What is a black belt

I often sit and wonder what is the criteria for being a black belt and what has changed in the last 100 years or so since they started giving them out. I know and understand the physical aspects of what a black belt is but it seems to me the rest has kind of changed a bit, and I am glad we are going back to a bit of a revitalization of some points we asses for students to be black belts in our organization.

First off let me say that I get it….I get that not all black belts are the same. Not everyone is going to be a Tanaka or Imura Sensei. Not everyone is going to have perfect form like Osaka or speed and instincts like a tiger, like Yahara! Its not possible in today’s world to spend 8 hours training in Karate anymore….unless that’s how you make your living. But that also should not hold back people who want to put the time and efforts in to become a black belt.

And that’s the key point for me….efforts! Did you do things for the organization other than show up and pay your dues? No, then you are a student, and that is about all! To be a black belt in the JKA of Manitoba means you are more than a student, you represent what we are about. Your putting on that worn out…or shinny new…black belt means you are a leader in the JKA of Manitoba and your actions reflect on us. You represent the club, not just when you strap on your belt and PJ’s and scream like a crazy man calling for more spirit…but in business meetings, how you behave when confronted on the phone, how you deal with your family and friends all reflect on the organization that Dingman Sensei built.

Your training and time with the JKA you have seen how much work has gone into bringing you the best Karate we can, the lineage of masters that worked hard to bring Karate to you and the efforts of the instructors in the organization who have sacrificed their time, effort and family time to study and struggle to learn so that you can take that knowledge from them and improve! You now represent the JKA of Manitoba, for good and for bad! I know that not everyone is going to be “the same” person, character or ability… but the key thing is the effort that you put into being the best person and Karate-ka you can be. Self monitoring your Ego, being real with yourself about your choices and how much you sacrifice for the organization are all your responsibility.

When we say to you that we want you to test for you black belt, we are simply saying the bigger hurdles are over, we know you represent us well and now we want to see if you have physically learned the lessons, the character lessons and spiritual lessons are already a part of you and now we want you to be our representative.

I am often asked for advice from 1^st kyu students looking to make the leap, I am honest with them if they are my students I will tell them that the testing process to get your Shodan in his organization is 50% character and what you do before the test and 50% the test. Yes you can be the most physically gifted person in the world, but being a black belt is not about being a Super Ninja…and you can be the nicest person in the world and spend 1000000 hours working for the organization as a volunteer. The fact is that you need both….well a bit of both.

I have seen far to many morons and jerks get a Shodan and end up being more harmful to a club/organization than I can shake a stick at, but they play politics, do very little in terms of actual work and have a good physical test…they pass and the real horror show starts. I have also seen great people with good attitude put the time in and get a belt, then think they are the same as an athlete in terms of skill. Not true.

To be a true black belt you need three things; time, effort and skill. The time thing is easy, we help you with that. From the time you start Karate, if it is a perfect testing each time, you are looking at about 3.5-4.5 years of training and busting your hump in class. This is supposed to get you to understand the basics of Karate from a physical stand point. You are not supposed to be some kind of killing machine, but have a basic understanding of Karate.

The effort is what we see you put into the class, organization and improving yourself. It’s a hard one to gage and that is why we all get together as a technical committee and decide who is a candidate. We look at attitude, effort, the way they interact with others, Behavior, how much they try and help the organization and others. EVERYONE has holes in their game, or at least these three areas, but the main component again is how much effort are you putting in to clear those up.

Skill is a hard one. We have black belts that have specific physical limits, life style issues and family issues. But the basic understanding of Karate must be their. With the average of 4 years or more you should have a basic understanding of Karate by the time you are ready to ask to test.

So, what is a black belt? A black belt is someone that represents the character and integrity of a organization with their actions. They help build and maintain a organization by helping out however they can and use their skills outside the organization to assist in anyway they can. They understand the lessons that are being taught, physically and mentally and they put a lot of effort and sacrifice into the organization. They know the basic movements of the style and understand the ideas behind the system. Some teach, some don’t, some are great athletes others are good leaders, but no matter what the skill set, they have eaten bitter for the organization and are willing to do what they need to in order to see the organization thrive.

If you are a “Black belt” right now, look at your efforts and integrity in what you have been doing as a representative of the organization. If you think you may be lacking, ask if you can help. Get involved in the forward momentum of the group. There are also three kinds of black belts once you reach this level. Students, teachers and athletes….but that’s for another blog.

If you are looking at testing in the near future, take a good look at the last four or five years of your training. Have you put the effort in? Have you got the basics down? Do you think you can be a good representative for your club? Think on it a lot, don’t jump at the idea right away. The amount of effort that you are expected to take on when you are finally a black belt can be a much more than you are used to as a junior rank. Remember that the physical test is half the work, and the post exam work can be twice that work and effort you have put in physically to get to the place you find yourself now.

If you do choose to grade for the Shodan level, good luck, and don’t get a swollen head! That’s what post testing kumite is for! LOL!!!!