Students of the Founder, Seiji Gomita Shihan, Part 1

In this series called “Students of the Founder”, we interviewed the direct students of the Founder of Aikido, Morihei Ueshiba.
 
This time we invited Seiji Gomita, a Shihan residing in Tanabe City, Akita Prefecture, which is where the Founder of Aikido had been born.
 
Gomita Shihan joined the Aikido Dojo after receiving a significant impression at the age of 13, upon seeing the Founder for the first time.
 
Every time Morihei Ueshiba (the Founder) returned to Tanabe City, he received training from the Founder.
 
Gomita Shihan became head of Tanabe Aikido Dojo at the age of 25, and contributed to the expansion of Aikido for many years.
 
Today, he still trains the young generation at the Dojo in Kozanji, where the Founder’s grave is located.
 
This time in our interview, we asked about what’s behind Gomita Shihan beginning Aikido, episodes surrounding the Founder, as well as the basic principles of Gomita Shihan, who has long worked hard at instructing Aikido in Tanabe, the hometown of the Founder.