Purple belt grading is a significant milestone in your karate journey because it marks the end of the beginner level and the beginning of the intermediate level.
In this post, we will look at what the purple color belt means in karate, the length it takes to go from an orange belt to a purple belt, detailed grading requirements for a purple belt (5th kyu), how to find out if you are ready for a purple belt grading, and how to best prepare for it.
What does the purple belt in karate represent?
In the Shotokan karate curriculum, the purple belt is the fifth belt you will be awarded and correspond to a 5th kyu rank.
Purple is the color of dawn. This represents the end of the beginner level and purple belt students are now beginning to transition to an intermediate stage of their karate study.
At this stage, you would have learned all the basic blocking, punching and kicking techniques, learned the first four Heian kata and many basic sparring techniques.
You would have also improved your physical fitness significantly and gained a lot more confidence.
In some dojos, you might be even asked to assist beginners at white, yellow or orange belt levels with basic techniques.
How long does it take to get a purple belt in Shotokan karate?
It generally takes a minimum of 3 months to go from a green belt (6th kyu) to a purple belt (5th kyu) and you are required to meet the minimum training time requirement, for example 36 hours or 30 to 35 training sessions.
However, at this level, the minimum training time is usually for someone who is very athletic, trains hard and consistently and improves their techniques dramatically in this period of time.
In reality, students vary significantly in terms of natural technical ability and dedication. Some may take 6 months and some may even take 9 months or 12 months to progress from a blue belt to a purple belt if they don’t train regularly.
There are two purple belt ranks (5th and 4th kyu) and it’s normal for students to spend around 12 months on the purple belt level.
In a decent dojo, your instructor is unlikely to rush you through the ranks but rather grade individual students differently depending on their ability and the effort they put in.
Because a purple belt is the beginning of the intermediate level, a good instructor would wait until you’ve mastered the basic techniques and are fit to progress to more advanced techniques to award you a purple belt.
Therefore, as I previously mentioned in this series, you are ready for this grading when your instructor says you are. Please don’t ask if you can grade, you may put yourself and your instructor in an awkward situation.
Karate should be a personal journey and not a rush to get to purple belt, brown belt, or black belt levels.
Enjoy and put your best effort into each training session so that after each one, you’ll feel like you are a better karateka in some small aspect. Those small incremental progress will add up over time and make you a better karateka and a better person.
A new color belt is meaningless if it is not accompanied by deep meaningful changes within you.
Shotokan purple belt (5th kyu) grading requirements
There are four technique areas that you need to demonstrate for your purple belt (5th kyu) grading: kihon, kata, kumite and ukemi waza.
1. Kihon
To get a purple belt in Shotokan, you generally need to know the following stances and techniques.
- Stances:
- Zenkutsu dachi
- Kokutsu dachi
- Kiba dachi
- Techniques:
- Oi tsuki
- Gyaku tsuki
- Age uke
- Soto ude uke
- Uchi ude uke
- Yoko empi
- Kizami tsuki
- Nukite
- Shuto uke
- Mae ren-geri
- Mawashi geri
- Yoko geri keage
- Yoko geri kekomi
- Uraken
- Ushiro geri.
In the grading, you will be required to perform these techniques as listed below. The examiner will count and the general rule is one count, one move.
Most of the technique combinations below have been examined at your previous grading. However, you should demonstrate substantial improvements in terms of power, speed and martial attitude since your last grading.
Sanbon tsuki (three punches)
- Start in a ready stance (yoi dachi or shizentai dachi) and then change to a left zenkutsu dachi with a left gedan barai
- Step forward into a right front stance (migi zenkutsu dachi) and perform three punches: Jodan oi tsuki (migi), Chudan oi tsuki (hidari) and Chudan oi tsuki (migi)
- Step forward into a left front stance (hidari zenkutsu dachi) and perform three punches: Jodan oi tsuki (hidari), Chudan oi tsuki (migi) and Gedan oi tsuki (hidari)
- Repeat the above as directed by the examiner.
With sanbon tsuki as well as gyaku tsuki (below), try to engage the hips (hip rotation) with each technique to add more power to your punches.
Gyaku tsuki sanbon (reverse punch to the chest, straight punch to the face, and reverse punch to the chest)
- Start in a ready stance (yoi dachi) and then change to a left zenkutsu dachi with a right gyaku tsuki
- Step forward into a right front stance (migi zenkutsu dachi) and perform 3 punches: a reverse punch with your left hand (hidari gyaku tsuki) aiming at the chest, followed by a lunge punch to the face (migi jodan oi tsuki) and another reverse punch to the chest (hidari gyaku tsuki)
- Step forward into a left front stance (hidari zenkutsu dachi) and perform 3 punches again: migi gyaku tsuki aiming at the chest, hidari jodan oi tsuki aiming at the face, and migi gyaku tsuki aiming at the chest
- Repeat the above as directed by the examiner.
Age uke (rising block) and Gyaku tsuki (reverse punch)
- Start in a ready stance (yoi dachi) and then change to a left zenkutsu dachi with a left gedan barai
- Step backward into a right front stance with the body making a 45 degree angle (migi hanmi zenkutsu dachi) and perform a rising block with your right hand (migi jodan age uke), followed by a reserve punch (hidari gyaku tsuki)
- Step backward into left front stance (hidari hanmi zenkutsu dachi) and perform a rising block with your left hand (hidari jodan age uke), followed by a reverse punch (migi gyaku tsuki)
- Repeat the above technique as directed by the examiner.
Note that the first move in this combination is to go backward in order to create an extra layer of safety in case your block misses the attack or is not strong enough.
The same rule applies to other combinations of block and counter-attack techniques listed below.
Soto ude uke (block from outside inwards), Yoko empi (sideway elbow attack) and Uraken (back fist strike)
- Start in a ready stance (yoi dachi) and then change to a left zenkutsu dachi with a left gedan barai
- Step backward into a right front stance (migi hanmi zenkutsu dachi), perform an outside-inward block with your right hand (migi soto ude uke) and immediately counter-attack with a migi yoko empi and migi uraken in kiba dachi stance
- Step backward into a left front stance (hidari hanmi zenkutsu dachi), perform an outside-inward block with your left hand (hidari soto ude uke) and immediately counter-attack with a hidari yoko empi and hidari uraken in kiba dachi stance
- Repeat the above technique as directed by the examiner.
When performing this combination of techniques, imagine someone is coming for you with a straight punch to the chest. You move backward and block with a soto ude uke, then immediately counter-attack with yoko empi and uraken using the same hand (kiai on the uraken technique).
Uchi ude uke (block from inside to outside), Kizami tsuki (leading arm punch) and Gyaku tsuki (reverse punch)
- Start in a ready stance (yoi dachi) and then change to a left zenkutsu dachi with a left gedan barai
- Step backward into a right front stance (migi hanmi zenkutsu dachi) and perform an inside-outward block with your right hand (migi uchi ude uke) and counter-attack immediately using the same hand with a lead-arm punch (kizami tsuki), followed by a hidari gyaku tsuki
- Step backward into a left front stance (hidari hanmi zenkutsu dachi) and perform an inside-outward block with your left hand (hidari uchi ude uke) and counter-attack immediately using the same hand with a lead-arm punch (kizami tsuki), followed by a migi gyaku tsuki
- Repeat the above technique as directed by the examiner.
When performing this combination of techniques, visualize that someone is coming for you with a straight punch to the chest, you move backward and block with an uchi ude uke and immediately counter-attack with a kizami tsuki and a gyaku tsuki (kia on the gyaku tsuki technique).
Shuto uke (knife-hand block), kizami geri (front leg kick) and Nuki-te (spear hand strike)
- Start in a ready stance (yoi dachi)
- Step backward with your right leg into a back stance (kokutsu dachi) and perform a knife-hand block with your left hand (hidari shuto uke), followed by a leading leg kick (hidari kizami geri) and a migi nuki-te (spear hand strike) in zenkutsu dachi
- Step backward with your left leg into a back stance (kokutsu dachi) and perform a knife-hand block with your right hand (migi shuto uke), followed by leading leg kick (migi kizami geri) and a hidari nuki-te (spear hand strike) in zenkutsu dachi
- Repeat the above technique as directed by the examiner.
When performing this combination of techniques, visualize someone is coming for you with a chudan attack, you move backward and block with a shuto uke and then counter-attack with a leading leg kick (usually aiming to destroy the front knee of the opponent) and a spear-hand strike (kiai on this technique).
Mae geri jodan and chudan (front kicks to jodan and chudan levels)
- Start in a ready stance and then change to a left zenkutsu dachi, hands in kamae position
- Perform a front kick with the right leg to the face level (jodan mae geri), landing forward into zenkutsu dachi then perform chudan mae geri with the left leg, landing forward into a zenkutsu dachi
- Repeat the above as directed by the examiner.
Mawashi geri (roundhouse kick) and Gyaku tsuki (reverse punch)
- Start in a ready stance and then change to a left zenkutsu dachi, hands in kamae position
- Perform a roundhouse kick with the right leg, landing in a right zenkutsu dachi (kamae position) then immediately attack with a reverse punch with the left hand (hidari gyaku tsuki)
- Perform a roundhouse kick with the left leg, landing in a left zenkutsu dachi (kamae position) then do a reverse punch with the right hand (migi gyaku tsuki)
- Repeat the above as directed by the examiner.
Yoko ren-geri (side snap kick and side thrust kick)
- Start in a ready stance
- Step to the right hand side into a horse riding stance (kiba dachi) and perform a side snap kick with your right leg (migi yoko geki keage) and a side thrust kick (migi yoko geri kekomi)
- Repeat the above as directed by the examiner (you are likely required to do five kicks to the right and then turn around and do another five kicks to the left).
Ushiro geri (back kick)
- Start in a ready stance and then change to a left zenkutsu dachi, hands in kamae position
- Turn around and perform a back kick with the right leg, landing into a right zenkutsu dachi
- Turn around and perform a back kick with the left leg, landing into a left zenkutsu dachi
- Repeat the above as directed by the examiner.
2. Kata
You will perform Heian Yondan kata for this grading and may be asked to perform a Heian kata from your previous gradings as well.
Below are demonstrations of the Heian Yondan by Hirokazu Kanazawa sensei and one of Masao Kagawa sensei’s senior students, Koji Arimoto.
3. Kumite
For your purple belt (5th kyu) grading, you are required to perform any 2 Kihon Ippon Kumite techniques (basic one-step sparring exercises) for each of the Jodan, Chudan, Mae geri, Yoko geri, and Mawashi attacks.
Below is an example of what you can choose.
Jodan
- Jodan Number 2: Attack with Jodan oi tsuki. Defend with Hidari tate shuto uke and counter-attack with Shuto uchi
- Jodan Number 3: Attack with Jodan oi tsuki. Defend with Migi tate shuto uke and counter-attack with Yoko keage and Yoko empi
Chudan
- Chudan Number 2: Attack with Chudan oi tsuki. Defend with Migi soto ude uke and counter-attack with Yoko empi
- Chudan Number 3: Attack with Chudan oi tsuki. Defend with Migi Uchi Ude Uke and counter-attack with Kizami tsuki and Gyaku tsuki
Chudan mae geri
- Mae geri Number 2: Attack with Chudan mae geri. Defend with Gyaku gedan barai and counter-attack with Kizami tsuki and Gyaku tsuki
- Mae geri Number 3: Attack with Chudan mae geri. Defend with Gedan juji uke and counter-attack with Jodan shuto juji uchi
Yoko geri kekomi
- Yoko geri Number 2: Attack with Yoko kekomi. Defend with Hidari chudan heiwan uke and counter-attack with Migi jodan haito uchi
- Yoko geri Number 3: Attack with Yoko kekomi. Defend with Migi ushiro gedan barai and counter-attack with Chudan yoko kekomi and Yoko empi
Jodan mawashi geri
- Mawashi geri Number 2. Attack with Jodan mawashi geri. Defend with Tate heiko shuto uke and counter-attack with Soeto yoko empi
- Mawashi geri Number 3: Attack with Jodan mawashi geri. Defend with Migi jodan soto ude uke and counter-attack with Kizami geri and Gyaku tsuki.
4. Ukemi waza
Ukemi Waza are break-fall techniques.
You are required to perform Ukemi Waza Level 3 or higher. Level 3 includes the following techniques:
- Shoulder roll from standing position
- Shoulder roll to side breakfall
- Side breakfall from simple throw.
You need to demonstrate both the left and right sides.
5. Other techniques
Please prepare for situations where you are asked to perform other techniques by the examiner, for example, a combination of previously learned techniques or techniques you’ve performed in previous gradings.
This may happen when there are too many people grading at the same time and the examiner has not been able to observe your performance closely.
Stay calm so you can understand the instructions well (technique combinations are usually delivered in Japanese) and demonstrate the best you can.
How to prepare for your purple belt grading?
By now, you would have trained for at least 15 months and more likely for about 2 years and know well the grading procedures.
The best preparation for every grading is to always put 100% effort into your training at every training session and make the best of your time on the dojo floor.
When you are at the beginner level (white belt to blue belt), you are introduced to new techniques at a fast rate.
As you progress, you sometimes may feel like you are not learning a lot of new things and that is true.
There is a limited number of techniques in karate, but truly mastering them and being able to use them effectively in actual combats can take a lifetime.
From the purple belt level onward, repetition is still important but you will have to spend a lot of time refining the techniques you’ve already learned.
Training on your own outside the dojo becomes more important to progress at this stage. You need to keep working on the basic techniques but experiment, ponder, ask questions and figure out how you can improve the speed and power of your techniques as well as apply them in sparring practice.
A sculptor would first chip away big chunks of marble to get a rough figure of a goddess and then begin to work on the finer details like the hair, the eyelids, the fingers, and the fold of clothing. The detailing stage is what determines whether it will be a great work of art or a piece of junk.
You are now at the detailing stage of your martial art journey and it may feel long and slow without any tangible progress. But it’s what every martial artist has to go through so that one day, hopefully, a great or a very good martial artist will emerge within you.
References
The JKA Kyu and Dan Rank Certification System
Shotokan Karate International Australia Grading Syllabus
Understanding the Meaning of Karate Belt Colors
Zanshin Shotokan Karatedo Grading Curriculum
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