I mostly think colored belts are stupid, so for several years I've mostly been wearing the same white belt with my gi. Today as I was tying it I noticed something that I haven't noticed before: it's starting to fray. My belt is fraying. Woo-ooo! I consider that a badge of honor! It's sweat equity. It's evidence of many, many hours of training. Maybe I still suck, but I have evidence of trying and trying again and trying again! Woo-ooo!
Feeling a bit Zen-ful are we?? I'm rather surprised it's still "white" ? It reminds me of the Zen story .... about the black belt that becomes so worn and frayed it begins to lose color and returns to white. ... coming full circle--white to black, black to white.... "can one know the depth of the Way".
Isn't "white" a color?? Why are "colored" belts stupid? Why even wear a belt then? Oh yeah .... need to keep the pants up! :bang:
Actually white, black and grey are technically not considered to be colours. Oh and we wear belts...but since we were kung fu pants they aren't even necessary! After all, our pants stay up because of the elastic and we have no gi that needs to be tied shut!
... technicalities ! OK ... so technically speaking-- "black is the abscence of color, while white is every color".... Scientifically speaking? white is not the absence of color IF by color we are talking about the optical properties of the light rather than the perception. if we define color purely by our perception of it then we will think that, as above, white is not a color- this is because we will be talking about how our semantics links in with our psychological perceptions and sensations. On the other hand, if we talk about the optical properties of the light then we will have to analyse its nature. If we analyse light we will find that it is composed of photons of varying frequencies. Light is supposed to be just another part of the Electromagnetic (EM) Spectrum. As the frequency of the EM changes so do it's optical properties. We see by reflection. If you look at a blue picture then what you are seeing is the 'color' blue. But that's not the whole story: what is actually happening is that the pigment in the picture only reflects light of a specific frequency (i.e. the frequency of blue light). Similarly, a black picture is black because it reflects little or no (visible) wavelength of light. Another point to bear in mind is that a percieved color is dependent upon the source light. By 'source light' I mean the color/ wavelength of the light before it reflects off a surface. For example: if I am in a dark room and shine a yellow light at a blue image then I will see a greenish image. As it is, our everyday source-light is composed of all the frequencies of visible light (and then some). The problem is that we never see white source-lights. Light is just clear (for the most part). The question is, is "white" caused by a certain frequency of light being reflected? Well, if we look at a white(ish) sheet of paper I can tell you that many frequencies of light are being reflected. However, while this means that "white" is percieved in the same way as other colors, it also means that white is not a color proper. This is because we cannot associate "white" with a specific wavelength of light (this last point might be wrong). So, yes- white IS a "percieved" color but, it is not a color "proper" I believed I proved my point ... (I love when people quote me ) As far as your pants.... mine also have elastic but I must not have enough junk in the trunk to keep them up without a belt
My belt is green and new-ish, but since I will have that same color all the way to black belt, there is plenty of time to get it nice and frayed! Incidentally, I don't need the belt to keep the trousers up, but it does help to keep the jacket closed (those little ribbon ties notwithstanding). If you want to see a great, frayed belt, have a look at my sensei's black belt! By the way, congrats on the fraying, aikiMac!
My instructors aren't my instructors because their belts are black -- or red, or white and red, or whatever color is in vogue. (Their belts are black frayed and faded to near white, if you must know.) They are my instructors because they have superior technical ability. All those Rainbow Bright colors (yellow, orange, green, blue, purple, red, brown, cammo, cyan, teal, magenta, whatever) are there to appeal to our consumerism desires, says me. It's a marketing gimmick for Westerners, says me. For $8 or so I can buy any color belt at the local karate mart. I wear a belt only because I wear a gi, and I wear a gi only because the dojo rules require me to. It's Japanese underwear, you know. We're wearing Japanese underwear as training clothes. Call me silly, but I think that's silly. Truthfully, we only need one belt, and then, only if we're wearing a gi. I'd even agree on two colors: one for the student ranks, and another one for the instructor ranks. White and black sound good. But if we're not wearing a gi we don't need any belt at all. Everyone in my class who has been there more than a month knows exactly how good (or how bad) I am, and I know how good each of them is. In truth we don't need the daily color-coded reminders. But all the same, I remain delighted that I've begun to wear out my belt. Pretty soon I'll have to get a new one, or start wearing purple in correspondence with my rank, and that gives me a good feeling inside.
Happy Happy, Joy Joy .... "that good feeling inside" hence what a belt should appeal to... "Many say that the martial arts should not be defined by rank. I would have trained with or without the belt promotions, however I believe, one defining aspect in the difference between men and women, is how they perceive and receive promotions. Looking back, those belt promotions throughout the years of my journey did a great deal for my self- esteem and inner strength. I do see many students, especially women, change when they are promoted. To work for something and be acknowledged for that effort does help develop positive self-image so important for certain individuals" ...taken from "KC's book. ~~~Celebrate good times C'mon~~~
My Kung Fu school sort of had a white-Red-Black system. As far as I know, we had this system so that the senior students with higher technical ability were separated from the whites. You were actually given the red when your ability was properly asessed and you were found "worthy" so to speak. apart from separation of students... and a possible obvious symbolism to why you should show respect... I disagree with colored ranks to the effect of what's already been posted.
Congratulations! It's the little details that mean so much. One of the things I noticed while changing one day there was a belt hanging on one of the pegs. It was frayed and worn quite badly, it's color more of a medium gray then black. Yet there was fine embroidery in yellow thread on it. Rather odd for such a worn out belt, I thought. There was some kanji and some english writing, on one end it read 1st degree...the other end had my instuctors name. For a simple piece of cloth, it told quite a story.
i have never had a belt fray on me ever ,i doubt training really hard would make it do that are you washing you belt?
I wash my uniform but not my belt. I roll and fall on the mat a lot. (Aikido) Maybe you're in a more stand-up art?
If I remember correctly, the belt system, as we know it today, was created by Jigaro Kano (of Judo), so that he could rank the Judo players in different groups of skill or knowledge so that they could compete with each other. The belt system was later adopted by Funakoshi for the children in Karate so that he could, at a glance, see what that student should know, and what he had to teach that student next. Colors also excited children, who need more motivation then adults, who knew why they were there. Finally, it does help in goal setting and goal achieving skills, making the children more self-motivated later in life. In Summary, Belts are good for competing and as a tool for teaching children. Most martial art school's curiculum is designed for children, and adults have to play along. On the note of fraying, I have had my belt for about 5 years, and it is starting to fray also. Congrats, AikiMac!
