Honorary title in Budo

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In the Japanese martial arts ( Budō ) there is, in addition to the well-known modern Dan graduation system, another form of award: the classic honorary titles in Budō

  • Renshi ( 錬 士 , れ ん し )
  • Kyoshi ( 教士 , き ょ う し )
  • Hanshi ( 範士 , は ん し )
  • Meijin ( 名人 , め い じ ん )

These titles were intended as individual steps along the way - signs that a certain level of skill and understanding had been achieved. They are only awarded to those who "hold a specific rank and are exceptional in their technique, in their knowledge and in their character as Budōka ".

Only a commission of Japanese Budo grandmasters, who must all have the Hanshi title, can decide on the award of Budo titles.

history

The Dai-Nippon Butoku-Kai ( Japanese 大 日本 武 徳 会 "Great Japanese Association for the Promotion of Martial Arts", founded in Kyoto in 1895 ) had the task of subordinating the various martial arts after the dissolution of the Shogunate by the Meiji Restoration to unite under one roof and to both standardize and control.

In 1902 - the Dan system had not yet been developed - the Butoku-Kai introduced the two titles "Kyoshi" and "Hanshi" for the most outstanding Japanese masters. These titles come from old samurai nobility degrees that had been awarded by the daimyo before the Meiji Restoration . In 1934, after Okinawan karate had also been adopted as a Japanese martial art by Butoku-Kai, the third title "Renshi" was added , below Kyoshi and Hanshi .

After the Second World War , the Japanese martial arts were banned by the victorious powers and the Butoku-Kai was dissolved. Only after the martial arts were allowed again in Japan, official Budo titles could be awarded again. For this purpose, the Japanese imperial family authorized the successor organization of Butoku-Kai, the IMAF-Kokusai Budoin , founded in 1952 , as the only organization outside the Japanese government, to use the honorary titles "Renshi" , "Kyoshi" , "Hanshi" and now "Meijin" in all of them To lend Budo disciplines. In addition to the IMAF, only the Japanese Kobudō , Kendō , Iaidō and Kyūdō associations were allowed to award the titles “Renshi” , “Kyoshi” and “Hanshi” in their disciplines. The award of the Meijin title is reserved exclusively for the IMAF.

Since non-Japanese Budo titles are only obtained in rare exceptional cases, many organizations and associations worldwide have now adopted the system of Budo titles for themselves and award the titles themselves - according to more or less high requirements. However, the Budo titles are purely Japanese Title and a Japanese award, therefore all titles that have not been awarded by one of the above-mentioned organizations (and explicitly authorized by the Japanese government or the imperial family) have no official character.

In the following the minimum requirements of the IMAF (regarding the Dan graduation) are described. Other associations may apply different standards here.

Renshi

The syllable “Ren” ( 錬 , れ ん ) means “polished, forged or hardened”, “Shi” ( 士 , し ) means “person” or “man”. “Renshi” ( 錬 士 , れ ん し ) describes a “sophisticated person” or an expert. A renshi must have held 4th dan or higher for at least 2 years.

Kyoshi

After a Renshi ( 錬 士 , れ ん し ) has reached the 6th, 7th or 8th Dan, he can receive the Kyoshi title ( 教士 , き ょ う し ) if he has demonstrated exceptional skills (as defined by the respective organization) . “Kyo” ( 教 , き ょ う ) roughly means “to teach” and means “teacher”.

Hanshi

The few Kyoshi ( 教士 , き ょ う し ) who have reached the highest grades of 8th Dan and above and are at least 50 years old can finally be awarded the Hanshi ( 範士 , は ん し ). “Han” ( 範 , は ん ) means something like “model” or “example”. "Hanshi" describes the example and role model for the others, that is, the grandmaster. (Cf. also Shihan , who differs linguistically not only through the interchanging of the syllables: while the syllable "shi" ( 士 , し ) in Hanshi means "warrior", "shi" ( 師 , し ) in Shihan ( 師範 , し は ん ) is written with a different character that means “teacher”; the character for “han” ( 範 , は ん ) is the same in both cases.)

Meijin

The word “Meijin” ( 名人 , め い じ ん ) comes from Confucianism and means “perfect man”. In the history of Budo, only twelve Budo grandmasters and pioneers have received the Meijin title. It is the highest honor in Budo and can only be awarded by the IMAF-Kokusai Budoin. The award can be given to holders of the 10th Dan Hanshi , who are among the outstanding leaders in the Japanese martial arts who have stood up for the principles of Budō for life and through their personal exemplary example of the highest technical perfection and the deepest spiritual understanding as well have contributed to the development and dissemination of the Budo concept throughout the world through ongoing diverse efforts.

Holders of the Meijin title

  • Ito Kazuo, Judo Meijin 10th Dan (1898–1974)
  • Itoh Takasue, Judo Meijin 10th Dan (1897–1981)
  • Mifune Kyuzo, Judo Meijin 10th Dan (1883–1965)
  • Nakayama Hakudō , Kendo Meijin 10th Dan (1873-1958)
  • Ōtsuka Hironori , Karatedo Meijin 10th Dan (1892–1982)
  • Ota Tsugiyoshi, Iaido Meijin 10th Dan (1892–1984)
  • Shioda Gōzō , Aikido Meijin 10th Dan (1915-1994)
  • Takano Hiromasa, Kendo Meijin 10th Dan (1900–1987)
  • Yamaguchi Katsuo, Iaido Meijin 10th Dan (1917-2006)
  • Tose Keiji, Iaido Meijin 10th Dan (1924-2010)
  • Shizuya Satō , Jujutsu Meijin 10th Dan (1929-2011)
  • Hirokazu Kanazawa , Karatedo Meijin 10th Dan (1931–2019)

On July 7, 2012, the last Meijin title so far was awarded to Master Hirokazu Kanazawa . He was thus the last recipient of this highest of all possible awards in Budo.

See also

  • Shihan , is the classic honorary title for a master in Budo. Shihan (Japanese 師範, "teacher", "role model") is a Japanese term from Budo. He is a teacher trainer or a professor; but is also often translated simply as "master". It is an honorary designation for a high dignitary, high teacher and master.
  • Shidōin and Fuku Shidōin , term for a less experienced teacher; The title is also available in Japanese Go , the carrier was, for example, Honinbō Shūsai and in the Japanese chess game Shogi , the carrier was, for example, Yoshiharu Habu .

Web links

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ a b c IMAF-Budo Passport: Explanations of Titles. Board of IMAF, p. 27.
  2. ↑ Article "Butokukai" in: W. Lind: The Lexicon of Martial Arts. ISBN 3-328-00838-1 .
  3. ↑ Web article: Titles and Degrees in Karate on doshikai.org (PDF; 33 kB), Gordon
  4. ↑ About the titles Renshi, Kyoshi and Hanshi . In: Gendo 2003 ( IMAF-Kokusai Budoin Newsletter )
  5. ↑ How the Masters Got Their Ranks: Origins of the Karate Rank System ( Memento of the original from February 21, 2007 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link has been inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. on judoinfo.com @1@ 2Template: Webachiv / IABot / www.judoinfo.com
  6. ↑ a b c Prof. Shizuya Sato: Grade and title in Budo ( Memento of the original from September 27, 2007 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. on imaf-germany.de  @1@ 2Template: Webachiv / IABot / www.imaf-germany.de
  7. ↑ a b c Sho-Go  ( page no longer available , search in web archives )  Info: The link was automatically marked as defective. Please check the link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. on shitokai.com@1@ 2Template: Dead Link / shitokai.com  
  8. ↑ Kanji No. 1092 in: Wolfgang Hadamitzky: Langenscheidts manual and lexicon of Japanese writing. ISBN 3-468-49388-6 .
  9. ↑ Article "Meijin" in: W. Lind: The Lexicon of Martial Arts. ISBN 3-328-00838-1 .
  10. ↑ Hans-Dieter Rauscher: Meijin ( Memento of the original from September 27, 2007 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. on imaf-germany.de  @1@ 2Template: Webachiv / IABot / www.imaf-germany.de
  11. ↑ IMAF: Meijin. Retrieved March 3, 2017 .
  12. ↑ Cork Webdesign: GRAND MASTER OF MARTIAL ARTS - Shotokan Karate-Do International Federation. Retrieved March 3, 2017 .