mudansha

I am quite aware of that fact. My sensei is the most senior student alive who trained under Haliburton sensei and was awarded Yondan by him in the late 80's. Sensei Halliburton was the one to rate him at his current rank about 20 years ago. Sensei Haliburton is the exception to the rule. Do research on Dennis Loebs. He was Kanazawa's go to guy until Sensei Kwok came along. I have the utmost respect for Kancho, however his tendancy to choose people of Japanese descent over others is proven.

really? cool. I've never heard of that before. Neither have I... The dojo I train at has been there for 40 years and shodan belts get shotokan written in Japanese on one side, and the name on the other in Japanese and roman text... all in gold lettering.

Then look up the term "Sempai". There is only 1 sensei.

You are forcing your understanding and ranking on other styles. Some styles give a shodan after 1.5-2 years. In my school it takes 6-7 years. My sensei has been a black belt for 40 years and is only 4th dan. My sensei has been practicing karate for close to 50 years, he has a black belt in Goju and shotokan given to him by karate masters over 30 years ago. He can be called a master, yet he refuses to take the name. Humility is a part of the art; when one takes the name of "master" he better be able to prove it. Being darned good, is not a master. A master knows every aspect of every kata, including breathing, bunkai, every block and kick, and he has done it so many times, he can do it in his sleep without hesitation or reservation. I know people who call themselves "4th dan" after 10 years. My instructor has been at 4th dan for twice that long, and is not yet a 5th dan. This is because of the assosiation. SKI very rarely gives out anything over a 5th dan.

Warning.... this is a trick question... It is kind of funny how people force their own school's grading system on other styles. Grading systems between schools vary widely. Case in point: My sensei has been rated yondan (4th degree) for 20 years. In the SKI system, 5th dan is about the highest a non-japanese person can get to. He got his Shodan in Goju in 1971, and he got his Shodan in Shotokan in 1979. The man has been a black belt for 40 years and he is only 4th Dan. In the entire history of our school (30 years), he has only given out 4 nidans and 2 sandans. At our school, shodans are allowed to teach a class and are asked to when the sempai (sandan) that normally teaches is absent. This is because it takes 6-7 years of training to be a Shodan and god knows how long to become a nidan.

That is funny. I am a practitioner of Shotokan; one of the oldest, most traditional forms of karate. We are taught that the traditional way of tying the belt crosses in the back, and the ends of the belt exit the knot parallel to the belt that's tied around the waist. I apologize in advance for being so blunt, but you appear to not know what you are talking about.

What kyu level are you at in Shotokan? I have never heard of this. There are two side kicks in Shotokan. yoko-geri keage (side snap kick) This is done with the blade of the foot with quick retraction. yoko-geri kekomi (side thrust kick) This is done with the heal, with slower retraction A side snap done with the heal is incorrect, and a side thrust kick done with the blade is incorrect. Neither is correct in all side kicks.

Why do you think the Japanese laugh at our black belts? At my dojo, it takes 6-7 years to get a shodan. I go to tournaments where I am being judged by a TKD black belt that has been practicing for 1.5 years. I have been in for 4 but I am not allowed to judge because I am only 4th Kyu. The other trend is for someone to take a traditional art like Shotokan or Goju for 7-8 years and then call himself a master and start his own "style" that "combines his extensive experience". It's a bunch of crap.

It goes farther back than that my friend... Japanese Karate can be traced back to Okinawa through Gichin Funakoshi. Okinawan Karate is descendant from Chinese Kempo. Chinese Kempo was derived from Monks who had to defend themselves. How far back do you want to go?

Terminology is the same; stances are the same. The blocks and punches are called the same thing, they are simply done in a little different manner. I have worked with many karatekas who cross train. For those individuals, senseis rarely make a big deal if the blocks are a little more circular than normal. I have noticed, especially from shodan up, karatekas are trusted to hone their techniques and change things a bit to suit their own personal style. As far as requirements go, you also need to learn Jiyu Ippon Kumite, Kihon Kata 1-5, and kihon ippon kumite. This is for SKI; JKA requirements are different. Depending on if your school is affiliated with SKI, JKA, USKA, or one of the many other karate associations, the requirements may differ from one school to another. My dojo is affiliated with SKI. Our requirements are here: http://viewmorepics.myspace.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=viewImage&friendID=440127210&albumID=738476&imageID=457153

I too am completely inflexible. I have assumed the entire time that my kicking problems were solely based on the flexibility issue. That was until.... I was in a kumite match with a kid (I am 32, he is 17) and I just wanted to scare him a bit, so I threw my leg up to do a roundhouse kick and I placed my instep right across his cheek and barely tapped it. He is my height so you can guess that I was very very surprised. As it turned out, when doing bag work, I am trying to nail the bag. As such, my muscles were tight all of the time, and you cannot be tight, and flexible. Because my mind was out of the equation (I was just taking it easy on the kid) and I was loose and relaxed, it just happened. I have yet to duplicate the feat, but I now know my body is capable; its my mind and my lack of skill that is preventing me from doing it every time.

I think that studying multiple styles is overall, a good idea for any karateka. Each style has its strengths and things it emphasizes, but any traditional okinawan martial art has all the same components. Case in point: I am a shotokan practitioner. In the beginning, when learning the basic kata, we are taught deep stances, and rigidness. Techniques are direct, and powerful. We were taught that shotokan is a direct art, where arts like goju are more fluid and circular. I have been studying shotokan for almost 4 years now and I am approaching 3rd kyu, I am starting to learn advanced katas. In learning Nijushiho, unsu, and hangestsu, we are taught circular movements, to be soft while moving, yet hard when we contact, to breath, all traditionally Goju philosophies. We are taught Sanchin dachi, nekwashidachi, and develop our chi. We are a Shotokan dojo affiliated with SKI. As such, we treat Kancho Kanazawa as the end all and be all of Shotokan Karate. In watching his DVD's, he suggests shotokan black belts begin to embrace other styles and specifically mentions Goju, and Tai Chi. If it were a bad idea to mix styles, he would know, and not only does he not say that, he preaches the alternative. Sensei Robert Halliburton was one of the most respected Shotokan sensei's in the US and he made his students learn some goju katas in addition to the standard shotokan katas. I think for the serious karateka, studying shotokan and goju would be very rewarding. Just don't get so wrapped up in it that you get burnt out. It is hard for me to remember the katas of one discipline. let alone multiple.

As I said before, it does not really bother me that this other guy is the same rank. I am 4th kyu and will be testing for brown in a month or so. I just wish the testing were done based on skill attained rather than time in grade. I guess it wouldn't bother me as much if I saw people failing tests, but no one ever has, despite how good or bad they performed.

I believe that initiating such an inquiry would be disrespectful. I have spoken with the Sempai about it (san dan), but never sensei.

The only reason it concerns me, is it leads to the McDojo philosophy; it becomes about money instead of anything else. There is no other part of the dojo that feels that way... it just rubs me a bit of how its done. I guess when I have 40+ years in like my sensei, I can start a dojo and run it how I see fit.

As I said before, students are tested based on time only. I can go 12 hours a week, or 1 hour a week, and I am tested on the same date. He keeps a calendar of when people join. Testing is done every 4 months 10th-5th kyu, and every 6 months 4th-1st kyu. Case in point: I am a 4th Kyu. I started at the same time as another guy my age. I go 4 times a week, 2 hours a night, every night. Because of school and kids, he comes 1-2 nights a week MAX for only 1 hour. This means I am putting in 8 hours a week where he is putting in 2-3. This has been going on for 2 years straight and he is the same rank as I am; we test on the same day every time. I am not really a belt seeker so that part does not bother me. It is more of the fact that I put in a lot more effort and I feel sometimes as if it goes unnoticed. In the end, its all about the knowledge gained and the belts don't matter; that doesn't stop me from thinking about it though.

Does the fact that they tested at the same time mean that they would necessarily get promoted at the same time? Just because it's testing day and you've put the time in doesn't mean you should get promoted, in my opinion. Hopefully it is not just a matter of "knowing" the required kata and other required techniques, but showing improvement, committment, (as shown by training regularly, and working to improve weaknesses), spirit, and the like. IMHO. In over 3 years of training, I have never heard of anyone failing a test.

I am 5'11", I weigh 280 lbs, and I wear 40-42 size pants. I wear a size 7 Gi. Mine is a KI International competition cut Gi. Honestly, your biggest enemy is shrinkage. The bigger gis have more material and shrink more over longer periods of time. The BEST thing to do when you buy a gi is buy the absolute biggest size possible, wash it in super hot water, dry it with a clothes dryer on light heat. Re-wash it with super hot water and dry it again. Then put the gi on, mark one sleeve and one pant leg for length. I mark the arm slightly above the wrist. I then mark the pants right where the heel meets the floor. Get the gi hemmed to that length on both sides and then FOREVER after that, wash in cold water, and line dry it; keep it away from a clothes dryer. This procedure "pre-shrinks" the gi before hemming so you don't end up with high-waters. The gi will continue to shrink ever so slightly over time, but that is the best thing to do. Big Gi's shrink a lot over time, so go big to begin with and get it tailored to fit. It costs about $40 to Hem.

Shotokan Karate-do, SKI affiliation. 11th Kyu White (no Test) 10th Kyu Yellow 9th Kyu Orange 8th Kyu Orange with stripe 7th Kyu Green 6th Kyu Green with stripe 5th Kyu Purple 4th Kyu Purple with stripe 3rd Kyu Brown 2nd Kyu Brown with stripe 1st Kyu Brown with 2 stripes Black-Shodan

That is what was suspicious about my dojo. Students are tested like clockwork. One can go 3 hours a day, 4 days a week, and test no sooner than the karateka that goes for 1 hour a week. I would feel better about it if they determined it on skill rather than time served. As long as one pays his $70 per month, he is tested every 6 months (4th kyu and higher).

A black belt means that the piece of cloth that holds one's gi shut absorbs all Red Blue and Green light frequencies. Without a decent pedigree to support the rank, it means nothing. I can buy a black belt certificate with my name on it on ebay.

I lack the experience to give a competent answer. I am only a 4th Kyu in Shotokan and I have never taken Shotokai.

Yes, that is very typical of Shotokai Karate. If you watch videos of Gichin Funakoshi doing kata, you will see that it is not how traditional shotokan teaches it. His stances were very narrow and his movements very fluid. Funakoshi was very much against competition. After his death, those that believed in competition broke off to create JKA, and the "shotokan" style was born. Those that believed in Funakoshi's stance, that competition was counter-productive to karate, stayed firm in the Shotokai organization. Since that time the two styles have persued separate lines of evolution and emerged as separate arts originating from the same man. Shotokan is more rigid, and direct; shotokai is more fluid. You will notice however that the katas are the same; they just perform them differently.

I believe the mistake is to discount either part. Skill and preparedness has a lot to do with it. Heart and will has a lot to do with it. To discount either part can have disastrous consequences.

This reminds me of one of my favorite quotes of all time: "Battle does not favor the righteous, or the just; it favors the prepared." In the end, philosophical beliefes and morals don't enter into the meat & potatoes of it. Battle infers war and war is fought by many. I was referring to individuals. In fighting to survive, heart has the most to do with it. It is not always the man who has prepared the most. Since you are into movie quotes, let me quote another movie for you: "Victory belongs to those who believe in it the most and believe in it the longest". In countless scenarios where average men survived unthinkable circumstances, they found that the difference between surviving, and dieing has been life circumstances. They found that those with much to live for (Fathers/mothers, husbands/wives) et cetera, were able to survive when those with higher skills perished. Granted, this is in wilderness survival and things of the sort, but I think that fighting is the same. A true traditionalist is not going to get into a fight unless his life is in jeopardy. In the end it will come down to which man has the strongest desire to live. Case in point: Who will fight Harder: 1) An MMA Cage fighter trying to mug a woman 2) A husband fighting off an MMA fighter who has tried to mug his wife. In the above case, an MMA fighter can simply run away but a husband defending his wife cannot. In that case, the MMA fighter will either give up, or beat the man to death because you know the husband will never give up. While skill and preparation are the best tools; it is not always the better man that walks away from a life and death fight.