Hapkido Synopsis

DaedongRyu YuSool (Japan- Daito Ryu Yawara or call Aiki JuJitsu- meaning great eastern style soft skills)

Hapkido History

Master Yong-Sul Choi studied from Dakeda Shokaku Daito Ryu Yawara founder (later Morei Ueshiba name changed to AiKiDo) in Japan 1930`s at shokaku home. And after the Korean liberation Master Choi returned to Korea 1945; and reside DaeGu Korea. and with Yawara name here gave private lessons only out of his home. After the Korean war that ended in 1953 Master Choi started teaching the public - still only teaching out of his school at own home. The name Yawara was later changed to Hap Ki Do by a few Yu Sool (Yawara) masters in Seoul the capital city of Korea. and Slowly Hap Ki Do was mixed with HwaRangDo and other martial art styles and turned generic. More information is available here. Now Hap Ki Do looks more like the original martial art of Korea, namely Um-Yang Kwon, which only two people in modern time ever learned - the name Um-Yang Kwon however is no longer used as it was changed in to Hwa Rang Do®. The Hap Ki Do of today is a form of unarmed self-defense based on circular techniques such as jointlocks, foot sweeps and kicks, but incorporating punches and circular throws and a yielding principle similar to that of Aikido, however original Hap Ki Do was actually the exact same thing as Daito Ryu Yawara. The emphasis on circular motion allows for a free-flowing form of combat in which one technique can merge with the next and the direction of force can easily be changed by changing the axis of rotation. Primarily practiced for self-defense or spiritual development or both, Hapkido came to be used in free-sparring contests mixed of the HwaRangDo or TaeKwonDo type.