Soo Bahk Do (Tang Soo Do)
June 5th, 2007 . by brian.corralesTo get started in the right direction as I begin to have discussions on martial arts topics, I thought it would be good to give a brief history. I began training in the martial arts when I was 5. I did it with my dad in Logan, Utah studying Chung Do Kwan. This style was one of the 5 original schools, and together with the Moo Duk Kwan was probably the strongest school. It later unified with the other “kwans” and formed Tae Kwon Do. I didn’t get very far before my parents moved to Idaho. I found a Shorin-ryu school there where I trained for maybe a year. Shorin-ryu is an okinowan style probably most closely associated with the Chinese Shaolin style. The instructor quickly retired after a logging accident and I was able to find another instructor, Earlene Burk, who I trained with starting April 9, 1993, which I consider my birthday in the martial arts. This is when I began studying Tang Soo Do.
Tang Soo Do is a generic style of Korean karate that can trace its roots back to Hwang Kee’s style, the Moo Duk Kwan. Through the years, Tang Soo Do has evolved to be more of an American martial art with a plethora of organizations and variations, Chuck Norris, being one of the more known members.
After receiving my dan (black belt) and being issued dan #1025 (meaning I’m the 25th most senior member in that organization), discovered that a 4th degree Master-level instructor (called Sa Bom), was moving to Sun Valley, ID–only 2.5 hours away. He belonged to the parent organization, the US Soo Bahk Do Moo Duk Kwan Federation. Understanding that he was the key to me furthering my knowledge of Tang Soo Do, I transferred schools and began learning under his guidance in the art of Soo Bahk Do. Soo Bahk Do is the parent style of Tang Soo Do and has a mission to try and uncover some of the ancient training methods of Korea. I retested for my 1st dan (dan #36364) in 1997 and currently hold a 3rd dan and am a kyo sa (certified instructor).
This category is dedicated principally to the further knowledge of Korean martial arts.
Soo Bahk!
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Yay Brian! Wish we were still training together! I need my 3rd Dan
…Nice history, you will have more to add soon with your new studio!
Thanks Ashley. I miss you too. Good luck with your training in Tennessee!
“Soo Bahk Do is the parent style of Tang Soo Do and has a mission to try and uncover some of the ancient training methods of Korea. ”
From what I understand, Chung Do Kwan Tang Soo Do literally translated into Japanese would be Sho-To-Kan-Ka-Ra-Te, or Shotokan Karate, or Shotokan China Hand Way, which would make it the Korean expression of Funakoshi Sensei’s Karate. I’m not sure of Soo Bahk Do, but if Tang Soo Do is of Japanese lineage, then Soo Bahk Do’s relationship to your Tang Soo Do is organisational rather than knowledge based.
Colin
Colin,
Thank you for your post. I’ve posted a new article to try and explain the Moo Duk Kwan Soo Bahk Do curriculum. The Moo Duk Kwan and the Chung Do Kwan are two of the 5 original schools in Korea after World War II. The Moo Duk Kwan incorporated the Okinawan Karate forms into its system in order to give the Korean people a martial arts curriculum they were more accustomed to. Hwang Kee, the Moo Duk Kwan founder, learned the forms from books and then modified them to align with his system of martial arts. So our relationship to Tang Soo Do is knowledge based, as we perform Pyong Ahn, Bassai, Naihanji, Jin Do etc, just as Shotokan does, though it has been modified slightly. Unlike Chung Do Kwan, we do not have a lineage that can be traced to Funakoshi. So Chung Do Kwan’s knowledge base to Shotokan would be much richer than ours. Today, the Moo Duk Kwan has little emphasis on the “Tang Soo Do” part of the art. The emphasis is on the “Soo Bahk Do” system now.
Now, when I said that Soo Bahk Do is the parent style of Tang Soo Do, I meant that there are now many branches of Tang Soo Do today that came from the Moo Duk Kwan Soo Bahk Do (Tang Soo Do) system that are now independent. I’m sure the same can be said of the Chung Do Kwan. In no way was that comment to suggest that the Moo Duk Kwan is the parent organization of Chung Do Kwan. Chung Do Kwan Tang Soo Do is completely independent of Moo Duk Kwan Tang Soo Do and visa versa.
I just read your recent post. I’ve got to say … it’s bloody interesting! There’s just so much to learn from history, isn’t there? Now if only I could get a chance to visit and train with you. Colin
Thanks Colin, perhaps one day our paths will meet and I’ll have to look into some of your blog posts as well. Whatever system you train in, I find it crucial that you study the system’s history to discover the foundation. There’s a ton out there I am not familiar with, but would like to learn more. For example, it’s not clear how much influence Chung Do Kwan had on Moo Duk Kwan. I haven’t been able to find many historical works by Chung Do Kwan.
I totally agree. That is one of the reasons why I have almost dedicated the last 4 years to studying shotokan and okinawan influences and perspectives. In so doing, I am attempting to clarifying what it is I am doing.
Colin