O'Sensei
Aikido was developed by Moreihei Uyeshiba (O’Sensei) at the end of the 19th and beginning of the 20th century. He synthesized it from various martial arts he learned as a young man. Aikido is non-violent and defensive. It blends the highest level of human ethics with modern martial arts.
Akira Tohei
In 1972 one O’Sensei’s senior students, Akira Tohei (8th Dan),was dispatched to the United States to teach Aikido. Tohei Sensei was based in Chicago, IL where he organized the Midwest Aikido Federation. The lead instructor at Asheville Aikikai, Daniel Palmer (5th Dan), was a student of Tohei Sensei.
Dan Palmer
In 1983 Daniel Palmer founded Asheville Aikikai as a non-profit corporation. Asheville Aikikai, founded in 1983, practices Aikido in the tradition of Tohei Sensei.