I have had my Black Belt for nearly two years now and you would think that by this time the question would be easy to answer. Well, for me it has not been easy. I think that, in order to answer this question, you have to ask yourself why you actually did everything that was needed to get your Black belt. Why did I go through all of the hours of training, sweat, sore muscles, pain, frustration and sometimes disappointment, to work through the kyu gradings to get to Shodan level?
When starting this essay I went back to some of the notes and ideas that I had jotted down since the beginning of the year. I found that I had, even in this reasonable short period of time, changed and developed on those ideas and that I could still not fully answer the question in my mind properly. It only left me questioning my feelings and ideas even more.
One of the first things that came to mind when I started to try and answer this question, was the sense of self achievement that I had when I first put on my Black Belt. Self achievement from the fact that I had done what many younger, more athletic students, had failed to do; that I had persevered where others had given up. And, because of this, I had reaped the rewards.
Did that mean that I was a better student, that I was more athletic, more supple? No, it meant that I had continued despite the fact that it was not always easy. (This in some ways must point to something in my own character, something that I did not always appreciate) Yes, there were times that I doubted that I could do it properly but there was always somebody there to give an encouraging word or to push me a little further. But this means that I did not do it 100% alone, so the self achievement no longer holds totally true.
The second feeling I had was a sense of pride. All of a sudden I was being congratulated by colleagues and people I hardly knew. It gave me a little bit of a social status and this made me feel good. But, after a while, this wears off and you are back where you started emotionally.
So, I was proud of my achievement, but did that mean I was a better or a different person than the one before I got my Black belt?
In terms of Karate, most definitely. Not only am I much more fit, but I am also a lot more supple than I was before a started Karate. I have learnt to know my own body better and have surprisingly found that I can do more than I originally thought. I often get pushed to my perceived limits and have found that I can still continue beyond these. Also, from both a physical and health perspective, I can definitely see a difference in myself. I cannot think of where I would have been in these aspects had I not been doing karate for the last 7 odd years.
I started Karate because it has always been something that I was interested in, right from the days of the TV program Kung Fu with David Caradine, which I first watched in black and white on Rhodesian TV in 1972. This then progressed to Bruce Lee movies and the interest has not stopped since. According to my understanding at the time, being a black belt made you both deadly and invincible. And that is what I wanted to be, able to kill somebody with one chop to the neck, as in all James Bond (007) movies.
Did I want to achieve this rank in karate for only those reasons, pride, self achievement? I dont think so as I would have then stopped, and would not be here now preparing for my Nidan grading.
I admit that my goal was only to get a Black belt. But somewhere along the journey I learned that having that black belt did not make me invincible, and I realized that what I had learned to get my Shodan, was just a drop in the ocean. I came to realize how little I really knew and that the most unbelievable thing about it all was that this was just the beginning.
So why did I do it?
After reaching 4th kyu I stopped doing karate for more than eight years, so one reason I did it was to finish something that I had started and for some reason had stopped.
I did it to be a good example to my two boys, to try and teach them that you must not stop at the first hurdle, but to continue because although you may not always win, you will always learn something from the experience. These hurdles are tests in our lives and, often, more can be learned from failure than from success. What makes our lives individual are all of these experiences, it gives us something that makes life something to look forward too.
I did it because it was always something I had an interest in. Plain and simple. I cannot think of any other reasons. There may have been others reasons but I can no longer remember them.
Where to from now?
Having gone through all of the Kyu ranks means I have learnt many moves and techniques. However, now that I am a black belt, I have come to realize that I am in many instances learning more about those same moves and techniques while helping with the other junior students. Instead of just doing the movement, I am forced to think about the movement and about how to convey this successfully to the student. This forces me to think of the many practical aspects of the technique and, with that, the various applications as to how to use it. It is very satisfying to take a technique and to teach that to somebody: to see that they really understand why they are doing it the way they are, and to think that if I was taught it that way, maybe I would have been a lot less frustrated.
Many people have spent many hours helping me with my journey to Shodan and beyond. Without them it would not have been possible and to that I owe a debt. I may not be able to repay them directly, but in the spirit of Karate maybe I can help others in some way. By making myself available for other karate related tasks, such as competition judging, grading preparation, just giving a class or the likes, not only do I continue learning and expanding my own knowledge, but I may also free up others to do more important things. In this way I can start giving back to Karate some of what was given to me.
Karate movements and techniques are both physical and technical activities and as such are very difficult to describe correctly in words. The only true ways of continuing to properly teach these are through practically doing them, as well as showing or coaching the student the correct way. This then can be my contribution to continuing the JKS style of Karate to the next generation of karateka.
I have now grown to enjoy Karate despite often having sore muscles or joints or being frustrated because of something that is hard to do or difficult to master. It is also difficult to measure myself against others and to accept that there is only so much that I am capable of physically. This has however not stopped me yet, and a good coach does not necessarily have to be a champion.
I have no idea what is going to happen next. I am just grateful that I have been given and have taken the opportunity to learn something extraordinary. I now know that this is an ongoing experience in my life, that I still have much to learn and that this is just the beginning. My training to this stage has been very much the basics of Karate and I would like to expand and continue on this base. (I have not yet even obtained my Nidan, yet I catch myself already thinking about Sandan.)
I have also, on previous Gasshukus that I attended, been exposed to wrist locks, takedowns and close quarter fighting and I feel that this would be one of the future possibilities to explore and learn. Also, with information so freely available on the WEB and with any search of the word 'Karate' or 'Shotokan' bringing up literally thousands of websites, it is now a feeling of 'So much to learn, so little Time'.
I am again humble.
Shaun Everett
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