|
Kuk Sool Won
Kuk Sool WonKuk Sool Won is a potent "hard-soft" style of Korean martial arts with a stress on ..... Kuk Sool Won is a potent "hard-soft" style of Korean martial arts with a stress on quickness and suppleness of movement. Because Kuk Sool Won harmonizes the body, mind and spirit, it is regarded as an exquisite and potent system of martial art. To develop internal power among its students and practitioners, Kuk Sool involves the use of intensive physical training and forms. Techniques in self-defense that are being taught help instill confidence as well as develop more limber joints.
Kuk Sool Won, translated as Korean National Martial Arts Association, refers to the organized study of all traditional martial arts in Korea. Altogether, these martial arts constitute Korea's history of martial arts. As an orderly system of martial arts, Kuk Sool Won's goal is to synthesize and examine all aspects of traditional Korean martial arts.
In spite of its relative newness in terms of how it is practiced today, Kuk Sool Won is deeply rooted in history. Its beginnings go as far back as the history of the people of Korea. Students and practitioners know the importance and value of learning the early beginnings upon which Kuk Sool Won has been founded - its history and traditions. This aspect is as important as learning and mastering the physical techniques and forms of Kuk Sool. Possessing a deeper understanding and appreciation of Kuk Sool Won's roots and traditions help develop students and practitioners into exceptional martial artists
There are over 3,608 techniques in Kuk Sool. Over the course of more than half a century, these techniques were painstakingly and meticulously compiled, mastered and organized by Grandmaster In Hyuk Suh. He pursued this task with single-minded determination and thousands of hours spent in research and practice. In 1961, he founded the Kuk Sool Won or the National Korean Martial Arts Association. He introduced it in the United States in 1974 by establishing the World Kuk Sool Association and basing it in San Francisco, California. Seventeen years later, in 1991, the organization transferred its headquarters to Houston, Texas. Today, the World Kuk Sool Association has over 1,000 member schools across Asian, Europe, Canada, the Middle East and the Americas. Each day, this number grows.
Kuk Sool as a self-defense style of martial arts is unrivaled primarily because of the "hard-soft" style it uses that is centered on agile and graceful moves. Not only does Kuk Sool encompass the gamut of classical Asian martial arts and methods of conditioning the body, it also comprehensively covers mental development and training in the use of traditional weapons.
The kind of training that Kuk Sool Won students and practitioner go through is anchored on the concept of You-Won-Hwa.
Specifically, the concept of "You", which means, "flowing, as in water", teaches students to "go with the flow." The concept demonstrates continuity in action: when one is pushed, he pulls; when one is pulled, he pushes. Water, the predominant element in this concept, symbolizes adaptability, softness and immense strength.
The second concept, "Won" (which means "circle"), affirms that each one of us has our personal circle of "private space." In Kuk Sool, the concept of "Won" is applied when diverting attacks that invade this private space. Gliding and circular defensive movements are used to divert attacks. The concept of "Won" pushes the application of circular movements because it considers the circle as a symbol of least resistance. Because a circle is constantly rotating or active, it is hard to hold or grasp.
The third concept is the concept of "Hwa." It means harmony and in Kuk Sool, Hwa stands for the oneness of the mind and the body. Hwa is achieved through constant practice and repetition. A Kuk Sool student or practitioner is able to attain harmony with himself by immersing himself in a state of "emptiness." In this state, he is able to discern that the positive ("yang") and negative ("um") are one and cannot exist without the other.
The whole concept of You-Won-Hwa implies that flowing water seeks to achieve harmony with its environment by continually attempting to change itself so that it adapts to changes happening outside of it. Students and practitioners of Kuk Sool are advised to be like this flowing water - that they should relentlessly pursue harmony within themselves so that anyone who violates their private space can be diverted with the equal amount of force they give.
For the full story on Martial Arts click HERE
|
