Taegeuk Pal Jang


Taegeuk Pal Jang is the last of eight taegeuk taekwondo forms practiced by the Kukkiwon and the World Taekwondo Federation. A form, or poomsae, is a choreographed pattern of defense-and-attack motions. Taegeuk Pal Jang is often practiced by students of Kukkiwon/WTF-style taekwondo with rank of 1st geup. First geup students of Kukkiwon/WTF-style taekwondo practice this form in order to advance to the next rank, at which students then begin studying a new sequence of black belt forms.

Etymology

[FIle:Taegeuk.svg|thumb|The Taegeuk (taekwondo)|taegeuk symbol]
The word taegeuk refers to the universe from which all things and values are derived. It is also the symbol that makes up the center of the flag of South Korea and the source for its name, taegeukgi. The taegeuk is commonly associated with Korean Taoism philosophical values as well as Korean shamanism.
The word pal is the number 8 in the Sino-Korean numbering system. The word jang translates roughly as "chapter" or "part". Taegeuk Pal Jang translates as "Part 8 of the Taegeuk".

Symbolism

The floor pattern 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. Each trigram corresponds to a natural element.
乾 Qián
☰		兌 Duì
☱		離 Lí
☲		震 Zhèn
☳		巽 Xùn
☴		坎 Kǎn
☵		艮 Gèn
☶		坤 Kūn
☷
Heaven/SkyLake/MarshFireThunderWindWaterMountainEarth
天 Tiān澤 Zé火 Huǒ雷 Léi風 Fēng水 Shuǐ山 Shān地 Dì
GunTaeYiJinSeonGamGanGon


All three turns of Taegeuk Pal Jang are performed by pivoting in-place. This indicates that the associated trigram is three broken lines; this is the trigram for earth. The Kukkiwon teaches that this poomsae serves as the foundation for the student's future training.

Techniques

As the final Taegeuk form, this poomsae focuses on consolidating prior lessons, and so includes only a few new techniques:
  • Augmented outside blocks, at both medium and low heights
  • Cross stance, used as a transitional movement on the third line
  • Half Mountain block
  • Forward-facing double knifehand block, as seen in the tiger stance movements on the middle line
Of all the Taegeuk forms, this form includes on its upward stem the most advanced kick: a single upward jump in which the practitioner kicks twice while still in the air. A similar combination is seen on the downward stem, where one front kick is performed on the ground, followed immediately by a single jump front kick.

Development

During the 1920s and 1930s many of the pioneers of taekwondo studied karate or Chinese martial arts in which forms practice is seen as an essential element of the martial art. When these pioneers returned to Korea after the Japanese occupation, they incorporated forms practice into their teaching. During the 1960s there were several efforts among these pioneers to unify their styles of martial art and create a consolidated set of forms. In 1965 the Korea Taekwondo Association appointed a committee of representatives from six of the Nine Kwans to develop the forms for what is now called Kukkiwon- or WTF-style taekwondo. The committee consisted of:
In 1967, this committee introduced the Palgwae and Yudanja forms. In 1971 two additional kwans joined the committee:
This expanded committee went on to develop the Taegeuk forms.