New York City Branch, U.S.A. / March 2009 - Contributor: Steve Krieg

Late last year, with branch master Ohashi Senseis permission, several senior members decided to create a new group within our dojo that was composed exclusively of shodan and nidan black belts. Known as the NYC Shorinjikempo Branch Black Belt Group (BBG), this group would be strictly run by black belts, for black belts. Currently we have 11 members.

The goals for this new group were to increase and deepen our knowledge of all aspects of Shorinjikempo and to instill in our members a sense of duty, honor, and integrity as human beings of high quality in all aspects of our lives. As Shorinjikempo kenshi, our ultimate goal is to become quality people with leadership spirit. And as black belts, we are at the forefront of this goal. It was thought that rather than always run an organization in the typical top-down manner, perhaps a bottom-up approach should be taken as a way to empower kenshi, at the grass-roots level. Therefore, Ohashi Sensei and any kenshi 3rd Dan and above (since they are considered sensei-level) would not be included in the group and would only serve in advisory roles. Having such a group would also create an active learning environment where black belts can conscientiously hone their interaction skills to work and deal with others in harmony, in the spirit of jita kyoraku and jiko kakuritsu. These skills are critical in order to become a quality leader.

Specifically, we had three objectives in mind. First, we wanted to create an environment for black belts that would be conducive for advanced technical and philosophical learning and open-minded discussions on various topics. Second, this goal also addresses the issue of differences in knowledge levels among our members (particularly those within the same rank) and serves as a way to resolve or at least reduce the problem. And third, having higher quality black belt kenshi will serve as role models and a source of inspiration for the kyu kenshi and beginners during their practice and maybe in their daily lives as well.

The black belt group sessions are held once a month. The sessions are divided into two parts: the technical goho/juho training and group discussions on philosophy and other topics. Since we have just started these sessions, it is understood that it is an interative process and inevitably changes and refinements will have to be made.

Please read our blog in the "blog" link in NYC branch's website: www.shorinjikemponyc.org

Sai Gasshou,

Steve Krieg
NYC Branch

 

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