sensei8

Personally I've not ever experienced this for myself. However, I've a close friend of mine who holds black belts, yondan and above, in several Japanese/Okinawan styles. This allowed him to help a new dojo. This new dojo was owned by the 3rd Dan's father. Classes had grown expeditiously in no time at all. The father approached my friend and asked my friend for his help. They discussed it over several weeks and came to an understanding. My friend stayed for several years to assist this new dojo. I thought it was big of him and neither of the three never questioned that my friend was interested in taking over the 3rd Dans dojo. My friend knew the three K's of that styles, and this was a big stumbling block that never appeared. Any and all promotions were conducted by the 3rd Dan and my friend. Their professional relationship was both affable as well as amicable. Their professional relationship served them both well in their needs. In time, the 3rd Dan was promoted to 4th Dan, and my friend was promoted to Nanadan, and opened his new and bigger dojo. Both still exchanged with each other through private workouts and during shared seminars. I applaud them both for setting aside any misconceived notions and concerns because their first duties came to the students first and foremost, not their egos.

Pain is just a part of any type of training and in that, the martial arts isn't without its influence. With each kick, punch, block, strike, drill, sparring, kata (for those who do kata that is), self-defense techniques, grappling, and exercise pain rears up its ugly head to remind everyone that with every martial arts technique, there are prices to pay, both small as well as large. But, the pain is worth the price. Pain is only one thing, and that is this. Pain is temporary. In that, one pain will be replaced with another ill pang. Surely one that will help everyone to forget the first or second or third or the billionth with a brand new and fun anguish. It may seem that our Instructor is out to kill us, although at times, it might feel exactly just like that. "I have never seen a wild thing sorry for itself. A small bird will drop frozen dead from a bough without ever having felt sorry for itself." - D.H. Lawrence This quote speaks to the martial artist in totality. Martial artists can moan and groan over each and every little, yes little, discomfort or distress or soreness or tenderness or agony or anguish or misery or suffering or torment or inflammation or swelling or damage or harm or hurt or injury or backache or bellyache or charley horse. Or, the martial artist can endure it and work through it. Victory is just one second from another pain evolution. Total victory over pain comes through defeating whatever it tries to be. Don't allow the pain to win! Overcome the pain! How one works through their pain speaks a lot about that martial artist. Besides, pain is there to remind each of us of one thing only. That we're not dead...yet!

LOL!!!!!!!!

Here's my dumb question... Does Ian Abernathy come to the USA? It appears that Canada is as close as he gets. From what I've researched and the like about Mr. Abernathy is that I'm quite sure that his insights would benefit Shindokan. Well, I guess I'll email him to see if he'd come to the USA.

I was wondering about the WiiFit and if it would really work, and I'm still a little doubtful. Even though one would think with all of the movement I do while playing PS3/Xbox 360 that I'd be fitter then a fiddle...one would think.

FYI, This should say... The black belt is STILL learning just like the white belt... But, no, my fingers were faster than my brain when I typed this. I fixed this and some spelling errors as well. Sorry!

It's seems innocent enough from the mere surface of it all, but, I'd say for now, until the true meanings for asking is revealed, your information is on a need to know basis, and until they come forward truthfully, they don't need to know anything...for now....or ever.

9 years!!! That's solid! Patrick, How was KF at its beginnings? It's ups and its downs at the beginning...you know, growing pains! How has KF grown over those 9 years? I can only imagine that most forums with a martial arts theme don't last long for one reason or another. Again, congrats and I wish you even more success over the years ahead!

That's a very solid point! Just as in karate. A blue belt should be able to assist a white belt until the white belt goes....aha! I'm sure that most, if not all, martial art styles have and allow upper belts to help/assist the lower belts. Teaching, yes, that should be left to the instructor, but, the blue belt isn't teaching in the context of the instructor. The blue belt is just helping a fellow practitioner, and everybody needs help once in a while.

Yes, but it's a good thing, otherwise we would have no need for these forums to argue about (discuss) it all! ROFL...touche! I agree with you!

I hear you. It's just that if you're a seventh dan senior grand master, and you spar with one of your 1st dans and they basically prevail or evenly match you, then it's going to cause a deflation of the meaning of "senior grand master," and that's not going to look good to your class. It's going to pull the curtain back on the Oz, if you will. Whereas, if black belts were just black belts with more or less seniority, then no implied promise is made by terms like, "Senior Chief Grand Master Sensei." Or, if it's fully understood that the advanced dan ranks come with time and service to the organization alone, then no problem. I intend to stop at 1st dan, because in my opinion, to go above that in the organization I belong to is simply a mugs game. Nopper! Why? Imho, nobody wins everytime at everything. If the shodan beats the "senior grand master" at will, well, then I'd see your point, and I'd agree with it as well. Yet, if the shodan got the best of the "senior grand master" from time to time, well, one can't win all of the time everytime. You see, once in a great while a white belt beats the black belt. Why? The white belts awkwardness and unpolished everything and fettered and unknowing broken rhythm gets the black belt by surprize from time to time. When this happens, and it happens a lot, this doesn't disgrace and/or discredit that black belt, it just happens from time to time. The mature black belt just smiles and acknowledges that white belt for a job well done, AND, a great technique. See!? The black belt is STILL learning just like that white belt; the learning never ever stops no matter the rank and no matter the knowledge/experience. EDITS: Spelling errors!

I completely disagree with this statement. The "advanced" techniques are just basics with better timing and more strategy employed. The rank of the person employing them is rather insignificant compared to the time on the mat training them. I never liked the comparison of advanced degrees of black belt to the degrees offered in college. There's simply no comparing a black belt of any level to a physician or astrophysicist or lawyer. In the end...we're just not that important. It's all good! Our Soke had compiled an enormous amount in the curriculum/syllabus from 10th Kyu to Hachidan. When he came to writing and the like about the Dan curriculum/syllabus, he did label them this way... Jukyu-Ikkyu = Beginner level [in this level; beginner, intermediate, and advanced Kihon, Kata, and Kumite exists] Shodan-Godan = Intermedate level Rokudan-Hachidan = Advanced level [No curriculum/syllabus for Kudan-Judan] This is why I stated them as I did in my post. Truly, it's not for me and/or for anyone else to infer that our way is incorrect when we list beginner, intermediate, and advanced levels, even in the Dan, in our curriculum/syllabus because Shindokan was his creation to list/label them/it as he saw fit. While my college degree analogy might've been off base, I still believe that that poster understood its meaning. In that, the most important belt is not the black belt. No! The most important belt, for those of us in the kyu/dan system is the White belt. Without the White belt, there are no other belts. Besides, all of us like this and all of us like that and all of us don't like this and all of us don't like that; whatever the this and the that are.

Everyone will have a different answer here. Some will feel that they have a "duty" to teach for their instructor, or a "responibility" brought on by rank to do the same, without pay. Others will feel that their time is worth money, and will want to be paid for doing it. I don't think there is anything wrong with either option. Nothing really. What you want to consider, though, are what your credentials will be. Nothing really stopping you at all. But, when you look at those who have done it, look at what they had to offer, brought to the table, and the credentials that they had when they did it. Another solid post and again, I wholeheartedly concur!

Please forgive me, but, Bruce Lee WASN'T "an actor primarily"! Bruce was an exceptional martial artist and this isn't me just saying it, no, it's a widely known throughout the world that this is FACT! I just simply refuse to accept any notions that Bruce was an actor first, and a martial artist second. Bruce used the movies and such to showcase his martial arts knowledge/experience. Bruce was a martial artist first and foremost! EDITS: Good grief, I can't spell at all....sorry!

Well, let me ask you this. If a person learns TKD. And then they decide to go and teach it on there own, is there some limitation on whether or not you can teach ITF forms or WTF forms? I know that TKD is a fairly generic term, like karate. Can a person teach WTF forms and not be part of the WTF? Teach the forms you know, even if they are not from your art. As long as you can provide proper context for what you're teaching. My main point is that if you're BB is in TKD (whatever kind), that's the art you should give rank in, even if you're no longer under ITF or WTF or Whatever. If I hang my 3rd degree certificate on the wall and it says Shotokan, and suddenly I tell my students they are learning JKD...that just seems fishy. Even if I add things or take something away, I would still call it shotokan or at least karate. Solid post and I wholeheartedly concur!

Just because one man can do it, it doesn't mean that one should do it, or wants to do it. The operative word is CAN. Surely one can, but only after one is extremely well versed in it. As far as teaching the martial arts are concerned, my firm answer is...NO! Not all black belts can teach; nor should they. Nothing can stop you....nothing! It's called Free Enterprise! You can open your own school whenever you want to, no matter your rank and/or your level of experience and the like. But... Will someone want to learn from someone with very little experience? I'm not saying that learning from someone with just a 1st Dan would be a waste of time and/or money. No. Learning from a 1st Dan would be ok, not great, but surely not a bad thing. Looking at the other side of that same coin, why not? LACK OF KNOWLEDGE/EXPERIENCE, that's why! The norm of being able to teach the martial arts effectively, compidently, and educationally on ones own is Sandan/3rd Dan. Why? At this point in the Sandan's training they have, for example, learned 514 Self Defense Techniques and Variations & 19 Katas. The time required to attain Sandan is approximately 5 years of training after receiving Shodan. Sandan's have been studying and/or teaching for approximately 10 or 11 years to achieve the Sandan Rank. This time frame is approximate and denotes continuous training. That type of knowledge and experience can't be denied and/or mocked at. Even you yourself said that you were only interested in earning/obtaining a Il dan/Cho dan. Imho, this isn't enough palatable knowledge/experience to teach the martial arts, let alone, effective enough. In your OP of "1st Dan is Enough!", found in the "General Martial Arts" forum, you stated this... That being said, you won't be a 2nd Dan when you start your own style of the martial arts, unless you first, earn that 2nd Dan. I'm not mocking you at all! I'm just trying to keep it real. You might get your 2nd Dan from some other organization, and if you do, is that still going to be enough knowledge/experience to do your future students any good at all in your new style of the martial arts? Maybe, but, I seriously doubt that. Isn't it better to be well versed, as opposed to being just...versed? Sure, Lee, I'm assuming you're talking about Bruce Lee. If so, Bruce at his death had ONLY 19 total years of knowledge and experience. Bruce was the exception to every rule because he was an exceptional, no, an extraordinary martial artist. That's was an extremely rare occurance providing what he achieved in the martial arts, and quite possibly, one that won't be repeated in the near or far future...maybe! There's another saying....Don't rush perfection. Key: Don't RUSH! You might be the next Bruce Lee, and if you are, I'm surely not going to stand in your way or in anybody's way at all. That's not for me to say, that's for you to say. These are my opinions!

LOL! Drat...you found me out...LOL. BTW, you've told us your age already...LOL...heheehheehehehehehe

What song would best describe you as a martial artist? For me... "Simple Man" by Lynyrd Skynyrd

These two things aren't the same thing, not even close, they're as far away as the east is from the west. The Yudansha obi is one thing all by itself, and Dan rank(s) are another thing all by itself. A shoe lace isn't the shoe, and in that, they both are one, but, they're not the same thing! Each item has a purpose, one supports the other but they're independant of each other. I don't think any member here said that you and/or anyone should get as many dans as possible! I know that I didn't because it would be harmful to your martial arts maturity, imho. Again, the black belt and/or the Dan ranks are unimportant to a martial artist. Why? There just things. These things, the Yudansha obi and the Dan ranks, are tangible things, and a martial artists seeks out for the intangable things all of their lives.

Interesting! Try to imagine this for just a moment. What would it be like if one were to stop at the Associate degree level in college? What would it be like if one were to stop at the Bachelor level in college? What would it be like if one were to stop at the Master level in college? What would it be like if one were to stop at the PHd level in college? I wouldn't want someone performing any type of surgeries or the like with only an Associate degree level! Well, I wouldn't, and neither would anyone else for that matter of fact. I sure wouldn't want anyone to do anything with just an Associate degree if it, whatever it might be, required a higher college degree, and again, neither would anyone else for that matter. If one is only wanting to learn the basics; then there's nothing wrong with one just wanting to become a shodan. However, there's more to the martial arts than just learning the basics; there's still the intermediate and advanced levels.

Good question! Heel down is fundamentally taught in the three K's as well as in makiwara training. Heel down maximizes the ability of the foot to absorb and re-deliver reaction force coming back from contact with the target and through the body to the floor. Fundamentally speaking! Should the heel be in the up position so that it allows the technique to be executed at a slightly higher linear velocity? Should the heel be in the up position because that's possibly the current believe of sport karate? Should it matter that the basic theory doesn't apply when you're moving in a forward direction? Should the heel be in the up position because its a more natural position for the ankle, although that doesn't mean it's more effective? Should the heel be in the up position, much like a boxer, whereas it's considered more like a push instead of a punch? Should the heel be in the down position because it's possible to generate much more acceleration forces while maintaining heel contact to the floor? Should any of this really and truly matter? That's for one to decide for themselves through thier own trail and error. Again...the heel up or heel down question still exists. Therefore... I prefer that my foot/heel to remain ALIVE AT ALL TIMES! Heel up or heel down is determined from situation to situation. Atlas, one over another is a preference of the martial artist, and not of some pedagogical dogma.

This topic is of my thoughts and/or my feelings, and in that, they are my own. Others might or might not differ/agree from/with mine, but nonetheless, either way...it's just an honest opinion. Knowledge/experience are paramount over any rank, over any title, and/or any other preceived conception(s), otherwise missed or not, in the martial arts. Without knowledge/experience, the battle, no matter what type of a battle it might be, is already lost. The battle's only lost when one refuses to obtain that knowledge/experience. Once obtained, and only for that moment because knowledge/experience changes, that battle's no longer lost. Even then, knowledge/experience aren't always on the same plane as others in the martial arts. As Mr. Miyagi stated so well...(pointing to his head)..."Karate here", (pointing to his heart)..."Karate here"...(pointing to his waist)..."Karate not here". There are two types of knowledge/experience: 1) HAS 2) HASN'T To gain knowledge/experience is based on relevent and practical exposure by doing it, by training in it, by learning it, by living it, by learning from it, by accepting it, by discarding it, and/or by trail and error. A white belt [inexperienced] doesn't have the same knowledge/experience as a black belt [experienced]. Yet, that same white belt [inexperienced] might have a difference set of knowledge/experience than a black belt [experienced] doesn't have outside of the martial arts, and this is important to that white belt [inexperienced]. Example... A white belt [inexperienced] in karate might be a doctor. Being a doctor adds a dimension to that white belt [inexperienced] that that black belt [experienced], that's not a doctor, doesn't have. That black belt [experienced] is extremely versed in where, what, when, how, and why to strike and with what weapon to strike with through years of training under a qualified instructor, but, that same black belt [experienced] won't have that intimate knowledge of the human anatomy as that doctor would. Having said that, this topic isn't about that knowledge/experience that's gained outside of the martial arts, as important as it might or might not be, because, most of us here are martial artists of varying knowledge/experience. Shouldn't knowledge/experience be something that it's not? It's not something to sneeker at. It's not something to take lightly. It's not something to be made more serious than what it is. It's not something to laugh about or to laugh off. It is what it is, and that is, that having knowledge/experience in the martial arts is vitally important across the board. To me, knowledge/experience in the martial arts speaks in volumes that can't be ignored nor can it be denied, or, imho, neither should be. Either one has or one hasn't! This doesn't mean that either martial artist is more valuable than the other because each one of us are students of the martial arts, and in that, each one of us are always gaining more knowledge/experience day by day, and each one of us are deserving of more than just that.

Experience/knowledge is STILL a key factor, imho!

Solid post and I wholeheartedly concur!

Saying "always" puts every practitioner of the martial arts in the same category, imho, this isn't a fair statement because each practitioner is different for one reason or another. Will a punch with a step through seem to be more telegraphed than the punch off the front arm? Yes, but again, that'll differ from one practitioner to another. Experience/knowledge is still a key factor, imho. Kuma, I too like your drill and it's worth trying...thanks!