A while back I saw a post on Facebook written by a Kyokushin teacher from Poland that asked the question, “What happened to Kyokushin?” He was lamenting the fights that take place between Kyokushin karateka on social media, and Facebook in particular. I agree with him… it’s quite sad to see.
This got me to thinking about Social media. How it can be a positive force, but how it can also be intensely negative. Sometimes intentionally, and sometimes simply because people don’t take the time to think before they post. I do not believe rude behavior represents the majority of Kyokushin karateka… not even close! The first of Sosai’s 11 mottos was “The Martial Way begins and ends with courtesy. Therefore, be properly and genuinely courteous at all times.” There is no doubt that there are some who forget this, though. Even though a small percentage, a small percentage of a very large number is still enough to get our attention! Sadly, it’s common enough for it to be noticed. That type of behavior was one of the reasons I created the Kyokushinkai Karate Facebook group to begin with.
Although there are fewer of us every year that passes, there are still many who remember the “old days” when Sosai was still alive. I’ve personally always tried, as much as possible, to stay out of the politics. I believe that the overwhelming majority of Kyokushin karateka are silently shaking their heads over this type of behavior.
The division seen since Sosai’s passing has been quite sad to see for those of us who remember what it was like before. Having said that, what happened was likely unavoidable. Who could possibly take the place of Sosai?!? Ideally, we would all come together but human nature being what it is can make it difficult. I would like to think that each split that has happened over the years came with a great deal of soul-searching. People sometimes have valid reasons for changing organizations, and every instructor has a responsibility to choose what they believe is best for both themselves and their students. But I sometimes wonder how often the students themselves are really considered in those decisions. An affiliation is more than a name or patch; over time students develop friendships, training relationships, and connections throughout an organization. When a dojo changes direction, those relationships can change as well, even though the students themselves may never have been consulted.
Getting back to Facebook, one of the reasons we’ve been so strict about politics and recruiting in our group was because of this very thing. I suppose I could be wrong, but I tend to believe many people feel the same way that I do, that just because it’s social media doesn’t mean that we should not continue to be courteous to one another and sensitive to the choices and decisions people have made. We’ve worked hard to keep these things out or our group. I’m sure there are times we don’t catch everything because we all have a life outside social media, but we do try.
I believe that we are seeing a glimmer of hope though. We are seeing more and more organizations that run open tournaments and do not discriminate against anyone. I hope this trend will continue🙏 I believe many are seeing the wisdom of putting aside differences. That it is better to focus on the things that we have in common than to argue about what in the big picture does not matter. Instead we should remember KYOKUSHIN IS KYOKUSHIN!!! Each of us individually is searching for our “ultimate truth”. It is on the mat through hard work and SWEAT that we will find it!
OSU!
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