sensei8

Welcome to KF; glad that you're here!! Solid OP!! Solid post, DWx!! Her advice is great!! Questioning Senior's is the fastest way to find yourself being called on the carpet in the CI's office. I was taught that this is a big no-no; not to be tolerated!! I've seen my Sensei sit down in the last row, and announce to them that if they think that they can do better, than by all means, show me a better way. Yet, in the same breath, I've seen Soke say..."Are you more knowledgeable than your Sensei? More than me? You came to learn Shindokan from me, and your Sensei. We didn't come to you!!" That, imho, was akin to..."Who is without sin, let him cast the first stone!" Ask question, disagree, and whatever else it might be, but do it with respect.

The Kata, within itself, IS the model for how many different ways there are to teach young and old students. My younger students love the "Yame" drill. It both challenges them, and it educates them. For each and every step, the student's going on my count, they mustn't make a mistake, no matter the size of it. If a mistake is made, the ENTIRE class starts over again. I've had very few students complete a Kata from start to finish. It's about being accountable!! Senior Dan ranked students rarely complete a "Yame" drill!! Kids love the tar out of it when a Senior Dan struggles to complete said Kata. I can be quite the taskmaster!! Heheheheheheheheheeheheheheeheheheheeheheheeheheheheehehehee...

Looks great, and fun; it challenges them. If students can't be challenged, then they'll seek out those who can effectively challenge them...kids included, and the more so!!

It's a very dangerous game to play when inadequate stretching is performed before ANY activity; it births unnecessary injuries, some minor and some serious; all injuries can be lessened and avoided by proper stretching. Imho.

The more that's added to the Olympics, the more it uninteresting it becomes to watch!! I'm slowly becoming disenchanted with the entire event. Imho.

That's very cool across the board. San Antonio, TX, huh, hhhmmmm?!

Solid post!!

Amen! Or, I mean, Osu! Whatever the origin, whatever the true meaning, it's hard to deny how uplifted a class becomes when you've got 10, 20, 30, 50+ Karateka shouting "OSU!" in unison. I find that it promotes positive spirit in the training grounds. Absolutely. One of those things that it doesn't matter how much you explain it, you can only appreciate it by being part of it. That spirit in training is very contagious. It's like jazz - if you need someone to explain it to you, you'll never get it. Not that I'm a jazz fan. Like in anything, it has to be experienced, to be appreciated!!

Solid post!!

Interesting! This brings to my mind the promotion of sensei Nakayama from 9th dan to 10th dan after his passing. I by all means believe he was deserving of the rank, but I've often wondered how he himself would have felt about such a promotion. I suppose that he wouldn't have liked it; appreciative of the honor, but not overly excited about it.

Key To The City or an Honorary Black Belt?? I'll take the Key To The City...every time!!

Our Soke was dead against Honorary BB's of any type. His opinion on this type of award was..."NO!!"

Solid post!!

Solid post!!

Interesting. I always thought the WTF and the Kukkiwon were one and the same, but upon Googling around for a min I see that you are correct. While I now get the point, I still feel like this further deteriorates the meaning of earning a high level black belt. I know some universities have granted honorary doctorates in the past (i even knew one who received an honorary doctorate) but, this person went to the university to give a talk in a specific subject and blew them away as a self taught expert on the subject. So much so that their own professors started collaborating with him to bolster their own courses. A year of this activity granted him an honorary doctorate from that college. I feel like this is the same thing without the activity of having to prove yourself. Honorary doctorates from universities is exactly the paralell here. Nearly every college & university gives that honor to every commencement speaker around the US. It doesn't mean they can call themselves "Doctor" in any real way. Putin is a genuine Judo practioner, but no one would ask his advice on Taekwondo given his honorary rank. If they did, they'd deserve the bad advice they'd receive. Solid post!!

Welcome to KF; glad that you're here!!

Btw, Welcome to KF, Sithlord82; glad that you're here!!

Solid post!! Arbitrary is a good definition!! What the SKKA decides, and warrants, is perfectly acceptable across the board because they make all of the rules pertaining to everything that they're concerned with. I agree with your second paragraph completely. Rank isn't AUTHORITY; the SKKA's Administrative, Executive, Legal, and Board of Regents Departments ARE the sole authority. Yes, to hold those elected positions, rank minimums are taken into consideration when one is considered for appointment. The lowest rank required to be considered for an appointment within the SKKA is Godan. The three departments above, are the hierarchy of the SKKA. We've not many appointments within the SKKA that don't have a rank minimum, i.e., the Legal Department members are forbidden to become a student of the SKKA. Why? Soke determined that for the capacity that they must serve from time to time, it is best that they remain totally neutral and unbiased. Best way to do that is to not have a personal connection to the SKKA like a student would. So, rank isn't authority, yet rank speaks towards experience. For example, to open a dojo, most CI's are at the rank of Sandan. Why? Experience. They've been on the floor teaching in one capacity or another ever since they were Sankyu's. That teaching experience is quite valuable. How so? Teaching unprepared across the board will close a dojo faster than one can blink. Experience. Godan candidates for SKKA appointments have quite a lot of experience as a Sensei and/or some other faculty within the SKKA. These rank requirements are mainly for those candidates that are wanting to become a Department Head/Leader, in that, they'll manage a team within that department. If you're just a department member, rank isn't an issue; heart is!! Any one and everyone who's selected within the Curriculum, as well as the Testing Departments MUST possess a rank no lesser than Godan, for obvious reasons. Department Heads of those departments must also possess a Shogo Title as well to rank, which must be either Rokudan or Nanadan. Only the three aforementioned Departments have sole authority within the SKKA!! EXPERIENCE!! Within the hierarchy, Legal Team excluded, there's approximately over 500 years of experience; that's a lot of experience. In closing, there's also the categories of rank hierarchy; Administrative hierarchy AND rank hierarchy, both different, and both can be confusing to some, but not all. For example, rank hierarchy might mean, white>yellow>green>brown>Shodan>Nidan>Sandan>etc. A white belt can't learn the curriculum of a yellow belt until that white belt passes a testing cycle to yellow belt, and so on and so forth.

Brain is right! However, Soke, being the founder, is awarded to only ONE person, alas, the founder. In Shindokan, Saitou Sensei was the founder, hence he was Soke. Then, Takahashi Sensei was awarded the Dai-Soke, hence the Second Headmaster, when Soke retired; Soke selected Takahashi Sensei to become the Dai-Soke...it wasn't up to a vote!! Then, Iwao Takahashi, Takahashi Sensei's son, was selected to become the San Dai-Soke by the Dai-Soke, his father. Notice, there was first the Soke, then the Dai-Soke, then the San Dai-Soke, this was to differ one Soke TYPE from another. Having said that, we've no Soke types in Shindokan anymore; that titles been, well, retired permanently!! A 5th Dan can be a Soke type because the Soke type is the primary exclusive representative of the governing body. In Shindokan, the Soke type WAS THE OWNER of the Hombu/SKKA; this became a problem in recent years passed, and it's not a problem anymore. Who can represent the governing body and the student body best?? That's an important question; a question that shouldn't be taken lightly. So, yes, a 18 year old CAN be a Soke type as determined by the governing body hierarchy; it's highly unlikely, but possible. Can that Soke type be a Judan? Per that governing body, and its By-Laws, it would surely be true...per the By-Laws. Why our Soke wrote the By-Laws to read just that way, baffles me, but it was his choice to write it the way he wrote it, and I doubt that he even considered the possibility that "a 18 year old son of his" could become the next Soke type. Very insightful, what was San Dai soke rank before he go it. He was Hachidan, yet I was Senior to him via tenure, at the time of his appointment. Interesting, do you find the skipping of ranks worse then a person earning a high rank at a young age, due to them starting martial arts at a young age. What is a high rank?? What is a young age?? Both answer will vary from practitioner to practitioner and governing body to governing body. But to answer your question directly, I find it worse to earn a high rank at a young age, as I understand a high rank and a young age to be. Skipping rank, is more acceptable, yet, it should be rare, if at all. Governing bodies administrative rank skipping, Hachidan to Judan, is protected by the By-Laws of THAT governing body. And if the MA world views the ranks of Kudan and Judan as pure political, and that's ok with the general census around the MA world, then skipping from Hachidan to Kudan and Judan is ok too. Imho.

The variations add to the flavor of said Kata's; different ways to apply, so to speak, a view into the founders Oyo. Unique in this light, imho, is a good thing for all who are interested.

On a quick different note, The Soke type was the legal owner of the Hombu/SKKA. As the sole owner of the Hombu/SKKA, he can do whatever they want to with their property, and that became quite apparent with the actions of San Dai-Soke, after the death of Dai-Soke. To keep that from ever happening again, we created a brand new charter and the like, therefore, eliminating the Soke type for that very reason. No longer would the Hombu/SKKA be the property of one individual to do with as the Soke type pleased to do. Who owns the Hombu/SKKA? The Hombu/SKKA does, of course.

Brain is right! However, Soke, being the founder, is awarded to only ONE person, alas, the founder. In Shindokan, Saitou Sensei was the founder, hence he was Soke. Then, Takahashi Sensei was awarded the Dai-Soke, hence the Second Headmaster, when Soke retired; Soke selected Takahashi Sensei to become the Dai-Soke...it wasn't up to a vote!! Then, Iwao Takahashi, Takahashi Sensei's son, was selected to become the San Dai-Soke by the Dai-Soke, his father. Notice, there was first the Soke, then the Dai-Soke, then the San Dai-Soke, this was to differ one Soke TYPE from another. Having said that, we've no Soke types in Shindokan anymore; that titles been, well, retired permanently!! A 5th Dan can be a Soke type because the Soke type is the primary exclusive representative of the governing body. In Shindokan, the Soke type WAS THE OWNER of the Hombu/SKKA; this became a problem in recent years passed, and it's not a problem anymore. Who can represent the governing body and the student body best?? That's an important question; a question that shouldn't be taken lightly. So, yes, a 18 year old CAN be a Soke type as determined by the governing body hierarchy; it's highly unlikely, but possible. Can that Soke type be a Judan? Per that governing body, and its By-Laws, it would surely be true...per the By-Laws. Why our Soke wrote the By-Laws to read just that way, baffles me, but it was his choice to write it the way he wrote it, and I doubt that he even considered the possibility that "a 18 year old son of his" could become the next Soke type. Very insightful, what was San Dai soke rank before he go it. He was Hachidan, yet I was Senior to him via tenure, at the time of his appointment.

In the Shorin Ryu style that I'm in we have a Pinan Sandan kata which is very close the Shotokan's Heian Sandan. Sounds to me that either of those founders, one or the other...or both, desired to have their 'Kata' unique to their new founded style. Separate to show themselves different, yet at the same time, still effective in the new changes.

I'm always amazed when I see someone who's been a BB for a year with an ancient belt. I always wonder (sometimes out loud) why they would repeatedly throw themselves on rocks to get their belt like that. They're incomplete in their totality as a MAist!! It's as though being a BB isn't enough of an accomplishment. They try to possess a position that they've not yet achieved through honest means. I'm only speculating. Imho!

What I do know about the ATA 9th Dan form is that it's LONG...quite long, and it's a requirement when one becomes the GM of the ATA!! I've seen the 9th Dan form being performed at ATA World Championships through YouTube.