sensei8

Godan is universally the Dan rank that signifies "Master" of it's given style of Karate. Yudansha [Dan] isn't the end of learning, no, it's only the real beginning. Dan ranks Shodan to Godan are measured through testing cycles. Where does one go after reaching the Master level, aka, Godan? The curriculum is stuffed full of many techniques and the like to learn, leading a karateka to Godan. What about Rokudan or Nanadan or Hachidan? Do these Dan ranks have a plethora within those curriculum's? Shindokan speaking, yes! There are curriculum's for those Dan ranks, and these ranks are tested for. Having said that, looking beyond the curriculum of Rokudan to Hachidan is dutifully observed by how their betterment is maturing across the board. Potential candidate(s), of those types of testing cycles, are both meticulously, as well as scrupulously, chosen for consideration for any upcoming testing cycle for those said Dan ranks by various departments within our Hombu. Tenure means very little to our Hombu, and I mean very little. Every practitioner experiences sustained plateau moments within their training from time to time. Some plateau's are quickly dealt with successfully, while other plateau's take time to nurture through the painstaking requirements before reaching their "aha" moment. Within any difficulty that one's experiencing; time heals all wounds. This is true of overcoming any sustained plateau in one's MA training. One of the things that I need for me to break out of any sustained plateau is to first respect it, it's happening, even if it's just for a short duration. Therefore, I can't pretend that it's not happening. I'm struggling, and I recognize it, and the sooner I do, the sooner I can escape from it with marked improvements. Talking with the other Hachidan's within the Shindokan circle, we agree that the other thing that we needed was to take any already mastered technique and find a way to execute it in more exacting ways, therefore, a more effective way for one to execute that/any said technique; spending time with technique(s) goes beyond executing motions and movements. Intimately tearing it down and rebuilding it, therefore, making that said technique(s) better, yes, more effectively for that practitioner. What "improvements" I make might only fit for me, and not for another Shindokan karateka, especially for another Hachidan. The MA isn't really suppose to be out of a cookie cutter or hammered into some granite stone. No! We're individuals who learnt and then we evolved beyond what we were taught by our Dai-Soke. His way was his, and not mine; vice versa! Effectiveness discovered is effectiveness achieved, but it must be nurtured and respected for it to evolve within my betterment. For those times whenever I find myself stuck on another sustained plateau. I must be more effective across the board, and that effectiveness must never become a prisoner of what a technique is suppose to look like, yet, more of what a technique shouldn't look like. A child recognizes its mother, and vice versa; this is what a Hachidan does, that's what I do as a Hachidan, no, as a proponent and practitioner of the MA, when I find myself on a sustained plateau. Sustained plateau's should be a welcomed part of a MAists journey, not as an enemy because we're human, and in that, we learn from experiencing. Viewing a sustained plateau as an enemy will only prolong it, and I need to break away from the chains that bind me. As of late I find myself saying this a lot to those within the Shindokan circle as well as here at KF...my training now is akin to having a quiet conversation with myself. Hopefully this might help you, no matter rank, when you find yourself struggling with your own sustained plateau; knowing that I struggle as well from time to time, and I am right now, and I'm a Hachidan, but I'm human first!! I'll defeat this, but only after I allow time to heal. **NOTE: I've placed this topic in the "Karate" forum and not any other forum, which I'm sure it could fit into several KF forums, but, because I'm a karateka, I'm speaking from a karate point of view because that's my background and that's my experience, one that I can most relate and compare to!!

I think that the former days of Ninjitsu are dying away, but the usefulness and effectiveness of its MA favor is still alive and well today...imho.

The bold type above...It happens everyday somewhere in some school of the MA. Your last paragraph; very solid post!!

If language means everything, if syntax means anything, and if words mean everything and anything to us MAists... The procurement of knowledge means everything; then serious and intense training means everything. Let our discussion begin off this prefaced statement.

Many things in a MA school are negotiable... * Buy a uniform; I'll give you a free _____!! * Bring in a family member or a friend(s) for lessons: I'll take a handsome percentage off the regular monthly tuition!! *Be a loyal student; I'll reward your loyalty with/by ________!! These are some examples that one might find within the walls of their school of the MA throughout the world. Rewards and incentives abound for one reason(s) or another; that's business 101. HOWEVER...I'll negotiate almost everything and anything that I've the power to do so. EXCEPT...my integrity; rank must be earned...NO EXCEPTIONS!! My students know this about me before I even let them join and I remind them, if needed, that rank is NOT FOR SALE!! There's not enough money to even cause me to even entertain the notion, albeit, I'll ban them from my dojo for even suggesting it directly and/or indirectly.

Judging can be such a blast, but being the Arbitrator for the first time, that can be quite an eye opener from the administrative side of a MA tourney; open or closed tourney...day and night!! Being an Arbitrator for the first time made me think that I needed to clone myself because I had to be at 3-5 places at the same time, I was exhausted at the end of the tourney.

Cowboys lost this game on Thanksgiving in the first quarter. 2 interceptions from Romo didn't help, and that the Cowboy defense didn't show up until the 3rd quarter. For the Cowboys, imho, way to late for momentum in the 4th quarter, and with that, too little way to late for the Cowboys against this 2012 Redskins. GO COWBOYS!!

Super congrats to them!!

That's quite unique imho. Shindokan has JBB, but no ranking within the JBB. Can only rank as an adult.

Don't forget that the "blocking" hand is ALSO suppose to prevent the attacker from re-engaging, thus, the attackers hand(s) are out of position, which stalls the attackers transitions and the like. That's why I advocate and teach a mix of positive pressure with the blocking hand and hikate application to set up the strike and then feed into tuite if you want. Combine it with foot work and body positioning and you are golden. Absolutely and solid!!

Don't forget that the "blocking" hand is ALSO suppose to prevent the attacker from re-engaging, thus, the attackers hand(s) are out of position, which stalls the attackers transitions and the like.

Pictures are worth a thousand words. But what if there were no pictures of any media to chronicle ones MA journey? Would it be a tragic thing? I use to have many picture albums as well as boxes of all sizes chronicling my MA journey. I use to. But one nasty divorce later they were all gone via one big bonfire. The Shindokan Hombu use to have a whole entire room dedicated to everything Shindokan, especially the journeys of our Soke and Dai-Soke, but that was then...this is now. Our San Dai-Soke took each photo, video file, and the like to Nanjo Okinawa when he decided to betray the entire student body. It was his right because he was San Dai-Soke and that meant that he owned everything within the walls of the old Hombu, not just in a figurative sense, but in the literal sense. Memories are all that remain, however, their nothing more than fading as the sands of our hourglass is slowly emptied in front of our faces. We can have all of the memories back from our San Dai-Soke is we allow him to return to the new Hombu...if we allow him to be reinstated as the San Dai-Soke...if we return to him the full authority that a Soke-type does possess. But I can't...we can't...and we don't...I don't!! Besides, our Legal team drafted quite a binding set of By-Laws that erases the existence of any Soke type, and/or the recreating possibilities of a Soke type forever. What would you do??

Welcome to KF!!!!!!!!

Welcome to KF!!!!!!!!

Welcome to KF!!!!!!!!

To everyone here at KF... Have a safe and happy Thanksgiving!! Am I gonna eat my share heheheheheheeheheheheeeeee

I don't understand how the Chief's went from in the hunt for the Super Bowl to the basement. Brian...I know you must be frustrated...I would be. GO COWBOYS!!

Happy Birthday Patrick!!

Ohh, I like it...ohh, I like it...ohh, I like it...I LIKE IT A LOT!! Solid post!!

Great advice, and if I was to add anything it would be this...be consistent across the board. Good luck and have a lot of fun. Please let us know how it went.

Nice...and while his spinning hook kick takes awhile to get there...it's effective. Very nice techniques! Thanks Brian for sharing that.

And you do it very well!! Btw, if we don't train together next year, I'm going to beat Greg to death...LOL!!

As of late, my training is like having a quite conversation.

Deep stances...up-righted stances?!?!? Methodologies/ideologies will vary depending on whom one asks. Shindokan favors stances that are more up-righted/narrow: it's our way. The idea behind the narrow stance is mobility and speed, whereas the wider/deeper, where stability and straight ahead, deep lunging attacking capability is favored. What works for one isn't going to work for another; both style and practitioner. I, personally like both, I've trained them both, they have their uses across the board, and imho, neither are just for show.

Great topic seikokaistudent!! Great stories thus far; I've enjoyed them all!!