The Tenets of Tae Kwon Do (Tae Kwon Do Jungshin)

COURTESY (Ye Ui)
INTEGRITY (Yom Chi)
PERSEVERANCE (In Nae)
SELF CONTROL (Guk Gi)
INDOMITABLE SPIRIT (Baekjool Boolgool)

Explanation of the tenets of Tae Kwon Do

​The tenets of Tae Kwon Do play a huge role in the success of ones Tae Kwon Do training. Any serious student of the art should observe and implement the tenets to the bet of their ability. 

COURTESY (Ye Ui) 예의

(Pronounced ye-wee)
The showing of politeness in one's attitude and behaviour towards others.
Students of Tae Kwon Do should endeavour to practice the following fundamentals of courtesy to build up their noble character and to conduct training in an orderly manner.

• To be polite to one another.  

• To behave oneself according to the etiquette. 
• To respect others and their possessions.   
• To encourage the sense of justice and humanity. 
• To handle matters with fairness and sincerity. 

​INTEGRITY (Yom Chi) 염치

​(Pronounced yom-chee)
The quality of being honest and having strong moral principles.
In Tae Kwon Do, the word integrity assumes a wider definition than the one usually presented in the Dictionary. One must be able to define right and wrong and have the honesty, if wrong, to feel responsibility.
Listed below are some examples, where integrity is lacking: 

• The instructor who misrepresents their self and their art by presenting improper techniques to his students because of a lack of knowledge or apathy. 
• The instructor who camouflages bad techniques and lack of knowledge with false flattery to their students. 
• The student who requests grade with minimal effort.
• The student who desires rank for ego purposes or the feeling of power.
• The student whose actions do not live up to their words. 

The student who feels ashamed to seek opinions from their juniors.

​PERSEVERANCE (In Nae) 인냬

​(Pronounced een-nay)
Persistence in doing something despite difficulty or delay in achieving success.
There is an old Oriental saying, "Patience leads to virtue or merit." "One can make a peaceful home by being patient for 100 times." Certainly, happiness and prosperity are most likely brought to the patient person to achieve something, whether it is a higher degree or the perfection of a technique, one must set their goal, then constantly persevere.
Robert the Bruce learned his lesson of perseverance from the persistent efforts of a lowly spider. It was this perseverance of tenacity that finally enabled him to free Scotland in the fourteenth century. One of the most important secrets in becoming a leader of Tae Kwon Do is to overcome every difficulty by perseverance.
   Confucius said; "One who is impatient in trivial matters can seldom achieve success in matters of great importance."

SELF CONTROL (Guk Gi) 극기

(Pronounced gook-gee)
The ability to control oneself, in particular one's emotions and desires, especially in difficult situations.
This tenet is extremely important both inside and outside of the dojang, whether conducting oneself in free sparring or in one's personal matters. A loss of self control in free sparring can prove disastrous to both student and opponent. An inability to live and work within one's capability or sphere is also a lack of self-control.
    According to Lao-Tzu "The term of stronger is the person who wins over oneself rather than someone else." ​

​INDOMITABLE SPIRIT (Baekjool Boolgool) 백절불굴

(Pronounced beckjool boolgool)
To show courage when you and your principles are pitted against overwhelming odds.
A very good example of this tenet is when Leonidas and his 300 Spartans at Thermopylae stood up to Xerxes and his elite vast army.  Indomitable spirit was shown when a courageous person and his principles are pitted against overwhelming odds.
"Here lie 300, who did their duty." A simple epitaph for one of the greatest acts of courage known to mankind.
   A serious student of Tae Kwon Do, will at all times be modest and honest. If confronted with injustice he will deal with the belligerent without any fear or hesitation at all, with indomitable spirit, regardless of whosoever and however many the number may be.
    Confucius declared: "It is an act of cowardice to fail to speak out against injustice." As history has proven, those who have pursued their dreams earnestly and strenuously with indomitable spirit have never failed to achieve their goals. ​