Life is a study. If you wish to become a lawyer you must study Law. If you wish to become a carpenter you must study carpentry. If you wish for success, you must study success.
The same applies to karate. Don’t be a Jack-of-all-trades in your knowledge of all things – make a study of it. One might argue, but attending classes is studying karate right? Yes and no. In a formal educational setting, an entire group progresses through a curriculum together. In karate however you have a mix of various grades, abilities and knowledge levels. As a 2nd Dan therefore, you may not be exposed to new information on a consistent basis. In essence, the longer you train in karate the less you are spoon fed information. Like any field, at some point a person must focus on self-education.
A Nidan is a second degree Black belt, and therefore their ability and knowledge should well-exceed that of any Shodan or Shodan-ho. And to some degree this becomes an independent quest. As a Japanese master once said, “If you cannot distinguish a 2nd dan black belt from a 1st dan black belt by watching them train, or listening to them talk about karate, then there is a problem”.
The following are just a few examples of things to make a study of:
- The history of karate.
- The history of karate’s forefathers.
- The history of martial arts.
- The history of various kata.
- The numerous applications and principles behind karate’s kihon.
- The numerous bunkai and self-defence principles within each kata.
- How to apply stances for combat during wrestling.
- How to apply basic blocks when wrestling.
- Kumite strategies and psychology.
- How physics applies to karate (creating more power, speed, stability etc).
- Kyushu (pressure) points and anatomical weak points on the human body.
Places to seek information:
- The Journey section Of GKR’s Website.
- The Articles section of GKR’s website.
- Google.
- Youtube.
- Books.
- Seminars.
Seek to make karate a study beyond what you have ever considered or done in the past.
