aikidoc

The issue of independent dojo quality is complex. A lot depends on the rank and ability of those spitting off. Maintaining quality is a challenge since there is no one above the senior ranking person to move their aikido ahead or ensure a standard is met.

Let's say we have a bunch of sandans decide they have had it with the politics or whatever of an organization and decide to go off and set up their own. They set up bylaws and make someone a 5th or 6th dan to head the organization. Does this person equate with someone who was promoted by a shihan above. One organization I know did something similar with the exception of the top guy being 5th dan in a splinter group. Now the head instructor is a self promoted 6th dan by bylaws. He went from 2nd or 3rd dan to 6th dan without ever testing again-time in grade, rank given. So we have someone starting an organization who had never been promoted above 5th dan, with a bunch of 3rd dans and now one of the 3rd dans has gone to 6th dan How can that be a quality move? The student surpasses the previous instructor who retired via bylaws with no additional training. The organization does not test above 2nd dan. Those under him gave him the 6th dan rank-he was the most senior person. Promotion from below-an interesting concept. Now the question is can this person possibly be equal to an Aikikai 6th dan? Maybe. Not likely since there has not been any guidance for years and he doesn't attend seminars. What then happens to the next generation. They go through the same process and get 6th dan. Weak begets weak which begets weaker. The quality will successively deteriorate unless someone is very, very talented or takes it upon themselves to get under and instructor. This is currently happening in the organization-they don't attend seminars either. None of them have to test once they get to 2nd dan. What are these guys going to look like in a few years? 6th dans with deteriorating basics? The basics are likely weak anyway since the process had already gone one generation. How seriously will others take them? One area group has only nidans-the head instructor is retiring. The others have for the most part fallen apart. So with bylaws permitting them to do this and no one senior above them the group of nidans will continue to progress in rank by a time in grade criteria. X number of years to sandan, Y number of years to yondan, etc. They don't interact outside their little group. Sorry, but I just can see how they can maintain quality with this process. Unless they've got it "all knowed up".

The issues are complex for independents and difficult for them to maintain quality standards. And I do know the argument issues-he/she is really good (who judges that?); he's been training a number of years so he deserves the rank (really-what do years have to do with it if the person has been doing nidan level training for years without instruction); I don't care about rank (OK-why not just do away with rank in your organization-last man standing or something like that gets to teach) and just train for the pleasure-recognizing of course that your students will have a difficult time getting someone to recognize them if they leave); it doesn't matter to me the rank as long as they know what they are doing (who judges that and why do people go to fraudulent 10th dans instead of unranked instructors if that's the case commercially?).

I've been the independent route. I prefer to continue to have my knowledge challenged and have some guidance to move ahead. But that's just me.