Hapkido (합기도 in hangul, 合氣道 in hanja) is a highly eclectic Korean martial art. It is a form of self-defense that employs joint locks, grappling, and throwing techniques similar to those of other martial arts, as well as kicks, punches, and other striking attacks. It also teaches the use of traditional weapons, including knife, sword, rope, nunchaku (ssang juhl bong), cane (ji pang ee), short stick (dan bong), middle-length staff (joong bong) and long staff.

 

Hapkido uses both long-range and close-range fighting techniques, utilizing jumping kicks, percussive hand strikes, pressure point strikes, joint locks, and throws at closer fighting distances. Hapkido emphasizes circular motion, redirection of force, and control of the opponent. Practitioners seek to gain advantage over their opponents through footwork and body positioning to incorporate the use of leverage, avoiding the use of brute strength against brute strength.

 

 

 

What does Hapkido mean?

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In Korean:

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• “HAP” means to coordinate, coordination;

• “KI” means energy, power and/or vital force;

• “DO” means way, or method, depending on the context.

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In HAPKIDO, all techniques should follow three principles :
 

- HWA, the nonresistance or harmony (Hangul: 화; Hanja: 和), is simply the act of remaining relaxed and not directly opposing an opponent's strength. For example, if an opponent were to push against a hapkido student's chest, rather than resist and push back, the hapkido student would avoid a direct confrontation by moving in the same direction as the push and utilizing the opponent's forward momentum to throw him.

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- WON, the circle principle (Hangul: 원; Hanja: 圓), is a way to gain momentum for executing the techniques in a natural and free-flowing manner. If an opponent attacks in linear motion, as in a punch or knife thrust, the hapkido student would redirect the opponent's force by leading the attack in a circular pattern, thereby adding the attacker's power to his own. Once he has redirected the power, the hapkido student can execute any of a variety of techniques to incapacitate his attacker. The hapkido practitioner learns to view an attacker as an "energy entity" rather than as a physical entity. The bigger the person is, the more energy a person has, the better it is for the hapkido student.

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- YU, the water/flexible principle (Hangul: 유; Hanja: 流), is analogous to the term Jū used in the names of Japanese arts such as judo and jujutsu, and can be thought of as the soft, adaptable strength of water.