Essay for 6th Gup

The following was the essay I wrote for my Gup Shim Sa in January of 2010. Typos and misspellings left for chung jik.




 Explain the elements in the Soo Bahk Do flag and what they mean. 
Displayed between the Korean Flag and the flag of the DoJang’s home country, and beneath the portraits of the Kwan Jang Nim and founder, the Soo Bahk Do flag, called the Kwan Gi in Hangul, is just as revered as the rest of the Do Jang honor display. Its design was carefully considered to both express the philosophies of the Moo Duk Kwan and to become a unifying symbol to represent our Art worldwide.

The Gold Fist
The gold fist in the center of the Kwan Gi appears to represent the physical aspects of our training, but without the discipline of our philosophy guiding us to seek justice, compose ourselves with honor and to find strength through our unity with each other in the Art.

The Branches with Laurel Leaves
The laurel branches are included to symbolize peace. There are fourteen leaves on the branches to represent the fourteen provinces of Korea, the origin country of Soo Bahk Do Moo Duk Kwan.

The Berries
The six red berries on the flag take their color from the active force, Yang, a color of strength and action. Their number represents the six inhabited continents of the Earth.

The Scroll
The scroll on the flag takes its color from the passive force, Um, a color of wisdom and reflection. The scroll was chosen to represent our founder's intention that all practitioners should also be scholars who temper their strength with wisdom and philosophy.

Soo and Bahk
The Korean character on the left side of the scroll is Soo, which means "Hand." The Korean character on the right side of the scroll is Bahk which means "Strike". Soo Bahk is the name of our style and the means through which we seek our self-improvement.

Moo
Central to our training is the desire to use our Art to promote peace, rather than to see out conflict. This character combines the words for stop and conflict, reminding us that we seek to resolve internal and external conflicts with the knowledge and discipline that we are developing.

My Soo Bahk Do Essay for 7th Gup

The following was the essay I wrote for my Gup Shim Sa in July of 2010. Typos and misspellings left for chung jik.

Explain 1 of the 8 key concepts in Soo Bahk Do philosophy.

In Neh

I always look forward to the classes where Master Choi Sa Bom Nim will provide further explanation of the 8 Key Concepts to his students. His literal translations and cultural insight present a new way to think about and act upon each concept.

I found it very striking when Master Choi spoke to us of In Neh. The translation provided is simply: “Endurance.” Our master described the construction of the Korean characters that gave the meaning: “Keep your mind like a knife inside you.”  Now here is a translation I can act upon! Focus. Strength. Purpose. When I first began training, In Neh seemed like “prove it.” Prove you can stay in horse stance for ten minutes. Prove you can perform Ahp Podo Oll Ligi properly 50 times without stopping. It was a test to take four times per year. But upon hearing this meaning, it became more immediate. Not just “do it,” but a how and a why. All at once, in my mind, In Neh was its own reward.

The truth about each concept is that it is more than a sum of characters and words. “In Neh” are the words we invoke to tap into an inner strength and a reserve of spirit. It is something we must develop internally by applying ourselves fully to each task and exercise, inside the Do Jang and in our daily lives. Endurance of the body, gained by regular and intense training, is the outward manifestation of In Neh; how many kicks we can do, how many push-ups, how many squats. Perseverance of the mind, an instrument of our Will, is the inward strength we build through our mental training in Soo Bahk Do. By applying all our lessons we reinforce the mind so that, even when the body wants to give up, the spirit can control the muscles and joints and keep them to their purpose.

Another skill, which I believe to be improved through developing In Neh, is a student’s Shi Sun (focus). When the thoughts of the day or the frustrations of difficult training invade on the internal calm that keeps the body balanced, the discipline provided by In Neh can command “Shi Sun!” and return the student to the moment and the exercise at hand. It takes as great a will to remain in the moment as it does to remain in a low stance.

In Neh is my council in difficult moments, both as a practitioner of Soo Bahk Do in the Do Jang and as a human being in the world. “Is this pain so important?” it asks me, “or will you endure to be proud of your accomplishments after the discomfort has faded?”  Thanks to In Neh, the difficulties become proof that I am alive, the proof that my training has not ended and the motivation to endure.

My Soo Bahk Do Essay for 8th Gup

The following was the essay I wrote for my Gup Shim Sa in January of 2010. Typos and misspellings left for chung jik.

 

What does the word “Do” (Way) mean to me in Soo Bahk Do?

When I hear the word “Do”, I picture in my mind a path through the wilderness. It is well worn and clear, distinct from the land around it, which is littered with rocks and prickly brush. The voice of my instructor leads me forward and keeps me from wandering by speaking to me of focus and discipline. He shows me, not just through physical training but also through anecdotes and teachings, the steps that will lead me on this lifelong journey in my study of Soo Bahk Do.

I imagine mountains in the distance that represent my goals. There are landmarks along the way – behind me they are the achievements I have made, and in front of me the achievements I have yet to make. On this journey I know that it is not just my responsibility to follow the path that was laid out before me by others. Weeds grow along the way and want to cover it over. By training hard and maintaining my focus on learning Soo Bahk Do in the manner in which I am instructed, I do my part in maintaining the path, keeping it clear for those who will follow it behind me. The landmarks which are my achievements are not only my own. My name will be carved below the others who began their training first; the road through the mountains ahead of me is filled with a family of students who are on their own journeys and whose perseverance inspires me and fills me with strength.

The sun overhead is bright and the ground is hot beneath my bare feet, but there is no place to rest. The path ahead is endangered by overgrowth; those of us along it must push forward and keep it clear, for ourselves and for the others who follow.

Choi Sa Bom Nim told us once that in Korea there is a saying: “Should a Tiger try to bite your arm, push hard into its throat. It will have to let go to survive.” In this case he was speaking to us of fighting our own fatigue, to push harder when we want to give up and run. Lately, these are the words that are guiding me through my journey. This winter has been difficult. My body just wants to find a warm place to spend the cold months, and is resistant to the flexibility and endurance that I try to coax from it. Through pain and exhaustion I hear my master’s voice, down the path, telling me to push harder. I am finding that, when every step is a struggle, each one I take is a victory of which I can be proud as I make my way.

Foundations

I have been studying Soo Bahk Do for two years as of the end of this month, but I am frequently struck by how crucial the foundations of our training, the moments during our white belt phase, truly are.

As a white belt we are frequently struggling just to keep up. Our bodies aren't used to the rigorous training yet. Our muscles are unprepared to keep low, hold that pose, move smoothly, lead with the hip. We miss the opportunity, by just trying to look like those senior to us, to do things at our own speed so that we can learn to do them correctly.

The habits we form during our early months of training often stay with us, for better or worse, as we progress.

I have struggled with my training over the past 10 months due to back pain and several related injuries. As far as I thought I had come in my training, my body was giving me clear signals that something was wrong.

Am I getting too old? Is true commitment to Soo Bahk Do only for young people? I knew this couldn't be the case, but my bones and muscles were trying to convince me.

Proper body mechanics are often the cure for many chronic joint pains. I have been told this by so many, yet when I am in class and trying to keep up, where does this knowledge go? I seem to leave it in the dressing room, tucked in my shoes with my socks. Only when I feel outright pain do I try to correct my posture or focus on using my core muscles, and so on.

Last night I worked with Sa Bom Nim on my newest form, Chil Sung Il Ro Hyung, going through the movements, trying to remember whether my foot is positioned opened or closed, whether I am inhaling or exhaling, trying to figure out where my right hand should be during the second movement. Master Choi stopped me at one point, and directed my attention to my back leg. I was in Chun Gul Jaseh, but my rear knee was bent. The first position we learn as white belts, and there was the evidence that my foundation was poorly laid, or that absence due to my injury had chipped away at it.

My rear foot was not planted firmly on the ground; the outside edge was lifting, and therefore my knee was bending. My knee was bending, therefore my hips were tilting. My hips were tilting and therefore, as I listened to my body I became aware, my back was hurting and I was leaning forward slightly.

By not minding my foot, a simple thing to do and something I'd promised myself only recently I would commit myself to, I was sabotaging my all-too-recent return to the Dojang after my injury.

Sa Bom Nim drove home that my back needed my foot's cooperation. My foot needed my mind to focus and be aware.

"Give awareness and purpose to every movement."

I have memorized the song of the Sip Sam Seh in preparation to recite it for some Gup Shim Sa down the road. I thought to 'save' it for a 'big' test, such as for my Il Gup exam. It is beyond memorization, it comes to mind often during the day, and especially when I listen to my instructors in the Dojang. I recite it in the shower, sometimes in the car. I try to find a rhythm and cadence to it in the English that I feel must exist in the Korean, though I have never heard it read aloud.

These fundamental aspects of our art.. The foundations I need to work on so that my more recent techniques can function.. there they are! They're in the Song of the Sip Sam Seh. This poem is like a cheat sheet, and for some reason we wait until we are told that we can no longer recite the 8 Key Concepts during a test to look for something else to study.

There is no task so small that it does not warrant your best effort.

I'm paraphrasing a Samurai movie I recently watched, but this concept struck a cord with me. How often do we skimp on effort because we are 'saving' it for something important? Master Choi says "Every day is a test." Every moment is a test. We often speak of judging people by their actions, but when presented with the smallest task we often do not yearn to excel at it. To take pride in the small things, to do them well because we can.

Small things, like planting my foot firmly to tax the muscles that I need to strengthen. To punch strong, even though I have no physical target. If I am training to develop muscle strength and memory, what else is more important than moving correctly, every time?

My First Soo Bahk Do Essay

The following was the essay I wrote for my first Gup Shim Sa in October of 2009. Typos and mispellings left for chung jik.

What am I learning in Soo Bahk Do Training?

“Don't give up!”

    Frequently in the Do Jang we hear our Sa Bon Nim encourage us with these words. They are simple enough – a command to continue as instructed – but they are so much more. They go beyond the exercise we are struggling with at the moment, encompass our physical and mental stamina and clear a path for us to continue forward with our training. Complacency is the nemesis of our development, both mental and physical. If we are satisfied with our improvements, at any stage, we will forget that every time we train, we can and must perform better than we have before.

    Soo Bahk Do Moo Duk Kwan was developed as a combination of physical technique and philosophy in recognition that one cannot separate one's physical training from one's mental discipline and development. A sharp blade – the technique – must be handled as a surgeon, rather than a butcher – via the philosophy. Likewise, a surgeon cannot perform her duties without the proper tools. In our society, we often forget that the mind and the body are inseparable. Through lessons in Soo Bahk Do, we are trained to bring them back into alignment with each other.

    By observing tradition when we enter the Do Jang, we center ourselves and create a peaceful environment in which we can concentrate on training. By centering our minds, focusing our eyes, relaxing our muscles and breathing properly, we can better perform the movements that form our technique. By clearing our mind of doubt in our abilities, we can apply ourselves fully to each movement, which in turn develops our physical skills and paves the way for constant improvement. Such dedication to each training session ensures that the art of Soo Bahk Do will endure, for each generation of students is responsible for teaching the next. Just as parents want their children to be more successful than themselves, we train harder so that the next generation of Soo Bahk Do practitioners can excel.

    Through the clarity that comes from such focus, we can achieve more. The same discipline can be drawn upon in our daily lives to battle fatigue, distraction and laziness, just as we do in the Do Jang during every class. Because Moo Duk Kwan is a mental discipline, we cannot stop our training when we are dismissed by our Sa Bon Nim. We can strengthen and maintain the inner peace we develop throughout our daily lives and in our personal and professional relationships with others. We must remain focused, avoid distractions and elect to not always choose the path of least resistance. By nourishing this mental development, we will excel both inside and outside of the Do Jang. Carrying our lessons forward into our daily lives reinforces the development of our mental discipline, just as practicing our Soo Bahk Do technique maintains the development of our physical bodies.

    I know that the words, “Don't Give Up!” will be my own personal mantra as I continue my training, well aware that there will never be a time when they do not apply to my practice of Soo Bahk Do. I fully expect that I will have to persevere in my training as a Dan member just as I do today. The reward for this continued struggle and exhausting work will be the satisfaction in knowing that, just as there is no end to the training, there is no limit in what we can achieve when we don't give up!

The decision to blog.

I have been privately journaling about my Moo Do Kwan experiences, but just today I decided that I wanted to make more of a formal habit of doing so. Of course there are the essays due for each Shim Sa (test), but if I am to truly be a Scholar in the Art, and a philosopher of its principles, the process should be more continuous.

I make no promises to write daily, but I do hope to promote the habit of contemplating daily.

I named this blog after Choi Sa Bom Nim's frequently-heard phrase: "That's the Soo Bahk Do way is." Whatever precedes it is not just a definition but a mental training, a way to approach what we are doing.

Master Choi reminded us recently not to hold our Soo Bahk Do knowledge in our skin, but let it fill us. This blog is part of the process of doing just that.