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Hi,
IMO, almost all Hapkido taught today is a hybrid art. Here's why I believe that.
Almost all of the Hapkido schools around can trace their lineage somehow back to Master Ji Han Jae. Master Ji and one of his contemporaries pretty much created modern Hapkido by adding the elaborate kicking techniques and the philosophical aspect of the art to Choi's Aikijujutsu base.
If you search out one of the kwans that has restricted itself to what Choi taught, you'll see a big difference... the most obvious being no high kicks, a much greater emphasis on what the Daito-ryu people call aiki, and essentially no philosophy other than just live right (we should recall that Choi learned a "Jutsu", not a "Do", while he was in Japan). Not only that, the higher-level locking, throwing and pinning techniques are more subtle than what you might find in other more modern Hapkido systems.
Choi's art was more narrowly focused in certain respects than modern Hapkido - restricted to what he called Yawara. But don't let that deceive you. His art was a comprehensive, elaborate and very effective system.
Just my opinion, of course, based on my experience. :asian:
Hi Matt,...I look at Hybrid as "Make it up as you go to suit you." That is not a set cirriculum.
Could you elaborate on that?(Choi taught 11 students differently for different reasons). So one can assume that 11 different students, being taught differntly...
I know that Kwang Sik Myung, Ji Han Jae, and Won, Kwang Wha learned directly from Choi as did Suh-Bok Sub. I know that is only four, I believe that Bong Soo Han and the GGM of Jung Ki were also part of the first 11 students.
However, Dad and GM Hildebrand who learned directly from GM Park mentioned on several occasions that Park said the following "Won, Kwang Wha told me that Choi taught the original 11 a little differently on purpose. He did not want any one certain codified set of techniques." "If he did then it would take a life time to make 1st dan considering he had 3808 techniques at his disposal."
Just imagine having to learn all 3808. Now do you see the reason, plus not all techiques work for everyone etc. Won, Kwang-Wha was a body guard for Suh-Bok Sub's dad, who happened to be a congressman in South Korea at the time. That is why Moo Sul Kwan Hapkido is quick, graceful, yet extremely painful and deadly. Choi taught him that way for arresting and killing techniques against multiple attackers while defending someone else.
If you go back far enough, you will find that kuk sool won was originally called kuk sool hapkido, even though In Hyuk Suh will deny this. my understanding of it was that he wanted to distance himself from the hapkido community, so he changed it to kuk sool won.Dusty, kj
Sorry Kevin, you are dead wrong. In He-Young Kimm's Hapkido Bible #I he states the following. I will paraphrase just for the sake of argument but here it goes.Matt,
Won Kwang Wha may have indeed spend some time with Choi Dojunim, but you will admit, he was not one of the first 11 students.