Hapkido

Introduction To Hapkido.

Hapkido is a complete art of self-defense. A Hapkidoist is able to handle virtually any situation and is able to apply the self-discipline and confidence derived from the study of Hapkido to enhance the quality of their life and protect the lives of those they love.
The Meaning of Hapkido
In Korean Hap means to coordinate or combine. Ki means technique and can be interpreted as inner strength or power. Do means the way. Therefore Hapkido can be loosely translated as the way (art) of coordinated power.
Characteristics of Hapkido
Hapkido employs the philosophy of using minimal force to overcome a stronger opponent. Therefore, great strength is not needed to apply the techniques effectively. In addition, Hapkido uses pressure points to assist in controlling the opponent.
Hapkido has a powerful arsenal of spinning kicks, thrusts and sweeps combined with hard and soft fist attacks and defenses. As well as the use of kicks and punches, Hapkido uses nerve and pressure point attacks, wrist and joint locks, and many twisting and throwing techniques. Approximately 270 categories of special movements incorporating 3400 techniques are included in the study of Hapkido.
The popularity of Hapkido is due to the fact that anyone, young or old, male or female can practice this complete art of self-defense regardless of physical weight or strength. Health is improved through systematic training and exercise. Development of muscles and muscle tone, correct posture, control of weight, a sense of self-confidence, self-control of both mind and body, and spiritual fulfillment are just some of the benefits of studying Hapkido.
In Hapkido, linear techniques form a solid base upon which the skill of circular techniques can be developed. Everything is taught in correct order to produce a balanced martial artist able to handle any situation.
Today, it is practiced by students of all backgrounds, ages and physiques. Hapkido can be applied from any position: standing, sitting or lying, and from any direction.

Comparison to Other Martial Arts.

Aikido:

As in Aikido, the attacker is encouraged to over-commit their attack. The attack is received with minimal resistance, it is guided past the target and then the defenders own force is added to it. The result is to unbalance and throw the opponent. However, opponents do not always attack with large movements. Often short jabs and kicks are delivered with such rapidity that it is very difficult to lead the opponent's force. In these situations, the close quarter blocking and striking techniques of Hapkido give the Hapkidoist knowledge of how to counter and overcome such attacks.

Jujitsu:

Many of the joint locks and throws of Hapkido are very similar to those of Jujitsu. Painful twisting of the joints and tendons along with the application of painful pressure to vital points combined with a thorough knowledge of human anatomy help to control any opponent regardless of size or strength. These techniques are fine for close quarter attacks, however because Jujitsu practitioners do not practice their techniques against proficient kickers or punchers, they are vulnerable to such long range attacks. Hapkidoists practice kicks and punches to a high degree of proficiency, thus the familiarity gained through practicing the techniques helps in defending against them.

Tae Kwon Do:

Virtually all of the kicking techniques of Tae Kwon Do are identical to those of Hapkido. Spinning kicks, thrusts, circular kicks and sweeps are all used in sparring. Due to the fact that Hapkido is not a tournament-orientated style, other techniques like low spinning kicks, low-section kicks and knee strikes are also used. The basic hand techniques of Hapkido are similar to those of Tae Kwon Do, that is, mainly linear attacks with fist or knifehand. However in a confined space such as a crowded public bar or a narrow hallway, kicks are limited in their practicality. Self-defense tools such as elbows, knees, head butts and joint attacks are essential for survival in such situations. All these techniques are practiced in Hapkido to produce a thorough knowledge of all ranges of attack and defense.

Kung Fu:

In Hapkido, as the student advances past the basic hand techniques, more emphasis is placed on small circular techniques and fast close quarter parrying which resemble the techniques of Kung Fu. Advanced weaponry techniques using the long pole Bo and the fan are similar to those of Kung Fu.

Judo:

Throwing plays an important role in Hapkido. The basic principles of judo are used in Hapkido, that is, moving your opponent's center of balance to a vulnerable position and using your leg or body to topple the opponent. As well, Hapkido uses strikes or pressure points to maneuver the opponent with less use of strength.

Kendo:

At advanced stages, students are taught Komdo. Basic strikes and blocks are similar to Kendo, however circular and low section attacks typical of traditional Korean swordsmanship are taught once the basics have been learned.

History of Hapkido.

Introduction:

Any attempt to trace the exact historical development of Hapkido is fraught with difficulties due to lack of complete historical records and the selective nature of those particular records that do exist. All written and oral history is shaped by the political, social and cultural climate of the times and any examination of Hapkido history must be viewed with this in mind. However certain threads can be pulled together so we can obtain a general perspective of the roots and subsequent development of Hapkido. What must also be kept in mind is that previous to 1945 there was a long historical decline of the martial arts of Korea commencing with the Yi dynasty (1392-1910) and finishing with the Japanese occupation (1910-45) where they were all but stamped out. In many cases just a few scattered individuals, often monks living in seclusion in the mountains with perhaps just one or two disciples, kept the ancient martial arts of Korea alive. Since the end of the Japanese occupation in 1945 there has been a rediscovery by the Korean people of their culture and martial arts in particular. Many elements of their ancient martial arts such as Tae Kyon, Yu Sool and Soo Bak Gi have been incorporated into modern arts such as Hapkido, Kuk Sool Won and Tang Soo Do.
Many different sources have been used including oral testimony from masters still living in Korea and other countries today. This includes eighty three year old Grandmaster Jang In Mok, 9th degree who resides in Teague city in Korea and who trained in Japan under Daito Ryu Aikijujitsu Grandmaster Takeda Sokaku, Grandmaster Ji Han Jae 10th degree and Grandmaster of Sin Moo Hapkido, Grandmaster Kim Byung Chu 8th Degree and President of the Korean Hapkido Association, grandmaster Huh Ill Woong 8th Degree, Professor of martial arts at Myung Ji University, Seoul and master Kim Sung Su, 6th Degree, President of the Australian Hapkido Association.
A further complication in unraveling this history is the fact that many martial arts masters were influenced by more than just one style and that the name Hapkido is a fairly recent name. The word Sool in Korean has been recognized traditionally as meaning art or method whereas the term do is a Japanese way of thinking, meaning way of life. This appears in arts such as Judo, Kendo, and Iado. In Sun Seo of the Korean Kuk Sool Won Association asserts that the word do does not appear in Korean records until around the middle of Japanese colonial rule of Korea.

Origin of the name Hapkido.

Choi Yong Sool (1904-1986) used the name Yu Sool to describe the art he began teaching in Korea after 1945. There is a dispute as to who actually first used the name Hapkido. Ji Han Jae insists that he first used the name in 1957 when he opened a school in Seoul and Suh Bok Sub says he and Choi Young Sul first used the name officially in 1958.
Suh Bok Sub, Choi's first student, insists that on February 12, 1948, a Monday, the first Hapkido dojang opened and it was called Korean Yu Kwan Sool Hapkidojang. Choi it seems was not quite sure what to call his art when he landed back in Korea. The Japanese name for the art was Ya Wa Ra, taught by Takeda Sokaku of the Daito Ryu (Dai Dong in Korean). Suh Bok Sub insists the early name they used was Yu Kwan Sool Hapkido. He states "The meaning of Korean HapKi, Yu Kwan Sool Dae Han means Korea, Hap Ki means total arts, Daito Ryu or Ya Wa Ra came from Japan to Korea. It was Yu Sool which is Yu Kwan Sool with the Kwon removed. At that time Yu Sool meant something like Judo in Japan, so Grandmaster Choi thought it had a confusing meaning so he put kwon in the middle of it.
Many people thought Hapkido (in the sense of what Choi taught) came from Judo because Yu Sool was used, but it did not. Kwan in Chinese letters means fist. So literally Yu Kwon means soft fist. So without hitting anybody you use a soft fist which uses the other person's energy. In 1958 Choi Yong Sool agreed to officially add the Do to Hap Ki to have the lasting name Hapkido. No one else did this." (Tae Kwon Do, May 1996: 43, 47).
On the other hand, Dr Hee Young Kimm, founder of Han Mu Do,and a well known martial arts historian claims that Ji Han-Jae , a former student of Grandmaster Choi and now Grandmaster of Sin Moo Hapkido, called what he had learned from Choi Yong Sool, Hapki Yu Kwon Sool but felt the name was too long and shortened it to Hapkido in 1957. This was confirmed by Grandmaster Ji Han Jae in a personal interview conducted with him on the 20th of September, 1996.
Grandmaster Ji also placed a much greater emphasis on kicking than did Choi Yong Sool (Ji claims Choi originally only taught front, side and roundhouse kicks), incorporating Tae Kyon techniques, and it is through his influence and others such as Kim Moo Wong that we see the vast repertoire of kicks that Hapkido is noted for. In addition Grandmaster Ji introduced Taoist breathing and weapons such as the Cane, Jang Bong and Dan Bong.
The conjecture about who originally thought of the name is a product of the turbulent political scene of Hapkido in Korea in the late 1950's and early 1960's when the art was establishing itself rapidly and it was undergoing fairly rapid evolution.

Korea and the Hwarang.

Modern Hapkido (as opposed to the original style taught by Choi Yong Sool) should not be simply seen as Korean Aikijujitsu. In addition to the influence of Aikijujitsu on Hapkido there are also elements of other traditional Korean martial arts techniques encompassing Kwan Jul Ki Bub (joint twisting, throws, holding and choking), Dang Shin Ki Bub (strike, punch and kick) and Moo Ki Sool (short sword, long sword, short stick, long pole, cane, spear, rope, stone throws and knife throws). These techniques in turn derived from Sado Mu Sool (tribal martial arts), Buldo Mu Sool (Buddhist martial arts) and Koong Joong Mu Sool (royal court martial arts). These techniques were originally known and handed down through a hierarchy of monks, ruling families and royal officials for self protection and personal safety. Recorded history of these arts dates back as early as Sam Kuk Si Dae (the era of the three kingdoms - 3A.D.).
Buddhism arrived in China from India during Hu Han Mal (late Han period - 67 B.C.) and was introduced to Korea in 372 A.D. The first patriarch of Son (Zen in Japanese, Chan in Chinese) Buddhism and the 28th patriarch of Buddhism, Bodhidharma (480-528) made an epic trip across the Himalayas and arrived at Song Shan Shaolin temple, China in 520 A.D. where he began to teach the monks Son.. Many people credit him with forming the nucleus of martial arts but this proposition is almost certainly a myth. He may have introduced a particular form of the martial arts but the ability to the organize fighting methods is a feature known in many parts of the world and certainly before this date. What is more likely is that he developed a method of martial practice that was uniquely tied up with Son Buddhism.
Under the reign of King Pop Hung, Buddhism became the sanctioned state religion of Silla and this patronage spawned a period of monastic order, the construction of monasteries and the development of the arts. Large numbers of Korean monks travelled to China for instruction with ninety percent of them coming from Silla.
King Chin Hung came to power in Silla in 540 A.D. and one of the most significant acts he performed was the creation of the Hwa Rang warrior. He called upon a famous Buddhist priest, Won Kwang Bopsa who had developed a system of martial arts based on harmony with the laws of nature to establish a state sanctioned martial art Young members of the nobility were taught martial arts with the Buddhist faith to become warrior-intellectuals who embodied culture and chivalry.
The empty handed fighting techniques were known for their blending of the hard and the soft, linear and circular attacks based on Won Kwang Bopsa's concept of the unity of the opposites embodied in the Um-Yang. The ferocious fighting spirit of the Hwa Rang became legendary and their deeds were recorded in poetry and literature. This literature became part of Korean folklore and heroic legend and evolved into a system of ethics and morality that was essential to the evolution of the martial artist since their dedication to duty and self sacrifice rested on something larger than themselves.
These deep historical and philosophical connections sets Hapkido apart from Aikido that has its own particular philosophy developed by the founder Uyeshiba.

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