View Single Post
Old 10-14-2007, 12:49 PM   #6
JAMJTX
Dojo: Aikibudo Seishinkan
Location: FORT WAYNE, IN
Join Date: Sep 2002
Posts: 106
United_States
Offline
Re: Organizations- How important are they to you?

Not important at all any more. There was a time when perhaps they were. But politics has pretty much destroyed them and they don't really serve much purpose beyond providing incomes.

Before we had "organizations" we had teachers. Takeda, Ueshiba, etc. When Ueshiba started teaching, I don't know of anyone who asked hime which organization he was certified through. By today's standards, he'd be largely ignored and many would call him a phony because he's is not part of the proper organization of the day.

The knowledge and skills of a teacher are much more important than the logo on a certificate. I have encountered number of excellent martial arts teachers who are not members of any organization but just say "I learned from my uncle" or "my father taught me Judo and my grandfather taught me aikijujutsu". I'd much rather train with one of these types of teachers and get a hand-written certificate from them than have someone I never met send me copy of a massed produced certificate that is the same that can not only be earned politically, but can be denied due to politics.

Jim Mc Coy
  Reply With Quote