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 The
AKKI Crest has such deep meaning and so many symbolism's
that it would take a book on it’s own to describe
every feature. Most of the features have multiple meanings,
so only a few will be described here. These descriptions
are excerpts from the AKKI Yellow and Orange Belt Reference
Manuals.
Kenpo Karate
The words “Kenpo Karate” are written across
the crest. The word “Kenpo” means ‘Fist
Law’ (Ken -‘Fist’ / Po - ‘Law’)
and the word “Karate” means ‘Empty Hand’
(Kara - Empty / Te - Hand). Therefor the phrase ‘Kenpo
Karate’ means ‘Law of the Fist and the Empty
Hand’. It is written in the Rickshaw font showing
the Asian heritage of the art. Our art has grown to
the more proper term of ‘American Kenpo’,
depicted by the words Kenpo Karate angling down, feeding
into the Arrowhead which shows the American influence,
and brings the art of Kenpo Karate to the cutting edge
as honed and taught by the AKKI.
The Frame
Within the bright Red Outer Frame of the AKKI crest,
is an inner frame. The Black Inner Frame is in depiction
of the Black Outer Frame of Ed Parker’s crest.
This is to show that the AKKI was born from Ed Parker’s
American Kenpo, yet builds upon it. The black inner
frame gives strength to the outer red frame which brings
the inner frame to it’s cutting edge. The Master
Key principles, taught by Ed Parker, remain intact within
the AKKI and are expressed with our unique and exclusive
style of application.
The Tiger
The Tiger is the Warrior. He is strong, proud and eager.
His right paw is raised in his representation in our
salutation, the right fist being the warrior. He is
our physical strength, our might, our instinct to fight.
His colors are White, Yellow and Orange, the earliest
colors of rank in our system of Kenpo. He has black
stripes on his back, showing his aspirations of attaining
the expert level of his fighting skill. His tail bares
eight black stripes, the number of ranks in Kenpo before
the expert level of black belt. His head is raised high
above his shoulders, as he is very proud of his abilities
and quick to accept any challenge. He has only three
paws exposed, as any warrior will never reveal all of
his weapons.
The Dragon
The Dragon is the Scholar. He not only has physical
strength, but mental and spiritual strength as well.
His left hand is raised, in his representation in our
salutation, the left hand being the scholar. He is our
intellect, our wisdom and our ability to reason. It
is the dragon, with his left hand, that holds the Master
Key as he knows that it is knowledge and wisdom that
are the key to unlocking the secrets of the universe.
He stands upon the Universal Design, as it is his knowledge
of the Universal Principles that lift him to his Mastery.
His colors are Red, the color of mastery in the arts,
with traces of white, yellow, orange and black, showing
that he continues to be a student and is always willing
to learn more. His tail bares ten fins, the number of
black belt ranks in our system. His flank fins have
ten points that burn like flames, beautiful but deadly.
They bare the early colors of yellow and orange showing
that it is the mastery of the most basic principles
and movements that create a Master. His head is bowed
below his shoulders as he is humble, has humility and
practices self restraint. Yet behind his head is a powerful
body that has absorbed many years of training and holds
the deadliest of skills. If his wisdom and reasoning
fail to solve his conflict and it diminishes to a physical
battle, his fighting skills have been honed to the highest
degree. He also has one weapon hidden from view, never
exposing his strategies to his adversaries. Yet, he
holds for all to see, the Master Key – the truth,
if it will only be accepted by those that seek the skills,
knowledge and wisdom of the Dragon. Yet all too commonly,
they look for the hidden weapon instead of accepting
what has been freely offered to them.
The Tiger & Dragon
It is a great misconception that the Tiger and Dragon
are faced off as if in battle with each other. They
both reside within each of us. They should work in harmony,
complimenting each other, as they are positioned on
our crest in the yin and yang positions. They may seem
to oppose each other, but they rely on each other. They
are not dependent on the other, and they are not independent
from the other, but are interdependent, helping each
other to fill their personal voids. As the Dragon holds
the wisdom, he is wise enough to keep a Tiger watching
his back, and the tiger is proud enough to defend the
Dragon. While the tiger is busy watching his own back,
as depicted in the crest, he forgets to watch in front
and grasp the simple things that lay before him. The
Dragon, knowing of the Tiger’s youthfulness and
eagerness, continues to be watchful for the Tiger, leading
him in a positive direction, as depicted on the crest
with the Dragon using his tail to guide the Tiger forward
and to protect him from the unseen dangers. If it is
that the Dragon and the Tiger battle, it is an internal
struggle that we all face between the instincts of the
body and the reasoning of the mind. The dragon is always
placed above the tiger, as it is our intellect and ability
to reason that should govern the actions of our physical
instincts.
The Initials
The stripes on the Tiger’s back reveal three initials:
"EP" - Ed Parker, the founder, creator
and Senior Grandmaster of American Kenpo.
"PM"- Paul Mills, the founder and
president of our association, and the Master Engineer
that is in constant perpetuation and discovery of
innovative ways to further our knowledge and skills,
and the designer of the crest itself.
"SM" - Steve McDowell, a Kenpo student,
co-designer and artist of the AKKI crest. His initials
are not only his signature, but reflect the very thing
that makes our association so great. The great and
many contributions of time, efforts, talents and skills
of it’s members to better, further and build
the AKKI into the finest and most progressive of martial
arts associations.
The Universal Design
In the center of the Crest, is a partial display of
the AKKI Universal Pattern, as it is the Universal Principles
that lie at the heart of the art as practiced in our
association. Within this design, there are many elements.
The ‘Heart’ shape indicates sincerity and
honesty. It is a symbol of our love and commitment to
the association as this crest is worn over our heart.
It also depicts circular to linear movement, as well
as linear to circular. Also displayed within the heart
are mirrored sides, showing opposite, mirrored, reverse
and return motion. The heart has two lines that meet
at a central point. This not only represents Opposing
Forces and Confluencing Forces, but also Surface Concentration.
These two lines, coming from different sources and meeting
at the same point, also depicts the element of Teamwork
that makes our association so deep and strong –
Many people working together toward a common goal.
The Diamond represents the student – cut, shaped
and polished by the instructor. Like a Master Diamond
Cutter, the Teacher brings his/her student from a rough
and crude state, and expertly crafts him/her into a
brilliant diamond. Beautiful to the eye, but strong
enough to cut through the hardest obstacles.
The Four Fins, pointing four directions identifies
our reach to the North, South, East and West in an effort
to include all that desire to belong to our association.
These fins are in the shape of teardrops, representing
the powerful action that can be derived from this type
of movement. They are arranged in a Spiraling pattern
indicating Three Dimensional Movement and the Super
Powers that can be derived from it. These spiraling
fins also reflect the motion of the universe as seen
in our own galaxy, indicating that within each of us
rests the Universal Principles of the entire universe.
Like a hologram that has been shattered, each individual
piece holds the entire image.
The Circle encompasses the Universal Design, as it
is our goal to understand and harness the Universal
Principles. This circle is elongated and tilted to an
angle as the Earth also spins on a Diagonal axis. This
again, depicts our association as being an ‘International’
one. The circle has no beginning and no end. It is continuous
and constant, as is life itself. Pertaining to the value
of life, the Tiger may run care free, while the Dragon
will cherish it and protect it with his own life.
The Center holds a black hole. Many practitioners will
look and see the Universal Principles, but it is the
Dragon who will venture inside. This hole is located
at the heart and can only be unlocked by the Master
Key, which is possessed only by the Dragon. This circular
black center also represents the ‘Black Dot Focus’
theory, as it rests on a white background. It is elongated,
as are our movements in Kenpo.
The Colors
The colors of the frame, from inside out, are White,
Black then Red. This represents the journey of a student.
The White Background depicts the many beginning students
that form the foundation of the evolution of the art.
Through the extent of this part of their training, they
become sharper and more skilled, as the white background
on the crest has semi sharp edges.
The Black Inner Edge depicts the black belt stage,
where the student has become an expert in the art. He
is a Teacher himself, and a Teacher of himself. He has
students below him that push him and inspire him to
attain greater knowledge and skill. He has his Teacher
above him, pulling him and guiding him to greater levels
of the art. His skills are sharper then they were in
the White stage, as the edges of the Black area in the
crest are sharper than those of the white.
The Red Outer Frame depicts a level even higher than
that of the black. There comes a time in a student’s
personal evolution when he/she becomes a Teacher of
all. As his/her teacher passes on, this lifelong student
assumes the responsibility to guide, direct and teach
all those that come after him. He has the sharpest of
skills and the greatest of knowledge, yet he is always
reaching to learn more, as depicted by the sharp points
of the outer edges of the Red frame, reaching outwardly.
While he/she may not have a physical instructor at the
highest point of his training, he knows that there is
still much to learn and is always learning, supported
and lifted by those beneath him. He is a Teacher of
Teachers and a Master of the Art.
Next: AKKI
Crest Patch, Part 1
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