Kim Soo Karate of North Carolina

Balance, Marching, and Rhythm as Chayon-Ryu Principles

By Matthew Mitchell: Sam Dan Thesis - CYR 250th Rank Exam

August 14, 2009

Our planet is saturated with mysterious laws of nature. Whether trying to track the movement of the heavens or simply understanding the ebb and flow of the tides, humans have tried to capture and dissect these laws for millennia only to be left with educated guesses. Though now, as we break through the 21st century, our society begs to answer the complex questions such as nuclear energy and mapping of the human genome structure. Yet through all of our progress, through all of our scientific breakthroughs, we, as witnesses to a miraculous planet, have forgotten to appreciate the fundamental elements that prove to be consistent constants. At times, we fail to heed the common elements of the surrounding world, such as the power of a small honeybee that flies from flower to flower pollinating the plants that yield food. These certain inalienable laws of nature help to nourish and maintain a stable and functioning ecosystem for all. For the most part humans lay dormant to the ideas these small miracles occurring around them daily, but within them every second. A human mind never has to consciously think about making one’s heart beat continue throughout the day, nor does one have to constantly remind himself to inhale and exhale. These types of actions are innate and are performed to perpetuate and encourage both physical and mental balance. As a practitioner of Chayon-Ryu martial arts since the age of six, I have been reminded of the parallels between our martial arts and the world around us for nearly twenty years. Through the focus on natural body movements, Chayon-Ryu is constantly intertwined in the art of combining proper breathing and balance of movements to mirror the simple balance of nature and the human body.

Whether a fresh white belt or a seasoned master, Chayon-Ryu martial artists aim to incorporate the natural laws of the body into his or her practice. As one looks to the first ten lessons organized and laid out by our system founder, Grandmaster Kim Soo, the central notion revolves around the axis of teaching proper breathing techniques and balance of motion. Lesson number one in Chayon-Ryu states to teach walking exercises. Since the student obviously walked into the Dojang on his own accord, why then should the instructor go over walking exercises? Though one may know how to walk, even in our modern scientific world, few understand the human mechanics of a fluid walking motion. In 2009 researchers from the US University of Michigan and Delft University of Technology in the Netherlands decided to publish their findings as to why humans use their arms for natural body motion while walking. They stated, “it was found that by swinging the arms, the movement of twisting or “torque” of the body, was counteracted – making it easier and smoother for the body and legs to walk straight – using less energy from the muscles” (GMC 2009). Thus it wasn’t until this very year that the scientific community had quantitative data to support viability and necessity of the arms while walking.

Not coincidentally, this balance of using upper body to facilitate a healthy and productive lower body was the foundation that Grandmaster Kim Soo built Chayon-Ryu upon forty one years ago. Furthermore, scientists discovered that the upper body must be used in a certain way in order to maximize efficiency with the lower body. Researchers published, “…that it takes the body 26 per cent more energy to get the right arm to move with the right leg and the left with the left – the opposite of what we naturally do” (GMC 2009). Once more, in an age where the science du jour is to smash atoms, scientist are just now understanding why the entire body walks as one unit upper and lower body cohesively matching one another’s movements in an equal yet opposite form. Purposely, Grandmaster Kim realized the parallels between the balance the human body exudes and the techniques found in all realms of our Chayon-Ryu art. Even on his website, years before the University of Michigan’s researchers published their findings, he stated, “Chayon-Ryu, The Natural Way, is a scientific method of teaching martial arts. Following the laws of nature, it emphasizes mental and physical balance rather than simply "kick and punch” (GMKS 2009). The question remains, how were CYR practitioners training in accordance to the scientific principle forty-one years before scientific findings were published? The answer, I believe, lies in the example put forth by the world around us and by our own natural body motion. Constant balance is a principle that can be found in the tiniest detail.

Great minds throughout the history of our modern civilization have regressed to simple laws in order to describe complex scientific conundrums. Sir Isaac Newton spoke of the importance of balance when he stated, “For every action, there is an equal yet opposite reaction” (Henderson 2007). One can take note of this law when inhaling and exhaling, bending of the legs before jumping, and natural walking motion. In order to fully facilitate an action, and equal and opposite action must be performed. In the world that surrounds us this law is omnipresent as there can be no summer without a winter, no dry season without a rainy season. The law of equal and opposite action is displayed in its purest form during punching exercises in Chayon-Ryu. As the punching fist moves forward towards the target the non- punching fist moves backwards towards your own waist. Though just as walking, a fluid one-fist punch can only be effective with the use of the other fist acting in direct conjunction. Chayon-Ryu, once again builds upon a great scientist’s observations, Sir Isaac Newton’s third law, to promote physical and ultimately mental balance.

As western scientists begin to place numerical values that support anatomical balance, they are merely scratching the surface of both power conservation and generation. In Chayon-Ryu we learn that kicking fundamentals hold the same principles as running. In order to use your feet, while running, one must convert power from the core section of the body by using the arms to generate balanced and rhythmic movements. In a recent issue of Running Times Magazine a writer strongly advises her readers to the benefits of proper arm motion by stating, “When the shoulder and arm muscles become fatigued, arm motion changes and this decreases the whole body’s running efficiency, translating into wasted energy and slower times” (Smoglia 2007). As this philosophy is transferred to Chayon-Ryu kicking basics, the same concept holds steadfast as power, or ki, from one’s midsection can only be maximized through balance and rhythm of both the upper and lower body. Western scientist have concluded how using balanced movements during walking and running exercises save energy, but Chayon-Ryu principles have gone a step further teaching white belts how to use the same natural body motion to completely maximize and increase the power that lies within.

Though outsiders might peer into the martial arts community and find complex movements and agility that perhaps seems unattainable to the layman, Chayon-Ryu provides an approach to proper self-defense through physical balance of motion. This scientific method of teaching and training buildings upon past and continuing research that supports the notion of balanced physical movements in efforts to not resist the natural laws of nature and, all the while, promoting a healthy way of training and living. This balance of motion is used to perform simple yet effects punching, blocking, and self defense exercises. When combined with proper breathing techniques and a philosophy of non-violence Chayon-Ryu shines as a beacon of pureness that exudes beyond the martial arts community. As quantitative data begins to be published, it is merely supporting the qualitative feelings that practitioners of Chayon-Ryu have felt for more than forty years. Though our western minds yearn for numbers to tell us what is healthy or correct in our society, the eastern philosophy helps us acknowledge what feels healthy based on nature as the role model. Combining western and eastern thought in this wonderful art yields a system build on a scientific method of attaining physical and mental balance through natural body motion.

Works Cited

(2009, July 29th). General Medicine Community. Retrieved August 14, 2009, from Wellsphere Web site: http://stanford.wellsphere.com/general-medicine-article/scientists-reveal-why-we-swing-our-arms-when-walking/755103

Henderson, Tom (2007). Newtons thrid law. Retrieved August 14, 2009, from The physics classroom tutorial Web site: http://www.glenbrook.k12.il.us/GBSSCI/PHYS/CLASS/newtlaws/u2l4a.html

Smoglia, James (2007 July). Owners Manual: Fully Armed. Retrieved August 15, 2009, from Running Times Magazine Web site: http://runningtimes.com/Print.aspx?articleID=11299

Soo, GM Kim. What is Chayon-Ryu?. Retrieved August 14, 2009, from KimSooKarate Web site: http://www.kimsookarate.com/intro/what-is-cyr.html

Kim Soo Karate of North Carolina 2008 - www.kimsookaratenc.com