Aikido is a Japanese martial art designed, primarily, to neutralize threats rather than destroy opponents.
Rather than meeting force with force, Aikido practitioners aim to blend with an attacker's energy and redirect. They use techniques designed to disrupt an attacker's stability by moving his center of gravity away from his base of support. This "taking the balance" makes it possible to throw or restrain an attacker without using much strength.
“In Aikido you learn how to use the attacker’s energy to off-balance them and then, because the movement is spiraling, you return that energy to them in a throw or take down,” notes Susan Perry in her autobiographical introduction to the practice.
Using examples from her own life, Perry explains how Aikido helped her resolve difficulties at work, as a student, and as a teacher.
“I am convinced that Aikido teaches what we need to make our life safe full and peaceful. It teaches a way of meeting others, of being with others, and assessing situations with other humans that head off problems and instill peaceful coexistence.”