An analysis of the Taegeuk patterns of Kukki Taekwondo, discussing the context of their creation, realistic applications for practical self-defence including grappling and close-range striking, and the development of a pattern-based self-defence syllabus.

This martial arts book digs deep into the standard Taekwondo patterns to extract proven fighting methods that unite ancient philosophy and strategy to teach effective, tactical self defence. The book follows the history of the Korean people, starting with the myths of its origins dating from 2333 BC, and its culture, focusing on the important historic influences of the surrounding nations. All of these have combined in the development and evolution of the Korean fighting art of Taekwondo. These ancient and deadly fighting techniques have survived over several millennia, ever since people first defended their lives and property from wild beasts and ravaging bands of criminals. The first part of the book shows simple techniques that have been refined using analysis gained by Koreans over the centuries. It is presented in a careful mix of physical exercises that are designed to develop spontaneous response from muscle memory in the event of an unavoidable attack. The second half introduces more advanced students of the martial arts to more complex fighting tactics and the profound philosophy taught to black belts, and is aimed at uniting body, mind, and spirit.

Breaking Through is about much more than a single kata. Colin Wee describes his four-decade journey in the martial arts, during which he came to recognize common training deficiencies in traditional hard-style striking arts such as Karate and Taekwondo. His ingenious, multi-faceted solution, dubbed the JDK Method, utilizes the strengths of kata to teach key dynamic combat skills and concepts forgotten and overlooked in modern training. Breaking Through is a case study of the JDK Method as applied to Bassai Dai—a pattern trained across many Karate and Taekwondo styles. In Breaking Through: The Secrets of Bassai Dai Kata, Colin plumbs the depths of Bassai Dai, having returned to it for inspiration time and again to deconstruct it and extract its most valuable lessons. The twelve applications presented herein delve beyond simplistic bunkai and traditional step-sparring. The lessons taught through Bassai Dai—which Master Wee and his students have relentlessly studied, tested and trained—are an effective series of principles and defenses against the most common and frequent attacks one is likely to face. When instructors and students link the applications from Breaking Through to how Colin and his students got there—the logic of why the applications work and how the applications address a dynamic combat situation—they learn to fill in the gaps left by traditional training. This is where the magic of the book truly happens. It is truly the book's subject. Once readers establish the link with the applications and the methodology, they can apply this knowledge to any other form in any other system, and it instantly levels up their understanding of how traditional training can be put to work. Published at a time when many have foregone the practice of patterns, claiming they are outdated and of little use to modern students, Colin unlocks advanced lessons encrypted in Bassai Dai kata and by this demonstrates how to universally apply the JDK Method to patterns in any style of martial art.

All eight of the taegeuk forms approved by the Korean government for advancement to black belt, plus three advanced black-belt forms, are included in this definitive volume.

Taking a global, multicultural, social, and economic perspective, this work explores the diverse and colourful history of human attire. From prehistoric times to the age of globalization, articles cover the evolution of clothing utility, style, production, and commerce, including accessories (shoes, hats, gloves, handbags, and jewellery) for men, women, and children. Dress for different climates, occupations, recreational activities, religious observances, rites of passages, and other human needs and purposes - from hunting and warfare to sports and space exploration - are examined in depth and detail. Fashion and design trends in diverse historical periods, regions and countries, and social and ethnic groups constitute a major area of coverage, as does the evolution of materials (from animal fur to textiles to synthetic fabrics) and production methods (from sewing and weaving to industrial manufacturing and computer-aided design). Dress as a reflection of social status, intellectual and artistic trends, economic conditions, cultural exchange, and modern media marketing are recurring themes. Influential figures and institutions in fashion design, industry and manufacturing, retail sales, production technologies, and related fields are also covered.

This groundbreaking book teaches the Korean martial art Taekwondo to novices above the age of 40. Primarily written for Taekwondo trainers, Sekwondo (age-adapted Taekwondo) is also easily understood and useful for the student. Why should one embark on practicing Taekwondo in the second half of one’s life? The reason is simple: You may live longer and healthier. In contrast to many other types of sports, Taekwondo is unique in its dynamic nature. It embodies all the various elements of physical fitness, such as muscle strength and endurance, flexibility, agility, balance, coordination, motor speed, and cardio-respiratory function, but also helps one's mood. With very little material written and available about sensible and safe Taekwondo training for seniors, Sekwondo offers a fun, accessible, and effective exercise program, while introducing a fascinating and transformative discipline.

Civil justice in the United States is neither civil nor just. Instead it embodies a maxim that the American legal system is a paragon of legal process which assures its citizens a fair and equal treatment under the law. Long have critics recognized the system's failings while offering abundant criticism but few solutions. This book provides a comparative-critical introduction to civil justice systems in the United States, Germany and Korea. It shows the shortcomings of the American system and compares them with German and Korean successes in implementing the rule of law. The author argues that these shortcomings could easily be fixed if the American legal systems were open to seeing how other legal systems' civil justice processes handle cases more efficiently and fairly. Far from being a treatise for specialists, this book is an introductory text for civil justice in the three aforementioned legal systems.

Douglas Lee, a tai chi practitioner for more than 20 years, covers the history and philosophy of the art, general principles of movement, solo exercises, push-hands sparring, applications, tai chi weapons and more.

Features 29 separate kicking executions and self-defense techniques. This book focuses on speed, power and technique.

Black Belt Hall of Fame member William Cheung covers the techniques and history of the dragon pole. This weapon, the most effective version of the staff and long pole, was developed by Grandmaster Gee Sin. This book combines wing chun with dragon pole techniques, making the techniques more effective.