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| Programs - Hapkido
Concepts |
On the "hard-soft" scale of martial arts, hapkido
stands somewhere in the middle, employing "soft" techniques similar
to aikido and "hard" techniques reminiscent of taekwondo and
tangsoodo. Even the "hard" techniques, though, emphasize circular
rather than linear movements.
Hapkido is an eclectic martial
art, and different hapkido schools emphasize different techniques.
However, some core techniques are found in each school
(kwan), and all techniques should follow the three principles
of hapkido.
- Nonresistance ("Hwa", 화 or 和)
- Circular Motion ("Won", or 圓)
- The
Water Principle ("Yu", 류 or 流)
Hwa, or non-resistance, is simply the act
of remaining relaxed and not directly opposing an opponent's
strength. For example, if an opponent were to push against a hapkido
student's chest, rather than resist and push back, the hapkido
student would avoid a direct confrontation by moving in the same
direction as the push and utilizing the opponent's forward momentum
to throw him.
Won, the circular
principle, is a way to gain momentum for executing the techniques in
a natural and free-flowing manner. If an opponent attacks in linear
motion, as in a punch or knife thrust,
the hapkido student would redirect the opponent's force by leading
the attack in a circular pattern, thereby adding the attacker's
power to his own. Once he has redirected the power, the hapkido
student can execute any of a variety of techniques to incapacitate
his attacker. The hapkido practitioner learns to view an attacker as
an "energy entity" rather than as a physical entity. The bigger the
person is, the more energy a person has, the better it is for the
hapkido student.
Yu, the water principle,
can be thought of as the soft, adaptable strength of water. Hapkido
is "soft" in that it does not rely on physical force alone, much
like water is soft to touch. It is adaptable in that a hapkido
master will attempt to deflect an opponent's strike, in a way that
is similar to free-flowing water being divided around a stone only
to return and envelop it.
"As the flowing stream penetrates and
surrounds its obstructions and as dripping water eventually
penetrates the stone, so does the hapkido strength flow in and
through its opponents."
Hapkido
students gain:
- Self-Confidence
- Physical Ability
- Strength
- Balance
- Flexibility
- Concentration
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