Pre-Rational, Rational, Trans-Rational Views of Martial Arts

This year I haven't had much time to contribute to the Soo Shim Kwan blog. Practically of the posts were material I prepared for academic purposes such as academic articles, conferences and symposiums. However, before 2020 comes to an end, I decided to write one essay. I'm guessing that this essay may rub some people the wrong way, but I think the concepts are very useful and will hopefully help some people in understanding the martial arts better.

Pre-Rational, Rational, Trans-Rational Views of Martial Arts

By Dr. Sanko Lewis

I sometimes find myself bumping heads with rational people over certain aspects in Taekwon-Do because they seem to think my acceptance of some elements of Taekwon-Do is an irrational clinging to tradition or a cult-like following of the principal founder of Taekwon-Do, Choi Hong-Hi. I came to realize that there is a Pre/Trans fallacy at work. Therefore, for this essay I want to explore three paradigms for understanding martial arts, which we can name Prerational, Rational, and Transrational paradigms. We may also name these paradigms Premodern, Modern, and Transmodern.[1] I will apply these respective terms (Prerational:Premodern; Rational:Modern; Transrational:Transmodern) interchangeably.

An understanding of these three paradigms may help us to clarify and distinguish between various martial arts systems and the work of martial arts instructors and scholars.

 

Prerational Martial Arts, i.e. Premodern Martial Arts

Prerational martial arts—specifically within the East Asian martial arts context—are those martial arts that we usually group under the heading of “traditional” martial arts. These martial arts often have an exceptionally long historical claim, with a mythical or legendary origin or founder. Instructors’ authority is based on an unbroken lineage and their knowledge is supposed to be the accumulated wisdom passed down from one generation to the next, from master to disciple. Such martial arts claim to possess “secret” knowledge, secret techniques, maybe even secret manuals, that was passed down from the previous generation to only the most deserving disciples. The forms (patterns) are often believed to contain hidden or secret techniques that are only known or understood by the initiated. Thus, prerational martial arts may be defined as esoteric.

These martial arts’ pedagogies are often not very structured. Generally, there are no clear ranks (i.e. grades or belts). Rank distinction is very rudimentary. There is the master and his or her disciples, and the students’ seniority is based on their length of study and loyalty. In the most traditional systems, before a master dies, he would appoint his successor—usually the most loyal and longest studying student, who it is believed have learned everything the master knows, including the system’s secret knowledge. Premodern martial arts are also often tribal, believing their system is the best and other systems are weaker since they do not share the same secret knowledge. Not surprisingly, there tends to be a distrust of outsiders. 

 

A Chinese painting from the 2nd Century BC,
depicting Qigong (Doinsul) exercises.

Often, the theories of power in these premodern martial arts are based on an animistic worldview, such as Daoism (China) or Shintoism (Japan). Animism refers to a belief that everything (from stones to mountains to people) is permeated or animated with a life force or spiritual energy. In East Asia this life force is known as 氣 [Qi (Chi) in Chinese, Gi in Korean, and Ki in Japanese.] It is believed that humans can manipulate 氣 through certain training such as Qigong (China) or Doinsul (Korea). By cultivating and manipulating 氣, the practitioner can improve their own health and increase their physical strength—even, acquire supernaturally powerful martial arts techniques. 氣 cultivation training often involves meditation and/or breathing exercises, particular poses, and pose sequences (forms or patterns). Furthermore, if one knows the secrets, one can also inhibit the life force in your opponent, for instance through the striking of secret points on their body to create energy blockages. It is important to note here that these prerational martial arts are not necessarily ignorant of physics and physiology, although such knowledge is sometimes based on outdated scientific models.

Premodern martial arts are also known to include other quasi-religious teachings. The martial art is often used as an ascetic discipline for spiritual development. Thus, the martial art is viewed holistically. It is not just about learning how to fight, but also a means to better health, moral growth, and spiritual enlightenment. The student is an apprentice and disciple, and the instructor is a skilled artisan and spiritual teacher.

 

Rational Martial Arts, i.e. Modern Martial Arts

Jigoro Kana, the Founder of Judo, and pioneer of modern martial arts

 

The degree to which the label “rational” applies to different martial arts differs, since many rational martial arts also include some prerational elements because modern martial arts usually developed out of premodern systems. Rational or modern martial arts are those that developed during the 20^th century and culminated in MMA in the 21^st century. Probably the earliest modern martial art is Judo, which was created by Jigoro Kano in 1882. Kano had a Western education and it is believed that this greatly influenced his systematizing of Judo’s pedagogy. He was the first to introduce a belt ranking system in the martial arts. Most of the martial arts that developed in the 20^th century such as Taekwon-Do, Jeet Kune Do, and even kickboxing may be considered rational or modern martial arts.

Modern martial arts instructors’ get their authority from governing bodies (organizations) that certify their rank. Techniques are generally explained, not through lineage, philosophical metaphors, or esoteric notions of energy, but Newtonian physics and biomechanics. Research in Physical Education and Sport Science are embraced to enhance the athletes’ performance. In fact, the martial art is often streamlined to a singular focus, such as combatives (e.g. Krav Maga) or sport (e.g. Judo, WT Taekwondo).

Probably the pinnacle of modern martial arts is Mixed Martial Arts. MMA has nearly completely thrown-off its obligation to lineage and tradition. Techniques are aggregated from many different martial arts based purely on their efficiency within the MMA ruleset (most notably the UFC). Techniques are explained by means of a Western scientific understanding of physics, biomechanics, and sports physiology. There is no ascetic goal or focus on spiritual growth or development of the character. Instead, the focus is to become a better “fighter” (i.e. athlete), physically and technically.

Rational martial arts tend to reject and look down on prerational martial arts, viewing them as useless, outdated, and superstitious or fake.

 

Trans-Rational Martial Arts

For this section on transrational martial arts, I am going to talk more about transrational martial artists in particular, rather than transrational martial arts in general. The reason is there are very few martial arts systems that as a whole can be considered transrational because most practitioners within these systems are often blends of Pre-Rational and Rational.

Transrational refers to a transcendence (and inclusion) of the rational. It is the ability to use the rational, without fully rejecting everything that the prerational represent. It is an ability to re-investigate the prerational and reinterpret and re-apply premodern ideas and techniques from a new paradigm. Note that the transrational practitioner is not a blend of Pre-Rational and Rational, but a transcendence of both. I will provide some examples later which will help to clarify the distinction.

 

Applying these Paradigms to Taekwon-Do

To make these concepts more tangible, I will now apply these paradigms to (ITF) Taekwon-Do.

Taekwon-Do developed in the 20^th century. It was built on a foundation inherited from mostly Shotokan Karate which in turn came out of prerational martial arts. However, from the start, Taekwon-Do based its teachings on Newtonian physics. In all 15 volumes of the ITF Taekwon-Do Encyclopaedia, there is only one short passage referring to 氣 (“Ki” / “Chi”), and not within the context of power generation. Power generation is understood through such equations as Force = Mass x Acceleration or Kinetic Energy = ½ Mass x Velocity².

Even the language has been demystified. Nearly all terminology has been stripped of their poetic and metaphoric nuance. There are no techniques with names like “monkey steals peach”, “pulling the tiger’s tail”, or “silk reeling”. Instead, techniques are conspicuously descriptive: front punch, side strike, low block, back kick, joint break… There is no “secret” knowledge in Taekwon-Do that are only available to the grandmasters. At a technical level, Taekwon-Do instructors are simply coaches that help the practitioner achieve their athletic goals.

Taekwon-Do is a modern, rational martial art; however, occasionally we can find some prerational / premodern aspects within Taekwon-Do.

Considering WT / Kukki Taekwondo for a moment, the idea that Taekwondo has a 2000-year Korean history is still propagated by some members of World Taekwondo and the Kukkiwon. Even though this 2000-year history narrative has been thoroughly debunked, there are still people who cling to this notion because such a long lineage claim provides a sense of legitimacy. (And it sidesteps the inconvenient truth that Taekwon-Do has its roots in a Japanese martial art.)

While ITF Taekwon-Do has thankfully not taken up this untruth, there are nevertheless people with similar prerational views within ITF. One example is the unwavering loyalty to the Choi bloodline and lineage proximity to General Choi Honghi, who was the principal founder of Taekwon-Do and first president of ITF Taekwon-Do. There are some people within ITF who are obsessed with their lineage proximity to General Choi; in other words, the idea that if you trained directly under General Choi or if your instructor trained under General Choi, then your Taekwon-Do is more legitimate than someone who is a third or fourth or later generation practitioner. Before General Choi passed away, he appointed North Korean IOC member, Chang Ung, as his successor. Dr. Chang Ung was succeeded by Grandmaster Ri Yongson. Some people are of the opinion that those who do not follow this lineage are not really doing authentic ITF Taekwon-Do. Similarly is the idea that there is “magic” in the Choi bloodline; the notion that General Choi’s son, Grandmaster Choi Junghwa, is the only true embodiment of Taekwon-Do and that people who are not following him are not practicing true Taekwon-Do. Now don’t get me wrong, I’m not disrespecting General Choi or the Choi-family, I’m just pointing out that this type of thinking is prerational and tribalistic. One is definitely able to practice real ITF Taekwon-Do—and be great at it—even if you have never trained directly with General Choi or Grandmaster Choi Junghwa. You can also be a true practitioner of the ITF system, even if you are not affiliated with any of the mainstream ITF branches. There is no magic in the lineage, bloodline, or organization. General Choi broke with that prerational lineage notion when he made it clear that Taekwon-Do is a new invention based on Karate and a few other sources and by teaching Taekwon-Do not to a few selected students, but all around the world to anyone willing to learn. There are no secrets passed down to a select few. Taekwon-Do has been democratized. Anyone may have access to the Taekwon-Do knowledge as provided in the ITF Encyclopedia and other sources.[2]

A further example of prerational martial arts thinking you may have come across are those people who search for “secret” applications from the patterns and go through great pains to show applications from the patterns—sometimes the applications are ridiculously contrived but they are presented as “hidden” discoveries. Rational martial artists often fall into this trap because they want to explain the inclusion of the patterns within the system in a rational way. They want to legitimize the training in patterns, since it is so obvious that the patterns are unnatural and do not reflect actual combat.

Another example is the ‘sinewave motion’, which is a teaching aid that conveys a number of useful principles, which I will simply reduce to (1) as far as possible begin each movement from a state of relaxation, (2) accelerate all of your body mass in the direction of the technique, (3) when possible move with gravity. Apart from these technical functions the ‘sinewave motion’ also have a cultural funtion; it provides a Korean cultural character to the techniques by including Korean Body Culture elements such as ogeumjil  오금질  (knee-bending / knee-spring), three-beat rhythm, gokseonmi 곡선미 [曲線美] (Korean curved line aesthetics), etc. Unfortunately, there are some people who consider the ‘sine wave motion’ in a prerational manner as a “secret” or “magical” way to increase power. They use it as a tribal identifier to look down on other martial artists who do not know and use this “secret” method. Also, they often apply the ‘sinewave motion’ not as a teaching aid to convey certain principles of movement, but in all contexts even when it would be illogical to do so. For instance, the full ‘sinewave motion’ contains a relaxation, rising, and execution or falling phase, often mnemonically chanted as “down-up-down”. Doing the falling phase during an upward technique such as a high punch is counterproductive, nevertheless, these practitioners apply the ‘sinewave motion’ in a blanket fashion to nearly all techniques. 

Tribal premodern thinking is also evident when certain organizations prohibit their members to train with non-affiliated members (i.e., “outsiders”) or prohibit them to compete in tournaments or participate in seminars of other organizations. Nearly a decade ago, a friend and I who both practice ITF Taekwon-Do and Hapkido used to train together. At the time, we could freely train Hapkido together, but not Taekwon-Do because the ITF organization he belongs to did not allow members to train with “outsiders.” One would hope that such tribalistic and esoteric thinking would be something of the past; however, I heard of a recent case where one ITF group expelled a master who opened his private seminar to members outside of the ITF group he was affiliated with.

Moving on, I believe, based on General Choi’s continual evolution of his system, that Taekwon-Do was intended not to be simply a rational martial art, but rather a transrational martial art. Rational martial arts, as I mentioned before, are usually myopic. They tend to have a single focus such as competition or combat exclusively. MMA as exemplified by the UFC or Krav Maga are such examples. At the very beginning, even General Choi viewed his new style in such a manner—primarily as a combat system for the ROK military.

Like the holistic prerational martial arts, transrational martial arts also acknowledge that the martial arts may have many different goals. ITF Taekwon-Do is foremost an “art of self-defence,” but it can also be a means to improve health and develop character, be a recreational sport, a way to promote Korean culture, and even a soft diplomacy tool. In his further development of Taekwon-Do, General Choi started to include these and other goals for Taekwon-Do. Instructors are therefore not reduced to sport coaches only, but to life coaches—and based on the ITF Taekwon-Do terms for instructors, they are conceived as teachers of moral wisdom.

Rather than disregarding everything prerational as irrational, as proponents of rational martial arts tend to do, transrational martial artists revisit prerational aspects and reinterpret them from a new enlightened vantage point. Meditation and danjeon-breathing are a common part of prerational martial arts, which is often disparaged by modern martial artists because these breathing exercises are part of the 氣-development curricula of premodern martial arts. Transrational martial artists, however, are aware of the contemporary scientific research on the numerous benefits of meditation practices such as visualization for performance enhancement, mind-training for focus, and conscious breathing techniques (aka “breathwork”) that can be used to achieve various physiological and psychological states.

The patterns are similarly upcycled by transrational martial artists. The patterns are not viewed as 氣-cultivation poses, as in the case of prerational martial arts, nor do they pretend that the patterns are combative manuals as sometimes happen with rational martial arts. They accept that the patterns are cultural artifacts inherited from the prerational martial arts and has value as part of the intangible cultural heritage of the system. Transrational martial artists are honest about the fact that patterns do not reflect real fighting and that we do not fight like we do patterns. Instead of trying to derive hidden secret applications from the patterns, transrational martial artists rather use the patterns in a more general way to teach certain movement principles or use sequences of the patterns as inspiration for dynamic context drills. Note this is different from searching for secret or hidden applications, because generally these secret-technique hunters try to find specific applications for a movement sequence. Whereas, applied to dynamic context drills, these sequences are used to find combative or tactical principles, rather that specific applications[3]. A good example of someone who use the patterns in a transrational way is Master Colin Wee[4]. Transrational martial artists will also employ the patterns for purposes beyond combat; for example, the patterns are great for suhaeng 수행, a type of movement meditation practice.

Moving on to the ‘sinewave motion’: instead of seeing the ‘sinewave motion’ as bad science, as so many of the modern martial artists do, transrational martial artists understand that the ‘sinewave motion’ is simply a tool for teaching particular principles about movement and Korean culture; and they use these principles not dogmatically but as they are situationally apt. 

 

Pre/Trans Fallacy

At the start of this essay, I mentioned the Pre/Trans Fallacy. This fallacy occurs when rational martial artists mistake transrational martial artists as prerational. The problem is that transrational martial artists sometimes use the practices, terminology, and metaphors of the prerational system. Rational practitioners have a knee-jerk reaction to this, and then simply dismiss transrational instructors as prerational. The difference between prerational martial artists and transrational martial artists is vast. When a transrational martial artist use aspect from prerational martial arts, they do so from a completely different paradigm. They are not working from a prerational “magic” paradigm, but from one that is rational and open-minded. They view the martial arts in a broader context, for instance not simply as a means for fighting but as a tool for enhancing individuals’ lifes and affecting society—informed by modern science, personal experience, and cultural awareness.

For example, I am an ITF Taekwon-Do practioner who performs the ‘sinewave motion’ during patterns. When someone tells me that what I’m doing is “too slow” and will never work “in the streets” I can only shake my head. This is obviously a case of Pre/Trans Fallacy. I know full well that it is too slow and that doing such a block/punch/kick sequence is not reflective of actual fighting. I don’t perform patterns because I think ‘it’ is ‘reality’. There are many other valuable reasons for training in the patterns and doing the the ‘sinewave motion,’ which I have written about extensively elsewhere on my blog. And truth be told, I’ve come to realize that doing the patterns simply because they connect me with an intangible cultural heritage is of value in and of itself. (Although I definitely think that there is useful skill transfer when the patterns are properly employed as part of a sensible pedagogy.) Similarly, I am aware that General Choi Hong-hi was a flawed man, so I do not venerate him in a cult-like manner, as so many ITF practitioners do. Nor do I participate in contemporary “cancel culture”, which is an approach followed by many non-ITF people. Instead, I am appreciative of the great legacy of General Choi Hong-hi and other Taekwon-Do pioneers and as a martial art scholar I try to objectively contribute to correcting the narratives with regards to the history of Taekwon-Do. In this sense, I have an appreciation of lineage and those that came before me, without having an unhealthy obsession with it.

 

Take Away

Firstly, I’d like to encourage you to evaluate your training practices and to make sure that you are not doing Taekwon-Do as a premodern martial art. I don’t think most people who practice Taekwon-Do are practicing it in a prerational way, but I am convinced that many people do cling to some prerational notions, such as the examples I mentioned earlier. Furthermore, Taekwon-Do had its major development between the 1950s and 1980s. Since then, there has been ground-breaking research within the fields of Physical Education and Sport Science that can dramatically enhance your training practices. We should embrace the best of what scientific research can offer. There are many resources you can consult to make your training practice more scientifically sound[5].

Secondly, if you are already a rational or modern martial artist, there are two things to watch out for. First, be careful not to box-in the martial arts into your myopic idea of what it is supposed to be. For instance, I have interacted with great martial art scholars who said that Taekwon-Do should rid itself of all this extra traditional baggage and become simply a combat sport. This is such a blinkered view of what Taekwon-Do is and can be. People take up martial arts for many reasons. There is no reason why a martial art cannot be used and trained for different purposes. Second, be careful not to simply dismiss certain practices, and by implication certain instructors and practitioners, because you think that they are busy with prerational / premodern exercises. For instance, some people may completely dismiss pattern training or the use of the ‘sinewave motion’ as it is trained in patterns because it doesn’t prepare someone for a real fight. And, at face value I agree with this. However, I train and teach patterns—including the ‘sinewave motion’—not because I think they are good templates for fighting. There are lots of other value that can be derived from the patterns and certain ways of moving. The patterns can teach many principles that one cannot easily learn when sparring, when training at a faster pace, and so on. Some of these principles do indeed contribute, albeit in an indirect way, to actual combat. Just as skipping rope and speed ball training contribute indirectly to a boxer’s skill but are useless for fighting in and of themselves. Furthermore, the patterns may be used for all kinds of additional purposes, such as suhaeng or movement-meditation, breath-work practice, coordination practise, etc. Just because I teach patterns does not mean I’m stuck in a prerational / premodern paradigm. Quite the contrary.

Finally, I encourage you to become a transrational, transmodern martial artist. One that is rational, but intuitive; logical, but open-minded.

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[1] My use of the term “transmodern” should not be confused with “postmodern.” I believe that postmodern martial arts do exist, but for the purpose of this essay I’m not going to make that distinction as it would make the essay too long and complicated and is not necessary for my argument.

[2] While it is true that Taekwon-Do has been democratized, that does not mean that there are not some instructors with a better understanding of the material and underlying principles and who are better at teaching the material. Teaching is itself a talent and skill, and some people are better at it than others. Finding a good instructor is a great advantage.

[3] I should add here that I don’t mean to say that there are no applications for pum [i.e. movement sequences] in the patterns. There often are and it may be useful to teach them to students as long as they are mostly obvious rather than contrived applications. However, an obsessive search for “secret” or “hidden” techniques are a sign of prerational martial arts thinking.

[4] Joong Do Kwan Taekwon-Do, Perth, Australia. http://www.joongdokwan.com/

[5] Some recommended resources you can start with are Steven J. Pearlman’s The Book of Martial Power, Jason Thalken’s Fight Like a Physicist, Jung K. Lee’s The Science of Taekwondo, Larence Kane and Kris Wilder’s The Little Black Book of Violence, and Rory Miller’s Meditations on Violence, to name just a few. The Combat Learning Podcast by Josh Peacock is also a great entry into methodologies of effective training based on Physical Education and Sport Science research.

To my friends, students and readers of Soo Shim Kwan, I wish you all the best for 2021!