Won-Hyo

Quick Facts

About the kata

The tul Won-Hyo commemorates the monk Wonhyo (원효, 元曉), whose name the English Wikipedia translates as "dawn". The ITF interpretation, as given by dotaekwondo.net and TAGB materials, says that in 686 he brought Buddhism to the kingdom of Silla. ITF clubs teach it at 6th kup as the fourth tul of the Chang-Hon series. The tul has 28 movements and begins in the closed ready stance Moa Sogi A. According to Brendan Doogan (kidokwan.org), the diagram has the shape of a capital letter I, just like Dan-Gun. The opening triad – the double forearm block Sang Palmok Makgi and the inner knife-hand strike in the stance Niunja Sogi, then a strike in the fixed stance Gojung Sogi – returns, according to the breakdown by dotaekwondo.net, in movements 4–6, 13–15 and 16–18; TKD Coaching therefore advises working on it the most. Twice in the tul, the stance Guburyo Junbi Sogi is followed by the side kick Yop Cha Jirugi, and twice the circular block An Palmok Dollimyo Makgi comes with a low front kick; TKD Coaching calls the circular block difficult. Tulsonline.com notes that the arms are in a neutral position during each kick. The whole tul lasts about 40 seconds, according to TKD Coaching.

The kata in different styles

Meaning of the name

According to the English Wikipedia, Wonhyo was born in 617 in Amnyang, present-day Gyeongsan, and died in 686. In 661 he set out for China with his friend Uisang. On the way they spent the night in a place that turned out in the morning to be an ancient tomb, and the vessel from which Wonhyo drank at night was a human skull with brackish water. From this experience he concluded that everything is a creation of the mind, and he no longer went to China. After a relationship with princess Yoseok he left the priesthood and then spread Buddhism among ordinary people. His son Seol Chong is one of the great Confucian scholars of Silla, and Wonhyo's own work comprises more than 80 writings in 240 volumes.

Creator and history

The date in the ITF account conflicts with history: 686 is, according to the English Wikipedia, the year of Wonhyo's death, and Buddhism had already become Silla's state religion in 527, after the execution of Ichadon – nearly a hundred years before Wonhyo's birth. We therefore believe that the ITF text simplifies his role; TKD Coaching describes it more accurately as a major part in spreading Buddhism across all of Korea. The same site writes that he was a skilled horseman, javelin thrower and hwarang warrior before he renounced violence; we did not find this in the English Wikipedia. We have not been able to establish who among the authors of the Chang-Hon series composed this tul, or when.

Technique Sequence — ITF Taekwondo

Breakdown source: kildaretaekwondo.com

1. #1
   Niunja SogiSang Palmok Makgi
2. #2
   Niunja SogiSonkal Anuro Taerigi(R)
3. #3
   Gojung SogiKaunde Jirugi(L)
4. #4
   Niunja SogiSang Palmok Makgi
5. #5
   Niunja SogiSonkal Anuro Taerigi(L)
6. #6
   Gojung SogiKaunde Jirugi(R)
7. #7
   Guburyo Junbi Sogi A
8. #8
   Yop Cha Jirugi(L)
9. #9
   Niunja SogiSonkal Daebi Makgi
10. #10
    Niunja SogiSonkal Daebi Makgi
11. #11
    Niunja SogiSonkal Daebi Makgi
12. #12
    Gunnun SogiSun Sonkut Tulgi(R)
13. #13
    Niunja SogiSang Palmok Makgi
14. #14
    Niunja SogiSonkal Anuro Taerigi(R)
15. #15
    Gojung SogiKaunde Jirugi(L)
16. #16
    Niunja SogiSang Palmok Makgi
17. #17
    Niunja SogiSonkal Anuro Taerigi(L)
18. #18
    Gojung SogiKaunde Jirugi(R)
19. #19
    Gunnun SogiAn Palmok Dollimyo Makgi(R)
20. #20
    Ap Cha Busigi(R)
21. #21
    Gunnun SogiKaunde Jirugi(L)
22. #22
    Gunnun SogiAn Palmok Dollimyo Makgi(L)
23. #23
    Ap Cha Busigi(L)
24. #24
    Gunnun SogiKaunde Jirugi(R)
25. #25
    Guburyo Junbi Sogi A
26. #26
    Yop Cha Jirugi(R)
27. #27
    Niunja SogiKaunde Palmok Daebi Makgi
28. #28
    Niunja SogiKaunde Palmok Daebi Makgi