Martial Arts Taekwondo Poetry

Lee, Chang Hoo (aka Master Blue) trans. Steve Carpener

I clench my fist Not to fell a firmly rooted tree, Nor to catch a fish Rushing into calm water, Nor to spout flame from my soaring breast, Nor to put on wings that I might fly to lofty areas But that I may enter From the small, quiet place Inside my tightly clenched, Softly trembling fist Into the way towards a boundless life Opening endlessly before my eyes. Taekwondo is a way, a way of life. All that was separated again can meet. Through this everything is seen To become one. I can find my real self and so Toward perfection turn. Mind and body when harmonized make the human being whole. Thought and action when harmonized free each from the other. Motion and stay when harmonized lead to tranquility. Yielding and stoutness when harmonized create power. Strength and weakness when harmonized brings about tenderness. Drawing and erasing when harmonized paints a picture without form. Eternity and an instant when harmonized produces a possibility. Myself and another when harmonized makes we. Air and ground when harmonized becomes the earth. Living and dying when harmonized breathes as a life. Inhaling and exhaling when harmonized is a cycle of renewal and Hand and foot when harmonized forms martialism but Military and literary when harmonized is art and this brings philosophy. When all these are blended they melted into one. This one then is perfect and is equal to nothingness. When everything finally reaches the peak There is no longer a difference between being or not. I stand alone in the midst of this emptiness Then I and others appeared in a breath and My real self can walk the path without hesitation. I erase myself My adversary and I, in the midst of our Frozen confrontation, Through my chosen way Taekwondo, I must erase myself. First I erase my mind, all thoughts, Then I erase my actions and Finally my body. Ultimately, when all is wiped out I can merge into my opponent's intent gaze. I would be everywhere, yet I cannot be found. Then will my opponent's movements Become my own and In this union of action a Tender flow of motion controls me and In it, my opponent is overcome. Picture this My opponent and I locked In our frozen confrontation. I erase myself and in doing so My opponent is lost and left behind Is and empty space where none exist. Taekwondo should be an art with Which to draw myself. First should be drawn the boundaries of the earth and The empty space filled in with the color of the sky. Then erasing myself and forming myself are the same. I remain standing in a featureless drawing And my form can vanish Then how would I be imagined. Taekwondo is language. A dialogue between subjectivity and objectivity, Between my opponent and I, Now and then Mind and body Tradition and innovation Between change and constancy, Man and nature Being and nothingness. The Language is spoken by the hands and feet. All these being equal, From what is in front of me I see what lies ahead. From a tiny beginning I can achieve great things and Move my opponent using only my will. What could be done Within the narrow space closed and firm, If I cannot see my way outside of myself I will look inside and Master my adversary by Attaching my own vulnerabilities. In facing an opponent We can see life and death cross, when we feel we must live Only for the sake of live in Death awakens outside our bodies. In the moment life and death cross We can see our gaze reflected in our opponent's eyes. The heart which holds the universe huddles, The muscles of the chest breathe deeply As if to support the cowering heart. The arms cross the inclined body and Softly come alive. Earth is the mother of life, The humble center is balanced Being and nothingness awaken where The feet are planted. In hiding my own breath The opponent's breath is sought. Rhythm is perceived in the breathing: Distance is found in rhythm Offense and defense are determined by distance. Offense and defense are the whole question of existence. Taekwondo is the way to perfect rhythm. Within all things of the earth there Beats a hidden rhythm. Nature wills the unity of this rhythm. In this, man's will is activated. Opponents attempt to break each other's rhythm So I absorb my opponent's rhythm and Through my own rhythm Disperse that of my adversary. A broken rhythm is confused Confusion easily dominated. And so through a tiny motion Something meaningful is achieved. Taekwondo is language. The rhythm of the language creates distance. Offense and defense are founded on distance; Ideal distance sees my opponent's attack fall Short while mine strikes home. This is the fruit of harmony between time and space; To find this distance I must erase myself. In the midst of lunge and retreat While fixing the opponent's gaze, Two worlds are created on The pillars of Space and time. As the two mingle with each other One is designed to fall and When a world falls its Master falls with it Whose world is first perfected, That is the man who is seen to stand. Taekwondo, in truth makes me one with my opponent. To strike the opponent's most vulnerable place is to Strike a place in the universe. When I strike my opponent I Strike with all that is in me, When attacked, There is no difference between fullness and emptiness. I am grasped by fullness while Through emptiness my Opponent's attack becomes futile. By softly striking a weak point I can subdue the adversary without Being contrary to reason, A good attack never demands excessive power but Accuracy instead, Never ruin but control, Redirection not interference and Attaining victory using the Opponent's own power. The ideal offense produces Power from the force of the opponent's blow, It does not oppose but only blends. If I attack with excessive force I may destroy myself as well. If I fail to convert my opponent's force into mine We both will tremble with shock. Attack and Defense differ Only in name Their oneness relies merely on How sharply they are honed. By releasing my spirit in the form of a yell My opponent's desire is overwhelmed. All is a dialogue between the Subjective and the objective If something cannot be found in the subjective Then by objectivity can the opponent's Subjectivity be dismantled. Taekwondo is enriched by lines straight and curved, a curved line let run Comes to stand as a circle. A circle in itself is a Perfect world. Within it, the universe perhaps can be seen All is closed out or easily received. A straight line is a sharp course Yet also is weak, It is drawn quickly to strike Through all restraints, Upon our foe. A curved line has strength while A straight line has speed, A straight line and curved line Unite in a circle but Standing alone outside of a circle a Straight line can be seen to exist by itself. A straight line to my foe and a Circle to me. The result of a union of these Two into one is that Taekwondo transforms from a word Into art. Martialism is a two edged sword Used to feel both opponent and self How is it we fail to temper our deeds, Taekwondo, in truth says its right to avoid Action excessive and tells us instead that Through one single action we Can certainly make others alive. Standing alone in solitude My mind stabalized in frozen tranquility I firmly clench my fists and center them In space. When action takes place in the company of history One movement after another fells the Featureless opponent. From the stories of our bodies' many actions The boundless knowledge of wise is formed. Through the formality of ceaseless training There emerges freedom that is not indifferent and In each instant of formal motion a New creation is found. It is not my creation but Is the shape of us all from The past through the future a Creation for all eternity. As movements repose and the fists Return to their starting place, From the vitality of the soul the Mind deeply breaths and Again becomes tranquil while Two sparkling eyes gaze Through the thick wall of time at Ancient history Now I clench my fist and From people who smile Beneath a vast sky I seek the path to the Subtle meaning of my life. Source: http://www.taekwondobible.com/poems/poem(1-2).htm