Kuk Sool Won™ is a type of Korean martial arts. This Korean martial art is known for its comprehensive collection of combat techniques, in particular, it teaches an extensive set of offensive and defensive moves designed to take advantage of the human body's many pressure points.
History
Kuk Sool Won was founded in 1958 by In-Hyuk Suh, who also carries the formal titles of, Kuk Sa Nim and Grandmaster. The founder later started the Kuk Sool Association in 1961 and moved to the United States to spread his system in 1974. In 1991, Kuk Sool Won™ was selected as an extra curricular activity for the U.S. Military Academy at West Point, and in 1992, Grandmaster In Hyuk Suh was presented with the Commander's Sword at West Point.
Technique
Kuk Sool Won™ relies on the perspective of three main branches of traditional Korean martial arts for outlining its contents. The three segments are:
Techniques from these three historical divisions were carefully selected and organised into a cohesive curriculum by Grandmaster In Hyuk Suh, to form Kuk Sool Won™. This martial arts knowledge was passed down to him by his grandfather, Myung-duk Suh, who began teaching him at the tender age of five. Kuk Sool Won™ is a systematic study of all of the conventional fighting arts, which together comprise the martial arts history of Korea. As a martial arts system, Kuk Sool Won™ is extremely well-organized and seeks to integrate and explore the entire spectrum of established Asian fighting arts, along with body conditioning, mental development, and traditional weapons training. The following list represents a short summary regarding the most common elements found in Kuk Sool Won™:
It is a form of self-defense which includes strikes, kicks, grappling, joint locks, as well as traditional weapons training and healing techniques. In Kuk Sool Won, there are four basic sword forms, or principles taught:
jung gum - straight sword form
yuk gum hyung - side sword form
sam gum hyung - double-sword form
dan sang gum hyung - short double-sword form
Attire
Kuk Sool Won™ practitioners don uniforms or dobok. Although white being a common colour for the dobok in other styles, supposedly representing "purity," all the uniforms in Kuk Sool Won™ are black in colour, which according to Korean culture is used to represent wisdom. There are three types of uniforms for the members of Kuk Sool Won™. The first type is referred to as a training uniform and consists of a jacket styled top, loose fitting drawstring pants, and a long cloth belt that wraps around twice and is secured with a square knot. Patches that identify the system of Kuk Sool Won™, the country where the practitioner lives, and other similar insignia, may also adorn this uniform. Regulations state that any clothing worn underneath, such as a T-shirt, leotard, or sports bra, should be black in colour as well. This training uniform can be worn by all members, whereas the other two uniforms are reserved only for those who have attained the rank of black belt. The first of the remaining two types of uniforms is essentially identical to the "training uniform" detailed above, but has a gold coloured fringe sewn along the bottom edge of the jacket. It is known as a Black Belt uniform. The last type of uniform is typically used for formal occasions, such as promotion ceremonies, test review gradings, demonstrations, exhibitions, etc. It is called a General's uniform as it was styled after the armour worn by military commanders in ancient times. Similar patches to previously mentioned uniforms are utilised and pants are similar as well. The top has fuller sleeves with bloused closures at the wrists and longish skirt-like panels extending towards the knees from the bottom of the torso; no belt is worn but this uniform is tighter fitting at the waist than the other uniforms listed, with the contrasting trim forming the outline of a belt. A military ascot or dickey is an additional item that is worn around the neck. While the General's Uniform is primarily black, there are various colour schemes with regard to trim striping and the neck kerchief, which identify the dan rank held by the wearer. Regardless of the colour, the kerchief sports either a logo motif insignia or a South Korean flag. Wang Sa Dobok – the wangsa dobok twin dragons, b) twin phoenix, c) paired dragon & phoenix. In the chart below, each black belt rank will list its color scheme for the General's uniform, where the first instance cited will denote the trim colour, with the second instance denoting the kerchief colour. The wording KUK SOOL can also appear on uniforms on those other than KUK SOOL WON. Kuk Sool translates as nation technique, these prefixes could be used for a vast array of martial arts that are not linked to the association and have no resemblance in their techniques. Being the national martial art of Korea, a lot of various techniques used throughout a nations history have been unofficially trademarked by an association now known as WKSA. In 2010 in the United Kingdom a Kuk Sool Won 6th Degree Black Belt Master, John Watson, departed from the association and re branded his classes as TKMA - Traditional Korean Martial Arts -. Master John Watson's departure from the association was a nationwide shock for WKSA UK as John Watson was a pioneer of Kuk Sool Won effectiveness in the United Kingdom who taught throughout his Kuk Sool Won career in the Liverpool area of UK, who is still know to this day for his 'freakish' skills and ability to 'produce champions' throughout a densely populated city. A number of high level WKSA masters including ; Marlin Sims, Jay Lee and Rudy Timmerman whom have not had the selective progressive tuition from Grand Master Suh, have become disillusioned with the WKSA and decided to depart and teach under the names of their own martial arts associations to avoid trademark issues. A result of these circumstances masters have had to resource information and tuition from other elite sources and have used the same uniform style and colors, as this is traditional uniform and not trademarked by any association.
