Look, as bad as the in fighting is in Tae Kwon Do it is 2x worse in hapkido. It all comes down to lineage this and I learned from so and so. In an act of diplomacy towards all hapkidoan I say this,"If you didn't think hapkido was the best you would not train in it. And two: If you didn't believe in your instructor then you would not train under their tueteledge."
Just had to get it off my chest.....I mean I am so tired of all the infighting. I thought hapkido is the way of coordinated power, not the way of uncoordinated bickering.
Hello all,
I read this a few weeks ago, then the responses and decided to think long and hard over an answer, but first I have more of a question - there is very little discussion, let alone bickering on this forum, so where is the above comment coming from? (Just polite inquiry).
Moreover, when did caring about the lineage of a fairly misrepresented art become something that should be avoided? Perhaps technical questions would be easier to get into if people agreed what Hapkido is and where they stand in the hierarchy of the art.
If we are wearing "rank" we acknowledge that rank is essential to the way we progress and transmit the art (a component anyway) - then why is the same importance of rank not applied to those that are more senior in the art?
I do find it odd that most, if not all martial arts have a definitive hierarchy that is followed - even if there is an art that is hundreds of years old, the hierarchy is still there. Hapkido is only 60 years old this year! We know the man that started it all, and we know where and how he ranked those that were his students.
I sincerely believe that much of this concern over discussing lineage is borne from concern that what someone has been told is false...but I don't know. Why are Hapkidoin so AFRAID of lineage? Why do these types of discussions lead to "I'm better than you..." diatribes? Lineage should be cut and dry. It has no relevance to what one is learning, per se, but it does establish a position where discussion of technical issues might be more possible...
In addition, I also think the time has come to talk lineage because the art of Hapkido is being used as a catch-all for lots of stuff that is not part of the art. There have been several arts based on Hapkido, that are not Hapkido, and I find this very problematic from the perspective of a Hapkido teacher.
OK, rant over, lots of avenues open to discuss here...