Attn: puunui / Classic Kwan Curricula

[dancingalone]

puunui or anyone else who might know: Do you have information about the curriculum the kwans studied? I'm especially interested in Chung Do Kwan since my lineage comes through Mr. Jhoon Rhee.

I asked this question before but didn't get any substantial answers. I'm more or less interested in what training sessions were like, what material was studied, what training drills were used, basically everything. It would be impossible to bore me with too much detail if it actually exists.

Ka sa ham nida.
http://www.omniglot.com/soundfiles/korean/thanks1_kr.mp3감사합니다

 

[bluewaveschool]

puunui or anyone else who might know: Do you have information about the curriculum the kwans studied? I'm especially interested in Chung Do Kwan since my lineage comes through Mr. Jhoon Rhee.

I asked this question before but didn't get any substantial answers. I'm more or less interested in what training sessions were like, what material was studied, what training drills were used, basically everything. It would be impossible to bore me with too much detail if it actually exists.

Ka sa ham nida.
http://www.omniglot.com/soundfiles/korean/thanks1_kr.mp3감사합니다

I would also be interested in this, and I too would not be bored with too much detail.

 

[puunui]

puunui or anyone else who might know: Do you have information about the curriculum the kwans studied? I'm especially interested in Chung Do Kwan since my lineage comes through Mr. Jhoon Rhee.

I remember speaking about this with GM LEE Won Kuk, but at this point I can't remember. I believe he said you had to know 10 hyung for promotion to 1st Dan, and there were 15 total hyung that he brought back with him from Japan. He also said I believe that he taught ten strikes and ten kicks, but I can't remember at this point what they were. It might be on the video we did of him, but that was hours long and I'm too lazy to dig it up. It might also be in the Chung Do Kwan bylaws.

I know front, side and roundhouse kick were the three staple kicks taught, that the focus was to develop technique first, then power, then speed, in that order. The Chung Do Kwan membership oath wasn't something

I tried to ask GM Lee about whether GM Son's book as an accurate depiction of the original Chung Do Kwan curriculum, but whenever the subject turns to GM Son, GM Lee gets a disappointed look on his face. GM Lee feels that GM Son betrayed him when he took that big newspaper ad out when he got removed as Chung Do Kwan kwan jang.

 

[bluewaveschool]

I thought the ad he took out was GM Son expelling Gen. Choi and others from the CDK, not the other way around.

 

[bluewaveschool]

I would also hope that any martial art teacher, regardless of which art, would teach proper technique as the key before power and speed. I know with many beginners, they want to throw kicks fast, and I have to slow them down. It's not a race to black belt, I tell them, but a long journey. Trying to mask sloppy technique with speed doesn't impress anyone.

 

[puunui]

I thought the ad he took out was GM Son expelling Gen. Choi and others from the CDK, not the other way around.

In that ad, he said a lot of bad things about GM Lee.

 

[Earl Weiss]

In that ad, he said a lot of bad things about GM Lee.

Thanks for the info. We all know he withdrew General Choi's rank, and people love to quote this and often leave out the expulsion of GMs Uhm and Nam, but never heard it mentioned before that he bashed GM Lee.

 

[FieldDiscipline]

That ad:

With morality and humbleness, the Taekwondo Chung Do Kwan is determined to punish those traitors who
threw away their trust to the other numerous Kwans. Especially after LEE Won Kuk left Korea, the traitors
deceptively contacted these other Kwans, used the dojang under their own names to slanderously spread their
own names. We can no longer watch these violations and wish to make clear to the nation so the Chung Do
Kwan is not misunderstood. Therefore, we lay bare their criminal acts.
A Brief History of the Chung Do Kwan
LEE Won Kuk returned from Japan to open his dojang in Yong Chun, Suh Dae Moon Ku in 1944 and produced
disciplines (Sado). Following the liberation of Korea, LEE moved his dojang to the Si Chun Church Hall, Kyun Ji
Dong and continued to teach. When the Korean War broke out, the members were separated and became
refugees, but I gathered some members and continued to teach. When the Allied Forces retreated on January
1, 1951, LEE Won Kuk said he was old and no longer able to teach, so he wanted me to be the next Kwan
Jang. I became his successor.
After I returned to the capital city of Seoul, I found HYUN Jong Myun leading the school, but he insisted that I
take over the school, perhaps because he thought he couldn't handle or take the responsibility. My juniors also
insisted that I take over. Finally, when JUNG Yong Taek, who ran away to Japan, brought a message that
nominated me to the Kwan Jang position by LEE Won Kuk, I agreed to be the next Kwan Jang. Because I did
not charge the black belts and policemen the 300 hwan fee, I started to have financial problems. At the time, I
could not even pay the Sabums. Despite the net loss from operating the Chung Do Kwan, I continued to
organize ceremonies and tournaments, and spread the Chung Do Kwan and Taekwondo in published news
articles.
After several months, I came back to Seoul and found out LEE Won Kuk and his family all ran away to Japan. I
thought they were living in Pusan. JUNG Yong Taek also ran away to Japan, but came back several times
during the year.
However he did not know what LEE Won Kuk and his family's situation or business was. LEE Won Kuk's sister in
law, MOON Myung Ja, also frequently flew back and forth between Korean and Japan. I don't know why she
visited Korea so often. JUNG Yong Taek and MOON Myung Ja were jealous of the Chung Do Kwan's growth and
devised a plan to split the Chung Do Kwan. At last, they formed an illicit connection with discontented members
of the Chung Do Kwan and returned to Korea. They obtained not a nomination certificate (Im Myung Jung), but
a notice statement (Ji Ryung Jung) signed by LEE Won Kuk. On June 4, 1959, the notice statement was given
to UHM Woon Kyu.
The Korean traitors who ran away to Japan were a matter of regret for me. They don't know that they will be
punished at last. NAM Tae Hi asked me to give a dan certificate to 29th Infantry Division commander CHOI
Hong Hi, who had some experience in martial art (Sado), so we could use his military authority to spread the
Chung Do Kwan. To contribute to Taekwondo's development, I gave an Honorary 4th Dan certificate signed by
myself, SON Duk Sung, to CHOI Hong Hi in front of the 3rd Army commander in 1955.
In 1957, Choi insisted that I give him a 6th Dan and sent a certificate he prepared in my name for me to sign.
Because Choi and I were sworn brothers, and because my younger brother had a 6th Dan, he wanted one also.
I tore up the certificate he sent to me without signing it. General Choi was also sending instructors (Sabums) to
Vietnam, but he did that on his own authority and chose the number of instructors to send without consulting
me. He also lied and stated that he had 24 years experience in martial arts practice (Sa Do Soo Ryun) and
spread propaganda about himself. Therefore, it was unavoidable that I had to cancel his Honorary 4th Dan
certificate and Honorary Kwan Jang position.

The nomination of Sabums

After I received the position of 2nd Kwan Jang of the Chung Do Kwan, I nominated MIN Wook Sik, HYUN Jong
Myun, and UHM Woon Kyu as Sabums. Later, I nominated NAM Tae Hi as a Sabum and UHM Woon Kyu as a
Standing or Permanent Sabum (Sang Im Sabum). However, HYUN Jong Myun, UHM Woon Kyu and NAM Tae Hi
acted as if they were at war against me and frequently contacted with people who ran away to Japan. Who can
nominate a Kwan Jang in a private dojang except the legal person with the authority? I myself am willing to
give up my position as the Kwan Jang, if I see a promising and capable person who can be the next successor,
but I am still looking for that person. There is no excuse for the actions of UHM Woon Kyu, when he was sent
by me to teach Taekwondo at the Korea Military Academy, Sung Kyun Kwan University and Seoul National
University. He should have known better as an educated person. But I feel very sorry for those who received
just a notice statement (Ji Ryung Jung) and not a nomination certificate (Im Myung Jung) from him. If he
thought about all the other Taekwondo schools and the Chung Do Kwan's future, he would not do such a
betrayal. I want the wise citizens of Korea to judge this matter. When I found out about these matters, I
expelled them from the membership on behalf of my name. All the more, the Chung Do Kwan will unite ever
more and practice rigorously for tournaments in the future, so please do not be disturbed by this whole action.

1. Expelled members: HYUN Jong Myun - UHM Woon Kyu - NAM Tae Hi
2. Cancellation of Honorary 4th Dan certificate and Honorary Kwan Jang position: CHOI Hong Hi

June 15, 1959

Kwan Jang SON Duk Sung

 

[puunui]

We all know he withdrew General Choi's rank, and people love to quote this and often leave out the expulsion of GMs Uhm and Nam, but never heard it mentioned before that he bashed GM Lee.

Well, the response to that is contained in the same newspaper ad, which says that GM Son was replaced as Kwan Jang on June 4, 1959. GM Son expulsion of GM Uhm, GM Hyun and GM Nam, as well as the withdrawal of General Choi's honorary 4th Dan and Honorary Kwan Jang position was on June 15, 1959, eleven days after he was removed as Kwan Jang. So his actions with respect to GM Uhm, GM Nam and General Choi were done without authority.

*

They obtained not a nomination certificate (Im Myung Jung), but a notice statement (Ji Ryung Jung) signed by LEE Won Kuk. On June 4, 1959, the notice statement was given
to UHM Woon Kyu....

1. Expelled members: HYUN Jong Myung - UHM Woon Kyu - NAM Tae Hi

2. Cancellation of Honorary 4th Dan certificate and Honorary Kwan Jang position: CHOI Hong Hi

June 15, 1959
Kwan Jang SON Duk Sung

 

[KarateMomUSA]

GM Kim Soo now of Texas, is not shy or afraid of his karate roots. In fact he feels it is dishonorable not to embrace them. He has written that the training in all the early kwans was very similiar & very, very basic, with little spoken instruction & virtually no questions. Read Robert McClain's interviews with him to get some insight to the crude methods. Then read Steve Capener's (PhD) work on how TKD evolution was tied to innovation needed to score points in the new sports rules the TaeSuDo guys devised in the early 1960s.