I'm hoping to get there one of these years. It may sound weird that a person who is a black belt is trying to get a white belt, but I'm going about it the long way. Like quite a few Karate men I have a satin belt which wears away. The black doesn't stay very well and the belt gets worn out becoming white again. Shogo Kuniba had a belt and there were only a few spots of black left on there. I want a belt like that.
I'm a member of the Dai Nippon Butoku Kai, and my last Karate test was through them. I wore a white belt to that test even though it was for certification to 5th dan (degree of black black belt). You wore your white belt to those events until your rank was certified. There's a new rule now that you wear your white belt to events.
Here's what I like about this. It's not what rank you are, it's what you bring to the table that's important. That is not to say that rank is not important. Those of a higher rank than oneself are the one's that walked the path before you and therefore have wisdom and insight, so they should be respected. So, if those of a higher rank are to be respected and everyone is wearing a white belt, then who should I be bowing to? Everyone.
Besides, I'm a Karate man. We only started wearing different color belts when Funakoshi started teaching the Japanese karate in the 1930s and they used a belt system for Judo. They asked him "What belt are you?" He asked what was the highest belt which was at the time 5th degree black belt. His answer, "I'm a fifth degree black belt."
I've half a mind to make all my students wear white belts all the time, but the kids wouldn't go for it. They look at me wild-eyed when I tell them about wearing white belts to the events I mentioned. Then a few of them get it: it's not the belt that's important.
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