HISTORY OF TAE KWON DO
Tae Kwon Do is many things to many people. Twisted claims by some individuals and many organizations have cause a great deal of confusion to the general public. This admittedly condensed brief history presents documented facts that hopefully will fill the void in the world of Martial Arts, its claims and counter-claims.
To understand the real Tae Kwon Do we intensively researched its ancient background and arrived at the following conclusions:
The first hint in history of Tae Kwon Do was found based in the various types of sport-religious concepts developed and fostered by the ancestors of Korea. These included Kabi in the Silla dynasty, Tomaeng in Koguryo, Muchon in Ye and Mahan in Puyo. Eventually these developed into sets of exercises for improvement of personal health and martial ability. Imitations of characteristics in animals' both defensive and offensive activies cause the formation of a martial art called "Tae' Kym". This was about 37 B.C. A ceiling mural in a temple in Tan'hua province in Manchuria depicts a multi-scene of two men participating in Tae Kwon Do activities. Archaeologists state this mural to be at least 1500 years old.
It has been rumored that the Chinese had developed the first martial art of self defense called Kwon Bop, sometimes referred to as Kung fu, but archaeological finds such as the aforementioned mural refutes this theory. Tae Kwon Do is definitely older than and different from Kung fu.
What is Karate? Karate is a Japanese word meaning "empty hand fighting". It is actually a counterpart of Tae Kwon Do. It was a development of "Okinawate" which was a previos conversion of Korean Subak... (a very ancient name of Tae Kwon Do).
Subak originated as a sport in Korea and evolved into the deadliest and most powerful form of Karate in the world. There is only one present-day Karate that teaches the same principles and techniques as Subak and that is Chung Do Kwan. Chung Do Kwan is a style of training within the structure of Tae Kwon Do or Korean Karate.
Modern Chung Do Kwan is a form of martial art which implements the use of bare hands and feet combined with proper shifting of body weight plus blinding speed. Result is the ultimate in self defense.
A novice might say, "Anyone can kick and hit with bare hands and feet." This is an understatement in the practice of Tae Kwon Do. Envision the knowledge to strike properly and precisely on target with hands and feet combined with an intensive program in physical fitness and psychological rebirth by the student into development of self conficense and expertise in raw concentration and will power. Add to this the tapping of unused mental and physical power and you have a graphic picture of Chung Do Kwan.
What is Chung Do Kwan? Early in the 19th century, and ambitious young Korean gentlemen found he was not satisfied with the Tae'Kyun system. His complaint was the lack of organization of techniques and extended period of time required to teach the system into a state of proficiency. His name was Won Kook Yi, destined to be the originator of modern Karate. He began an extensive trip throughout the Orient and listened to the older and experienced Tae Kyun practitioners (there were no instructors). Although he had studied for a long time he open-mindedly took mental notes on the travels and when he returned to Korea in 1940 he immediately began organizing the first Korean Karate program that could be taught in a simplified way to many students at one time.
He combined his extensive knowledge of Tae Kyun with many new ideas he had learned from scores of ancient masters and named the new system "Tae Soo Do Chung Do Kwan". A literal translation of this is: Tae-hand, Soo-foot, Do-school or gymnasium, Chung Do Kwan as one phrase refers to the over-powering beauty of an ocean wave slamming aginst a rocky shore, hense the basic principles of Chung Do Kwan; beauty (or form) and the all-embracing power of nature itself. The Chung Do Kwan system was the beginning of organized Karate in Korea and ultimately evolved into the world's most powerful Karate.
Under the general heading of the Tae Kwon Do organization a few other forms of Karate are: Chi Do Kwan, Moo Duk Kwan, Oh Do Kwan, Kwan Do Kwan, Han Moo Kwan and Chang Moo Kwan. They are all duplicates and variations of the original Chung Do Kwan.
In 1945 the founder of Chung Do Kwan retired, but before doing so he awarded his position to his most dedicated student, Uoon Kyu Um. This new Grand Master of Chung Do Kwan continued to build his training system strong in number and convinced the Korean Government to investigate the growing problem of Korean Karate style instruction. In 1961 the Government finally intervened and ordered the many styles and training systems to organize before they destroyed each other.
In 1965 the Government decided to form an association that would be called the "Korean Tae Kwon Do Association". At that time seventeen different systems had developed. The Government decided that only the top 5 styles would be officially sanctioned to represent Korea in the finest of martial arts. Naturally the first to be recognized was the Chung Do Kwan system. The other four styles were Chi Do Kwan, Oh Do Kwan, Kwan Do Kwan and a portion of Moo Duk Kwan.
Possibly the most impressive translation of Tae Kwon Do is actually translated from Korean language: Tae meaning kicking and smashing with the feet; Kwon means punching with the fist: Do means the art of destroying with hands and feet. To the layment it provides a more vivid description then the word Karate, which is Japanese, meaning: "Kara"-empty, "Te"-hands.
This admittedly is a brief sketch of Tae Kwon Do Chung Do Kwan and its position in the martial arts.
