Cho Dan Essay

The answer to the question “what does Soo Bahk Do mean to me?” has evolved over time; much in the same manner as the art itself has transformed itself over the last thirty years. Before addressing the subject, I must digress and relate some of my personal history. Born eight weeks prematurely, I went into cardiac arrest two days later. During the resuscitation process one of my lungs collapsed briefly depriving my brain of oxygen. The damage resulting from the disruption of the oxygen flow to my brain manifested itself in theform of hypoxic encephalopathy. Physically, my condition is characterized by bilateral ataxia, hypometric eye movement, distal weakness in both my arms and legs as well as dysarthric speech. In simple terms my disabilities resulted in decreased balance, coordination, flexibility, reflexes, and speed, which translates into an irregular loping gait, uneven speech, and a slight delay in processing and executing verbal commands. Addenda: My disabilities also affect the manner in which I process and retain information such as corrections made to my technique. The nature of my disabilities resulted in my placement in the Cypress Fairbanks Independent School District’s special education and vocational rehabilitation program. As a special education student, I was subjected to frequent episodes of bullying and sometimes even physical violence. By the time I reached my sophomore year in high school the situations in which I found myself became untenable. On the advice of a friend, I began my training in Tang Soo Do Soo Bahk Do Moo Duk Kwan on 21 September 1992 under the guidance of the late Sa Bom Nim, William C. Milberger, Dan Number 27,713. At the time Soo Bahk Do Moo Duk Kwan emphasized a harder more active style with greater emphasis being placed on the elements that exemplified yang which endowed me with the techniques and the development of the Weh Gung, physical external energy necessary to defend myself from violence if the need ever arose. That is not to say that my training in the areas of the formation of internal energy, Neh Gung; and the development of intellectual/spiritual energy, Shim Gung were neglected by Sa Bom Nim Milberger. During my initial period of training in Soo Bahk Do Moo Duk Kwan from September 1992 to September 1998 Sa Bom Nim Milberger actively required me to devote myself insofar as possible to the creation of Neh Gung; and Shim Gung. Placing my focus on the development of the internal and intellectual aspects of my Soo Bahk Do training allowed me to compensate for my physical disabilities, and the limitations they impose on my ability to produce greater physical external power and exercise Weh Gung. Throughout this time Sa Bom Nim Milberger instructed me to pay particular attention to and to study in detail the inhalation and exhalation patterns of the hyungs, specifically the Pyung Ahn hyungs, Passai, and the three Chil Sung hyungs required of gup students during this period. Concentrating on the improvement of my breathing techniques allowed me to acquire tools that proved effective in calming myself amid stressful situations. These skills proved invaluable after I was diagnosed with fibromyalgia spondalosis in 1998. The breathing and meditation techniques Sa Bom Nim Milberger had commended to my attention allowed me to reduce the severity of the pain associated with the frequent episodes of fibromyalgia spondalosis that I experienced from September 1998 to March 2008. Unable to balance my academic work, my illness, and my training effectively, I was forced to abandon my training so that I could concentrate on the completion of the academic program and the abatement of my fibromyalgia. I have always regretted the decision that I made to sacrifice my training. I felt as though I had violated the final article of the Ten Articles of Faith, which, commands practitioners of Soo Bahk Do Moo Duk Kwan to “Always finish what you start: Move to action with sureness and with hope.” With this foremost in my mind I resolved to restart my training in Soo Bahk Do at the earliest opportunity. The chance to restart my training occurred in August of 2021, although, Sa Bom Nim Milberger had died several years earlier I was fortunate in that I found Tomball Soo Bahk Do under the leadership of Sa Bom Nim John Lupone, Dan Number 40211. Since, resuming my training in August of 2021 I have again sought to emphasize and focus on the development of the internal, intellectual, philosophical, and spiritual aspects of Soo Bahk Do, although, unlike my training as a teenager the reason for my attention to these areas permit me not only to compensate for my physical disabilities, but for injuries that I suffered in the interval between my training as a teenager and my current regimen as an adult; and the additional limitations these injuries placed on my ability to produce greater physical external energy and power, Weh Gung. Since I resumed my training in August of 2021, I have increasingly become aware of the importance of cyclical patterns within Soo Bahk Do, these patterns extend beyond Soo Bahk Do and into all aspects of the daily lives of humankind. The recognition of cyclical behavior and its importance inspired humankind to develop various world views as a means of explaining significance and meaning of the patterns discerned. Both occidental and oriental writings recognize and affirm the importance of cycles, comparing the first eight verses of the third chapter of the Book of Ecclesiastes against the forty-second chapter of the Tao Te Ching demonstrates the point. Ecclesiastes 3:1-8 "1 There is an appointed time for everything,and a time for every affair under the heavens. 2 A time to give birth, and a time to die; a time to plant, and a time to uproot the plant. 3 A time to kill, and a time to heal; a time to tear down, and a time to build. 4 A time to weep, and a time to laugh; a time to mourn, and a time to dance. 5 A time to scatter stones, and a time to gather them; a time to embrace, and a time to be far from embraces. 6 A time to seek, and a time to lose; a time to keep, and a time to cast away. 7 A time to rend, and a time to sew; a time to be silent, and a time to speak. 8 A time to love, and a time to hate; a time of war, and a time of peace." (Doctrine, The Confraternity of Christian, 2011) Tao Te Ching Chapter 42 "Tao begot one. One begot two. Two begot three. And three begot the ten thousand things. The ten thousand things carry yin and embrace yang. They achieve harmony by combining these forces. People hate to be “orphaned,” “widowed,” or “worthless,” But this is how the wise describe themselves. For one gains by losing And loses by gaining." (Feng, English, Lippe, & Needleman, 2011, p. 45). What are cycles? Merriam-Webster’s dictionary defined the term cycles in part; as both measures of time, and as a series of occurrences that are repeated over time. Derived from the ancient Greek word “kyklos” and the subsequent Latin word “cyclus” that can mean either a circle or wheel. Cycles can be either short or long. Regardless of the length, all cycles share common characteristics in the sense that all cycles are both balanced and circular in nature. Chang Shi Ja Hwang Kee, the founder of Soo Bahk Do Moo Duk Kwan and his designated successor Kwan Jang Nim, H.C. Hwang averred in the Hangul edition of the Moo Do Chul Hahk published in 1993 and the English translation published in 2009, that every example of cyclical behavior is characterized by three elements, a passive element called “Um”, an active element named “Yang”. The final element present in all types of cycles is a neutral element called “Do”. The purpose of this neutral force named “Do” is to regulate the cyclical processes. The “Do” governs the cyclical process by moderating and harmonizing both the passive “Um” and the active “Yang”. The moderating influence of the “Do” inspires the unity necessary to give substance and form to the material world id: (Hwang, 2009, 124-127). "From this opposition and synthesis, this world’s myriad images, forms, and things eternally derive and abide. Thus, the cosmos consists of three basic aspects: um, yang, and neutrality. Um and yang, as innate heterogeneous aspects, are mutually negating and contradictory antithetical forces. Neutrality, being neither um nor yang, serves a mediating function, positively harmonizing um and yang, effecting a synthesis of the dual forces to produce a new phenomenon beyond the duality."…. "I would like to introduce here my philosophy of balance, which I will discuss in more detail later. The Do, along with um and yang, is the mother-image of balance. Equilibrium consists of um, yang, and neutrality. Equilibrium has an inextricable connection with the maintenance of the life of this world’s myriad images, forms, and things." (Hwang, 2009, 126). Works Cited Doctrine, The Confraternity of Christian. (2011). Book of Ecclesiastes. In T. C. Doctrine, The New American Bible, Revised Edition (Fourth ed., Vol. One). Rome, Vatican City, Vatican City State: Doctrine, The Confraternity of Christian. Retrieved October 7, 2015, from http://www.usccb.org/bible/ecclesiastes/3 Feng, G.-F., English, J., Lippe, T., & Needleman, J. (2011). Tao Te Ching (Third ed., Vol. One). (G.-F. Feng, J. English, & T. Lippe, Trans.) Vintage Books. Hwang, K. (2009). Passage 4: The Ten Thousand Things are Produced Through the Harmony of Um and Yang. In K. Hwang, & H. C. Hwang (Ed.), Moo Do Chul Hahk (1993) (H. C. Hwang, Trans., A New Translation ed., Vol. One, pp. 125-127). Springfield, New Jersey, USA: Hyun Chul Hwang