Comments on: Shaded Meanings: The Colour of your Corda http://mandingueira.com/2007/12/15/what-does-your-corda-colour-mean/ (noun, feminine): capoeira player who is skilled, experienced, intelligent, powerful, dangerous, and not to be underestimated Sat, 04 Feb 2012 17:26:56 +0000 hourly 1 http://wordpress.com/ By: Joaninha http://mandingueira.com/2007/12/15/what-does-your-corda-colour-mean/#comment-1323 Tue, 21 Oct 2008 03:59:57 +0000 http://mandingueira.wordpress.com/2007/12/15/what-does-your-corda-colour-mean/#comment-1323 Haha, I just googled it so I would know who I was talking to when I visited the group…not like I randomly spend my leisure time looking up other grupo’s corda systems!! XD

]]> By: angoleiro http://mandingueira.com/2007/12/15/what-does-your-corda-colour-mean/#comment-1322 Mon, 20 Oct 2008 11:38:30 +0000 http://mandingueira.wordpress.com/2007/12/15/what-does-your-corda-colour-mean/#comment-1322 hm… didnt think of googling sth like that. but that again is a proof how much a corda system does mean for me. not so much… :)

]]> By: Joaninha http://mandingueira.com/2007/12/15/what-does-your-corda-colour-mean/#comment-1321 Mon, 20 Oct 2008 09:17:10 +0000 http://mandingueira.wordpress.com/2007/12/15/what-does-your-corda-colour-mean/#comment-1321 Haha, referring to my last comment–that’s not to say I didn’t do some major googling beforehand XD

]]> By: angoleiro http://mandingueira.com/2007/12/15/what-does-your-corda-colour-mean/#comment-1320 Mon, 20 Oct 2008 07:35:49 +0000 http://mandingueira.wordpress.com/2007/12/15/what-does-your-corda-colour-mean/#comment-1320 of course it’s a good thing if you know the belt system of a certain group, but yeah, I just dont have an eye for that :)

]]> By: Joaninha http://mandingueira.com/2007/12/15/what-does-your-corda-colour-mean/#comment-1318 Sat, 18 Oct 2008 08:17:54 +0000 http://mandingueira.wordpress.com/2007/12/15/what-does-your-corda-colour-mean/#comment-1318 That’s a great comment Cobrador, thank you! You’re right, a lot of it goes straight back to people imposing outside values on something that didn’t necessarily mean or involve or have anything to do with those values in the first place. I don’t really know much about the development of coloured cordas in capoeira myself, beyond the fact that it was established by Carlos Senna, as Chan mentioned above. I’m wondering though, if they really did create it so capoeira would be more “accepted” by the Western world as coloured belts might be thought to give it more “credibility”, to someone who didn’t know capoeira?

What you said though, about the belts constricting rather than freeing…I think I found that out when I trained with another group for a year. I didn’t wear my belt out of respect for their system, which was different, so since I had no belt it was as if I had “no status”. But since I started with no status, that also included “not beginner status”, so by the end, I realized that had more or less given me the freedom to create my -own- status within the group, since I didn’t feel the constrains that I usually would’ve from being the belt I was in my home group!

Angoleiro—yes, cordas are definitely useful for knowing who you’re talking to, when visiting a new group!

]]> By: angoleiro http://mandingueira.com/2007/12/15/what-does-your-corda-colour-mean/#comment-1316 Fri, 17 Oct 2008 21:34:22 +0000 http://mandingueira.wordpress.com/2007/12/15/what-does-your-corda-colour-mean/#comment-1316 Hah, that reminds me of a common question I get when I talk to capoeiristas about some other capoeirista. “What corda does he have?” I never know. I dont remember the colours of their cordas. but i can tell how they play! I mean, it really would help if I could tell which cordas they have (because well, there is some hierarchy attached to it), I just dont care about the colours of em.

]]> By: cobrador http://mandingueira.com/2007/12/15/what-does-your-corda-colour-mean/#comment-1314 Thu, 16 Oct 2008 22:59:01 +0000 http://mandingueira.wordpress.com/2007/12/15/what-does-your-corda-colour-mean/#comment-1314 Hey Joaninha

As far as i understand, the concept of colors was introduced when mestre Bimba tried to leagalize capoeira and gave it some martial arts “charachteristics”. Obviously these charachteristics were meant to fall on “westen” eyes and as such they held a whole different message that could not be foreseen back then.

In my point of view, adopting the colored cordas system didn’t foresee the way it would be (mis)understood in different nations once capoeira spread outside brazil. Our “western” approach brings a very distorted view of the system, rendering us to assess a person in front of us by the color of his corda (and without thinking for a second about the profound meaning that hides behind the color). Further more we assess our own progress (or our teacher’s affection) by recieving the trophy and blinding ourselves to really look inside ouselves. Therefore, as I see it, the coloring systems somehow contradict the very basic principal of freedom. (I am really in a process of writing a post about it myself in my blog so, sorry for the raw structure)

When you go to a roda de rua where no one wears a belt, you connect to a deeper perspective. you don’t rush into the game, you are much more suspicious and alert. It is amazing how fast you understand who plays-what part.

I think the mestres who poured content into the colors really meant what they said, but I equally think that the larger the group grows, the more people will misunderstand that content and use their own terminology instead, leaving way behind the original meaning and the act of reflecting upon it.

Cobrador

]]> By: Joaninha http://mandingueira.com/2007/12/15/what-does-your-corda-colour-mean/#comment-1311 Sat, 04 Oct 2008 06:39:50 +0000 http://mandingueira.wordpress.com/2007/12/15/what-does-your-corda-colour-mean/#comment-1311 Hey, thanks for visiting my site and dropping a note! =) Wow, 4 colours in 15 different variations? That must involve some creative mixing ^^”

]]> By: ginga for all http://mandingueira.com/2007/12/15/what-does-your-corda-colour-mean/#comment-1310 Sat, 27 Sep 2008 17:05:06 +0000 http://mandingueira.wordpress.com/2007/12/15/what-does-your-corda-colour-mean/#comment-1310 its interesting to see how different groups vary the colours used and order of which they are used. Our group (http://www.ginga4all.com) only used 4 seperate colours; green, yellow, blue and white, but we mix them alot to give 15 different ranks. Still a red corda appeals to me a lot, so does black in a way.
Anyway, enough rabbiting on. Very well done on the meanings for he different corda’s, I have been curious why so many groups decide to have there own system, not that its a problem. Anyway, see you and take care.

]]> By: Joaninha http://mandingueira.com/2007/12/15/what-does-your-corda-colour-mean/#comment-255 Wed, 23 Jan 2008 13:38:32 +0000 http://mandingueira.wordpress.com/2007/12/15/what-does-your-corda-colour-mean/#comment-255 Hey Chan,
I meant for the post mostly to be about the colours rather than the entire system itself, but what you brought up would definitely be cool to know. I do remember reading about silk hankerchiefs at one point, but not sure from where. Thanks for the information—where do you get it all?!

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