Respecting your higher ranks

[FangPwnsAll7]

I know there's some rule that you need to respect higher ranks. In my opinion respect is something that is earned. I respect everyone that is a higher rank, but sometimes I think, do they really deserve it just because of a rank? I think that the anyone, not just higher ranks, should prove that they deserve the respect. Because of a lack of respect for seniors in our dojo, our instructor has made us bow the rank above us before class ends. For example, I'm a striped orange belt. At the end of class, I need to say "Bow Green Belt." Which is the belt after mine.

We are permanently doing this. I do not mind this at all, but just wondering whether any other orginizations did this?

What is your opinion on the respect of higher ranks.

[Harkon72]

In our classes ALL students, sempai and sensei have the same level of respect for eachother. One student was expelled from the club for lack of respect. His Karate was good, but he failed a grade for bad behavior. His reaction was to swear at the instructor. He was asked to write a letter of apology to our sensei and the parents of the junior grades. Unfortunately he has not returned.

[FangPwnsAll7]

I'd imagine he wouldn't come back. If any higher belt is caught disrespecting a junior belt, then the senior belt needs to wear a white belt for 2 classes. Then they get their belt back. Respect is taken very seriously in our dojo.

[T3chnopsycho]

In our school it is common at least from black belt up that you respect the higher graded belts. Also non black belts respect black belts. But I see it the same way that you still need to earn the respect. I am respectful to everyone in our dojo but I don't have true respect for every blackbelt that is higher than I am. They also need to earn their respect.

I also find that everyone should be respectful to everybody else in the dojo because in the end you train together and strive together to get better.

Cheers

T3chnopsycho

[Lupin1]

I wish our school emphasized respect a little more-- especially for the kids. When I was a kid in the program, we called all adults Mr. So-And-So and we knew to be respectful to them. Nowerdays the head kids' instructor is always called by his first name and they argue with him, fight him, whine to him, etc... He's starting to not take it and threatens to make them leave class for the night if they don't stop and that usually does it, but it upsets me a bit to see them treat him like that. I am glad they call me by my first name, though. I hate being Ms. Lastname. There's no respect emphasized for kids from rank to rank, however, especially since with our class makeup right now, almost all our beginners are several years older than our higher ranking students (we chose to only accept older kids in our last beginner's group whereas most of the higher ranks started when they were 7 or 8 ).

The adults show all the instructors a good deal of respect, but with each other... It's such a small, advanced group that we don't have the big hierarchy you get in some schools. We never even bother lining up by rank. The entire group is four instructors ranging from 4th-8th Dan, a nidan, and three brown belts. I'm the lowest ranking student as a 3rd kyu. So the non-instructors treat the instructors very respectfully although we don't do "sir" and we don't do titles except when our 7th degree instructor calls our 8th degree instructor "hanchi" and "master" just to get under his skin. And we don't bow to each other or anything like that. It's all very informal, but you can still tell everyone has the utmost respect for all the instructors. The only one no one really shows much respect to is the nidan. He makes it hard for people to respect him. It's not an excuse, but it's true...

[T3chnopsycho]

I think respect doesn't show in things like bowing to each other and things like that. Respect is more a thing of how you behave towards a higher ranking person. Well we do bow but only to our head-instructor when he enters the dojo to start the training (normally someone else does the warm-up).

But Respect is more like the example lupin said. Do the kids just argue and so on or do they (and also the adults) view the word from the instructor as (don't know how to say) an order?

Well anyway I think it's always different in any dojo but the main point should be to respect your higher-ups because normally they have more experience in the art and if you are respectful they will surely feel more towards helping you out and showing you new things

cheers

T3chnopsycho

[kensei]

Respect is a funny thing. You have to give it out and hope to get it back, but those that give and dont get often leave a club. For the most part it is the instructors job to teach young juniors what "Dojo Respect" is, and I see often that some seniors reck that or even the instructor, by demanding respect and not giving it.

You can not demand respect, if you do you get fear back, which can be mistaken for respect but it is much different!

I recognize the effort all the seniors put into Karate, I have met and know of hundreds of people of higher rank than me over the years, some I respect as individuals and Karateka, others I simply recognize the effort they put into their Karate training to get a higher level. Some I do not respect at all and yet still recognize they put a great deal of effort into their training.

As a Karate instructor I do not demand that anyone respect me, I respect all of my students and give of myself. If they respect me back...I am happy and one lucky instructor.

[lowereastside]

You should always respect the Higher Grades - Many of the seniors sometime stop training - and their level is not quite up to par - However they show up for special functions such as Chinese New Year Celebration......The respect is still given to these Seniors even if their Martial Arts is not quite up to par. However, remember that respect is a 2 WAY STREET.

[sensei8]

No matter the rank; respect begets respect. Just as rank is earned, so is respect. The respect showed to our fellow MAists isn't taken, no, it's earned on and off the floor.

Had my Dai-Soke ever demanded my respect, I would've made it to the door the very same day that I showed up. I respect him because I love him and I love him because of who HE was and not because of he adored his rank/title.

I put my pants on and off one foot at a time! I'm nothing special; I'm just me.

My rank/title doesn't define me, and in that, I define my rank/title by treating everyone honorable across the board.

[oitsuki]

In my current Dojo, everybody respects the others. There is no big difference between black belts and the others. Although the position on the blacks stresses a bit the difference (with the higher ranks on the right and the others on the left), but the respect is always mutual.

In my old Dojo, years ago, we didn't even call "Sensei" to the sensei. We just called him by his name, and he was one of the best senseis I've ever seen. I respected (now and then) him the most.

So I think that the respect is something that of course must be encouraged on the Dojo, but not only from Teachers to Students, but also the other way around: the children are not stupid and the only way to earn their respect is by showing them the same.