Everything you need to know about the Korean martial art, Hwa Rang Do

Over the years, it’s fair to say that various martial arts have spawned in Korea. Like many of the countries in that particular part of the world, Korea is a hotbed for combat sports. This includes Hwa Rang Do which was founded in the 1960s by brothers Joo Bang Lee and Joo Sang Lee.

In short, Hwa Rang Do is a mixture of striking, grappling, and weapons training – so it’s fair to say that it’s a very versatile martial art. Like many Korean styles, it also spends a lot of time focusing on kicks too which seems to be a reoccurring theme in Korea.

For those wondering, the name derives from the Hwarang group which was basically a group of fighting warriors in Korea. Unsurprisingly, if you were proud of your fighting style then you could name it after warriors. The literal translation of this is Way of the Flowering Knights which is why the Hwa Rang Do logo features flowers. Read on for more information regarding the good and bad aspects of Hwa Rang Do, and whether it’s something you’d like to consider training.

What is Hwa Rang Do?

As mentioned, Hwa Rang Do involves learning how to strike, grapple and defend yourself against weapons. What should also be mentioned is its roots in Hapkido. In fact, if you look closely enough, then there are lots of similarities with Hapkido. This isn’t a coincidence either, as the two founding brothers had a Hapkido background. So, did they just re-packaged Hapkido and market it differently? Not quite.

One of the main quirks of Hwa Rang Do is its use of striking which is probably what is taught the most. Specifically, it’s quite similar to Taekwondo which involves lots of flexible, athletic kicks. We should repeat that Hwa Rang Do is Korean and a lot of Korean martial arts are heavily influenced by TKD. It also features a usual dress code that is based on traditional Korean attire. This includes wearing a kimono pants with a baggy robe fitting over the upper body.

Grappling

Aside from this, it also has grappling which uses takedowns and submissions in the gi, so this area looks quite similar to Judo and BJJ. Expect to use double leg takedowns and sacrifice throws which have been done before but have always remained effective. Elsewhere, there seems to be a lot of wrist locks used in Hwa Rang Do which are sometimes forgotten about in other martial arts. These are usually performed from standing, similar to what you’d see in Ju Jitsu and Aikido.

Weapons training

Lastly, it also uses weapons training. This differs from gym to gym and some places won’t really teach it, but it’s certainly something that you can learn. Often, this will involve disarming knives and how to defend yourself from weapons, rather than yourself actually using them on someone. In terms of weaponry used, this can range from knives to bo staffs and uses quite a broad array of weapons.

What else does Hwa Rang Do involve?

Kata

Like Karate, a large part of Hwa Rang Do involves kata. Kata is the term used to describe drilling something solo, as opposed to training with a group. The point of Kata is to develop your form and technique, working on the movements to make them as fluid as possible. Whilst most martial arts will have their own take on Kata, it’s obviously something that is very important in Karate, as well as Hwa Rang Do.

So, if you plan on training Hwa Rang Do then you can expect to perform lots of Kata. This is especially ideal if you’re older and don’t like the idea of hard sparring, as it means you can still improve your form whilst not risking your body as a result. Arguably, Hwa Rang Do uses Kata a lot more when performing striking movements compared to most other martial arts.

Cardio

Another big part of Hwa Rang Do is the emphasis on cardio. If you train Hwa Rang Do, expect to be put through your paces and to train plenty of cardio-intense warm-ups. The point of this is to help transform your body into that of a true martial artist. There’s no point having all the knowledge and skills without being able to put it into practice and avoid gassing out after seconds. So, cardio holds a key place in Hwa Rang Do.

Where can I train Hwa Rang Do?

These days, Hwa Rang Do isn’t a mainstream martial art. In fact, it never really was and although it did grow in popularity for a while, it failed to properly take off. Because of this, you can still find schools in South Korea as well as America but these won’t be common compared to the likes of Karate or Judo.

Looking further afield in places like Europe, the likelihood of finding a local Hwa Rang Do dojo is fairly small. They do exist around the world, but in many major cities, there aren’t any. Going further afield to smaller towns, the chances of finding a Hwa Rang Do dojo gets smaller. So, if you did want to train it then there’s a strong chance you couldn’t anyway. Still, there are alternatives in Hapkido and TKD.

Controversies surrounding Hwa Rang Do

Like many martial arts, it seems that controversy is sadly something that has followed Hwa Rang Do in the past and continues to do so. Here’s a list of controversies that surround it. Buckle yourself in, because it turns out that there are quite a few.

False history claims

One issue that many have had with Hwa Rang Do is its mysterious history. Generally speaking, most martial arts can quite easily be traced back to a founding group or individual. As for Hwa Rang Do, Joo Bang Lee claims he learned the art from a mysterious monk named Suahm Dosa. Sadly, there are no records of Suahm Dosa which is sketchy, to say the least.

Although the back story sounds cool and interesting, the reality is that it could have just been made up by two former Hapkido practitioners. This is fine, but is there really the need to lie about its past history and origins?

Talks of a cult

Over the years, a lot of people have talked about Hwa Rang Do being like a cult. Once again, this isn’t a new theme in martial arts but it’s always sad to hear. There are a couple of oddities surrounding Hwa Rang Do. The first one is the banning of its members from training elsewhere.

Whenever you hear this, it instantly screams ‘McDojo’ and you should always be skeptical of why a gym or teacher wouldn’t want you training elsewhere, let alone an entire organization. Usually, this is to maintain members and stop them from straying elsewhere. This ultimately boils down to insecurity and obviously isn’t a good thing. Some have said that the leader Joo Bang Lee is obsessed with himself and believes he harnesses special powers. When looking at starting a new martial art, you should always do your research and be careful around such allegations.

Bullshido

Claims of Bullshido are another criticism that has been flung Hwa Rang Do’s way over the years. Specifically, we’re talking about pressure points and chi energy. Whenever you hear these two terms in martial arts, there should always be a reason for caution, just like the term cult. In some gyms, students have claimed they got taught how to throw people using pressure points.

Back in the day, some traditional martial arts believed in pressure points and built them up to be some kind of mystic force. The truth is, these ideas aren’t realistic and won’t work in a street fight. So, if this is something you witness then you’d probably want to make a swift exit and naturally, you should also start questioning other areas of Hwa Rang Do.

Repackaging other martial arts

When looking at singular martial arts, they all have one distinct style. This is where Hwa Rang Do is different as it offers a bit of everything. The issue here is that it’s impossible for teachers to excel in all areas of martial arts as it’s simply too much to learn and process. So, this could be an issue with Hwa Rang Do, that it’s basically taken from other disciplines and sloppily put everything together.

In fairness, this criticism is also aimed at Hapkido and it’s valid enough. Had Hwa Rang Do stuck to its roots which were based on striking then it may be less confusing, but since its expansion, it seems to have lost its identity. This is obviously bad news for Hwa Rang Do which seems to have been displaced by MMA these days.

Like many other styles, it seems that MMA has offered a better product whereby you can learn blended styles in a more precise and coherent system. Having said this, most Hwa Rang Do techniques would still work in a combat setting which is ultimately what it’s all about.

Summary

To summarize, Hwa Rang Do really isn’t too dissimilar to Hapkido these days and like Hapkido, its reputation isn’t the best. That’s not to say there aren’t good Hwa Rang Do gyms out there, but a quick Google search will show you that quite a few people have had questionable training experiences when trying to learn the discipline. In fairness to Hapkido, it’s not been labeled as a cult either.

From what we’ve gathered, Hwa Rang Do was originally another Korean offshoot of Taekwondo that later added lots of other styles to it and may have gotten watered down in the process. Not only this but it’s also thrown in a dash of mysticism for good measure. At the same time, if you can find a good Hwa Rang Do gym then great, but these days it seems to fall into the same issue as Hapkido which is offering too much at once.

Of course, there’s the small issue of people calling Hwa Rang Do a cult which only adds more negative connotations to the art. Our advice is to tread with caution around Hwa Rang Do but always remember that each gym is different and some may surprise you.

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