KorroddyDude

I also wanted to add - for most belt manufacturers, kanji characters are 2.5 cm tall on a 4.5 cm wide belt, and 2 cm tall on a 4 cm wide belt. Most will reduce them to 2 cm on a 4.5 cm wide belt if you go over a certain number of characters. To determine the proper length of the belt ends, multiply the number of kanji or katakana characters by 2.5. You'll need 5 to 10 cm of clearance above the kanji to prevent the embroidery from going into the knot. You'll also need 8 to 10 cm meters of clearance below the characters on the label side, and 4 cm on the non-label side. So: Length of label side end = 8 to 10 cm + (number of characters x 2.5 cm) + 5 to 10 cm Length of non-label side end = 4 cm + (number of characters x 2.5 cm) + 5 to 10 cm This assumes a 4.5 cm wide belt, so on a 4 cm wide belt, use 2 cm instead of 2.5 cm. Whichever side is longer, that's how long your ends should be. The belt size calculator on the Kataaro website assumes the ends below the knot are 30 cm. So adjust for that if your ends need to be longer. Kuro Obi Ya has a formula on the site as well, but it doesn't tell you how long the ends are when using that formula, so it's not of much use.

There are belt size calculators all over the internet. Kataaro being a notable example, which assumes the ends hang 12 inches from the knot (you can set the calculator to metric on the site). So it's not really necessary to get yourself measured person.

I'm not sure that we'd be having this debate outside of the English language. An example of this: in classical music, we don't translate the word "maestro." We just leave it in Italian. I think we're reluctant to call the conductor a "master." It's taboo in the English language, hence why we're so ready to dogpile anyone who uses such a title. Is it possible to "master" a martial art? If a martial art cannot be mastered, then what can be? Perhaps when the word "master" is used in martial arts, it means that someone has reached a particular level of authority within the art. I think it's fair to say that, in any subject, it's at least possible to do that. I say that if there's a problem with the word "master," then perhaps even a title such as "master instructor" doesn't adequately solve the issue here. Perhaps titles like "senior instructor" and "chief instructor" would be perceived as even less pompous and self-aggrandizing.

Correct. As with anything, there are always high and low moments. But I don't think that there's a moment that I ever want to relieve. There is nothing that we've done at a lower belt rank that we can't do now. I do Heian Shodan every single day, just like I did when I was a white belt. That's why I found this to be a difficult question to answer.

One of my favorite songs is Anything For You by Gloria Estefan. I love the mood that it creates, and it's perfect for candle light dinners with the wife. That is, if you're not paying attention to the lyrics. The song is about getting over a break up. Thankfully, there's a Spanish version of that song called No Te Olvidare. And I don't speak Spanish. So if I wanted to create candle light dinner and play the song without things feeling awkward, I'll play the Spanish version. That being said, there are many definitions of "master" - whether it's how the word is used in the trades, the word for an educator, one who has reached a certain level in an art - and the Japanese have different words for each of them. In American English, when we hear that word, we think of someone who is owed the highest level of deference that a non-deity can possibly receive and that we're the property of. The Japanese have a separate word for that too. These separate words enable them to use the one that applies, without any other implications. The reason I brought up the song by Gloria Estefan is that, just like I prefer the Spanish version over a candle light dinner with the wife because of the lyrics, I think it's best that we stick with Japanese titles (or Korean, or whatever applies to your chosen art). The title can be a direct translation of the Japanese word for "God" for all I care - as being a non-Japanese speaker means that I'm able to distance myself from the use of that word, which I wouldn't be able to by using the English word.

Yes, but my point wasn't that Okinawan belt tests are hazefests and Japanese belt tests are not. My point was that Okinawan organizations don't seem to have as tight a grip on their overseas dojos as Japanese organizations do. Hence, why some American dojos in those Okinawan organizations seem to be able to get away with turning their belt testings into hazefests. In truth, I wouldn't consider Kyokushin to be "Japanese karate." And this isn't me trying to play "No true Scotsman," as I am fully aware that it meets the definition of Japanese karate. However, I believe that Kyokushin and Ashihara kaikan represent a distinct karate culture that warrants a separate classification. As a Shotokan guy, I'd feel a sense of kinship in a Wado-ryu dojo or a Shindo jinen-ryu dojo. But on that same token, I'd feel like just as much of an alien in a Kyokushin dojo as I would in a Uechi-ryu dojo. From what I've heard some people discussing, the reason for the grueling tests in American Shorinkan dojos has something to do with a few of its instructors coming into contact with Kyokushin back in the 1970's, and deciding that they wanted to keep up with the Joneses. Meanwhile, none of this is going on in Okinawa, and no one in Okinawa was willing or able to stop it. Amen to that.

If I were to take a guess, the reason why Japanese styles of karate haven't suffered a similar fate to Okinawan styles in the US would be because Japanese organizations appear to be far more strict in how they're organized and regulated. For example, ISKF has its beginnings in Nakayama sensei of JKA sending Okazaki, Yaguchi, and Mikami over to set up shop. They maintained oversight of the US dojos and reported back to headquarters in Japan (i.e., things weren't left to Americans to run things how they saw fit). I don't think Shorinkan or most other Okinawan organizations were run similarly.

In the Hampton Roads area of Virginia, there are karate dojos everywhere, and I'd say that well over 90% of them are either Shorinkan, or are part of an organization that split from Shorinkan (such as Butokukan, Kiyobukan, Nakazato-ha, Kensankai, etc). There's a Shorin-ryu dojo not too far from me, where I've seen adults and children doing knuckle pushups on the concrete right outside the store front. I've also driven along a wooded rocky waterfront where I've seen people (children and adults) doing kata in waist-deep water, wearing gis that have Shorinkan patches on them. If they like it, I love it. However, my money says that they're not aware that there's a such thing as karate that's not like that.

We start sanbon kumite at white belt where I train, but I've seen other schools (not Shotokan) start later.

One thing I've noticed is that children become more engaged when they reach the belt level where they begin doing ippon/sanbon/gohon kumite (whichever your dojo does first). Because, at first, age uke and uchi ude uke drills look and feel like a bunch of nonsense to new students - adults and children alike - until they get to personally demonstrate them with another student. Let's not forget what the children are there to learn. The children need to feel like they're actually learning it. This is why I believe the step-sparring drills need to be taught at the white belt level, instead of waiting until after they could possibly lose interest.

For me, the excitement doesn't come at a promotion, but rather at learning a new kata. I think the best moment for me was learning Hangetsu (Seisan).

Which Kobayashi-ryu schools practice Jion/Jitte/Jion? To my knowledge, neither Chibana nor Nakazato taught these or any other Tomari-te kata.

I just finished Karate: My Life by Hirokazu Kanazawa. I think this book is definitely a must-read for all Shotokan karateka who are of Nakayama lineage, even if you're not SKIF. I'm ISKF, and I learned more things about Okazaki sensei that weren't covered in his books.

I recently finished three books Karate Stupid and Karate Clever, both by Scott Langley. For those who are not aware, Scott Langley is the kaicho of HDKI, an organization that he founded after getting kicked out of WTKO. Both books were written before the founding of HDKI, but based on how he comes across in both books; I believe WTKO's side of the story when they announced Langley's dismissal on facebook. This isn't to speak negatively on Scott Langley, as I think he'd probably agree 100% that he needed a bigger say in how things are run than what WTKO was willing to give him. That being said, if you were to ask someone who hates reading books why they hate reading books... they'd probably describe books in a way that fits Langley's books to a tee. I felt like I wanted to buy ADHD meds off the black market just to get through them. I will say that if HDKI is meant to be the antithesis of what he experienced in JKS, then I imagine that any HDKI dojo is definitely the place to go for anyone who wants a positive experience. Again, not a knock on the author... I just think he's far better at karate than writing.

Not Shito-ryu. It was founded in Osaka, and there are exactly as many Shito-ryu dojos in Okinawa as there are Shotokan - zero.