FieldDiscipline
2nd Black Belt
I wholeheartedly agree with Last Fearners superb post.
My understanding of Tae-kyon is that it was originally a combative sport, enjoyed at festivals and the like. However part of the reason the name TaeKwonDo was chosen was to clearly differentiate it from Tae-kyon which had developed a bad reputation as a streetfighting art used by gangsters and criminals. As we have seen, General Choi, Kim Bok Man and other founders of TKD practiced this art when young. To quote from GM Kim's book Practical TaeKwonDo:
'In 1948 at the age of 16 he was introduced to the ancient Korean foot-fighting art of Tae-Kyon, forerunner of TKD. This intoduction changed not only Kim's athetic career but also the pattern of his life.'
In his recent book on Chun Kuhn Do he also talks about To-San which he was secretly taught from the age of seven in 1941 by a buddhist priest at his temple.
No mention is made of Karate or any other Japanese arts.
My understanding of Tae-kyon is that it was originally a combative sport, enjoyed at festivals and the like. However part of the reason the name TaeKwonDo was chosen was to clearly differentiate it from Tae-kyon which had developed a bad reputation as a streetfighting art used by gangsters and criminals. As we have seen, General Choi, Kim Bok Man and other founders of TKD practiced this art when young. To quote from GM Kim's book Practical TaeKwonDo:
'In 1948 at the age of 16 he was introduced to the ancient Korean foot-fighting art of Tae-Kyon, forerunner of TKD. This intoduction changed not only Kim's athetic career but also the pattern of his life.'
In his recent book on Chun Kuhn Do he also talks about To-San which he was secretly taught from the age of seven in 1941 by a buddhist priest at his temple.
No mention is made of Karate or any other Japanese arts.