Song Moo Kwan Tae Kwon Do: The Making of Korea's Olympic Martial Art

Song Moo Kwan Tae Kwon Do explains the creation, history and evolution of the Grandmaster of the first Korean martial arts Kwan opened just as World War II was ending and the first Kwan named after the Asian fighting art taught at Mt. Songshan, home of the Shaolin Temple. Kwon Bup was used as preventive medicine by the Buddhist monks and it was brought to China from India as a fighting art using the Silk Road and adopted by the Buddhist's Shaolin Temples for the Buddhist's emphasis on physical and mental health improvements, preventive medicine, medical surgeries and pharmaceutical treatments that were unknown in China at the time and so Buddhism and Kwon Bup swept through the Asian countries providing relief to the old, weak, injured and ill. The author describes the relationship between Song Moo Kwan Kong Soo do, Song Moo Kwan Tang Soo Do and Sang Moo Kwan Tae Kwon Do and the support the Song Moo Kwan provided to the Korean government in its desire to create a national martial art as an Olympic sport. The author also includes a discussion on Song Moo Kwan's influence on recent 21th century Korean martial arts styles of Tang Soo Do, Kong Soo Do and Tae Kwon Do and the many other Kwans and how they resisted and then was convinced by the Grandmaster of the Song Moo Kwan to willingly participate in the Korean governments desire to develop a Korean national style of empty hand self defense as an Olympic sport. The author Includes lists of all the Hyungs taught in Kong Soo Do, Tang Soo Do and Tae Kwon Do, a list of Hyungs and Poomsae, a Hyung to Kata conversion tables, a definition and description for each Hyung, Kata and Poomsae the Song Moo Kwan used, the Song Moo Kwan-Korean to English terminology, dojang conduct, color belt promotional requirements, a substantial 80+ item bibliography, a full glossary and extensive index for the readers convenience. Read more