I have been thinking a lot about the subject of being a black belt. Last week in the dojo, my husband had an excellent discussion with a 1st kyu student about the process of being a black belt. Yes, there is a test, a list of requirements and long hours needed in the dojo. But, there is something more. It is the hard to describe, intangible quality that he referred to as "becoming" a black belt. It is something you know...when you see it.
I think of students who passed through our dojo and earned the rank of black belt. Some students continue to train, learn and teach. They have become my training partners and together we continue to learn and explore.
Other students quit a few weeks or perhaps months after receiving their belt. I imagine their belt hanging on a display like a prized trophy. It was something they wanted to acquire not become.
I believe there is another group. The students trained, earned their black belt but for some reason (family, work, school, injury) can no longer actively train. Even though they do not walk through the dojo door on a weekly basis, I still consider them part of the dojo. They "became" a black belt. The lessons learned in karate class became part of who they are and shaped the person they became. These students could step on the floor at any time and be a black belt. Sure...they may need to re-learn the patterns or the drills but the essence of their training and study is still part of them.
What do you think....once a black belt...always a black belt? If the training stops... should the rank stop with it? Or does it depend on the person and if they actually became a black belt rather than acquire one?
Sunday, November 1, 2009
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
9 comments:
Some students continue to train, learn and teach.
You put those concepts in the right order. It's the last one that determines how long one stays in the game. At least that's been my experience.
Few who aren't cut out to teach or can't be bothered last very long after acquiring black belt. It's a huge goal, but once achieved it can become anti-climactic.
So the newly arrived shodan can teach. It's a form of altruism and does shed light on the subject matter that isn't available from the student's perspective. Of course teaching is not the same as training, which is what it all comes down to. Finding the time to train (or teach), coordinating it with one's personal life and work schedule can be daunting. Needless to say these conditions exist all along anyway.
Once a black belt...always a black belt? If you don't train or teach, I'd say the black belt as a rank becomes moot. But if one takes their lessons learned in the dojo into their outside affairs, then this could be the difference between "acquiring" and "becoming" a black belt. Hence Musashi's aphorism "the warrior must make his warrior's walk his everyday walk."
Wish I had a black belt so that I could join in this discussion! Oh well, may be one day....if I train hard
I think it depends on the individual as to whether one remains a black belt. I think it depends on why that individual started training in the first place, and on why that individual is no longer actively training.
I don't believe one should be required to teach to maintain his rank, either. Some people just aren't teachers. To say that one must teach or be stripped of his rank makes me wonder why bother training in karate in the first place? Shouldn't you be taking teacher education courses in that case?
I believe there are legitimate reasons why one can no longer actively train. Financial reasons--especially in this current economy-- injuries, family concerns, all can prevent a person from making it to the dojo.
On the other hand, there are those who think shodan is "it". They got their black belts, don't see the need to train any more. These people usually pass through the McDojos, which makes me wonder about the legitimacy of their rank in the first place. We can't always know what is in a person's heart and mind. How then can we say, "You haven't been to the dojo in x amount of days, you are forthwith stripped of your rank"?
If a person is a true black belt, he will know it in his heart.
While becoming a black belt is certainly more involved then academic studies because of the mind/body/spirit melding that takes place in a good practitioner, I think once a black belt has been attained and not dishonored - always a black belt.
Martial arts teach lots of skills that help one in overall life. I know just having confidence in interpersonal relations has helped me achieve almost anything I've tried to do in life so far. I'm not really a people person but can easily get up in front of a crowd of people and speak off of the cuff and sound somewhat intelligent because of the confidence gained by learning how to fight.
Earning my first masters degree in the studio made actually earning an MBA later in life seem easy... you know, I had already achieved a master’s degree. :)
One word of caution, if a person values the black belt it will have continued meaning in his or her life. If not it is just another colored belt.
Nonsense, Sue. Of course you can participate because not only are you on the path, but you know folks, I'm sure, who can fit into any of the catagories Michele talks about in her post...
I agree with your husband's assessment of "becoming a black belt" Michele. It's so much more than just studying for years, taking a test and getting a new belt. I think it is definitely something that we grow into.
When I was a brown belt, one of my instructors and I had a great chat at a summer seminar. "There are people who have black belts and there are those who ARE black belts," he said. In other words, just strapping on a black belt does not a yudansha make.
True story: there is a woman in our sister dojo who earned her shodan rank two years before I did. Content to have finally reached her goal, she still comes to class on a regular, but refuses to continue her learning - meaning when a new twist on a tried and true technique or kata bunkai is shown, she balks and flat out refuses to learn it, giving a literal half-butt effort. In her mind, she knows all she needs to, which is ridiculous. So, although she trains twice a week, she is a prime example of one of those "black belt havers" my other sensei was talking about.
I guess training is not enough. Learning is such a key component - and one of the reasons I love karate so much because there is always, always, always something new to learn.
Great post, Michele :-)
Yes, great post! I've got experience with several sides of the issue: I've seen people who saw the rank as a possession and gave up once they got it, and I've been one of those people who couldn't train.
Between pregnancy, new-mom-hood, work, etc., I missed about 2 years of training between 2005 and 2008 and was only able to train minimally for big chunks of that time. However, (and I hope this doesn't sound braggy because I'm citing myself not as some golden example but as a case study) I never stopped thinking about karate, considering its lessons, figuring out how they applied to my life, etc. When I tested for my sandan rank, I wrote my essay about how I'd applied certain movement and breath techniques to the process of birthing (probably the first essay my sensei ever read on that subject).
Anyway, my point is even when I wasn't on the deck I never felt like I had walked away from training and my sensei recognized that in the way he welcomed me back by throwing me immediately back into the deep end of training (new kata on my first night back, hello!)
Now that I'm an instructor again, too, I've found that I am getting better at being able to tell when someone's for real and when they're just looking for status. There are definitely those who are doing it for the deep reasons, and those who aren't. It's not necessarily the best "natural' athletes, either, who are in it to stay.
While I was approaching my black belt test I had an older friend who had also achieved his black belt. Due to family commitments and his counseling practice he simply did not have the time to continue on. In fact, he was at least 10 years removed from his achievement.
He no longer considered himself a black belt but he did say that the achievement was something that nobody could take away from him.
Perhaps how we view the former black belt should have a lot to do with how the former black belt views his or her self?
Hello everyone...
I want to thank you for your excellent comments. I also want to apologize for my delayed response to the comments. My computer was sending me warnings..."emergency shut down warning" and "service immediately". My computer would not turn on. I thought it died completely. I learned a valuable lesson on backing up documents. The CPU fan burned out but could be replaced.
I bought a new computer (it was on my to do list) and was able to repair my old computer (which has all my husband's CAD drawings on it).
Thank you again for your comments!
In Japan they have a kotowaza (proverb);
If you are not getting better, you are getting worse. The traditional way of thinking is that you cannot stay still when it comes to martial arts.
Post a Comment