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Friday, February 24, 2012

What is the Black Belt?

THE ORIGIN:
In order to know what Black Belt means, we have to understand the origins of the belting system.  Most of what will be discussed is based on the Japanese disciplines, although many traditional and modern disciplines from various cultures use a similar progression designator.

The colored belt system is a 19th century invention, first used by Jigoro Kano, the founder of Judo.  He designated the White Belt as Kyu or non-grading (Mudansha) ranks and the Black Belt as Dan or grading (Yudansha) ranks.  However, rank belts were not worn regularly until the invention of the official training uniform or Do-Gi in the 1900’s.  In addition, various designators such as stripes or multi colored belts were used to ceremoniously designate further Dan ranks. 

Karate began using the belt ranking system when Gichin Funakoshi taught his Okinawan empty hand (Kara-Te) system at the Kodokan, the Judo school started by Kano Sensei.  The use of the colored belt system by Funakoshi Sensei prompted other combat arts to follow suit such as Kendo, Aikido and most other forms.  Although Kano Sensei created the idea, Funakoshi Sensei was highly regarded in the Japanese community and it was his popularity that prompted the acceptance of the colored belt system, which is why he is considered the father of the system today.  Kano Sensei being an innovator, as well as, a traditionalist, wanted to create a system of progress to keep each of his Judo students motivated to continue their training.  In addition, he moved from the traditional history of fighting schools typically teaching thugs various forms of Jitsu, to the modern practice of using martial science as a way to improve health, and one’s moral and cultural character.  The actual origin of the colors of the Kyu ranks is shrouded in mystery and may be permanently lost to history.  While there is no documentation on why the various colors were used we can draw on the philosophical doctrine of Kano Sensei as a clue.  Kano Sensei thought there is no limit on how much progress or improvement one can make in their Judo training.  Thus, he believed that if someone achieved a stage higher than 10th Dan, “one transcends such things as colors and grades and therefore returns to a white belt, thereby completing the full circle of Judo, as of life.”  In case of this eventuality, it should be noted that the Kodokan decided the belt worn by such a person should be “about twice as wide as the ordinary belt” to prevent novices from mistaking the significance.  In the later years of Morihei Ueshiba, founder of Aikido, he began wearing a White Belt with the same significance as described above.  However, it was not a double width belt. 

Prior to the belt system, traditional Japanese martial arts used the Menkyo or licensing system.  The Menkyo certificate was awarded to a student who was considered skilled in a particular discipline by the reigning master of that system or Ryu.  The level of skill was later indicated within the Menkyo, as “Den” analogous to the higher Dan ranks within the Black Belt system used today.  Den loosely translates to school of thought, philosophy, strategy, carried on from the founder.  For example, as a student of a particular martial arts style, the Dojo you train in is where you learn the original Den that was passed down to the teacher from his or her lineage dating back to the founder.  The highest license within the Menkyo system was the Menkyo Kaiden meaning “license of total transmission.”  This denotes the complete transmission of the secrets of a particular system.  The Menkyo was used to designate one as skilled in one of the 18 traditional classifications of war arts or Bugei.  One of the classifications or branches was JuJutsu or unarmed self-defense which is the branch that we are focusing on in this article.  It’s important to note that due to the secretive nature of the various schools or disciplines and their instructors, the Menkyo system had several disadvantages.  First, there was no way to evaluate or compare equivalent skill levels of graduates from different schools.  Further, the steps between separate licenses could take anywhere from a few months to several years, depending on the particular teacher’s philosophy or personal style.  These same disadvantages are seen today in the Black Belt system of ranking.

THE USE OF BLACK BELT TODAY:
Today, particularly in the west, we use the Black Belt to signify a particular level of achievement within the system of martial discipline being studied, but how did it get here?  The Black Belt concept was brought to the west by many of the G.I.’s coming back from Japan after the post WWII occupation.  During this occupation period, many cultural arts were outlawed including Kabuki Theater and martial arts.  However, much like the history of African/Brazilian Capoeira, the Japanese were able to maintain their ancient martial arts techniques in choreographed movements known as Katas.  There is a rich history that originated in China regarding the Japanese practice of Kata but the end result was that these forms were introduced into the general education system of Japan in 1901 by “Anko” Ysutsune Itsou and continues to this day.  In order to be accepted for general education, the original meanings and multi faceted strategies of the original Katas were replaced with more rigorous, fitness oriented closed fist strikes and blocks found in today’s Katas.  This was considered a safer alternative for young children and yet kept the Okinawan cultural history intact.  After the initial 8 months of occupation by allied forces in Japan, the cultural restrictions on the Japanese people began to lessen.  With this, G.I.’s were beginning to learn martial arts while stationed on Okinawa and Japan proper.  

As most G.I.’s were stationed in Japan for short tours (1 year) or long tours (up to 3 years), how is it that so many who studied martial arts during their tours, came back to the USA with Black Belts?  Even the great Joe Lewis earned his Black Belt in just 7 months and Kano Sensei was known to promote ranks quickly, such as 2nd degree Black Belt in just 1 year, but how can this be?  If you ask most martial arts teachers today - how long does it take, on average, to earn a Black Belt - the answer is typically 3 to 5 years for most arts (Karate or Tae Kwon Do), 5 to 7 years for complex arts (Aikido, Japanese JuJitsu) and even 10+ years for specialty arts (Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu, Kyushu Jitsu).  So how is it that G.I.’s earned their Black Belt so quickly in the place where the arts originated and yet here in the west, there is an average requirement to spend at least 4 years before eligible?  Typically it’s because promotion to Black Belt was based on a student demonstrating an understanding of that particular disciplines basics.  The more the student trains, the better they get and this could be done in months rather than years.  The cultural concept was to perfect the basics, and then learn the art.  Based on this philosophy, once one has the skills to demonstrate the basics proficiently, they are a Black Belt and can now begin learning the art itself.   

Just as the use of the Menkyo was not able to be an all inclusive certification of skills, nor is the Black Belt rank we think of today.  Ask a lay person what a Black Belt means and they will use such terms as: expert, skilled, trained killer, lethal, master, end of the road, must be registered, and so many more.  Ask a Black Belt what it means and you will get answers such as: I’m done, end of the road, just starting, basic understanding, master, teacher, skilled, one who has started earlier than another and so many more.  Ask a long term “Master” of the arts what a Black Belt means and you will typically hear: beginning, general education, big brother, older brother, senior beginning student, beginning teacher, teacher in training and so on. 

MY INTERPRETATION OF A BLACK BELT:
So everything I wrote above was to tell you exactly what a Black Belt is.  It is something different to everyone!  The origins of the Black Belt and the entire belt ranking system, like everything else in life, has an original idea behind it that matched a need for the time and was accepted throughout its history in various forms.  Today, there are as many interpretations and theories practiced in the meaning of the Black Belt as there are martial arts styles.  So is one more correct than another?  Absolutely not!  You can spend 10+ years studying a martial art system and achieve a Black Belt and that’s a great accomplishment.  You can also spend just a year studying a martial art system and achieve a Black Belt and that too is a great accomplishment.  Every martial art developed, was done so as an answer to a particular problem in self-defense.  Within each martial art, there are as many interpretations as there are teachers and practitioners and each one brings their own judgment into their expectations for grade advancement.  You realistically cannot compare the Black Belt of one art with another or even within the same art.  Is Japanese JuJitsu better than Brazilian Jiu-jitsu?  Are Dave Camarillo’s Black Belts better than Professor Pedro Sauer’s.  Are Steven Seagal’s Black Belts more skilled than Christian Tessier’s Black Belts?  The debate can go on endlessly but will always be a comparison between Apples and Oranges.  Why not accept that each has its qualities and both are liked by some while some only like one or the other.

MY IDEA OF BLACK BELT
My idea of Black Belt – it’s the end of the general education process (like graduating High School) and the beginning of the advanced understanding of the system (like going to college).  So what makes a Black Belt for me?  First off I teach based on Personal Interpretive Tactics or PIT elements.  This means that my students do not copy or try to imitate me; they are forced into situations that make them use their own interpretations of the elements of a technique.  If the practice of the technique is not successful then they must take it upon themselves to reevaluate their understanding of the movement and come up with a more effective solution to a specific problem.  We do this without the use of forms or Katas.  Yet just like the original forms from China, what we practice are skills that multi-task to be useful with minimal movement for multiple situations.  Why do I teach this way?  Because it worked for me in my military and my law enforcement training.  We had weeks or months to become proficient at doing everything from controlling non-resistant encounters to taking a life in chaotic multiple attacker situation.  Obviously the system works because there are millions of men and women who have undergone the training, survived the situations and lived to retire from them.  How does it work?  It’s simple, keep to the basics, get rid of the fancy stuff that isn’t practical and put the trainees in repeated high stress situations to test their understanding of what they have learned.  This employs the concept that the toughest day should be the training and the easiest should be the test.  That’s what I do with my students. 

In March 2011, we held our first Black Belt test for my newest school.  There were 10 students who participated.  The student who had been with me the longest, had 3 years with me.  The student with the least amount of time had just 1 ½ years.  However, the student with 3 years had 400 hours of training while the student with 1 ½ years had over 1000 hours of training.  The average time that will produce a proficient Black Belt with me is 416 hours.  I don’t use the “years of training” as a guide because I’ve had students barely show up but stay with the program for a year and never test because they are lazy.  I have other students who come to every class, everyday and have the training hours that accurately reflect their ability.  To the outsider, who hears that I am promoting Black Belts in under 2 years, I’m sure it sounds like I run a McDojo and students can buy their belts.  For the test, I brought in 1 of my teachers, Sigung James Halter and 2 well respected teachers whom I had never met before, Keith Owen and Ari “Bolden” Knazan, to sit on the evaluation panel.  During the 3 hour test the demonstration of static technique was lack luster at best and was a cause for concern by the panel.  However, that’s not the area that my students concentrate on; it’s merely to satisfy the traditional concept of martial arts movement.  The reality of the test and true demonstration of skill came when each student went through their interactive portion which is a minimum of 5 minutes, total self defense, against multiple attackers, that included all 4 of the distances of fighting.  It’s not sparring; it’s not dojo attacks; its street fighting within a controlled environment – so nobody cracks their head open on the sidewalk.  Once this portion of the test began, all 3 of the evaluators got up to their feet, left the table to get a closer look on the mat and I can tell you their blood started pumping with excitement.

Understandably, my style of teaching doesn’t agree with everyone and neither does what I teach.  My highest Black Belt rank is 7th degree in my own system.  What qualifies me as a 7th degree?  Many things do but primarily, it’s my expertise in the strategy that I employ in my system, which has been evolving over nearly 40 years of training and real world experiences.  How did I get to 7th degree in my own system?  Through an organization that is assisting me in the progress of my own style.  Why not just say I’m a 10th degree since it’s my own system?  Because I hold myself to the same standards that I hold my students.  There is much more that I need to accomplish and give back to the arts in order to progress and in time I will do just that.  In fact the last physical test I offer for Black Belt promotions is 4th degree.  After that, promotion is based on merit and what you give back to the arts, the discipline, the school and the community.  This is a common practice even under traditional systems.  I know many high ranking Black Belts who were promoted because of their work, status as teachers and school owners and for what they have given back to the arts in general and to a discipline specifically.  For example, Steven Seagal was promoted from 1st to 5th degree Black Belt in Aikido, when he took over as Chief Instructor of his father-in-laws Aikido school, Ten Shin Dojo, in Japan.  So does 7th degree mean I am invincible?  Not at all, no one is.  All it means is that I am very skilled in what I know and I am able to apply it as necessary, while also being able to teach it to high level and novices alike.

IN CONCLUSION:
What is the Black Belt?  It’s many things to many people but the mainstream idea is that it’s a measurement of skill, awarded to those recognized for achieving a point in their training that may mean: the end or the beginning.  Bottom line is that you will never know what it means until you achieve it.  Same way that you will never know what a higher degree of Black Belt means until you achieve that.  What it means to you is the important point here.  What it means to me is that it’s an everyday reminder that I am better today than I was yesterday but not as good as I’ll be tomorrow.  I am no better or worse than any other.  I am not stronger or weaker, faster or slower, bigger or smaller, smarter or dumber than anyone else.  I am a Black Belt, I know what it took me to get here, I know what I expect of others who wear it but I have no right to judge their experience based on my experience alone.  I can only congratulate them on the journey and lend a hand towards their next step, as those who have gone before me have done.

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