Taegeuk Il Jang
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Taegeuk Il Jang (Korean: 태극1장) is the first of eight taekwondo forms practiced in Kukki Taekwondo, as defined by the Kukkiwon. A form, or poomsae (also romanized as pumsae or poomse), is a choreographed pattern of defense-and-attack motions. Taegeuk Il Jang is considered a beginner form, often (but not universally) practiced by students of Kukki style taekwondo with rank of 8th geup. Eighth geup students of Kukki-style taekwondo practice this form in order to advance to the next rank (7th geup).
The word taegeuk (Korean: 태극; Hanja: 太極, Korean pronunciation: [tʰɛgɯk̚]) refers to the universe from which all things and values are derived.[1][2] It is also the symbol that makes up the center of the flag of South Korea and the source for its name, taegeukgi (hangul: 태극기, where gi means "flag").[3] The taegeuk is commonly associated with Korean Taoism philosophical values[4] as well as Korean shamanism.[5]
The word il is the number 1 in the Sino-Korean numbering system. The word jang translates roughly as "chapter" or "part". Taegeuk Il Jang translates as "Part 1 of the Taegeuk".
Symbolism
The floor pattern (or yeon-mu) of each taegeuk poomsae is three parallel lines. On each line, a 180 degree turn is performed.
- If the turn is performed by pivoting in-place, the line is considered to be a broken line.
- If the turn is performed by moving the lead foot to the rear, the line is considered to be a solid line.
The floor pattern of each taegeuk poomsae then represents three broken or solid lines, called trigrams or gwae (bagua in Chinese). Each trigram (gwae) corresponds to a natural element.
| 乾 Qián ☰ |
兌 Duì ☱ |
離 Lí ☲ |
震 Zhèn ☳ |
巽 Xùn ☴ |
坎 Kǎn ☵ |
艮 Gèn ☶ |
坤 Kūn ☷ |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Heaven/Sky | Lake/Marsh | Fire | Thunder | Wind | Water | Mountain | Earth |
| 天 Tiān | 澤(泽) Zé | 火 Huǒ | 雷 Léi | 風(风) Fēng | 水 Shuǐ | 山 Shān | 地 Dì |
| Gun | Tae | Yi | Jin | Seon | Gam | Gan | Gon |
When performing Taegeuk Il Jang, the turn on each line is performed by moving the lead foot to the rear. For this reason, the trigram associated with Taegeuk Il Jang is three solid lines ("gun") denoting "the sky" or "the heavens". In Daoist philosophy the sky is associated with creation, or beginnings. Taegeuk Il Jang, then, is seen as the "creation" of a new taekwondo student, or the student's new beginning.[6]
Elements of the trigram can also be seen in the poomsae's performance. For example, in Taegeuk Il Jang, the movements are primarily upright, with the body open (no blocks or strikes that cover the torso), so the performance is "high and open", like the sky.
Techniques
As a beginner form, the techniques used in this poomsae are relatively simple:
- Walking stance
- Long front stance
- Low block
- Inside middle block
- High block
- Middle punch
- Front snap kick