Scott Sensei has noted that Daito-ryu Aikijujutsu Honbu (http://panoz.tol.it/~daitoryu/daito-ryu.com/index.htm) does not - or not longer - recognizes Menkyo Kaiden as a teaching certificate. They associate it with receiving a university degree. I have a statement and a question.
Statement: I don't think the analogy of MA degrees to collegiate or university degrees is workable. Given that shodan, to give a gendai-budo example, while expressing a certain competence, is also simply a beginner's degree - how do you correlate that to a university degree? A bachelor's degree expresses completion of a course of study in something so broad we call it a "field" - but does not require continued study in that field. A masters degree is a teaching degree, but one that expresses knowledge of a particular subject, but not actual mastery. Actual mastery of a subject is only suggested by a doctorate. Which one is the Menkyo Kaiden?
Question: I've always thought of the Menkyo Kaiden as a teaching degree. While I practice a gendai MA, it has similar rules. Teachers must be at least nidan; dan ranks can only be conferred by six or seventh dan or above, etc. My question is, if Menkyo Kaiden is not a teaching degree, what standard (in the strictest meaning of the word) can be used to objectively and functionally (as in use) understand the art?
Repectfully submitted,
Anthony