes hastily, defined as non-competitive. The debate itself isn’t our main focus. We understand the different perspectives: some argue that avoiding competitions preserves Aikido’s original message; others claim the opposite.
Our point is simple: the ultimate goal of any martial art goes beyond competition-it is conquest.
More than that: competition and conquest are deeply connected, and one serves the other. Conquest cannot exist without competition.
Competition is about striving to achieve something together with others, moving toward a goal alongside them. An immature or superficial understanding of sports often frames competition as opposition-trying to win against others.
In a tournament, sure, your opponents aren’t there to let you win-but without them, there wouldn’t be any competition at all!
This shared pursuit-conscious or unconscious in every Martial Art-allows us to seek, together with our companions, something greater. Something to “conquer,” to make our own, in the truest sense.
Given the choice between victory and conquest, we believe most of us would choose conquest. And it’s telling that even in our own language, seeking carries a deeper, more meaningful value than merely obtaining.
We need to rethink the vocabulary we use to describe and experience Martial Arts. Aikido, in particular, deserves this care.
Between competition and conquest, Aikido offers a path worth nurturing-one built on precise language, high ideals, and a solid foundational practice. Yet even the best technique alone cannot satisfy the human longing for conquest that beats within every heart.
Disclaimer: Picture by Pixabay