Greetings!

 To many people this statement seems somewhat confusing, and to others a bit obvious. However in both cases this comes from a common misunderstanding of the intended meaning.

The chances are that if you have ever been in a martial arts school in the United States, then you have seen this proudly emblazoned on the wall in some form or fashion.

In truth this statement refers to what I like to call "The Trident"

Yes most of us immediately picture a large muscle bound Greek God living at the bottom of the ocean when ever we picture a trident, but  this weapon has been in use by the eastern arts for well over a thousand years. The "Trident" that I am referring to is actually a metaphor referring to the three aspects of a Martial Artists Life that they must have in check in order to obtain any substantial level of skill.

Body -

Your body is a vassal. Much like a cup, you can fill it up with anything that you like. But at what cost?

Are you filling your vassal with excessive sweets, alcohol, & fatty foods with little or no nutritional value?

or-

Are you filling your vassal with positive nutrients that will sustain positive growth and a continued regeneration. Are you working on your body physically. Remember, the tree that stops growing has begun dyeing. 

Mind-

We spoke recently about your Reticular Activating System in your brain. This is the portion of your brain that allows you to determine the type of day, week, and month that you are going to have based purely on what you decide to focus on. However to take this a bit further, I would introduce you to the teachings of Myamoto Musashi, the 16th century author of "The Book of Five Rings".

In this book he teaches that if you allow yourself to focus on any one thing to the exclusion of anything else, then you have actually lost your way. If you were to take a moment and picture a compass with the four directions marked on it. Can you see it? OK Good. Now just focus on the heading of due south. If you are supremely focused on this one direction, can you see any of the other directions any longer? Not typically. So now by having become over focused, or obsessed, you have not only lost the other three directions on the compass, but also the ability to see anything coming from those directions. This can be a dangerous proposition in life considering that we are typically faced with a bombardment of information on a daily basis from every direction.

Spirit -

The spirit in this context does not refer to any religious context. Rather the intended idea is to seek and find the underlying motivation for everything that you do. If you help an old man cross the street, why? What was you intention in doing this? Did you just want to help? Did you hope that he may reward your kindness? Were you helping him on his way because he was in your way? You can see that every action has a deep seeded motivation, and more often than not they are selfish. Search your motivations in each action that you take and if your actions are selfless rather than selfish, then you're well on your way.

The martial arts help us in these three areas because we are challenged on a daily basis to become something that is as of yet , unattainable. But that should not be taken as a bad thing, In fact isn't that the essence of life, "The Chase". I for one do not want to stop running, and have thus far enjoyed the chase very much.

"We Are A Black Belt School" is really as much a promise as it is a statement. It is a promise that we will strive for more. Not in a material sense, but from within ourselves.