Thread: Belt tests
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Old 10-20-2001, 01:12 AM   #28
sceptoor
Dojo: http://ctr.usf.edu/aikido/
Location: Tampa, Fl
Join Date: Nov 2000
Posts: 100
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What's the confusion??

I realize this is going to sound a bit pompous and believe me I do not intend it to be at all, but I find it difficult to believe that this question was even seriously asked in the first place. The answer, YES, pretty much needs not be said. In my mind it is just understood, for obvious reasons based on common sense.

The only things I disagree with are excessive ranks/testing,[meaning more than 6 kyu rankings]colored belts and/or the hakama worn by "Dan ranks only".

Other than that, I believe testing/ranking/grades are only good for the dojo. Remember, it's an exhibiton, not a competition. It is the responsibility of the teachers to shape the minds of their students, so if there is a competitive mindset from the students then there is something wrong. There is no place for competitive egos in aikido, but I do not believe that simple testing breeds this attitude either. Again, if it does, there is a problem. These misplaced egotistical/competitive attitudes in aikido training is of course what I refer to as the "Kobra Kai" Aikido.

This is not to say that I see "competitive" Tomiki Aikido as "wrong". It's just contradictory to the original aim/development of Ueshiba's Aikido, that's all. If one wants competition with other people, with the aim of gaining "points" then by all means, compete, but if one just wants to TEST ONESELF, to keep track of what knowledge one retains at one's own pace, then by all means, train and test as much as one can, for the benifit of oneself, the dojo's students and it's instructors.

As many have pointed out in the past, ranks are only generalized guide markers. I'm currently only 5th Kyu, so I am in no way qualified to comment on the qualifications of a (insert rank here), but I've read countless times how people have trained with/met/observed undeserving/unqualified Dan ranks as well as 1st and 2nd Kyu ranks that should be a dan rank.

At the moment, I do not personally know of any "belt factory" aikido schools, but I will be sure to stay away from them if I ever discover them.

Anyway, I see absolutely nothing wrong with testing in Aikido. Personally, I love to test. It shows me that I am making progress in my training. There is no pressure to "win", and no agony of defeat. One is either ready to test, or one is not, and that is usually decided by one's teachers long after they ARE ready.

C. Martin

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