Dangun Wanggeom was the legendary founder of Gojoseon, the first kingdom of Korea
Dan-gun hyung is the second form taught and has twenty-one movements. One way to remember that is to add two, the number of the form, to the previous form one’s movements: 19+2=21. This works for the first several forms and is a easy way to recall the number of moves in the first set of forms.
Here is the form in its entirety:
Similar to form 1, all the entire Form is comprised of blocks and punches.
[NB: interestingly, the first two taekwondo forms are entirely made up of blocks and punches. Not one kick is in these preliminary forms. Why would there be only hand techniques in a martial arts known for its kicks? ]
There are two basic themes in this form, both of block and step punch moves similar to chong-ji .
The first is an opening double knife hand block, followed by a step high section punch.
Theme 1
Side view
Front view
The second half of the form begins with Double forearm block, high section. Note that the lead arm is in middle block and the reverse hand is in high position, above the head with the fist rotated away from the face. This positions the strongest part of the forward in a protective position denying an attack to the head.
Theme 2
Side view
Front view
Also note the change in stance Each theme begins with back stance followed by a step into walking stance. This common combination highlights how we absorb an attack in the defensive back stance, with the head far from the opponent, followed by a surging attack with the fist driving through the opponent.
Another important part of the form is in how we turn 180 degrees to face a new attacker. We refer to this in class as the pivot turn. Without doing this we would be in an awkward stance when we turn.
Listen to how the pivot turn is applied in line exercise:
As we advance in forms, note how this pivot is repeated in almost all the forms. This is also an important part of line exercise in class, allowing the class to maintain the position relative to each other.
In summary, dan gun hyung is an important form to master not only for its hand techniques, but also for defining the pivot turn. Come back to this several times to watch and review these concepts.