Chris Haueter, one of the legendary “Dirty Dozen” – the first 12 non-Brazilian black belts in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu – recently opened up about the line between loyalty and unhealthy devotion in martial arts circles.

Speaking on his “Combat Base” podcast, Haueter tackled the topic of cult-like behavior in BJJ communities:

Everything is a spectrum…
Something isn’t automatically a cult or automatically not.

According to Haueter, one of the biggest red flags is when schools or instructors begin to offer more than just martial arts training:

Cults usually have an underlying, often subliminal promise of power, sex, or wealth.

It’s easy to see how people can fall into these traps. Martial arts often attract those looking for structure, meaning, or a way to reclaim control over their lives.
As Haueter put it:

Most people that are attracted to cults have an insecurity and they feel like they have no control over their life.
They often feel like the world around them is chaos, and the cult brings a sense of order and control to that chaos.

He also emphasized that there’s a difference between honoring your instructors and blindly following them:

You need to respect the elders, but there is a difference between respect and worship.
Respect is important, but it’s mutual respect.

Elders should respect younger people as well.

For those trying to maintain a balanced perspective, he recommends building an identity beyond your training affiliation.
That means knowing who you are, whether or not you’re wearing a gi:

As an individual, you might want to consider having a value set that allows you to define yourself that’s not your affiliation with something.