Post by Alena on Dec 26, 2006 22:10:29 GMT -5
Black Belt Magizine
State of TKD artical from Blackbeltmag.com
The Martial Artist as Hero
by Kyle D. Craig
The poomsae (forms) of taekwondo are ritualistic. The purpose of a ritual is to enact a myth, or a symbolic representation of something that’s difficult to express in language. Poomsae aren’t simply the enactment of any myth, however; they’re symbols of the mythological adventure of a hero.
As a people, we love heroes. We often watch television to follow our favorite hero as he defiantly battles his way through obstacles and overcomes adversity. Children like to play video games because they get to choose the actions the hero will perform on-screen. The poomsae of taekwondo are unique because they offer the practitioner the rare opportunity to actually be the hero.
But if the martial artist is a hero participating in an adventure, how are we to understand this adventure? In The Hero With a Thousand Faces, Joseph Campbell, the late scholar of mythology, broke down the adventure into three stages:
• The first stage of the hero journey is departure. For martial artists, it begins the moment you walk into the dojang. Once inside, you find yourself in a world separate from the one you left behind.
“All moments of separation and new birth produce anxiety,” Campbell stated. Just as this separation from your familiar world arouses anxiety, so does the “new birth,” whereby you shed your skin (clothing) and come into a new one (your dobok), thus launching you on the path from ordinary being to mythic hero.
The next step is what Campbell described as “the crossing of the first threshold.” You approach the line that separates the waiting area from the dojang floor, bow and step onto the training area, where the adventure will take place. (In mythology, this area is often a wilderness or forest.)
In a section of his book titled Supernatural Aid, Campbell wrote: “For those who have not refused the call, the first encounter of the hero journey is with a protective figure (often a little old crone or old man) who provides the adventurer with amulets against the dragon forces he is about to pass.” In the martial arts, this old man is the instructor. He’s there to help you find your way and protect you in the dojang.
• The second stage of the hero journey is the initiation. If the dojang is the wilderness in which the adventure will take place, the adventure itself is within the poomsae.
“Once having traversed the threshold, the hero moves in a dream landscape of curiously fluid, ambiguous forms, where he must survive a succession of trials,” Campbell wrote. To survive this succession, the hero must utilize the amulets his master or supernatural aid has provided. Similarly, armed with these techniques, you, as a martial artist, courageously accept the challenge of the “dragon forces” by going into the joonbi stance, or ready position.
What are these dragon forces? One theory of poomsae is that the practitioner is facing numerous opponents attacking from all directions. A second theory holds that he’s actually facing a single opponent in a number of possible scenarios. No matter how many opponents you believe you’re fighting, you must not overlook the fact that forms are solo exercises. In other words, if there’s only one person out there, it may be that the opponents you’re fighting are inside of you.
In On the Warrior’s Path: Philosophy, Fighting and Martial Arts Mythology, author Daniele Bolelli wrote, “The dragon comes to us in the shape of all the problems we stumble upon in daily life.” In mythology, the dragon represents vices such as ego, fear and desire. Poomsae can reveal much about the nature of these dragon forces. The patterns address attacks that seem to come out of nowhere, or at least from any direction. Similarly, our fears, desires, anger and so forth often arise suddenly and from unexpected places.
The techniques contained in poomsae reveal a lesson about how to battle these dragon forces. Often we must use defensive maneuvers just to keep them at bay. There are times, however, when we must face them head-on by launching an offensive assault. This usually comes at the peak of the struggle, at which time you deliver your enemy a fatal blow along with a loud shout, or kihap.
• Once the hero has defeated the dragon forces, he must return from his adventure. In the dojang, the poomsae ends the way it began: in the joonbi stance. Moreover, just as the hero had to cross the first threshold at the beginning of his journey, so must you cross what Campbell calls “the return threshold.” Once again you bow and exit the practice area. You then shed your dobok and leave the dojang the same way you entered.
Whether returning to the joonbi stance or exiting the dojang, however, you aren’t the same person you were when the journey began. While externally you may look the same, internally a transformation has taken place. You accepted the call to adventure, confronted your dragon forces and perhaps even experienced a victory. The journey is never easy, but you need not worry. If you stumble too far or lose sight of your goal, your supernatural aid—your master—will be there to help you get back on track.
All dragon forces inevitably return. So do you. You return to suit up, cross the threshold and once again slay your “dragon.” By accepting this call day after day and week after week, you transform yourself into a brave and noble hero.
State of TKD artical from Blackbeltmag.com
The Martial Artist as Hero
by Kyle D. Craig
The poomsae (forms) of taekwondo are ritualistic. The purpose of a ritual is to enact a myth, or a symbolic representation of something that’s difficult to express in language. Poomsae aren’t simply the enactment of any myth, however; they’re symbols of the mythological adventure of a hero.
As a people, we love heroes. We often watch television to follow our favorite hero as he defiantly battles his way through obstacles and overcomes adversity. Children like to play video games because they get to choose the actions the hero will perform on-screen. The poomsae of taekwondo are unique because they offer the practitioner the rare opportunity to actually be the hero.
But if the martial artist is a hero participating in an adventure, how are we to understand this adventure? In The Hero With a Thousand Faces, Joseph Campbell, the late scholar of mythology, broke down the adventure into three stages:
• The first stage of the hero journey is departure. For martial artists, it begins the moment you walk into the dojang. Once inside, you find yourself in a world separate from the one you left behind.
“All moments of separation and new birth produce anxiety,” Campbell stated. Just as this separation from your familiar world arouses anxiety, so does the “new birth,” whereby you shed your skin (clothing) and come into a new one (your dobok), thus launching you on the path from ordinary being to mythic hero.
The next step is what Campbell described as “the crossing of the first threshold.” You approach the line that separates the waiting area from the dojang floor, bow and step onto the training area, where the adventure will take place. (In mythology, this area is often a wilderness or forest.)
In a section of his book titled Supernatural Aid, Campbell wrote: “For those who have not refused the call, the first encounter of the hero journey is with a protective figure (often a little old crone or old man) who provides the adventurer with amulets against the dragon forces he is about to pass.” In the martial arts, this old man is the instructor. He’s there to help you find your way and protect you in the dojang.
• The second stage of the hero journey is the initiation. If the dojang is the wilderness in which the adventure will take place, the adventure itself is within the poomsae.
“Once having traversed the threshold, the hero moves in a dream landscape of curiously fluid, ambiguous forms, where he must survive a succession of trials,” Campbell wrote. To survive this succession, the hero must utilize the amulets his master or supernatural aid has provided. Similarly, armed with these techniques, you, as a martial artist, courageously accept the challenge of the “dragon forces” by going into the joonbi stance, or ready position.
What are these dragon forces? One theory of poomsae is that the practitioner is facing numerous opponents attacking from all directions. A second theory holds that he’s actually facing a single opponent in a number of possible scenarios. No matter how many opponents you believe you’re fighting, you must not overlook the fact that forms are solo exercises. In other words, if there’s only one person out there, it may be that the opponents you’re fighting are inside of you.
In On the Warrior’s Path: Philosophy, Fighting and Martial Arts Mythology, author Daniele Bolelli wrote, “The dragon comes to us in the shape of all the problems we stumble upon in daily life.” In mythology, the dragon represents vices such as ego, fear and desire. Poomsae can reveal much about the nature of these dragon forces. The patterns address attacks that seem to come out of nowhere, or at least from any direction. Similarly, our fears, desires, anger and so forth often arise suddenly and from unexpected places.
The techniques contained in poomsae reveal a lesson about how to battle these dragon forces. Often we must use defensive maneuvers just to keep them at bay. There are times, however, when we must face them head-on by launching an offensive assault. This usually comes at the peak of the struggle, at which time you deliver your enemy a fatal blow along with a loud shout, or kihap.
• Once the hero has defeated the dragon forces, he must return from his adventure. In the dojang, the poomsae ends the way it began: in the joonbi stance. Moreover, just as the hero had to cross the first threshold at the beginning of his journey, so must you cross what Campbell calls “the return threshold.” Once again you bow and exit the practice area. You then shed your dobok and leave the dojang the same way you entered.
Whether returning to the joonbi stance or exiting the dojang, however, you aren’t the same person you were when the journey began. While externally you may look the same, internally a transformation has taken place. You accepted the call to adventure, confronted your dragon forces and perhaps even experienced a victory. The journey is never easy, but you need not worry. If you stumble too far or lose sight of your goal, your supernatural aid—your master—will be there to help you get back on track.
All dragon forces inevitably return. So do you. You return to suit up, cross the threshold and once again slay your “dragon.” By accepting this call day after day and week after week, you transform yourself into a brave and noble hero.