Taekwondo Principles

“As a true martial artist you must put these principles into practice every single day of your life, as well as the Dojang, so they become part of you as a person”

HUMILITY Having humility is one of the characteristics essential in the martial arts. Being humble and not becoming bigheaded no matter what your achievements means that you do not become satisfied with your technique. As soon as this starts to happen you become complacent with your performance and therefore will become bored and hence probably give up on your Taekwondo training.

Having humility both inside and outside the Dojang is a must have for any true martial artist. Your actions both inside and outside the Dojang, not your own mouth, will speak volumes.

INDOMITABLE SPIRIT Any martial art practice is extremely difficult and will involve practicing techniques that are exceptionally complex to execute. Your martial art indomitable spirit is your voice inside that tells you to practice continually until you are more at ease with the technique.

It also applies to your everyday life in which there will inevitably at some point be problems. Your indomitable spirit is tackling these problems whatever they may be head on and never giving up no matter how hard it may seem at the time.

PERSEVERANCE Every single Taekwondo or martial art technique that you practice is exceptionally hard to get right. You must understand that as a martial artist you can never ever master a martial art fully. There is always something that can be improved no matter how technical or flexible you are. (See humility)

The title ‘Master’ nowadays is a very loose term in Taekwondo; there are very few true masters in the World. To call yourself ‘Master’ means that you must not only be confident in passing on your own technical ability to students but also have studied the martial art and have the correct mentality. How many of us can honestly assess ourselves and say that?

To have perseverance is to never give up no matter how hard things get whether it be physical or mental. This mentality will make you a stronger person if you can achieve it.

LOYALTY Being loyal to your instructor, as they have passed down their martial art knowledge and made you what you are today, is important. Loyalty should be a two-way system; as a good instructor you should look out for your students’ wellbeing and interests and as a student you should try and help your instructor. As a result of trusting your instructor you should also be loyal and support your club as without your club and your fellow students you would not have learnt the martial art in the first place.

However, probably the most important type of loyalty is that to yourself. Being honest to yourself and standing by what you believe in is something that is very rare and difficult to do in today’s society.

Never let someone else’s standards and morals affect you unless you believe in them yourself. At the end of the day it is your life and your mind and you should be in control of it no-one else. The only way to make a true decision is by gaining as much information as you can and making your own mind up.

ETIQUETTE Without etiquette in the Dojang the whole martial art philosophy which is built on respect would collapse. It is vital that students are taught correct Dojang etiquette as that is the only way to have discipline and pass on teachings. Hopefully, by learning respect when training students will continue this practice outside of the Dojang and become more respectful as a person.

HONOUR Honour means respect. Martial arts students should honour their instructor, fellow students and also themselves. This is done by staying true to themselves and listening to their instructor’s teachings.

Physical martial art training is extremely difficult to practice. However, probably more difficult is the mental approach of trying to live your life by these six principles. Only by combining the two together will you get an overall true martial artist.

Aims & Objectives of Kim Chung Do Kwan

To promote Taekwondo worldwide.
To cultivate relations with other countries through Taekwondo.
To teach and learn the ancient martial art way.
To strive for excellence of technique.
To cultivate the spirit of Taekwondo in all students.
To uphold the principles of Taekwondo both inside and outside of the Dojang.
To join together mind, body and spirit through gaining knowledge.
To give students as many educational opportunities as possible

Taekwondo technical manual