Moo Do Chul Hahk & Our Martial History
"The Void is where there is nothing or any form. Man cannot have knowledge of this because it is nothing. Since we have knowledge of what it is, we therefore know what is not. That is the Void.
In order to master the Way of Strategy, you must study the other martial arts, and you must not abandon the Way of the warrior at all. You must set your mind upon practicing every single day, hour by hour. You must develop the double spirit of the heart and the mind. And you must appreciate the two-fold use of perception and eyesight. When your mind is clear, and there are no clouds of confusion, this is the True Void"
Miyamoto Musashi Undefeated samurai 1584-1645
Approximately 2000 BC
ANCESTRAL ARTS THAT HELPED SHAPE TANG SOO DO EMERGE
57 BC
SILLA KINGDON FOUNDED IN SOUTHEAST KOREAN PENINSULA
(one of three separate kingdoms of Korea)
37 BC
KOGURYO KINGDON FOUNDED IN NORTHERN KOREA
(one of three separate kingdoms of Korea)
18 BC
PAEKCHE KINGDON FOUNDED IN SOUTHWESTERN KOREA
(one of three separate kingdoms of Korea)
Approximately 200 AD
5 CODES OF TANG SOO DO DRAFTED BY THE MONK WON KWANG
(Not to be confused with the 5 Pillars of Moo Do)
668 AD
SILLA, KOGURYO & PAEKCHE KINGDOMS ALL UNITED UNDER SILLA DYNASTY.
INSTRUMENTAL IN THE UNIFICATION WAS THE "HWA RANG DAN", A GROUP OF YOUNG
ARISTOCRATS WHO FURNISHED MANY OF THE EARLY LEADERS OF THE TIME
918 AD
UNIFIED SILLA KINGDOM OVERTHROWN BY WARLORD WANG KUN.
KORYO KINGDOM BEGINS
1392 AD
KORYO KINGDOM SUCCEEDED BY YI DYNASTY
1790 AD
MOO YEI DO BO TONG JI - THE MOST IMPORTANT AND VALUABLE HISTORICAL DOCUMENTATION OF KOREAN MARTIAL ARTS IS WRITTEN
1909 - 1945 AD
JAPANESE OCCUPATION OF KOREA DURING WHICH TIME PRACTICING AND TEACHING MARTIAL ARTS IS RESTRICTED
Post WWII
ORIGINAL FIVE KEY STYLES IN KOREAN MARTIAL ARTS AFTER WWII WHICH HAVE BEEN A MAJOR INFLUENCE ON CONTEMPORARY KOREAN MARTIAL ARTS:
- SCHOOL MOO DUK KWAN FOUNDER HWANG KEE LOCATION SEOUL
- SCHOOL YEON MOO KWAN FOUNDER CHUN, SANG SUP (STYLE LATER CHANGED TO JI DO KWAN) LOCATION SEOUL
- SCHOOL YMCA KWON BOP BU FOUNDER YUN, BYONG IN (STYLE LATER CHANGED TO CHANG MOO KWAN) LOCATION SEOUL
- SCHOOL CHUNG DUK KWAN FOUNDER LEE, WON KUK LOCATION SEOUL
- SCHOOL SONG MOO KWAN FOUNDER NO, BYONG JIK LOCATION GAE SONG
Note
THE NAME “TANG SOO DO” IS COINED BY WON KUK, LEE (FOUNDER OF CHUNG DO KWAN) WHO STUDIED KARATE DO “CHINESE HAND WAY.” WON KUK, LEE REPLACED “KARATE DO” WITH “TANG SOO DO” AND STARTED THE TANG SOO DO CHUNG DO KWAN SCHOOL IN SEOUL, KOREA
November 9, 1945
MASTER HWANG KEE FOUNDS THE MOO DUK KWAN ORIGINALLY CALLING HIS ART “HWA SOO DO” (WAY OR ART OF THE FLOWER HAND)
1947 AD
AFTER HAVING MET WON KUK, LEE - HWANG KEE REEVALUATED THE FUTURE OF THE MOO DUK KWAN AND DECIDED TO INTEGRATE THE ART OF TANG SOO DO INTO HIS HWA SOO DO DISCIPLINE AS HIS SCHOOL WAS NOT GROWING DUE TO A LACK OF FAMILIARITY AMONG KOREAN YOUTH WITH KOREAN MARTIAL ARTS AS A RESULT OF THIRTY-SIX YEARS OF JAPANESE OCCUPATION.
1957 AD
HWANG KEE DISCOVERS THE MOO YEI DO BO TONG JI AND FROM IT REALIZES THE IMPORTANCE OF “SOO BAHK” AS A TRADITIONAL KOREAN MARTIAL ART. ON JUNE 30, 1960 HWANG KEE REGISTERS AND INCORPORATES WITH THE KOREAN GOVERNMENT UNDER THE NAME “KOREAN SOO BAHK DO ASSOCIATION INC.” USING “SOO BAHK DO” TO DESCRIBE THE ART WHILE CONTINUING TO USE “TANG SOO DO” AS IT WAS WIDELY ACCEPTED AND VERY POPULAR AT THE TIME.JAPANESE OCCUPATION.
1964 AD
KOREAN TAE SOO DO ASSOCIATION WAS FORMED AND WENT UNDER THE NAME OF THE “KOREAN ATHLETIC ASSOCIATION, INC.” THE FOLLOWING YEAR (1965) THE KOREAN TAE SOO DO ASSOCIATION CHANGED THEIR NAME TO THE “KOREAN TAE KWON DO ASSOCIATION.” THE KOREAN SOO BAHK DO ASSOCIATION, MOO DUK KWAN DID NOT TAKE PART IN UNIFICATION UNDER THE TAE KWON DO NAME.
2003 AD
ATLANTIC-PACIFIC TANG SOO DO FEDERATION IS FOUNDED - ATLANTA, GEORGIA
JOHN ST. JAMES
PRESIDENT & FOUNDING MASTER
December 2010 AD
THUNDERBIRD MARTIAL ARTS IS FOUNDED - ALBUQUERQUE, NEW MEXICO
THOMAS J. WITTERHOLT (RET)
FOUNDING MASTER
September 2021 AD
THUNDERBIRD MARTIAL ARTS IS REINCORPORATED AS RISING PHOENIX TANG SOO DO - ALBUQUERQUE, NEW MEXICO
DR. PETER M. ESTRADA
FOUNDING MASTER
We study and train in the traditional Korean martial art of Tang Soo Do with a focus on developing one's mind, body and spirit in order to improve the whole person or practitioner.
"Knowing others is wisdom. Knowing yourself is enlightenment." - Lao Tzu
Our history informs who we are and we have a rich history.
Rising Phoenix Tang Soo Do is a proud member of the Atlantic-Pacific Tang Soo Do Federation, a globally recognized organization whose mission it is to promote traditional martial arts for the 21st century.
Rising Phoenix is a proud supporter of the Atlantic-Pacific Tang Soo Do Foundation, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit charity providing martial arts scholarships to at-risk youth, providing them with all of the positive benefits learning the martial arts has to offer.