Do you need a special promotion to create your own art?

[The Greatest Disciple]

So I have gone to a few hundred tournaments and I have seen about 50-100 10th Dan black belts... Do you need to be promoted and certified under a board to do this or can just anybody go and claim to have a martial art and get it automatically?

[Lupin1]

Anyone can invent their own art and name themself a 10th dan. There's no overseeing organization for all martial arts. If someone wants to take his yellow belt in Shotokan and invent his own style, call himself a 10th Dan and open his own school tomorrow, no one will stop him. That's why people have to be so careful when shopping for schools. There are a lot of good, legitimate teachers out there, but there are also a few who have done just what I described.

[Wastelander]

Lupin1 is absolutely correct. For better or worse, there is no governing organization for the martial arts world that prevents anyone from starting their own style. Personally, I don't necessarily have any problem with people founding their own style--if your training and experience has caused what you train to develop into something unique, then you've created your own style whether you name it or not. That said, I can't stand people granting themselves ranks, because it's highly disingenuous. I personally know someone who founded his own style, but he only claims ranks that he was given by his instructors, and that seems like the best way to go about it, in my opinion.

[The Greatest Disciple]

Wow. Seems like I'm doing everything the hard way by working for at least my 4th Dan before I develop my own style. It seems bizarre to me there is no restriction to this. No wonder I have seen dozens of 10th Dans. I'm a little upset by this.

[MasterPain]

Wow. Seems like I'm doing everything the hard way by working for at least my 4th Dan before I develop my own style. It seems bizarre to me there is no restriction to this. No wonder I have seen dozens of 10th Dans. I'm a little upset by this.

A restriction would involve government. I don't want them anywhere near my art.

[DWx]

This is when stuff like lineage becomes more important. Ok so you're a 10th dan. But who gave you that 10th dan? That's what gives any rank any legitimacy.

[JusticeZero]

Most martial artists distrust any newly minted martial arts for exactly this reason. It's usually more indicative of practitioner ego. Now and then you see modest claims that are acceptable at the ryu or specialty level.

[sensei8]

So I have gone to a few hundred tournaments and I have seen about 50-100 10th Dan black belts... Do you need to be promoted and certified under a board to do this or can just anybody go and claim to have a martial art and get it automatically?

In Shindokan, every rank, Jukyu to Hachidan, is earned through testing cycles. Kudan and Judan; these two ranks are promoted upon said individual through the directions of our By-Laws. Certain positions, like Kaicho, are automatically promoted to Kudan, and only Soke types are permitted Judan; per our By-Laws.

In our history. Only our Dai-Soke has been promoted to Kudan. Only our Soke, Dai-Soke, and San Dai-Soke have been promoted to Judan.

[The Greatest Disciple]

So I could take my 9 years of MA experience, create a legitimate system, suffer a year or two on the criticisms, and then have a respectable dojo? Seems too easy.

[JusticeZero]

It's not "a year or two", it's more like "a few decades". If you're lucky, people will mellow before your children retire. Unless of course the art is very specific and specialized and has a clear purpose that you couldn't get before. If for instance you need to fight on sheer ice a lot, and modify all your footwork and stances for that purpose, you'll probably get a pass for having a different art and training in an ice rink.