Many people walk to the corner mall, walk into their Korean Martial Arts dojo, and train in nice, neat uniforms, watching themselves in wall sized mirrors, kick soft and well hung bags, and think that they are doing hard core Tae Kwon Do. These people should learn some beginnings of Korean Karate. They will find that that polite block and kick combo they are practicing was born in hell, perfected in hades, and then things got nasty.

Just to let you know, this bit of scribble is speaking of the history of the kwans from Korea of the fifties. This includes the nine major kwans, which are Sung Moo Kwan, Chang Moo Kwan, Chung Du Kwan, Moo Duk Kwan, Yun Moo Kwan, Han Moo Kwan, Oh Do Kwan, Kang Duk Won, Jung Do Kwan. There are other Kwans that grew from these nine, but these nine are the main ones.

Korea is a rugged, little spit of land, about half the size of California,sticking out from the Asian continent. It is a land equal in plains and eternal mountain ranges. It experiences extremes of typhoonal rains, siberian cold, and brain broiling heat.

Throughout its history, Korea has been embroiled in countless wars. The Japanese held sway during the first half of the last century, and in the early fifties Korea became the battleground between the free world and communist forces. Thus, this small bit of land came under the boot heel of million man armies, and the people were in constant flight, or killed outright.

The communist forces boiled across the 38th parallel first, causing a mass exodus the length of the peninsula. Farmers were made part of the vast communist forces, given no rifles, and put into massive meat grinder attacks. If the peasants survived the cauldron of war, they had to endure a winter with temperatures often at 30 degrees below zero.

Those that were still alive at the end of the winters, and survived the spring attack of the UN armies, continued with their study of the martial arts. That's right, in the middle of all the death and destruction, in spite of starvation and weather, the nine kwans survived. Indeed, they blossomed.

One tale that made me drop jaw in awe of these incredible people was that, when the war front approached, the students would pick up the planks of their dojos and head south. That's right, they didn't even nail the boards to the floor beams, because they knew they would have to flee, and they perfected their jumping, spinning kicks on unsecured, splintered, weathered boards. Got a splinter between your toes...pick it out and keep going, because that's the martial arts.

So enjoy your kicking fur lined bags and mirrors, and hoist your designer water in appreciation. That Korean Martial art you are studying was created by supermen, and it is a legacy dripping with blood and sweat and tears. And when you bow...touch your head to the floor, your ancestors deserve it.