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Old 11-20-2007, 10:32 AM   #64
Will Prusner
 
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Dojo: AikiSpirit Dojo
Location: Coral Gables, Florida
Join Date: May 2007
Posts: 196
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Re: significance to testing/belt rank?

Quote:
Giancarlo DiPierro wrote: View Post
So rank "is what it is," but what it is in aikido is not what people think it is. It is by no means an objective measure or guarantee of skill, even within one group, and certainly not within the general martial arts community. Nor is it a necessary or even sufficient requirement to teach anyone anything. It is nothing more than a measure of one's political position within one particular organization.
Okay, I have no rank. I am also not particularly impressed by rank, in and of itself. I also do not belong to any particular martial arts organization, nor am I much impressed by them, either. I'm also not upset that other people DO have rank. And it doesn't bother me at all that some people look up to those with rank, misguided or not. Whatever gets you through the night.

However, to be perfectly honest, the above quote sounds a lot like a "Sour Grapes" approach to ranking. GD, If you're upset about not holding rank, and it is as easy to obtain as you say, then by all means, join up and put in the work. Otherwise, just take it easy, don't worry so much about what other people are doing and thinking. Just do your own thing and be comfortable with not fitting in to the mainstream. But also be aware that some of those people in the mainstream may talk down to you, underestimate you, even attempt to repress, silence and discredit your opinions. That's good, anticipate it, expect it, grow from it, consider that they are the hammers beating the impurities from your matrix, helping you to become stronger and sharper than before. And after all, don't their actions and statements say more about them than they do about you? But why put so much energy into discrediting the ranking system of an organization that you supposedly don't care for in the first place? It just don't jive. If you don't care about rank, then act like it.

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Fear is the mind-killer.
Fear is the little-death that brings total obliteration...

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