My Philosophy of Taekwondo
August 10,2013
Kick, kick, kick. Things can be boring .... This is how my son has started his essay on his philosophy of taekwondo. Well ... I know what he means, kicking drills are boring. Learning any new skill well usually requires an immense amount of repetition. For any of us this can seem rather tedious, and for an eight-year-old boy that tedium pushes the limit at times. But as an adult who suffers from the worries and anxieties of everyday life, I find that there is also refuge in this ritual of repetition. Mr. Gibson has often told us to leave our worries at the door when we enter the dojang, and my sister once told me that the secret to good exercise was to find an activity that completely consumed your attention. For me taekwondo drills serve that purpose as they allow me to leave my worries at the door because the drills take all of my concentration. Thus the drills force all of my worldly concerns away, leaving my mind to deal with the kicking drill itself. From this, I find that the drills offer a relief from the everyday reality of our all too busy lives. I find great value in this.
That being said, while Timo and I write our essays side by side discussing how our viewpoints on the subject of kicking drills might differ due to our differences in experience, I have to admit to him that there is a profound truth in what he writes: drills are boring. This statement is profound because I believe that it is important to realize (both for him and for myself) that there are indeed boring activities in taekwondo, and those "boring" activities are maybe some of the most important activities that we have. One can enumerate several reasons that they are important. First, the physical impact of these repetitive drills results in muscle memory, and as Timo points out that muscle memory is crucial to our abilities in taekwondo. He has learned well the lessons often mentioned by Mister Gibson and Grandmaster Jung that repetition of movement (if done correctly) results (eventually) in fluidity and mastery. Second, there is a mental strengthening that is a consequence of the perseverance of slogging through many years of repeating the same kicks over and over. In other words, simply by being able to persevere, Timo has learned a mental toughness that provides concentration throughout his life experiences. However, there is a third aspect that I believe that I am only now starting to appreciate.
The most important aspect of the "boring" drills is a passage through the boredom to a newfound focus that improves our understanding of taekwondo and of ourselves. In other words, transcending the boredom results in a deeper focus and awareness of the technique. It is only when we thus examine our boredom and then concentrate on the technique that we are able to maximize our potential. I have heard from several now that each kick must have focus, each kick must be examined, each kick should focus on improvement. At the same time, we are to relax our minds and to allow our bodies to take over. This seeming paradox seems to originate from some Zen Buddhist riddle that might run along the lines of "How does the white belt kick without moving?" I think that the key element comes from the fact that the mind grows bored with the drill, stops thinking about the kick, and
starts feeling the kick. The awareness comes not from a conscious effort to kick, but rather the kick becomes a part of the awareness of the mind.
We are taught that white represents innocence and that the white belt indicates the blank slate of a new student with no previous knowledge of taekwondo. The black belt in contrast signifies maturity and proficiency in taekwondo. However, upon testing for my temporary black belt, each of the senior black belts told me that I was just beginning on my taekwondo pathway, and that is certainly how I did (and do) feel. How can this proficiency result in a beginning? The white belt student approaches each new technique without a preconceived notion of the technique. This allows him or her to learn the basics of each of the techniques through repetitive drill, training the muscles through memorization to behave as the student desires. It seems that true mastery of a technique by the black belt requires a similar release of the idea of previous knowledge. While the muscles have now learned through countless repetition the basics of each technique, the black belt student must pass through the boredom that is inherent to this repetition and realize the innocence that now exists because of that boredom. The front kick (or side kick, or reverse kick, or roundhouse kick) now just happens. Imperfectly yes, but it just happens. This automatic response of the body can now be trained far beyond what was originally possible. In other words, the previous training serves as a new plateau from which to build true mastery. One could say that "black" is the "new white"; it is the beginning of a new innocence that, while based upon the knowledge acquired during passage through the colored belts, provides a fresh start to learning taekwondo.
Kick, kick, kick. We will all be bored with aspects of our training, but it is important to realize the strength intrinsic to repetition. I believe that I am only beginning my journey in taekwondo, and when I look at my skills, my focus, my acuity, I know that I have very far to go. To realize the potential that I see in myself, I have a lot more drill to do, but I now know that drill isn't simply the physical movement that builds physical strength. Instead drill provides the fundamental link between my self and taekwondo. It is through drill that I, as a new black belt, will truly begin to learn.
