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Hapkido is a form
of the Korean Martial Art familiar to most people knowledgeable
in the Martial Arts field. Not many people, however, actually
know of its origins and more importantly, what makes it unique.
Hapkido was
derived from ancient Aikijutsu, an early form of the now known
Japanese martial art, Aikido, combined with a blend of Korean
Karate. Aikijutsu was brought over from Japan to Korea in 1946
after World War II by the founder of original Hapkido, Young
Sool Choi, who reportedly studied with the same Grand Master of
Aikijutsu as did Morihei Ueshiba (founder of Aikido: check this
link out! http://www.ii.uib.no/~kjartan/aikidofaq/a_section42.html
for more info), Sokaku Takeda. To understand the unique nature
of Hapkido, it is perhaps best to become more acquainted with
its above mentioned predecessors.
Aikijutsu,
applied by combining bending, twisting and pressure points to
various parts of the body, was developed in to present day
Aikido, whose immobilization techniques and energy throws became
its trademarks while retaining the methods and precision of its
precursor. The major difference between Aikijutsu and Aikido is
found in the style of fluidity, which is very important when
examining present-day Hapkido. Korean Karate as a counterpart to
Aikijutsu, differs mainly from Aikijutsu in its skillful
implementation of dynamic kicks and powerful hand strikes. It
was this difference in mind that original Hapkido was created,
producing a dynamic balance of both methods.
Hapkido as known
today, however, differs from its original form. Contemporary
Hapkido is actually the result of the extreme hard work and
training of three men who have given it that uniqueness so
respected. In Korea, during the mid-1960's, Jae Nam Myong and
Myung Sung Kang, both accomplished old style-Hapkido Masters,
met with an equally accomplished Aikido Master, Hirata, with the
desire to incorporate Aikido into Hapkido and vice versa.
Their task was to
add the more fluid, circular movements of Aikido in to Hapkido
while retaining the very direct techniques of original Hapkido.
After more then 25 years of research and arduous training, this
form of Hapkido was perfected into a precise marital science
with more advanced methods than most of the original Hapkido,
flourishing into a unique blend of the kicks, strikes, joint
locks and energy throws which no other form of martial art can
boast. |
