Philosophy of the Belize Shotokan Karate Association
“The ultimate aim of karate lies not in victory nor defeat, but in the perfection of the character of its participants.” – Gichin Funakoshi.
At the BSKA, we adhere to the principles of the dojo kun and the niju kun established by Gichin Funakoshi to guide us inside and outside the dojo.
We see Karate physical training as merely a vehicle to develop character. We seek perfection of character and technical excellence through rigorous, repetitive training. In the process of subjecting our bodies to exact, precise, and structured training in the pursuit of technical excellence, we hope our quest for becoming persons of unquestionable character and integrity can be realized.
We are faithful by doing our share in participating in our own development, that of our fellow karatekas, our organization, and affiliates. We pay our dues, we train, we teach, we attend events, and we care for each other and our organization. We are a family faithful to the karate tradition.
Through the rigor of constant, repetitious training, and giving our best effort, we endeavor (to excel) to become better persons. We believe in the value of hard work (training) to achieve success in karate and life. Rank, seniority, and respect are the result of hard work; not preferential treatment or connections.
Karate begins and ends with a bow – a conveyance of respect. We respect others, ourselves, property and the art of karate. We respect our seniors (sempais and senseis) by valuing their knowledge, experience, and training. We respect our students and juniors (kohais) by acting in their best interest, providing them with the best training possible, and by serving as role models. We respect ourselves by keeping our bodies clean, healthy, and strong for training. We keep our gi clean and devoid of unnecessary marking. We respect our dojo by bowing when entering and leaving, keeping it clean, being ready for training and by adhering to its rules and regulations. We respect other martial arts organizations by recognizing their right to exist, practice as they wish, and choose their affiliation.
We refrain from violent behavior by being sensitive to what we say about and do to other individuals and/or organizations. We avoid violent situations by not participating in activities, practices, or organizational politics that can hurt the physical, mental, spiritual, and mental well being of others without due cause. We follow the way of justice and adhere to the principle, “karate ni sente nashi,” in karate never attack first.
True karate develops the whole person – body, mind, and spirit.
