Book excerpt: Third book in the lineage which began with the introductory Best Aikido, followed by the more advanced Aikido Master Course, this lavishly illustrated key text pulls together the essential elements of both its predecessors, and develops and expands them. Progressive Aikido is thus a distillation of the soul of that which gives Aikido form and life, and is written by the grandson of the founder of the martial art, Morihei Ueshiba.