I thought I would write a little note to explain the Japanese custom of gift giving to the students, particularly how it affects relationship building.
Omiyage is a souvenir gift from a trip and it is customary to give these gifts in Japanese popular culture, gift giving is a very common part of Japanese culture.
The blog image for this post is the Japanese kanji for 'Fudoshin' and this example was written by Yasumoto Soke.
It means imperturbability, steadfastness. The usual translation is keeping a cool head in an emergency, or keeping calm (e.g. during a fight).
Within Motoha Yoshin Ryu JuJutsu, the Japanese do not use a coloured belt system or perform gradings until Shodan (Beginner Dan, often referred to as 1st Dan). Those training start wearing a white belt and transition directly to black if they pass the grading.
The concept of coloured belts and gradings before black belt level is generally a western, modern addition to many martial arts, with each style often having its own different choice of colours and progression between these.
