THE CODE

The Code

Nine Articles, Set Down Here

THE CODE — Read This First

KOKUIN is the place to carve the original moves of breaking and pass the names of their creators on. Here are the five articles of the Code that hold it together.

Article One — What May Be Carved

I permit the carving only of a move that satisfies every one of the following.

It is a move created by yourself, or by another.
It has already been published where anyone can see it, on a video platform such as YouTube, TikTok, or Instagram.
The footage is clear enough that anyone can plainly make out the move.

Article Two — What May Not Be Carved

The following is not permitted to be carved. If it has already been carved, I will withdraw it.

Footage that is unclear, dark, distant, or shown for only an instant, so that who did what cannot be judged.
A gesture that does not amount to a move — a motion without meaning of its own.
Movement unrelated to dance (walking, throwing an object, merely striking a pose, and the like).
A move carried over as-is from an existing move or another dance form, showing no trace of creation.
A move already known to the world, merely given a different name.
Multiple moves packed into a single carving (one carving, one move).
A carving that falsifies the creator's name, borrows another's name, or impersonates them (carving another's move on their behalf is itself permitted).

Article Three — The Setting of a Name

A carved move's name holds one of two states.

ProvisionalA name not yet approved by the creator.

ConfirmedProof that the creator has shown ownership and approved the name.

You may name and carve a move you yourself created. But to make that name certain, you must show that you are who you say you are.

You may also carve another's move under a provisional name. But the one who carves it never becomes its creator. A name is settled only by the creator's own approval.

There is one way to show you are who you say you are: link one account — Instagram, TikTok, YouTube, or X — under the same name as this ledger, and post there the line bearing the KOKUIN ID granted to you. Until it is posted, the name does not settle.

Article Four — The Stages of Rank

Legitimacy as creator is shown through two ranks.

Under ReviewThe rank held just after carving. During this time, an objection may still be filed.

CertifiedEnough support has been gathered, and legitimacy as creator is recognized.

No rank lasts forever. If support fades, certification gives way — for all I can show on this ground is, for now, the oldest record there is.

Article Five — Same-Move Verdict

When someone appears holding an older record of the same move, they may file an objection against an existing carving. The two videos are placed side by side, and by the community's vote, the one with the older record is recorded as creator.

I give no final answer here. Should new material appear, it may be reconsidered any number of times.

Article Six — Naming, and the Ban on Fraud

Voting is open to anyone whose name is entered on this ground. But only those who have shown they are who they say they are may settle a move's name.

Certification is granted by vote, and withdrawn by vote. For that reason, nothing here is ever settled forever.

Coordinated voting, impersonation, and unnatural voting patterns are forbidden. Where these are confirmed, the votes are invalidated, and any carvings by those involved are withdrawn. Where it goes too far, that person's access is stopped.

Article Seven — Your Own Path

Even one who is not a creator may master a move already carved and carve that record here. By posting footage as proof of mastery and receiving the community's judgement, a history of one's own training accumulates.

Article Eight — Anonymous Carving

When the creator's name is unknown, or when they do not wish to be named, the move may be carved without a name attached. Even then, the history of that move keeps being carved into this ground.

Article Nine — When the Code Is Broken

A record that breaks this Code, once confirmed, will be withdrawn by me.

A withdrawn record never returns. Its date is lost along with it. Before you carve, make certain your move satisfies this Code.

Judging whether two moves are the same lies outside this Code — that is the work of the Same-Move Verdict. Should an older record be found, it may be reconsidered at any time.