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It is the belief of this group that no one truly "masters" a discipline. We are all students (for life) and the notion of masters, to us, suggests that there is such a thing as the ultimate level within a given art. The philosophy of a teacher or instructor is that teachers learn from their students, in which case suggests a reciprocal relationship. In essence, the teacher is a learned student, sharing information. By definition, the word mestre means "one who teaches..." Over the years, however, this word has been taken out of its original context and given a new meaning, with an emphasis on mastery of the art, rather than a guide or keeper of sorts.
Within our group and our events, "masters" - or as we call them "Guides", instructors, and students are treated with the same respect. We are not challenging the notion of the need for hierarchy within Capoeira or any other art, but we do challenge the view that one can be "more important" than another within a group. We respect all views and hope that others will respect ours. PEOPLE regardless of rank will be given respect for their contributions and the years they have committed to the art of capoeira. Titles come and go, and don't always reflect true commitment. For example: in capoeira, while there are mestres who have been in the art for 20 or even 15, there are professores of over 30 years. Again, this is NOT about devaluing mestres and contramestres - this is about ALSO valuing others who have put their time in. Clearly, there is a disconnect here. So, rather than treating people differently because of their title - we pay close attention to the aforementioned reasons.
The current adult ranking system is an adaptation from Mestre Chuvisco of Mandingueiros dos Palmares.
The Grupo Ondas ranking system will take effective later in the year in August at our 11th Ocean State Open Batizado. Our ranking system will be blend of three factors: 1) Our influence from Mandingueiros dos Palmares, 2) Our old ranking system before joining MdP in 2004, and 3) The future of our group and our revised vision. |
OUR UPCOMING RANKING SYSTEM
Much has changed for Ondas in the past 11 years. And we are excited about launching the new decade of our group with a new logo and new ranking sytem that both represents our past and our future.
In the upcoming ranking sequence:
Our ranking sequence has 5 Main Levels (with 14 sublevels)
The levels are:
Beginner(1st two cords)
Intermediate (yellow and yellow-blue, which we refer to as discipulo/a)
Advanced (Graduados and Monitores), and
Instructor (Instrutor to Mestre).
The 14 sublevels attempt to separate the levels with the sole purpose of "keeping track of progress." When one moves into the advaced level, which can be up to 8 years, or instructor level which can range from 12 to 20 years, it becomes very important to have "markers" of progress.
Colors:
| "Raw" |
The Raw cord represents both the beginning and a reminder that one is always a student (and should keep one's cup empty and ready for learning) |
| Yellow |
Yellow represents fortune and wealth. It is symbolic of the group of students we truly value and protect. It is from this level that a strong foundation is established and future leaders are shaped. |
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Blue represents Ondas in its entirety. The student represents all the core values of our group and is, in essence, an embassador of the group |
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Green represents maturity. The student is preparing for the instructor levels.
(The crua AFTER the Blue and Green represent the "reminder" earlier mentioned. While the student is a solid Graduada(o) or Monitora(e), s(he) reconnects to the beginning both in terms of basics and as well as a reminder of all the wonderful things that attracted him or her to capoeira to begin with.) |
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Purple, Brown and Red are the formado colors from Mandingueiros dos Palmares. We wanted to honor our root by keeping the spirit of the "formado" cords. Still, we have decided to move towards "Black" as our mestre cord. Ondas has little to no connection to Senzala from whence the red cord originated. Black represents: strength, unity, "the black continent," a social movement that transformed the world, and the center where we all originated. Consequently, the Purple/Brown/Red halves represent our past, while the Black half represents our future. |
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| White |
The Black then transitions back to White; that is, BACK TO THE BEGINNING. |
We thank all our students and friends who guided us through this process of deciding on a ranking sequence that best fits us.
The Future begins now!
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