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Old 11-22-2004, 06:47 PM   #19
Joe Bowen
 
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Dojo: Yongsan Aikikai
Location: But now I'm in the UK
Join Date: Sep 2004
Posts: 212
South Korea
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Re: Lineage vs Affiliation, Which?

Quote:
Brandon Needham wrote:
This may be slightly off the subject, however I will ask anyway. If you're affiliated with the Aikikai, and you visit another dojo (say on vacation/out of town) would that dojo, which is under Aikikai affiliation recognize your rank? This is assuming that you are not in the same organization as the school your visiting, just under the Aikikai umbrella. Sorry if this sounds dumb, but when I travel to other states for vacations or whatever I wanted to start going to other schools and training, just to expand my knowledge.
Not a dumb question at all. Most places you visit will take your ranking at face value. If you got your Dan ranking through the Aikikai you should have a little booklet and membership card that you can take with you to verify your Dan status at Aikikai headquarters in Japan. I've traveled back to the US on numerous occasions and as of yet, have not been challenged to prove my rank. Different places however, do things differently. So, don't be offended if they ask for verification or ask you not to wear your hakama or whatever. Just practice, take what you can, and if you don't like it, don't come back….

Quote:
Rob Liberti wrote:
I think the majority of new students join a dojo primarily because it is close to their house. They cannot possibly care about affiliation or keito. Later they will learn that neither matters in the end because both get corrupted very easily….Rob
Here's an interesting story for you. I was in Japan, spending about two weeks with Kobayashi Yasuo Sensei (8th Dan, Shihan for Kobayashi Dojos and Uchideshi for O'Sensei). We were watching him and his Uchideshi teach a children's class. One of my friends who were traveling with me, named Brian was talking to one of the mothers of one of the kids. Now, this is a Japanese woman and all the children are Japanese in the class. Brian was explaining to her that Kobayashi Sensei is one of the top ranked Aikido instructors in the world and had been instructing Aikido for over 30 years and had dojos affiliated with him all over the world. She was really surprised by this information. Apparently, the only thing that affected her decision to enroll her daughter in the class is the location. Kobayashi Sensei's dojo is only a short walk from her house. She apparently had never heard any of the other information before. Two, point to take away from this. One, proximity of access is important for most beginners and the other stuff is generally learned later and two, even Kobayashi Sensei with over 50 yrs of Aikido practice and over 30 yrs of teaching doesn't make an issue of the credentials when attracting new students. Ultimately, it is how you practice that brings in and keeps your students, not who you learned from….
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