Welcome to the American Jidokwan Association, one of the leading authorities on authentic Korean Karate in the United States! The AJA is a non-political organization dedicated to preserving traditional Tang Soo Do and Taekwondo. Unfortunately many of the organizations today serve only to advance themselves commercially, leaving their members with little substance or depth in their study. This has lead to the misconception that anything above Master level is just learning new forms and "putting your time in." The American Jidokwan Association is different. We provide a deep support network and brotherhood for our membership. With us, the practitioner comes first before the organization. Our goal is to help the individual schools reach their full potential teaching the highest quality of Korean Karate that they can, and our curriculum extends into the senior-most Dan grades to keep everyone motivated and invigorated in their training.
Jidokwan Taekwondo, one of the original nine kwans of Korean Karate, still exists in Korea under the authority of the World Taekwondo Jidokwan Federation. Our organization serves as an official branch of the WTJF, providing our members with official certifications from the World Headquarters. The curriculum required for certification is that of the Jidokwan itself, including the Palgwe series of forms (the newer Taegeuk series is also acceptable), the KTA yudanja series, and several older poomsae still maintained from Jidokwan's Kong Soo Do origins. While Dan certifications come directly from Korea, the AJA also provides its members with Instructor Certifications and official school charters to teach the Jidokwan system.
Brotherhood in Mudo
It is our sole purpose to maintain the art of Korean Karate as it was originally intended and practiced, as a formidable system of hand-to-hand combatives. We place a strong emphasis on bunhae eungyong, the practical analysis and application of forms. Without understanding the intent of the form, we feel it is impossible to truly understand the art itself. The AJA, however, is committed to showing and preserving the arts in their entirety. Keeping in line with the combative philosophy, we consider self defense training of the utmost importance. Many of our senior instructors are either Law Enforcement or Security Personnel, and as such we train with the mindset of being efficient in that type of environment. In addition to bunhae eungyong, we take self defense to the extreme through various drills and training methods designed to challenge you physically, mentally, and psychologically to prepare our students for the realities of a violent attack.
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Training with the American Jidokwan Association is a well-rounded experience that showcases the effectiveness of what Korean Karate was intended to be. For example, by practicing bunhae/eungyong alongside the forms themselves, our students learn to grasp the wide array of joint locks, throws and grappling techniques hidden with the forms.
To learn more about our Association or apply for membership, follow the above tabs. We look forward to seeing you on the mat soon! |