The Bujinkan Godan Test: The Good, The Bad, & The Ugly

by Omoplatapus

This is the first in a series of articles aimed at the new consumer of martial/combative instruction. In popular culture, not much is known about how combat sports and martial arts are trained effectively. Often times, the average Joe or suburban soccer mom know absolutely nothing about this industry. Unfortunately, this can lead to them falling for bad contracts (which will be discussed in the next article in this series), hokey stage magic, or ridiculous black belt club systems (which will also be discussed in a future article).

This article deals specifically with the Godan test for a group known as the Bujinkan. The Bujinkan is the largest, and most prolific organization teaching ninjitsu. It is headed up by Masaaki Hatsumi, and has a very broad curriculum that covers striking, joint locks/manipulations, basic gymnastics, and traditional weapons training. Once a student reaches the rank of “black belt” they are known as a “shodan” (first degree). The Bujinkan has 15 degrees of black belt, with the 5th degree being known as “Godan”. At this rank of 5th degree, the practitioner is considered to be fit to be a full instructor. So, let’s get to the meat and potatoes of this test, and why it’s something to not be taken in by.

THE GOOD

Masaaki Hatsumi, at one time, insisted on being the sole proctor of this test. As he has aged, he has selected a very small number of his most experienced students to be proctors. However, at this time, Hatsumi still observes their administering of the test. Bujinkan students often travel from their home countries to Japan to take this test, as waiting for Hatsumi to come to your area might take years after you are deemed ready to take the test. Hatsumi’s reasoning for this is simple. He wants all his students who are achieving the rank that allows them to be full instructors and open up shop under his name to have proven to him, personally, that they have the skills required to hold such a rank. I, personally, have no problem with this philosophy, and would be happy to see other organizations adopt a similar set of rules for certain ranks.

THE BAD



Before I get into “the bad” of this test, it’s important that you see it for yourself. The following video shows a large number of people taking this test. There is a fair distribution of pass and fail in this video.

Ok, so that’s it. You kneel down in front of Hatsumi and try to dodge his attempt to bonk you on the head with a bamboo sword. There is NO demonstration of skill within the existing curriculum. There is NO recitation (verbal or written) of Bujinkan knowledge. There is NO test of teaching ability or familiarity with dojo safety. If you dodge the attack, you’re a 5th degree black belt. If you get hit, then you have the option to retest the next day. Fail again, and you’re out of luck. You must simply wait until you are able to retest at a later date.

THE UGLY

First, I want you to watch the video again and see if you can spot a pattern between those that pass and those that fail. I had to watch this test given many times before I noticed that this test was, basically, a magic trick with the student completely unaware of what was happening. If they pass, they believe that they are so attuned to their martial ability, that they can dodge an attack with no warning. They never know that they were actually cued as to when the attack was coming, and actually could not pass this test if I were proctoring it.

The cue is simple; the test proctor rises up on his toes before he swings the bamboo sword if he wants the student to dodge the strike. With the test taking place on a padded floor, the rising up on the toes causes a minor, but noticeable, shift in the floor. The test taker feels this shift and immediately dodges. When the proctor does not give this cue, the test taker gets hit.

The set up of this trick is just as important as the trick itself. The students and camera are in front of the test taker. All their attention is placed on him. I would be very surprised if anybody is watching the test proctor during his swing. Also, due to the placement of the students and camera, you cannot see the proctor’s feet. This gives just enough of a cover to keep the trick going. But there is more to the set up than just the positioning of the students and test proctor. These students are not looking for a trick. They aren’t at a magic show where basic curiosity will lead a normal person to try to figure out the tricks that are being performed. These students believe that this test is credible. They have paid a lot of money and spent a lot of time preparing themselves for this moment. Due to these factors, no student will be likely to spot the trick to the test.

Now, some people will continue to defend the godan test. Some people will say that the fact that the students recognize any change in the environment to signal an oncoming attack. But that still leaves a problem. The proctor of the test has near total control over the outcome of each student’s success or failure. With enough tests given, there will be a student who dodges at the right time without the cue. Basic statistical probability says it has happened, or is bound to happen eventually. But, the overwhelming control of the outcomes of the test rest in the hand of the test proctor, and for anybody who has ever taken a course on measurement and evaluation (at any level) will know that this is a highly flawed method of testing. It measures nothing, and gives no useful information for further evaluation.