Who does Karate belong to?
The notion that Karate is Japanese, or Okinawan, or Chinese, or Siamese is rather silly. Does Boxing belong to America? Or England? Does wrestling belong to America or Mongolia? India perhaps? If it doesn’t seem silly to you, then thinking about it for more than two minutes might do the trick eh? A movement you make with your body is indifferent to your race or culture. It’s one thing to honor traditions and your heritage, whether it is biological or cultural matters not, it’s completely another thing to impose ownership of body mechanics onto a race. Does drinking beer and fighting belong to the Irish? Makes sense right?
Gichin Funakoshi when bringing Karate to mainland Japan did not teach the students Okinawan vocabulary when teaching. He used Japanese. So why on earth is it not ok if someone uses just english terms? Or french? or portugese? If I take up another cultures tradition I feel it should be solely based on function and purpose. Does the tradition improve your life in anyway? Does it truly serve a function? Does it have a purpose other than it’s main function? Is the purpose and function in harmony? The belt system is great, Funakoshi saw a purpose for it and I feel that purpose and function was crucial in spreading Karate to CHILDREN. He took the tradition of Judo and adopted it to an Okinawan triadtion of Karate, which was created by the various fighting art traditions of other cultures with indigienous Okinawan arts. But for adults, I think they’re is a better system. Colored belts are nice and keep the attention of little kiddies when the purpose and function are in harmony. When you’re a kid the belt serves the function of grading, and it’s purpose is to keep you motivated and generally goal oriented, to see the future of your skills represented as a color. But more often than not as you grow older the function stayed the same, it’s used as a grading system, but the purpose is no longer in harmony with it’s main function. Most adults use the belt as an ego inflation device, a respect taker, they become delusional power mongers. So to me, this tradition goes, simple as that. I could write an entire essay on this aspect alone, and will do in the future, but onto the point.
At this time we have access to the most powerful technology there is. Communication is evolving at an extremely fast pace. And one of the biggest advantages modern Karate has is community. All people know that everyone is just another person. No one has super powers and none of the asian martial arts myth nonsense should be perpetuated anymore. Genuine martial artists, Karateka in particular, should call these people out regardless of their standing within the community or rank. Only real applicable traditions and techniques should live on. The best aspect of Okinawan Karate is that it is a tradition of changing traditions. For those who know what Jeet Kune Do and MMA represent, they understand that’s what Karate represents as well. It’s what works for you and whatever changes YOU need to make then YOU should always make them.
“Karate, as it is transmitted, changes every few years. This is a common phenomenon. It happens because a teacher must continue to learn and adds his personality to the teachings. There is an old Okinawan martial arts saying that states that Karate is much like a pond. In order for the pond to live, it must have infusions. It must have streams that feed the pond and replenish it. If this is not done then the pond becomes stagnant and dies. If the martial arts teacher does not receive infusion of new ideas and/or methods, then he, too, dies. He stagnates and, through boredom, dies of unnatural causes.” – Chosin Chibana
I ask you again. Who does Karate belong to? The answer is simple. You.
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