Self-Portrait: Kukkiwon Gangster

There's a story behind this photo, but I have an appointed I need to rush to it so I cannot tell it now. It has something to do with these people and this event. The title of the photo "Kukkiwon Gangster" makes a reference to this excellent book.

“Are you religious?” she asked.

Photo Source

On Tuesday night at 'The Way' Martial Arts Academy of Seoul my lesson was focussed on self-defence. This month on every Tuesday evening the Taekwon-Do class is open and free for anyone who wants to join and my lessons are more geared at real-life practicality, rather than the other various aspects one could cover in Taekwon-Do. Two or three people made use of the free class this past Tuesday. One of whom considered joining the gym so I took her over to the roster posted on the bulletin board by the entrance where I discussed with her the different training options and times available.

Suddenly she interrupted me and asked: “Are you religious?” Her question coming out of the blue just did not make sense to me. I have just taught her an hour long class on how to physically harm someone – why on earth would she “suspect” me of being religious. Be that as it may, I answered truthfully.

“Yes, I am.”

“You can tell,” she said.

“You can?”

“It's in the way you talk.”

“The way I talk?!”

I just couldn't understand how she could tell that I am religious from the way I explained to her the different martial art training options available, or the different times she could train, or the different packages she could choose and how much each one costs. I mean, how does a non-religious person explain different packages and fee options for martial art classes? Obviously I didn't use profane language as I was speaking to her and neither can I imagine any professional non-religious person using foul language while talking to a prospective client either, so the way I “talk” must involve more than merely my choice of adjectives.

Of course this made me think of Peter, the disciple of Jesus who after Jesus was captured and put on trial by the Sanhedrin, was “outed” because of the way he talked (Mark 14:70).

What I further found curious about this incident was that she never asked what my religious convictions are. It seemingly didn't matter whether I'm Christian or Buddhist, Hindu or Moslem. And I'm still not sure if her observation was a compliment or a sly insult. After mentioning that she could tell that I am religious from the way I speak, she mentioned that she “used to be religious.” I couldn't tell whether she is an atheist and that she is now more mature – as some atheist tend to think of themselves – and that it therefore doesn't matter what religion I adhere to, because it is all a little beneath her and that she doesn't need any of these religious crutches that us weaklings need to have to have a fulfilled life. Or was her comment that she “used to be religious” a sentimental moment – that she had somehow lost her faith and became non-practising but still somehow believe in a higher reality, a greater power or teleological narrative. And if so, then her statement was a compliment of sorts, because she could somehow notice something of that which she had lost as something I still have. While I don't claim to be a good example, a model Christian, or even one that “believes” in the same sense that stereotypical Christians do or even generally the same stuff that mainstream Christianity stands for, I do believe in a higher reality, a greater power and yes, some kind of teleological concept. And yes, even though I really dislike the term and even the idea of “religion,” it cannot be ignored that I do have a sense of trust and a type of relationship with (my concept of) God.

Like so many others of my generation, I am quite sceptical of “religion” and prefer the slightly less tainted word “spiritual” as a descriptive of what I am. Religion and even more so the Afrikaans word godsdiens [“god-service”] is very much something I disassociate myself with primarily on the philosophical ground that God – if we take God to be perfect; i.e. all-powerful and self-sufficient – does not need our service. On the contrary it is us, being imperfect, who need God. This then being a basic difference between the typical religious person and I, but also between the militant atheist and I. There are those atheists who pities my believe that we need God. It is a sign to them of my evolutionary immaturity and that I have yet to achieve self-actualization. Furthermore, since I'm of the opinion that there is in practise nothing we could truly do for God, seeing as a perfect God is innately in need of nothing, I am at odds with the typical Christian and practically all of the religious world as well. The typical religious person believes that there are certain things that we ought to do (or not to do) towards God in order to get God's favour; for instance, we ought to worship God or, on the other hand, not do bad things – the though shalt nots. No, if God does require certain things of us, it is definitely not because God has any need of such things, but because it would be to our benefit. Not killing each other, not stealing from each other, not coveting, and the rest, has practical advantages to us. It is that simple. The reason I choose to worship God is not because I think I have to do so to get into God's good books, but because I actually believe God to be worthy of worship; i.e. praiseworthy.  

And what was supposed to be a short description of my interesting experience on Tuesday had become a little philosophical and, yes, theological exposé. So I guess it is true, one can hear from the way I talk that I am religious . . .

My Korea -or- Why Am I in Korea?

 [Image Source]

I'm sometimes posed with the question, Why did I come to Korea? This question is not to be confused with why am I working abroad, but very specifically what made me choose this particularly country; why didn't I go to, say, Japan or Taiwan? Why Korea?

The answer is actually quite simple. Around 16 or so years ago I took up the martial art Taekwon-Do. My brother and I were actually searching for a kung-fu school—we were very much into kung-fu movies growing up. Quite accidentally we saw a flyer advertising Taekwon-Do and promoting it“as seen in Best of the Best.” We had seen the film and was impressed by the techniques we saw. Although it wasn't kung-fu, it was significantly different enough from Karate. We knew we were not interested in Karate. My brother and I attended a class and the rest, as far as me becoming a serious martial artist, is history.

In the version of Taekwon-Do that I do there are things called “teul,” translated into English as patterns. They are movements arranged into a sequences of attacks and defences against imaginary opponents. The purpose of teul is to teach you combinations of movements, certain ways of manoeuvring, fighting strategies, and so on. Each teul has a name with a special meaning somehow related to Korean culture and history. Some are named after historic figures like Korean kings, philosophers, scholars, freedom fighters; others are name after philosophical or ideological ideas that are part of Korean culture. It was inevitable, as I learned the teul and the people and things they represent, not to become enchanted by Korea.

Then one day my sister-in-law told me about the possibility of going to Korea. There were different options. One could go through a church organization as a teacher-missionary. Or you could go through an educational institute as a teacher—usually an English teacher. As soon as I had finished my master's degree I was on the plane to Korea.

[Image Source] It was nothing as I had imagined it. My imaginings were based on the Korean folk heroes I learned about in Taekwon-Do, media-based conceptions about the Far East, and readings of Oriental philosophy. After a year and a half in Korea, and with a black belt in another Korean martial art (Hapkido), I returned back to South Africa. Even while I sat on the aeroplane I knew that I was not yet finished with Korea. About a year later I returned to Korea once more.

In all, I have been in Korea for about four years now. The honeymoon phase is long over and I've been thoroughly disillusioned. I have an enigmatic love-hate relationship with this country. And while I think that my time here is slowly drawing to a close, I also know that as of yet, I am still not finished with it. Eventually, when I do depart, I know that I will always have strong ties with Korea. My Korea.

Another Week

Another week has come to and end, another week ahead. Last Sunday I taught a Parkour workshop again. I enjoyed the group of people that attended, from various countries. They members also learned the techniques with a fair amount of ease, and after only about 30 minutes they were able to do a basic run.




On Thursday night last week the senior students, for whom the current semester is their final one, organized a banquet in honour of the teachers. In Korea senior students host such a banquet to thank their lecturers for what they have done for them during their years at university. As a teacher I can only say that it is a much appreciated gesture. This was the first such a banquet I've attended, and was definitely the best one so far. We were taken to the Ritz-Carlton Hotel in Kangnam, which included an excellent buffet.

There are only two weeks of classes remaining at the university where I work, which means that we are very focussed on finish the material in time. Of course this means that I've started doing lots of grading in order to finish the assignments and class tests before the final exams start December 13.
Saturday night I met up with a dance instructor focussing on Jazz and contemporary dance. We had a very interesting conversation, mostly comparing the similarities between dance and the martial arts. I learned a lot.

Today (Sunday), I attended a Taekkyeon tournament (as a spectator). Although I have seen Taekkyeon tournaments online, todays one was the first time for me to see in person. Most of the events were group events, with five members per group. If a fighter wins his bout, he stays on to fight the next challenger from the opposing group. In one of the sets, a girl stepped up and won against all the members of the opposing team. She was quite good. Of course, I enjoyed the adults fights much better, as they used much more intriguing techniques. I took my video camera with and will put together a video once I have time.

The tournament ended around 7PM, it was supposed to end at 5PM. Starving by then two of my fellow Taekkyeon mates and I went to Itaewon for dinner. We had fabulous Thai food, including tongue smackingly good Thai deserts. While having dinner it started to snow.

By the time I headed home it was snowing quite hard. At first I was tempted to take a taxi from the subway station to my house so that I do not have to walk to far, but then I decided to rather take the bus and enjoy the fifteen minute walk in the snow to my apartment. Although I've experienced it now for a number of years, snow is still a novelty to me—I grew up in Africa, after all. That white blanket that covers everything is to me a beautiful spectacle year after year.

Today America and South Korea performed their joint naval exercises in the West Sea; the largest ever naval drills.I guess they were pretty intimidating as North Korea didn't react much. Then again, there is still a couple of days to go as the naval exercises are planned to continue till Wednesday.

Gisteraand: 'n Verjaarsdagpartyjie en 'n singkamer

Een van my oefenmaats by die yusul-klub (die grondwerkklas by The Way Martial Arts Academy of Seoul) het Donderdagverjaar en besluit om gisteraand sy partytjie te hê en gevolglik was byna die hele The Way se volwassenes daar. Omdat dit Sabbat was en omdat ek ook eers per telefoon met 'n ander vriend van Suid-Afrika gekuier het, het ek eers bietjie later daar aan gekom -- teen daardie tyd het die helfde van die groep al heelwat drankies agter die blad gehad. Ek het 'n groot bak kwaliteit roomys gebring en self heerlik daaraan gesmul, saam met koek en pizza en bitterlemoensap.

Na die joligheid by sy huis is ons hele groep na 'n noraebang. Direk vertaal, 'n "singkamer" of beter bekend in die Weste as 'n Karaoke. Ek het "Wonderwall" van Oasis, "Under the Sea" van Little Mermaid en "Bohemian Rhapsody" van Queen gesing. Noraebangs is nogals groot in Korea en selfs die uitlanders geniet dit baie. As jy vir my kom kuier kan ons gaan na 'n noraebang toe.



Ek het probeer om nie te laat uit te bly nie en was omtrent middernag weer by die huis. Die rede was 'n ander avontuur waarvoor ek vroeg vanoggend moes opstaan -- ek het gaan foefieslide!

Self-Portrait: Grappling

Technically this is not a self-portrait since I didn't take the photo. It was taken during last Sunday's grappling tournament that I partook in and sent to me by an acquaintance, a fellow competitor named Justin.

Fireworks & Grappling

Another full and fulfilling weekend. On Friday afternoon I went to see a Chinese movie. Saturday I spend some time with friends during the day. Saturday night I met up with a pen-pal. We've been writing each other for some time but never met in person. She is an Indian lady, has a doctor's degree in Chemistry and currently working as a researcher at one of the big universities in Seoul. We went to see the Seoul International Fireworks Festival.

The fireworks festival was an extravaganza of light and colour. It was the most wonderful fireworks show I've witnessed ever and in a sense I think it is bad as I will henceforth also compare any other fireworks display to what I saw last night and probably find it poor in comparison. There were even some geometric shapes!  A cube, a pentagon, a flower. They also used coloured lights that shone from below onto the smoke to create coloured hazes contrasting with the actual fireworks. Really a spectacular event. Unfortunately the traffic back, with the thousands of people attending, was terrible. I got home far too late for what waited for me the following today.

So what is it that I needed to get home for early? Well the following day, i.e. today, I competed in a grappling tournament: King of Ground. It was my first time to actually participate in a grappling tournament. I won the first bout by gaining the rear mount and applying a rear naked choke. However, I lost the second fight due to points against a young competitor whom went on to the finals. I'm not really into grappling that much -- rolling around with other sweaty men is not my idea of fun, but it was still a learning experience.

The video below is from last year's King of Ground.



I'm quite exhausted tonight. The saga with my computer continues as I'm slowly working out some glitches. Hopefully I'll be able to go to bed in a timely manner.

Darth Vader Does the Tai Chi Sword Form

As a fan of both Star Wars and martial arts, this is just right up my alley.

Thailand: Guardian Figures

On the second to last day of my trip in Thailand last month I went to the Grand Palace in Bangkok. The following are some photos of guardian statues I saw there.

Grappling on Facebook

As my family, friends and regular blog reader's know, I'm not a fan of Facebook and do not have a Facebook account. It is not because I'm trying to hide information from the public, as this blog, which is overly candid, can attest. In the terms of service of Facebook they claim ownership of everything on Facebook and I can just not, on principle, go along with it. This is just one of a number of issues I have with Facebook. It is not even that I'm afraid of someone using "my stuff" -- most of this blog is licenced under a Creative Commons licence. It is the principle of the matter.

Nonetheless, even though I avoid Facebook, I continuously find myself featuring on it. Every so often I hear of photos of me posted and that I have been tagged on photos. Most recently I found out that there is a video of my practising grappling drills available on Facebook. If you have access to Facebook you can see it here. I was reviewing some options from the closed guard position.

I'm looking forward to the new Facebook alternative, Diaspora, to start up in about two months or so. I will be one of the first people to sign up for this -- just to show that I'm not scared of social networking. It is just that I'm not settling for something that goes against my principles just because the whole world has jumped on the bandwagon. Diaspora describes itself as "The privacy aware, personally controlled, do-it-all, open source social network." Unlike Facebook where one has to constantly fight for your privacy and where personal control over your information is at Facebook's discretion, Diaspora gives power and responsibility back to where it belongs -- in the hands of the user. Now that is a social network I can associate myself with. I'm looking forward to networking with all the other anti-Facebook users.

My Gunsteling Skoolboelie

Ek besoek byna nooit op Facebook nie. Ek vermy dit soos ’n aansteeklike siekte. Nietemen, ek het vroeër vandag daar gaan koekeloer opsoek na ’n musiekgroep wat ek in Hong Kong gehoor het. Ek was onsuksesvol om die groep se bladsy op te spoor.

Toe skielik, uit die bloute, wonder ek wat van een ou saam met wie ek op hoërskool was gebeur het. Hy was ’n eerste span rugby speker, ’n uitblinker atleet, en die aantreklikste ou in ons jaargroep sedert standard ses. Hy’t ’n breë glimlag, blou oë en ’n goue blasvel. Ek was absoluut jaloers op hom op skool. Wanneer ek en hy op geleentheid alleen in mekaar se geselskap was, was hy verbaaslik aangenaam, maar sodra ander mense by was, was hy ’n buffel met ’n slegte gesindheid teenoor my. Alhoewel ek dit nie kan onthou nie, is ek amper seker dat hy my met aftakelende taal getuister het, soos “sussie,” “moffie” en so aan. Indien nie hy nie, beslis sy vriende en hy het ongetwyfeld saam gespot en lag.

Hy’t my eenkeer om die nek gegryp in ’n wurggreep en aangehou sê dat ek moet oorgee. Ek het byna flou geraak maar geweier om oor te gee. Ek kon nie terug veg nie want ek was veels swakker as hy, maar ek sou hom nie die satisfaksie gee om oor te gee nie. Een van sy vriende het gegrap en gesê dat hy moet passop, eendag as ons groot is, gaan ek hom terug kry. Daai gedagte het by my vasgesteek en ek dink dit was moontlik een rede hoekom ek met sulke ywer met die krygskunste begin het. Teen matriek toe ek myself ten minste al kon volstaan in ’n skoolbarnie, het hulle belangstelling verloor in my. Ek het nooit kans gehad om hom / hulle terug te kry vir hulle teistering nie.

Hierdie dinge was alles lank vergete, totdat ek nou skielik gewonder het wat van hom geword het. Ek het altyd myself verbeel dat hy na skool as ’n looser sou uitdraai. Ek het gerugte gehoor, van ander mense wat in ons tuisdorp bly dat hy dwelms gebruik en erg gewig opgetel het.

Wel, ek was suksesvol om hom op te spoor op FB. Raai wat?! Hy is nog net so aantreklik soos altyd en het ’n pragtige vrou (hulle was na ’n uitheemse uitland vir hulle wittebrood) en hy is die baas van sy eie grafiese ontwerp besigheid. Grafiese Ontwerp besigheid! So op my agterstoep! (My eerste graad is in Grafiese Ontwerp.) Ek was so telleurgesteld toe ek dit sien. Hy het toe nooit ’n looser uit gedraai nie . . .

Toe my skok oor sy voordurende glorie na ’n paar oomblikke oor is, toe tref die tweede skok my. Dat ek so erg telleurgesteld was dat sy lewe goed uitgedraai het. Watse tipe mens is ek? En het ek regtig sulke wraak gevoelens vir hom geberg deur al hierdie jare – byna 15 jaar!

En raai wat het hy onder sy “Likes and Interests” – Angus Buchan. Dit wil impliseer dat hy ’n goeie mens geraak het – dat hy ’n Christen is en sy held is Angus Buchan – daai Boer-evangelis wat mans help om goeie Christene te wees. Ek was sommer vies toe ek dit sien. Hoe durf hy ’n sukses van sy lewe maak – nou en in die hiernamaals!

Ek lag vir myself en my eie gedagtes terwyl ek hierdie skryf. Ek vermoed ek is nog steeds bietjie jaloers op hom – sy good looks, sy eie besigheid en mooi vrou en wittebrood op ’n eiland! Ek het darem geen meer behoefte om hom en sy maters se knieë te breek nie. ’n Goeie vuishou op sy mooi glimlag sou lekker gewees het, maar selfs dit wil ek nie juis doen nie. Hy is nou ’n broer in Christus, so ek moet hom als vergewe en lief hê. Dit sal seker nie te moeilik wees nie. Niemand het nog ooit gesukkel om hom lief te kry nie . . . en dit is deels die probleem.

My hele antagonisme met die knaap op wie ek so jaloers was as tienerseun was op ’n vreemde manier ’n goeie ding gewees. Dit het my ten dele geïnspireer om offisiëel met ’n krygskuns te begin en sodoende ’n lewenslange passie te ontdek. Ek het intussen verskeie swartgordels en beoefen ’n ryk variteit krygskunste. Lankal doen ek dit nie meer om myself te beskerm teen skoolboelies nie. Nou is dit ’n genotvolle en uitdagende leefwyse. En rakende daardie wurggreep waarin hy my soveel jare geklem het: ek het juis 'n paar weke gelede verskeie ontsnaptegnieke aan studente in die krygskunsklub waar ek afrig geleer.

Een “goeie ding” wat ek gesien het terwyl ek op sy Facebook-profiel rond gerkap het, is dat hy ’n moffie-pienk onderbaadjie op sy troue gedra het. ;)

A Dead Owl, a Red Haired Korean, Bomb Shock and an Exhibition Decision

The owlet I picked up in front of my apartment yesterday did not make it through the night. By the time I picked it up it was already in the afternoon. Someone told me that they saw it there in the morning already. I was planning to take it to a vet today, but unfortunately when I went to check on it after I got up it was dead. I'm guessing that having sat outside in the sun may have taken its toll, not having fed for so long. Since I don't keep meat in my home I had nothing to feed it. I tried to give it some egg on a spoon but it wasn't interested. Since I have little knowledge of caring for raptors I just hoped it would survive the night so that I could take it somewhere professional. So it goes . . .

At the Taekkyeon class tonight I saw something quite interesting. There was a bearded Korean man He had a read beard. I asked him about it and he assured me that it is indeed his natural beard colour. This is the first time for me to see a Korean with naturally red hair -- or at least a read beard. I told him I want to bring my camera next time so that I can take a picture of his red beared. He didn't seem to pleased with the idea. I've seen a number of Koreans with a slight red tint in their hair, but since many Koreans dye their hair all kinds of brown and auburn shades, it is quite difficult to judge if the red tint is natural or not. I've been thinking about writing a blog post about physical (genetic) differences between Koreans and Cocasions. I hope to do it soon.

After the Taekkyeon training I spent a little time getting to know some of my fellow practitioners. One Korean man and I struck up a conversation and since we live in the general same direction we took the same subway line and continued talking for another half an hour or so. His name is Beomseok -- it sounds a little like "Bomb Shock," so that's how I'm going to remember it. He is studing Oriental Medicine. It sounds quite interesting. I would probably have enjoyed it, but life don't always present you with opportunities for all your likes, and neither am I so passionate about Oriental Medicine that I'd quite my job and enroll myself as a freshmen again. To be honest, the idea of starting my academic career from scratch again just sounds to daunting. Now if I had the opportunity to get a degree in Taekwon-Do I would seriously consider it. Korea has a number of universities with Taekwon-Do as major; acutally, it is a major in Sport Science or Physical Education, while specialising in Taekwon-Do. There are about three universities that offers the course in English. It would even be better if I could work at a university teaching martial arts -- now that would be wonderful. Combining the job I like with my passion for the martial arts.

I'm planning to go to an art exhibit tomorrow. Either Greek sculptures or Rodin's sculptures. Maybe I should do it in historic sequence -- Classical idealism before naturalistic expressionism. Greek sculpture tomorrow and Rodin on Wednesday.

I Took Up Taekkyeon Again

Image Source

Since I suspended my formal training of Hapkido for the time being, I’ve taken up Taekkyeon again. I started with Taekkyeon on Monday and will be going to the dojang twice a week – Monday and Wednesday. The Taekkyeon gym is situated in Insadong, which is a tourist friendly street in Seoul, focused on mostly traditional Korean memorabilia, traditional teashops, and it seems also traditional martial arts.

I did Taekkyeon before, but stopped going for two reasons. The times clashed with my day job and my fellow practitioners were all old ladies. I don’t have anything against the elderly, it is just that after about two months of training my learning curve reached a plateau and I realized that it was not going to improve that much. One major reason being that the dojang caters for health enthusiasts, not for combat practitioners. If I wanted to learn about Taekkyeon’s martial applications I had to go to another school. Well at the time my program was already too full, so I just quit Taekkyeon for the time being. In the meantime, an opening in my program presented itself so I found a new Taekkyeon gym with the help of my Taekwon-Do instructor – it is the main Taekkyeon school in Seoul. Unfortunately, like with my Taekwon-Do school, it takes me more than an hour to commute from my home to the gym.

I’ve had two classes so far and have practically just practiced the basic stepping that is iconic of Taekkyeon. It is much more difficult than it looks, and it seems that my previous Taekkyeon exposure has taught me some wrong habits, which is somewhat hard to break. The instructor says that it takes about eight months to master the basic stepping. I understand the importance of building a sound foundation and basic training; however, I do hope that I’ll get the stepping right in less time.

Finding My Own (Hapki-) "Do"

 A photo of me and one of the instructors at the dojang -- dating 2007. 

I didn’t expect that I would feel so emotional.

Earlier this evening I went to see the Head of the Hapkido gym where I have been training since I came to Korea the first time. I went to tell him that I am discontinuing my regular training at his school and that I will instead continue my training in Hapkido on occasion with instructors irregularly, most likely over weekends. After explaining it to him, getting my black belt from where it hung between the other black belts, bowing to him and the other members in the dojang, and giving my final salute, I left the gym; feeling overwhelmingly sad. I have “outgrown” that school and the only way for my to progress is to leave it.

It is not that I have learned everything that that school and the master can teach me – far from it! There is still much I can learn. It is just that the ratio between what I am learning (and the rate at which I’m learning it) to the time, effort, and money I'm investing is not worth it for me at the present moment. I guess the language barrier has become a big contributing factor towards my decision. There is only so much one can learn via the monkey-see-monkey-do method. I've long passed that level in my martial art career. I am truly sad about leaving. This dojang was my very first and longest lasting martial art “home” in Korea. To tell my instructor that I’m leaving home is similar to a young bird leaving its nest. It is frightening. But it is also necessary because only outside the nest can the bird really mature. I’m not cutting all ties with the dojang; I will still visit there every so often; but for now, the bird has left the nest.

The moment I stepped out of the dojang, knowing that I’ve chosen a new path for my Hapkido-journey, I felt immediately homesick. I walked to a restaurant to have dinner, but had lost my appetite. When my food arrived I let it stand—pretending to let it cool off—for probably a quarter of an hour before I started to eat. While the decision caused melancholy, I am not regretting it. Another Hapkido instructor (and also a close friend) explained to me that there comes a time in every Hapkido practitioner’s journey that he has to find his own Do – “Way.”

When I arrived home tonight and read my emails, I saw a notice from a bookshop informing me that a Hapkido book I ordered had arrived. I’ll go pick it up tomorrow.

My Meetup Group, Tricking and My Very First Video

I've started a Meetup-community for martial artists in Seoul, called The Seoul Martial Art Circle. Basically it is a way for people interested in martial arts to get together and cross train, get exposed to different styles, or inform each other of martial art related events.

This last Sunday morning we had an "Introduction to Tricking Workshop." You can read more about it at my other blog and also see the little video I made. An interesting note is that this is the first video I've edited in my life! A brother of mine and one of my close friends are both video editors. So although I've seen the process many times, I've never done it myself. That is, until an hour ago.

My Hapkido Future

Image from Wikipedia.Org

I find myself facing a hard decision. I’m contemplating not going to the Hapkido gym, where I’ve practiced since 2006, anymore. The reason is that I’m just not really growing anymore. At the moment I can learn more from books than from actually attending regular classes. The classes focus too much on things, for instance kicking, that I do not need to train in – I already have 15 years of kicking experience from doing Taekwon-Do. My purpose for taking up Hapkido was to learn the joint-manipulation techniques and the associated “circle”-principles. The gym I’m training at just doesn’t give me enough exposure to these things to make it worth the time, effort, and money anymore.

I’ve spoken to different people about it. My Taekwon-Do instructor says the problem is that my technique is too advanced so that the basics taught at these classes are not stimulating me anymore. Not trying to blow my own horn, but he is correct. I’m not really learning much anymore. He also added that the most martial art classes are geared for quantity (in members), not quality, and that this is inevitable due to the economic downturn across the globe, and also in Korea.The martial arts in Korea is big business, let none be fooled.

A Hapkido instructor told me what one of his instructors one’s told him: “If you want to continue learning, you need to travel.” The implication is that if you are not growing where you’re at, you may need to find another place where you can grow. He also mentioned something interesting. He said that my Hapkido experience had been somewhat reversed. Most people learn the martial arts by studying the techniques first and then extrapolating the underlying principles from these techniques as they become more settled in the martial art. On the other hand, because of my many years of martial art experience I learned the principles first, and then learned and understood the techniques based on the principles. For this reason I’m not satisfied with merely learning the simple techniques anymore. He is also correct. I believe that one correctly understood principle is more valuable than a hundred techniques. I’ve acquainted myself with much of the principles and now wish to practise these principles, but the current dojang does not really present me with opportunities to do so. He continued to say that in Hapkido, unlike many martial arts, once you have the principles down you should “find your own way.” This is something I’ve truly enjoyed about Hapkido – its freedom. However, this is what is putting me in a dilemma now. In order to find my own way I have to spread my wings and invest that time and energy somewhere else that will be more conducive to my growth.

Having to leave this gym is very hard for me. I’ve been there for four years now. It was the first gym I joined when I first came to Korea and I’ve grown quite fond of it and the Master there. I have developed a loyalty to the master and his gym. Unfortunately, if I stay, I will stifle my enjoyment of Hapkido and may end up quitting it altogether. Ironically, in order to save my practise of Hapkido I need to quit.

I’m still contemplating how I will continue practising Hapkido once I discontinue practissing at this gym, which will probably be at the end of this month.. For one, I’m considering private lessons with Hapkido instructors. Another option is to find other relatively higher level students and train with them. A third alternative is to start teaching Hapkido. The Taekwon-Do gym I’m at teaches a variety of martial arts and we augment our Taekwon-Do practise with Hapkido techniques. I could always include more formal Hapkido training to our curriculum. I know the gym owner will be open to the idea.

Pasop wat jy sê

Gisteraand gesels ek en my Taekwon-Do afrigter en die gesprek maak toe skielik ’n interesante draai. My afrigter waarsku my dat dit alweer verkiesingstyd is in Korea en met die huidige administrasie in plek moet ’n mens versigtig wees wat jy sê. Of meer spesifiek, moet “ek” versigtig wees. Die rede is omdat ek ’n hoë rang in ITF Taekwon-Do het. ITF Taekwon-Do word ook in Noord-Korea gedoen en die huidige regering het ’n aggresiewe houding teenoor Noord-Korea. Heksejagtery gebeur glo tydens hierdie tye wat aanloop na die stembus. Ek dink dit is heel belaglik omdat ek niks met Noord-Korea te maak het nie en is pertinent gekant teen die Noord-Koreaanse diktatorale regering.

Vanoggend toe lees ek ’n skrywe op die bekende Roboseyo-blog. (Roboseyo is een van die vooraanstaande blogs deur ’n uitlander in Korea.) Die skrywe handel oor vryheid van spraak in Korea. Soms vergeet ek dat Korea nog ernstige vryheid van spraak probleme het.

My afrigter is natuurlik reg in sy aanmatiging dat ek versigtig moet wees. Ek het ’n hoë aanlyn profiel as ’n skrywer van krygskunsverwante onderwerpe, en in besonder oor ITF Taekwon-Do. Verder is dit welbekend dat ek in Suid-Korea woonagtig is. Wie weet watse inligtiging daar omtrent my deur diverse groepe bymekaar gemaak word? Om hierdie rede vermy ek gewoonlik politieke en erg opinie gelaaide skrywes. Veral op hierdie blog. My onlangse skrywe was ’n uitsondering en was dalk ’n slegte skuif gewees.

Vir wat dit (in Afrikaans) werd is, ek is nie ’n spioen vir ’n kommunistiese agentskap nie. Maar indien ek was sou ek dit ook seker ontken het, sou ek nie? ’n Onskuldige verdenkinge kan net nie wen nie . . . 

Great Uncut Cinematic Fight Sequence

This scene was just superbly shot. Unfortunately I don't know from which movie it is from. (I stumbled upon it on YouTube while preparing for a lesson on cinematography for my film class.) The actor is Tony Jaa (Tatchakorn Yeerum) from the Ong Bak films. I have only seen the first Ong Bak film, not any of the Ong Bak sequels, so I'm guessing that this scene is from one of them.

Jiujutsu Tournament

Last Sunday I went to watch a Jiujutsu tournament in Seoul. The main reason was becausing members from the Brazilian Jiujutsu (BJJ) club where I train competed, including my instructor Tae-Hong (in the photo) who took gold in his division.

Am I jealous of those abs? You bet I am.

Priorities

“Are you married?”

“No,”

“Do you have a girlfriend?”

“No,”

“ . . . “

“I don’t have enough time.”

“Time is a very relative concept.”

“Sure.”

“It’s all about priorities.”

“Yeah, I work during the day and do martial arts at night. So I guess these are my priorities.”

So went the conversation between my pharmacist and I. This short interaction distilled a big issue between my X and I. We had a number of quibbles related to time. In South Africa, my part time position at the university resulted in me having nice pockets of free time during the day. However, I had to augment my income with teaching martial art classes in the evening. My X, on the other hand, had little free time during the day, but ample free time in the evenings. The only time we could really spend together was at night when I did not teach Taekwon-Do and there was an unspoken expectation that I ought to reduce my evening activities so that we could have more time together. I was, however, not willing to do that. Teaching martial arts was not merely an extra income for me; it is a passion. Martial arts are a way of life for me.

“It’s all about priorities,” said the pharmacist, and he is correct. The martial arts is a main priority in my life. It is in part why I am in Korea. I currently train in three martial arts (Taekwon-Do, Hapkido and Brazilian Jiu-jitsu) and would have added two more (Taekkyeon and Gomdo – sword fencing) if I could fit them in. Lest I find a future partner that either shares my passion for the martial arts (so that we could do it together) or respects it enough to allow me to do it, I very much doubt I will have a lasting relationship.

While having dinner with Master George Vitale a month or two ago the two of us where speaking excitedly about the martial arts. Sometime during our conversation he dropped: “This is why I’m not married. They all get tired of it sooner or later.” It is not impossible. I am friends with a married couple who teach Taekwon-Do together; since it is a shared passion it works perfectly fine. I also have another friend whose wife is not into the martial arts but we actively support him in his passion. She would often urge him to go to training. I don’t know if she just enjoys the lone time or if she truly cares so much for him that she finds joy out of knowing that he is doing the thing he enjoys. Both these examples are relationships I find quite enviable.

“It’s all about priorities.”