What Does It Really Mean to Be a Black Belt?

The level of Black higher level One is often associated with great knowledge and skills – an almost mystical power seems to be bestowed upon those who attain it. And indeed in our system the key word for Black 1 is “Enlightenment.” But does enlightenment mean one can perceive all the mysteries of the universe? Yes. I mean no. I mean yes there should be a perception of us in the right place in the universe – but there will always remain unfathomable mysteries only God can answer.

What should our perception of ourselves be? Well if we have been following all the other color codes of faith, courage, honor, respect and love, etc., then we should see ourselves as Warriors with Compassion. This is our end goal at black. This in enlightenment. This is our primary mission. This is the summary of not just knowing a bazillion techniques and skills of martial arts, but of living a life by these codes that make our spirit thrive in life and leads to a life of helping others.

In the end enlightenment is a statement of our character. Who are we? Who do we want to be? How do we want our lives to be expressed? How do we want to impact others and this world? Every step of the way with each code is part of answering those questions. So a truly enlightened person practices each of those level codes every day. It means in many ways to be a white belt again. And a yellow. And an orange. And a brown. And a blue. And…and when we mix all the colors together, what color do we get? Black. A warrior with compassion.

– Sigung Steve Jungmann
Pai Xeung Lum