Karate is something of a personal journey - everyone will have their own starting point, their own abilities and limitations, and their own goals and aspirations. Getting the next belt is not the aim of karate, but it is useful - as a measure of progress, as an incitement to improve, and as a recognition of commitment and achievement.

Black belt

Some schools (or sometimes it's down to the individual) will have bars on their black belt to indicate their dan-level, but this is not necessary.

The times between grading at black belt (yudansha) level can vary greatly, it does not always keep strictly to the interval indicated, but these are generally a minimum. Shodan can take between 2 and 4 years - depending how often you train. Most Godans will probably have been training for around 20-30 years or more to reach that level.

Again, it differs between schools and styles, but some systems will go up to 10th Dan - though this high level will be extraordinarlity rare and not usually seen in someone less than about 70 years old or more.

The following chart shows the levels and their belt colours, as well as the kata associated with that level.