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Affiliations race is destroying traditional martial arts


In the world of most traditional martial arts there exists an organisational hierarchy built on the foundation of affiliations. A foundation which is weak and responsible for splitting and crumbling many organisations and indirectly affecting the martial arts itself. 

Every organisation has a headquarters, let's assume it is in Japan. Now it has branches in many countries, let's assume India is one branch. So there will be a chief instructor for India, who is paying affiliation fees yearly to be associated with the organisation. Now other instructors under him will again pay affiliation fees for being given a city or state etc as their area to teach. In many organisations it's not just yearly affiliation fees but other things like registering a certain number of students on the website for a price, and lots more. All these costs then make instructors try more and new ways to earn money. Some even make it compulsory for all students to buy a whole training kit like focus pads, punching bags etc to earn a bit more. 

After a few years the instructors under the chief instructor for India gets fed up of all this and the politics that comes with it and will try to find another organisation maybe in Japan itself or any other country. Contact them, and if they don't have a branch in India they will invite the instructor to come train at their headquarters for few days and give him an affiliation for India, in return of a good fee. 

Now this instructor becomes his own boss in India and his students who are black belts take affiliations from him for their respective city etc. The same cycle continues and someday these instructors will go find another organisation to get their direct affiliation from. This way it just keeps splitting up again and again.  

This affiliation racket and the immense politics and hierarchy it brings is putting lots of pressure on instructors. Ruining the base fundamental, that is training. 

I have been training for 4 decades now. Have seen this play out so many times. I have myself gone through it and with a heavy heart had to decide to break away. I still miss my instructors and wish I could still learn and grow with them, but not accepting this system comes with a price. A dear price to pay though. The best part is that instructors that go through this and are angry about how things are run, magickally forget all this and repeat the same practices once they are made chief instructor for a country. Things like not awarding the black belt certificate for years even after the exam to enforce control and demand loyalty and lots more. It's a vicious circle that keeps repeating itself, not because they don't know it is wrong but to survive in the system this is what needs to be done. 

Then there is the bad mouthing and ill talking of those who break away from this system and try to be fair. 

Martial arts training is a beautiful lifestyle. It can transform a person physically, emotionally, mentally and spiritually. It is a support system to so many students giving them not just physical fitness but a direction in life. Giving students a mentor, a guide to help them traverse through life. I have personally received so much love, care and guidance from my teachers, it is something all should experience and have as a part of their life. Such a wonderful system is being internally eaten by the affiliation racket and all the politics it brings. 

There are no bad instructors, it is the environment they are immersed in that makes them this way. 

Hope some day organisations and instructors wake up and say enough is enough and bring a change.

Train like a warrior to be a warrior!!!


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