There are several principles that must be understood and fully realised in order to become proficient in the combat sport and martial art of Judo.
To begin, let's look at the meaning of Judo.
"Ju" means gentle or to give way, while "Do" means Way therefore Judo directly translated means "The Gentle Way".
The same underlying principle can effectively be applied to other areas of life and activities.
This concept of the "Gentle Way" can be applied to social interaction, business, learning, and even to morality.
Jigoro Kano gave this principle of flowing "gently" as opposed to using force against force, the name "Judo".
Therefore Judo, in its most complete sense, is the study and way of training the spirit, mind and body to not just apply to a combat sport or martial art but to deal with everyday life in a way that doesn't force ones will or way but that "gently" makes it happen.
We can say that Judo is an art because it is a method of arriving at self-realization and true self-expression.
We can further say that Judo is a science because it implies mastery of various laws of nature: gravity, friction, momentum, velocity, weight transmission, and unison of forces.
"In its most important phase, it constitutes a kind of higher logic developed through practice and the ascencion of the true personality: a realization of the spiritual self in the philosophic rather than the religious sense of the word.
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Jiichi Watanabe and Lindy Avakian If we're looking at the principle of gentleness as it relates to force then we need to look at its interaction with an opponent who is using force against us.
In other words, instead of using pure brute force to manipulate our opponent we use technique to break our opponent's posture and balance making it a lot easier to use our technical skills to throw, sweep, pin or submit them.
This is where momentum and leverage comes into play.
The highest principles of judo offer that if we maintain proper posture, move naturally and focus on the present moment then we cannot be defeated.
Defeat will come with loss of balance and loss of concentration.
It is vital to learn how to put these principles to use while practicing Randori.
Most importantly in dealing with the opponent's force against us.
There are several ways this can be accomplished.
Judo matches begin standing so we'll begin here.
While standing the best way to deal with your opponent's force is not to go against it but to use his force to take him off balance as I've previously discussed.
If he pushes against you then the logical step is to step backward at a greater distance than he is stepping forward, which will take him off balance because the backward momentum will be greater than the force he is applying which will give you the perfect opportunity to throw him in that same direction.
If he pulls you instead then the same applies, by following his force and pushing him to break his balance.
This same principle applies equally to circling.
If your opponent tries to grab and circle around you, giving in to his direction and taking a larger step than him will again break his balance and leave him vulnerable to a throw or reap.
The great thing about using the principle of "gentleness" to take your opponent off balance is that it works very effectively without having to use greater force than your opponent or being a much better athlete.
Obviously these factors don't hurt your ability to control your opponent but by practicing and developing the proper skills you will easily be able to throw a larger more athletic individual.
The principle of "gentleness" advocates that we should go with our opponent's force not against it, and use their own force to take them off balance while maintaining our posture and balance.
The point isn't to just give in to our opponent's force but to go with it, therefore using it against them by using it to take them off balance and use this momentum to our advantage.
The true beauty of the principle of "gentleness" lies in its application, not just to Judo but to everyday life as well.