sensei8

...Continuing a regular workout routine that incorporates a sledgehammer and a tractor tire?? Certainly, I'll ask my doctor for his advise/opinion before I continue. Until then, I'm asking the members of KF for their opinions, and I thank you!!

IMO and experience, the state that mushin defines while fighting, is unlike the state mushin defines in meditation. When fighting, "mushin" defines the subconscious state that allows "fighting reflex" to take control. When meditating, "mushin" defines the mental state that achieves subconscious "understanding". Neither condition is intellectually understood, they are simply different experiences. Solid post!!

Inmo, I believe that just about every form of the martial arts would greatly benefit from learning and incorporating grappling into their core art. Kyokushin is no difference; it would greatly benefit from learning and incorporating grappling...quite solid!!

It's all good. I was referring to the 8th Dan test in a general overview from all four corners of the globe. Not as an exactness, and not from only Japan/Okinawa. However, I think that what happens in Japan/Okinawa should be used as a template in 6th/7th/8th Dan testings. My Soke and Dai-Soke were born, raised, trained, etc in Okinawa before they moved to the USA. Therefore, our testings within Shindokan are using a tweeked-up Okinawa template across the board. Because of how my Soke and Dai-Soke were, I failed my Hachidan 3 times, and I failed my Kobudo Hachidan 2 times.

Danielle....that's a very solid post...and I mean SOLID!!

No...imho, that parameter COULD BE the failing parameter because if the majority of examiners don't think that the said testing candidate isn't up to number 4, then that's a fail. Number 1 and 3 are a walk in the park compared to number 4. Getting a nod for Number 2 is no walk in the park either because it's not a give-me. All I can tell you is that my Hachidan test was literally, for me, a week in hell...it was no walk in the park...not even close!!

Shizentai, Yeah...number 4 is WOW indeed. That's the failing parameter of that said testing requirements!! An indomitable spirit is needed to endure the rigors of the martial arts!!

Just wondering how many quit becuase they did not pass? I don't know and I don't care; if a student quits, then the student quits, it's up to them. If a student is looking for a free pass and looking for me to just give them a belt in order for me to retain them as a student, well, they're barking up the wrong tree, they've come to the wrong style of the martial arts. In Shindokan, you must earn every belt!!

That's a very fair question. At my dojo, I test my students 3 times a year. Every Shindokan practitioner can test once a year at our Hombu every June/July. At any testing conducted at our Hombu, I'm usually the Chairman on the testing panel for all testing ranks. Why would I/Hombu test anybody that might fail? It's like any other test for anything given in the USA. For example, imagine you're going to take a written test for your driver’s license or you’re going to take a written test for Algebra in high school. You study and you study and you study, then you feel that you’re ready for the test. You sign up, then you show up, and then you test. However, something happens, you blank out, you forget the answer to the simplest questions. You then turn in your test for a pass/fail grade, and then before you know it, you’ve failed the test. You thought that you’d pass! Your instructor(s) thought that you’d pass! Your fellow students thought that you’d pass! Your parent(s) thought that you’d pass! However, when all is said and done; you’ve failed. The resulted fail isn't what was hoped for, but it’s not the end of the world…it happens to the best of us all from time to time. It’s nothing to be ashamed about; continue practicing in preparation for the next testing cycle. Sure, during the 3 months leading up to the next testing cycle, I teach you, I train you, and I review you; I’m confident that you’ll pass with flying colors, but then the unforeseeable happens…you forget, you panic, you freeze, and you fail. Why is the martial arts so different? Why do some instructors/organizations only train for the testing cycle and not for effectiveness of technique(s)? Shindokan students must apply for each testing cycle, and in that, some are approved for the next testing cycle, however, some are disapproved for the next testing cycle for various reasons. It's those who've been approved for the next testing cycle that end up failing; not those that haven't been approved for the next testing cycle. Things just happen, and in that, students end up failing the test. I don't give away belts; they must be earned!! I've failed a countless amount of tests myself, no student is immune from failing any said test.

Thank you Ev!!

Congrats and well deserved!!

Imho, the martial arts isn't the proving ground for instructors to practice their political correctness. I'm not saying that I'd chew them up and then spit them out for having failed said rank test, but at the same time, I'm not going to sugar coat my final decision. Discussing said candidates failed test is a time to entertain the possibilities of reaching maximum opportunities for my student. To tear down and rebuild a student(s) is the WRONG tactic!! Having much more than only a modicum of respect for a student(s) is paramount, imho.

First of all, ranks are all relative and subject. So, let's please cast these types of beliefs, understandings, and/or arguments for another time and/or for another topic/thread. In your style, what would be the testing criteria for someone testing for an 8th Dan? What really separates a 7th Dan from an 8th Dan? Is it just tenure? Is it by a marked improvement in technical/knowledge abilities? Is it through a display of administrative/managerial abilities? I mean, just what is it within your style that allows one to be promoted to 8th Dan? Do your 8th Dan candidates actually go through a rigorous test? Hwa Rang Do claims the following..."Very few people in the world can fathom the dedication, skill, knowledge and time it requires to achieve an 8th Dan title in Hwa Rang Do. Hwa Rang Do is the only martial art which has curriculum all the way through 7th Dan, encompasses over 4,000+ techniques and requires a rigorous test for promotion in each degree, through 8th Dan." I'm sure that the International Kendo Federation might not appreciate the claims of Hwa Rang Do for the simple reason that the IKF ALSO tests its 8th Dan candidates. The 8th Dan Kendo exam is extremely difficult, with a reported pass rate of less than 1 percent. The style that I've trained in for over 4 decades, Shindokan, has a curriculum/syllabus through 8th Dan, and in that, our 8th Dan candidates are put through a very rigorous week long test, known by its nom de voyage, A Week In Hell. Only our 9th Dan and 10th Dan ranks are awarded through administrative selections by our Hombu. In that, only 3 have been promoted to 10th Dan, and they were of Sokeship level. Only 1 has been promoted to 9th Dan, and that was our first Kaicho, Yoshinobu Takahashi Sensei, who was later promoted to 10th Dan when he assumed the title of Dai-Soke. I've heard/read that Shotokan only tests up to 5th Dan. In that, I wonder what one has to do to receive promotions to 6th Dan and up in Shotokan? I wonder what other styles test/don't test their 8th Dan candidates?

Martial Arts instructors that are worth their salt will have to utter these words from time to time..."You've failed!" to one or more students during a testing cycle. I've done it more times than I can count, and yes, I'm sure that you've done it as well. Because our testing and awards ceremonies are conducted on separate days, I'm fortunate to invite the testing candidate(s), and their parents, if the testing candidates are minors, into my office a few hours before the awards ceremonies. In my office, I'll conduct a private "failed" interview in a serious and professional tone because this is a serious situation, and my students as well as their parents, deserve that. This interview is a 6 step interview: *I thank the candidates, and their parent(s), for their attending both the testing cycle as well as this interview. *Then, I'll give them their grades for Kihon, then Kata, then Kumite, and if necessary...then Tuite, then Kyusho Jitsu, then Tameshiwara, then Weapons, then Essays, and then their Final Grade. This is where I'll inform them that they've failed this testing cycle. *I'll then point out to them the areas of concern and how they can go about turning these low scores into passing scores. The only way that I know how to do this is by one thing...PRACTICE, PRACTICE, PRACTICE!! *I'll then point out to them their areas of success and how well they did in each of those area's. *I'll then open the floor for any and all questions/comments they and/or their parent(s) might have; professionalism must be adhered to by all during this stage without any ambiguity whatsoever. *I'll close out the interview by thanking them again and I'll also encourage them to continue with training and lessons. This can be an emotional interview across the board, however, it's a necessary interview. A student can be lost to irrational feelings, as well as a new sense of worthlessness envelopes them. Here's where a bad instructor will lose students quite quickly, and where a good instructor will retain a student(s) that have failed their testing cycle. Tests, unfortunately, only have two outcomes: Pass or fail. This applies to tests and not to their mortal coil. Students are to important across the board, and in that, the student is always before the martial arts; this is how it should be for every student, every day, and every time. How do inform your student(s) who've failed their rank tests?

If I'm studying, then I'm learning, and if I've studied, then I'm done!?! Then by it's own logic, aren't I'm now becoming stagnate? Let the discussions begin!!

What I've learned from my Sensei was nearly everything about Shindokan from A to Z and back. I say nearly because I know for a fact that there was a lot of Shindokan to still learn from him even though I'm a Hachidan. By his movements alone, We/I knew that all of his highest ranked students were still no match for him across the board. We were toyed with by him at best, and we could tell that if he wanted to, he'd dispatch of us without any care at all. A student can feel that from ones Sensei, and I certainly felt it from him. So, as far as my journey in the MA is concerned, my Sensei layed out a solid foundation for which I could effectively build upon from anything and everything that was available to me in the MA world. I could sense what was effective for me and what wasn't, this was essential to my MA growth; I'm experienced, and in that, I'm far from a wide-eyed wet-behind-the-ear MAist. I was maturing in my MA journey, and this is because of what my Sensei had birthed in me. My Sensei, our Dai-Soke, was very fond of always reminding us of this... "What of Shindokan don't you understand? It's mine, and not yours. Be the proponent that I'm not." I was vexed about this statement for some time until I finally realized what he was saying to us...to me. That was...Shindokan, of what I do know is mine and not my students BECAUSE each of us Shindokanists must walk upright during our OWN journey with our heads held up proudly, and not ashamed. I'm complete in my totality as a MAist, yet, I'm still learning everyday, and in that, even though I'm one of my Sensei's student's, I'm my own MAist across the board. I'm the extension of what Shindokan is and what Shindokan isn't. Shindokan was his gift for me; now it was up to me to expound beyond Shindokan, to be always searching for that perfection that I'll never find because I'm a fallible human. Not because my Sensei failed by some shadow of the imagination. It's up to me to be that exclamation point at the end of his sentence...hopefully I've done it and that I'll continue to do so in his absence. I follow him, alas, I've followed him, but, not so blindly did I follow him so that I couldn't find my MA path, and my MA path was of my own making!!

Happy Birthday George....and many more!!

Welcome to KF!!!!!!!!

Welcome to KF!!!!!!!!!

Welcome to KF!!!!!!!!

Police gone bad; what to do? If at all possible....RUN and HIDE!! An ambush is hard to concretely defend against especially when the ambushers are the police...more weapons and more tactics are going to be on the side of the police. This is a real rough thing to answer, imho.

Simulating Guns don't have real bullets. In your self-defense, be right or be very wrong!!

If at all possible; walk away. But if walking away isn't possible; bring to bear all that you have to survive. After that...that's up to the police, district attorney, your lawyer, and a judge.

I would be amiss if I didn't at least say...Before engaging on any diet, consult with your doctor first. Then and only then, proceed forward, but always yielding your doctors instructions and advise. I've been on a many diets over the many years. Some good and some not so good. Some on the approval of my doctor and some not. Whenever I followed my doctors advise, all was great. I don't have to tell you what can happen when you try diets of your own device...disaster!!

Kata is the soul of karate, and in that, Bunkai is the heart of kata. Without kata, karate is dead, lifeless. Kata, after all of these many years, is still hated by those who think kata is useless. Useless?!? No, even an empty cup is quite useful, just sitting there on some counter-top; it's just patiently waiting for its time to be called into service. Kata, Kihon, Kumite...The three K's, separately important, yet, once called together, they can be a force to be reckoned with. IMHO!!