Early on in our training, we can be hyper focused on our rank. Color belts can visually see where they are in the hierarchy of the martial arts school just by looking at each other’s belts. This distinction becomes less obvious as we enter the black belt levels, but there are ways to recognize them for those who know what to look for. There is an interesting thing that happens in the language between that color belt to black belt transition: color belts are referred to as “gups” (or “kyu” in Japanese systems), and black belts are referred to as “dan”. Why does this difference exist? Let’s delve into the original meaning to see why these words were chosen.
“Gup”, or “kyu” in Japanese and “jí” in Mandarin, is represented by the Chinese character 級. This character is a conjunction of “糸” which means “string” or “thread”, and “及” which means “to extend” or “reach”. The picture is that of a loom that is tying two strings (or layer of strings) together and moving on to the next pair of strings. Since this operation needs to happen one step at a time, 級 would gradually evolve its meaning from looming to a broader definition of “class”, “rank”, or “grade”. One can see a poetic parallel to the journey of a gup; the weaver (or instructor, in this case) carefully layering the strings (techniques and forms) required in the correct order so that the finished cloth (student) is complete and not full of holes. Another usage for 級 is depicted when one climbing stairs. Instead of taking a step for each level, one would gather both feet on a level first before moving on to the next step. This is first an act of humility, as it forces the one climbing to stop and contemplate each step before going to the next. Secondly, it is also a way of heightening the reverence for the end goal; when one move carefully toward their objective, whether it’s a shrine or the goal of black belt, then one appreciates that achievement that much more when they reach their destination.
Now let’s pivot to the character of 段 which is “dan” in Japanese and Korean, or “duàn” in Mandarin. This character is created by the conjunctions of 殳 (which is the right-hand side of the character) which refers to a polearm weapon, while the left-hand side represents the layers of iron ore. The original meaning of this character was “to strike”, “to condition” or “to forge”, and was originally tied to smithing iron into thin sheets for armor or weapons. Eventually” 鍛” would take on the meaning for “smithing” while “段” would eventually come to mean “to separate into levels”, “rank”, “stairs” or “steps”. It is also interesting to note that blacksmiths would give different grades or ranks to certain ore, and only the finest ore would be used for the famous katana in the forging process. Once this ore was carefully selected, it would then endure a multi-day process in which it would be heated to incredibly high temperatures, and repeatedly beaten and folded over many times to create the final product. Black belts are no different! They are first forged as color belts until their techniques are “first-grade” (1st gup or 1st kyu), then they are then tempered and tested during their black belt test until they achieve the level of 1st Dan. But the journey does not end there; they are then repeatedly tested and conditioned so that with every step or level, they become more refined, more complete, and that much sharper.
I hope this was an illuminating article for you. It certainly was for me! Next time you’re in class and your instructor is turning up the heat, remember: you’re being forged into something better.
Ogawa, Nishida, Akatzuka et al. Shinjigen (新字源) 1967, 2018
Shiragawa, Shizuka Jitou (字統) 2017
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