71. Where did the double arc-hand block come from?

Double arc-hand block from Gen Choi's 1965 book

It's common knowledge the movements in taekwondo patterns are based on karate kata. But TKD made changes to them. We can track some of these changes through General Choi's early books: his 1958 Taekwon-Do Teaching Manual, his 1965 book Taekwon-Do: The Korean Art of Self-Defense, and his later Encyclopedia of Taekwon-Do.

Recently I was asked: what about the double arc-hand block in Gae-Baek? What movement is it based on? The student who contacted me had trained karate and had never encountered the movement in any karate kata.

Curious, I looked through Choi's 1965 book, which in addition to 20 ITF patterns contains instructions for 15 karate kata. According to Choi, the double arc-hand block appears in the 42-movement "Bat-Sai" kata, which among karateka is known as Passai or Bassai Dai. 

There is a section in Passai where you perform three knifehand guarding blocks moving forwards, then a fourth moving backwards. According to Choi, you then shift into a front stance double arc-hand block, followed by a unique movement where you pull both fists in front of your left chest.

One would assume Choi's version of the kata are the same as Shotokan karate, but I have compared some instructions and they often differ in minor ways. Was this because Choi learned a different version of the kata than modern Shotokan, because he wanted to harmonize them with the way ITF performed their techniques, or did he simply make mistakes in recording the movements? I have no way of knowing.

Regardless, I looked up performances of Passai or Bassai Dai. The closest version I could find to the double arc-hand block is from this Shotokan karate student performing Bassai Sho (a shorter, 27-movement version of the form).

Source video

From that angle, it looks kind of like the double-arc hand block, although notice the preparation step is different. The hands come up and touch, before traveling down. However, when you look at the movement in Bassai Dai (the longer version), the left hand touches the right forearm.

Source video

 

So it isn't pushing with both palms

Choi doesn't list the movement as appearing in any other kata, although it could have come from a kata not included in the 1965 book. Did Choi mislearn Bassai Dai or change the movement? It's unclear.

The double arc-hand block is used in three ITF patterns: Gae-Baek (twice), Sam-Il, and Se-Jong. The ITF commanders clearly played around with the movement and came up with some applications for it (and no, I'm not talking about catching a thrown pillow). Two sample applications for the first set in Gae-Baek are provided below

A basic application for moves 5-7 of Gae-Baek tul against a left-handed lapel grab. After two strikes, the right arm does a "wax off" motion while the left palm pushes away the opponent's arm to release the grab.

A more advanced application for the same set, utilizing a shoulder lock and checking the opponent's head. You may then use the one-legged stance (step 8) as a knee strike or drop takedown. Gif source: One-minute bunkai

Bonus Mystery: Boulder Push in World Taekwondo

WT does not have the double arc-hand block, but it does have a similar movement: the boulder push (bawi milgi) as found in poomsae Sipjin.

 

 

The difference here is that rather than the hands staying vertically level, they start at the hip and move upward. This is distinct from either the movement in Bassai Sho or ITF. 

Because the hands end up higher, this has a clear application as either a push from the opponent's side or a combined block with palm strike. It looks similar to fair lady works the shuffles in Yang-style Tai Chi.

But where did this movement come from? Some obscure karate kata, or it is actually a variation of ITF's double arc-hand block? (I'm convinced the WT patterns took a few ideas from the ITF ones). Without an official explanation, there's no way of knowing.

Either way, these are examples of how early taekwondoin played around with movements, came up with their own applications, and changed them. This is common in the history of martial art forms. Even in karate, one sees that more recent kata sample and alter sets from older kata. 

 

70: Yoo-Sin closed ready stance C

Source: Liam Broderick Taekwondo

There is a mysterious section in Yoo-Sin where we perform a closed ready stance C mid-form. The following 45-degree upset punch is also mysterious.

Noah Legel of Illinois Practical Karate turned me on to applying this ready stance as a gooseneck wrist lock, which he does at the end of kata Naihanchi.

This lock also appears in the Encyclopedia of Taekwon-Do as one of three police control techniques

So it's not unreasonable for it to appear somewhere in the ITF curriculum. Gen Choi did say the self-defense techniques were applications of the basic exercises and the patterns. So how might we get into this gooseneck wrist lock?

Ridgehand Side Block

We use the 180-degree turn into the side block to get behind the opponent. We use the "block" to lock the opponent's elbow, pushing out the back of their shoulder as we turn.

This is a common application for the inner-forearm block, as found in Yul-Gok tul for example.

 

But why do this with an open-hand in Yoo-Sin? To set up the gooseneck lock. 

Closed Ready Stance C

We may use the ridgehand is to use our palm to chop into our opponent's elbow as we pull their forearm forward. We need to place their elbow on our ribs so they cannot escape the lock. Then we compress their wrist with both palms, as seen in the pictures below:

 

Standard gooseneck lock setup. Source: Submissions 101

 

I chose this example because we are locking the opponent's left arm, but our arms would be switched. We would begin grasping with our right fist and chopping with our left palm.

Twin upset punch

That leaves the mystery of the 45-degree twin upset punch, but you can see how from this position it may make a little more sense. Rather than striking with both fists at once, your right fist maintains the wrist lock while your left fist strikes the opponent's left kidney. Or it could be your left fist maintaining the lock and your right fist punching.

 

One example of moving the gooseneck lock behind the body. Source: officer.com

 

Striking the kidney

Kidney punches are illegal in both boxing and MMA, not because of their reliability as KO strikes, but for their potential to cause long term damage. I have read, however, that being punched in the kidney feels like a sucker punch and can knock the wind out of you, since the area is not well protected by muscle.

 

There is again, a difference between the form and these images. We also perform a knee strike with our right leg. Presumably, this gives us space to move the opponent's arm behind their back, so may then punch them. 

69: Dan-Gun rising blocks

In my second e-book, I provided an application for two consecutive rising blocks, using the ITF chamber to wrap the arm.

Two rising blocks as a block followed by an armlock. The source link at https://www.nantanreikan.ca/ is now broken.

However, in Dan-Gun there are four rising blocks in total, so for a symmetric form, the intended set might be three rising blocks. My suggestion in the e-book was that if the opponent defended with their free arm, you could then lock their other arm. This would be the third "block".

Here is a different interpretation. Ideally:

• We want an application that uses three rising blocks (the fourth is repeating the application on the other side)
• We want to use the ITF chamber (or some approximation of it)

We start from a failed low block throw. 

Low block as a throw.

With a slight modification, we can use the first rising block to break the opponent's elbow, similar to Kenpo's "lone kimono" technique

Source: dojotelevision

Important to this technique is how we use our right fist to roll the opponent's arm such that their elbow is pointed down, so our right fist is positioned more like the rising block chamber. 

If this fails to break the opponent's elbow (perhaps they overpower you and bend their elbow), we follow using the second rising block as a strike. Normally I don't like to apply it as a strike, but the ITF chamber works well for this since the blocking arm sets up inside the reaction arm. I often see karateka teaching this application.

Rising block as a strike. Source: Brian Bates

That leaves the third "block" as forcing the opponent's arm up behind their back an you pull down their head with the pulling hand. 

In this case, the aim is not to keep the opponent's arm straight. We want to fold the opponent's arm behind their back as we do the three-quarter turn (knifehand block chamber). After we do this, we can knifehand strike the back of the opponent's head.  

68: Yoo-Sin and Po-Eun rear bear hug defenses

In this post I want to talk about two rear bear hug defenses from the ITF patterns. It's broadly accepted that Yoo-Sin's opening is a rear bear hug defense, because even the Encyclopedia of Taekwon-Do shows this application.

The interesting bit is the two sliding over-the-shoulder punches, sampled from Heian Sandan. You can't realistically strike a rear opponent with this punch, but you can elbow strike with your reaction hand while grabbing the opponent's arm. You then use the second "punch" as an arm throw.

 

Application for Yoo-Sin's opening. Source: kuro-obi world

It's tempting to think the set below from Po-Eun is similar

The typical application I see is:

• We start with dropping into a riding stance inner-forearm wedging block, just to prevent the opponent from picking you up
• We perform a rear elbow strike
• We break the opponent's grip with the right "punch", sliding up our left arm to create space
• Perform a second rear elbow strike
• Use the twin horizontal punch ("fork punch") as an arm throw

It seems right, but there are a couple issues I have with this interpretation:

• Why do two rear elbow strikes before the throw? Based on your position relative to the opponent, you cannot elbow strike them on both sides. It seems like a wasted extra step
• As a throw, performing the twin horizontal punch without any body movement is less likely to be effective. Yoo-Sin at least has a slide to aid the throw.

I was also curious about the next movement after this set

It looks like a kotegaeshi, but I didn't see any relevant body movement, so for a long time I dismissed that this movement could be a kotegaeshi.

Playing around with the movements though, I realized that we can interpret the second rear elbow strike not as a "strike", but as twisting the opponent's left arm so that you can place your right hand around their thumb.

The end result is that the fork punch becomes a wrist lock, pulling out the meat of the opponent's thumb with the long arm, while the short arm pushes out their elbow: creating the torque necessary to force the opponent to move in front of you. If you don't believe this can work, I invite you to try with a partner! It won't work if you don't push out their elbow, because then the arm and shoulder has no room to rotate.

From here, since we have their thumb already grabbed, we may perform the kotegaeshi. You may use the front cross step to trap their leg or instep, but the important part is to use your left palm to push the back of the opponent's hand while you pull down the meat of their thumb as you move to the right, completing the throw.

A kotegaeshi throw. Source: Stepan Benca

Kotegaeshi from Gen Choi's 1965 Taekwon-Do book

My Favorite Forms

I know a lot of patterns. 

I mainly practice the original 20 ITF patterns, the 9 WT black belt poomsae, plus the Original Koryo. I know a few forms from other styles.

Of these, there are a handful I gravitate towards again and again. I asked myself "If I was to theoretically compete in form performance, which one would I choose?"

The criteria I used are (1) fun to perform (2) aesthetically interesting with a variety of techniques (3) good applications. With that in mind, I choose my top five.

1. The Original Koryo

This is, in my opinion, one of Taekwondo's best forms, which is ironic because it's no longer an official WT poomsae. It's a short-and-sweet poomsae that contains a variety of hand techniques. Because it's short, I typically practice it on both sides (that is, I perform it mirrored after I perform the standard version). 

Because it was never fully standardized, there are different versions of it. The version below by David McGoldrick is close to the one I practice, except that I perform the low knifehand block in a cat stance.

Although it's short, this is a good poomsae to practice delivering techniques with speed and power. 

2. Choong-Jang

For ITF, my favorite pattern is Choong-Jang. It's a good "self-defense" pattern, containing low kicks and a variety of hand techniques that attack the jaw, throat, eyes, and temples. It is also technically challenging and one of the longest ITF patterns. 

3. Gae-Baek

Apparently I'm a sucker for forms with an "I"-shaped floor plan. Gae-Baek is highly regarded among ITF students for its flow and array of techniques. I recall one comment that it's the taekwondo pattern that feels the most like a karate kata. Application-wise, Gae-Baek's focus is locking the opponent's arm to place them in a vulnerable position.

4. Po-Eun

Po-Eun is a fun one for students to learn because of how unique it is. While it's certainly inspired by Naihanchi, I think the connection is overstated. It uses the floor plan and several movements from Naihanchi, but about half of its movements do not appear in any of the three Naihanchi kata and the sets are completely different. I would argue Po-Eun consists of five mini-patterns, a series of grapple defenses.

5. Cheonkwon

Cheonkwon (or Chonkwon) is a fun poomsae to perform. It employs wide, circular movements not present in other poomsae, including a spinning inside crescent kick. Not much else to say here other than it's pretty and takes skill to perform correctly.

Honorable Mentions

I'm also fond of modern Koryo. For the color belt patterns, I enjoy both Yul-Gok and Toi-Gye. I'm also fond of Tong-Il lately, as it's another I-shaped pattern. Taeguek 5 (which has similarities to Yul-Gok) has a nice flow to it. Moon-Moo I do not personally practice, but it is technically challenging (with lots of kicks) and interesting to watch. 

Do you have any favorites?

67: Tong-Il under fist ("bear hand") strike and circular block

Continuing our analysis of Tong-Il, let's analyze a set near the end with three unique movements:

• Inward strike with the "under fist"
• Reverse palm pushing block 
• Turn 135-degrees into knifehand circular block 

The under fist comes from Karate's kumade or "bear hand" strike. 

 

Although Gen Choi lists the striking tool as the finger knuckles, it's thought the palm heel can be part of the strike as well. 

 

For an inward strike with the bear hand, the usual application given is a ripping attack to the ear, as shown by Tom Hill below.

Source: Tom Hill

 

The idea of ripping someone's ear off seems a little theatrical to me, but you can do an ear clap attack, disorienting the opponent by slamming air into their ear drum. 

 

Howcast ear slap

 

Striking with the finger knuckles is fine, since the outer ear is soft and this will still distract the opponent. Supposing we do use this as a disorienting attack to the ear, what's next in the pattern?

 

In context, we strike the opponent's right ear while pulling their right arm. We then grab the back of their shoulder and then pull while pushing their arm forward with the palm pushing block, effectively turning them around.

 

We then attempt to throw by pulling them 135-degrees right, the turn into the "circular block". We drop our weight into this to make the throw more effective.

 

 

If the throw fails, we rise up and use the knifehand "block" as a KO strike to the back of the opponent's neck.

 

We can then use the next movement (steps 54) in the pattern to kick behind the opponent and pull them towards us with both fists, essentially the same kind of throw but pulling straight back rather than at an angle. [1]

 

[1] This kick-then-pull is not in the 1965 version of Tong-Il, which instead has you perform a rising block followed by a reverse punch. The intent of the original version is probably to strike up under their right armpit before punching the back of their head. 

66: Tong-Il W-shape blocks

I don't believe that forms, on their own, teach you how to fight. The reason I hunt for applications is because I see it as one big puzzle box to solve. Plus I want to know what the movements I practice may be used for.

Since I recovered from four years of chronic low back pain, I have been getting back into taekwondo forms (mainly as a form of aerobic exercise). It gave me time to reflect on portions of the original 20 ITF patterns that were still mysterious to me. One movement that has been my bane is the outward W-shape block found in Tong-Il.

Source: Master Natasa Manavaki

The outward W-shape block (also called "mountain block") comes from the karate kata Jitte, which also contains the stomping W-shape block.

I tried looking up applications or bunkai for the block. I didn't find much. The typical application is to block with the setup (arm fold) and then strike the opponent's neck while pushing out their arm.

My question is why do we do two outward W-shape blocks in Tong-Il, with a slide between them?

One interpretation is to use the first move as a block against a right-handed attack, while also holding the opponent's left arm. From here, you may strike into the opponent's left inner-elbow while sliding right, and then strike the side of their neck with the second W-shape block.

 From here, the opponent may try to dive down for a body lock or leg grab. But you can foil this by applying the next movement, the stomping inward-moving W-shape block, to move CCW while maintaining contact with the opponent's head, possibly moving the opponent's arm behind them.

Christopher Hein demonstrating how if your opponent dives for a body grab from this position, you may keep contact with their head while moving CCW. Is it easier to maintain contact with the forearm than the palm.

Although we turn CCW once in the pattern, we can continue to turn CCW as much as we need to frustrate the opponent, maintaining forearm contact with their head.

From here, what would I do? One option is to overhook their left arm as I shift left, trying to get a kumura lock. This applies the setup (arm fold) part of step 44

Image source: tritacacademy

From here I have two options.

The first, since the opponent's head is lowered, is that I can perform a downward elbow strike to the top of their head. This would be the application of the final outward W-shape block (Step 44), which would be a finishing blow, though I lose the kimura lock.

The other option is to keep the kimura lock and throw the opponent by performing a sweep. This is an application for the next movement in the pattern, step 45

 

We even turn 90-degrees left to throw like we do in the pattern, and can kick behind us (step 46) because our opponent falls behind us.