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Aikido is the Japanese Martial Art which utilizes the force of the attacker to redirect and control him/her.  Aikido means The Way of Harmony with the Universal Spirit. It is an art dating back to the 9th century but developed in its modern form by Morehei Ueshiba (1883-1969) during the past 50 years various branches of Aikido styles have emerged; Yoshinkan, Aikikai, Ki Aikido, Doshin; to name a few. While each one has minor variations as to their specific movements or focus, all of them have the same general goal; harmony.                                                                        

Aikido as an art was originated by Morihei Ueshiba (1883-1969). Called O-Sensei (Great Teacher) by Aikido practitioners, Sensei Ueshiba had an impactful martial art training under Sokaku Takeda from 1915-1919 (in the art of Daito-Ryu Aiki Jujutsu) and philosophical training under Onisaburo Deguchi (who preached innate divine nature in all human beings). Ueshiba is the man who transformed the deadly techniques of Aiki-jujutsu into the a peaceful way of harmony, from a means to destroy one's enemy into a means to resolve conflict.  He felt that the "way of the warrior is to manifest divine love, a spirit that embraces and nurture all things". Ueshiba preached Aikido as "the divine techniques that do not kill".

Aikido began spreading to the rest of the world in the 1950's. O-Sensei spent a lot of time in prayer, meditation and study, but also traveled preaching the unification of the spiritual and the physical, conflict   resolution as opposed to confrontation, and living everyday life as an act of worship and celebration. O-Sensei passed away on April 26, 1969, at the age of 86. Amongst his last words were "Aikido is for the entire world".

Of the many students Ueshiba has taught, Gozo Shioda (1915 - 1994) was one of the most exceptional.  In 1954, Shioda was awarded first prize in an All-Japan Martial Arts Exhibition, and his subsequent reputation helped him establish the Yoshinkan Aikido school in Tokyo.  Yoshinkan style is considered a harder style of Aikido, generally concerned with practical efficiency and more physical techniques

Yoshinkan style Aikido first arrived in North America in 1964 with Takeshi Kimeda, presently head of Aikido Yoshinkai Canada.  Following his arrival was Takashi Kushida who settled in Michigan in 1973, and who has lead the growth of Aikido Yoshinkai in the United States.  At that time, Yukio Utada (7th Dan & Chief Instructor) of Doshinkan Aikido and president of Aikido Association of North America, was residing in Philadelphia.  Utada Sensei moved to Michigan to serve as uchi-deshi or live-in disciple.  Utada Sensei came back to Philadelphia in 1974 to begin his own school which has grown to a large mutlti-regional, organization.  After the death of Gozo Shioda in 1994, Utada Sensei created his own style of Aikido, called Doshinkan, which is the mind of ever seeking and perfecting the art of Aikido.

Mark Dorfman, the instructor in Broomall, trained extensively with Utada Sensei from 1980 through 1998.  He earned his Shodan (1st degree in 1990) and Nidan (2nd degree in 1991) black belt rankings in Yoshinkan Aikido.  In April , 2000,   Mark tested for and earned the rank of Sandan (3rd degree) and his Yondan (4th degree) in Sept. 2003 under Fumio Toyoda Shihan. Through this associated, Mark is ranked under the Honbu Dojo of the Aikikai Headquearters in Japan.   Mark also has studied and earned black belts in other traditional martial arts (Shotokan, Tang Soo Do, and Tae Kwon Do).  Rather than focusing only in one art, Mark chose to gather a wide range of information and knowledge from different styles, and his approach to Aikido is to draw from this experience in order to teach an art that is not only flowing and smooth in movement but also highly effective in practical situations, even though his foundation is Yoshinkan.  

Aikido of Broomall is a member dojo of the Aikido World Alliance under Sensei Andrew Sato

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