For most disciplines, a martial arts belt is an important part of the uniform. The belt does far more than hold up your pants. Don’t get me wrong, it does do just that as well as hold the top or jacket in place if needed. However, some belts are used as weapons to choke or disarm an opponent. Also, more important than the purely functional aspect of the belt, it has a far deeper and more significant purpose.
The belt is more importantly used to show a student’s level of achievement. There are very few disciplines that do not use the white belt to signify a novice and a black belt to identify a master. This is where most agreements end. I have been to numerous schools and not one of them agrees upon meaning or the progression of colors, beyond white and black. Some schools even use multi-colored, or partially colored belts to show achievement.
Schools have many different ideas on what the symbolism of the belt color is. Here is one example from a nearby school that uses karate uniforms:
White – Purity. New and clean.
Yellow- Earth. The starting point of growth.
Green- Growth. Student is taking form with the new knowledge
Red- Heat. Refining their skills in the heat of training
Black- Mastery. Full development and maturity.
Achievement of the black belt is usually understood that the practitioner has only begun to attain real knowledge. The black belt signifies a completion of the steps necessary and an acquisition of the information that the discipline is trying to teach. However, the true mastery of this knowledge is only just starting. In fact, most students who reach black belt never actually reach mastery. They simply have the knowledge and information to begin their journey. Uniforms, weapons and the like are important to the practitioner of martial arts, but martial arts belts (although seemingly insignificant at first glance), rank right there with the others in importance and significance in the grand scheme of things.















