Aikukan: a Life in Shintaido, is Master Minagawa’s autobiography, published by British Shintaido in April 2026.

Aikukan, the “space of love”, is the ideal Masashi Minagawa has sought, and the reality he has found, through his lifelong devotion to Shintaido. In this very personal book, he shares this space of love with us.

He takes us from his childhood in provincial Japan to 1960s Tokyo, where he first met the charismatic Hiroyuki Aoki, founder of Shintaido, and joined his Rakutenkai “group of optimists”, undergoing extraordinarily intense physical and spiritual training to discover a fuller, freer way of being and fulfil a new human potential

In 1990, after moving to the very different culture and environment of Britain, he had to go back to his deepest roots to find a way of communicating what he had learned to the people he met, few of whom were interested in Japanese martial arts. At the same time, he took on a major role in developing the worldwide Shintaido movement.

Filled with humour, anecdotes, insights both personal and spiritual, and extraordinary explanations of his creative processes, Aikukan is a book that every Shintaido practitioner will want to explore, as this best-loved of teachers shares his journey through Shintaido, and through life, with his customary modesty, wisdom and joy.

Buying the book

You can buy an English-language copy from Amazon in your home territory; search for “Masashi Minagawa Aikukan”.

British readers can purchase it for £20 here, or by clicking on the cover image.

Celebration /launch event

The book will be launched in a Zoom event on Sunday April 19th, 8.00-9.00 pm British Summer Time. All Shintaido practitioners, past and present, and friends of Masashi are very welcome to attend.

Topic: Aikukan book launch
Time: Apr 19, 2026 08:00 PM London
Join Zoom Meeting
https://us06web.zoom.us/j/85787463980?pwd=VcBSOVkx9jAYa5eHOauLJpQJf3XNoM.1

Meeting ID: 857 8746 3980
Passcode: 083099

Please arrive by 07.50pm