The Library of Taekwondo
by Ms. Marian Schwartz
An
analogy may be drawn between learning Tae Kwon Do and learning to read. When we
were small, we were given short words with single vowels for the purpose of
learning phonics. To begin to see how words work together, we read simple
stories with severely limited glossaries. Little by little we mastered more
complicated combinations of letters, and used words with more abstract
definitions. Before we realized it, we were reading as naturally as breathing,
and we began to choose books according to our interests, rather than according
to the next lesson in phonics. The basic tools we were given in the primary
grades now had opened up the possibilities of massive fields of knowledge and
entertainment, all available to us because we can read.
At the beginning of Tae Kwon Do we were given the first
basic movements to learn. We were faced with the problems of making our
bodies maneuver in new ways, learn co-ordination, remember sequences, and get a
handle on technique. These details comprised our whole world of martial arts.
Our patterns had a limited number of movements and lots of repetition. We saw,
as it were, the phonics workbook, one page at a time.
As we advanced in rank we began to see that the next new principles, new
techniques, new movements were just a little easier to learn than the ones
before. We were building on foundations learned at the beginning. Now we were
putting together movements of a more complex nature. We varied the sequences of
our earlier movements and added new ones. Our patterns were more complicated.
Having learned the elements of the primary patterns and at least the awareness
of technique, we find we are in possession of methods and means to work more
naturally. We are able to express what we know in spontaneous unprepared
compositions. We feel a greater confidence in new situations. With this new
freedom we are given new responsibilities. We frequently hear our instructors
say "At Black Belt your technique should be thus..." and we go back to
our first basic movements and make them stronger. We reintegrate them with
new material and a larger volume of work for which we are accountable.
Having mastered the alphabet and the rudiments of phonics, what if we had
decided that we knew enough of reading to get by?--not interested in the effort
of concentration needed to explore and ponder the regions hidden in text-laden
pages. Could we really say, we are readers? We would have missed
great experiences only available to those who persevere--for instance Tolstoy's
War and Peace, Churchill's History of the English Speaking People, the happy
mindless hours engrossed in Victorian murder mysteries or the deeper spiritual
encounters found in the King James Bible.
Similarly, first degree Black Belts possessing foundations and familiarity,
might consider that they have at last "arrived". It is better to see
in that earned rank a new frontier of experience opened before us. Each work out
is an opportunity to learn something new. Each higher ranking Black Belt may be
privileged to observe or work with a new expression of old material, as well as
a teacher of new information and principles. As we learn from others, and
continue to work on our own, we grow in perception and add to our body of
knowledge. For some, it has become a life-long pursuit to continue to
assimilate, integrate and communicate Tae Kwon Do.
As I contemplated the upcoming test for 2nd degree Black Belt, I personally considered
my own Tae Kwon Do at about the Child's Garden of Verses stage intermediate
vocabulary portraying abstract images and reflections, relying upon stored
experiences for relational understanding. I look forward to the vast library of
material that awaits as I continue my study in this discipline.
