The Symbology of the Tang Soo Do Belt System

One of the fundamental differences between the Eastern (oriental) and Western (occidental) philosophic traditions is the view of man and his place within the universe. The Western tradition views man as uniquely different, the essential centerpiece of the universe, and views everything else in relation to him. The Eastern tradition tends towards a more holistic view, with man just a part of the greater universe, not separate or apart, not higher or lower, just another part.

This difference manifests itself in the uninitiated’s view of the martial arts. Someone with a Western background or mindset may look upon a martial art as a sport or an exercise regimen, a hobby or a tool for self-defense. But to the practitioners of the art, it is looked upon as a way of life. The word “Do” in Tang Soo Do is related to the Chinese “Tao”, carrying meanings such as “the road” or “the way”. Tang Soo Do is not a hobby or a sport – it is a way of life.

As such, and in keeping with the fundamental holistic view of the world and Tang Soo Do’s place within it, everything has a meaning. Belts are given in different colors not only to differentiate practitioners of different skill levels, but to assign philosophic representations to the various stages of learning. And beyond colors, each level is related to an animal, an element and a season. Again, in the Western tradition, one would learn a skill, and the skill itself would carry the meaning.

But that is not the Eastern philosophic tradition. So when Grand Master Hwang Kee opened the Moo Duk Kwan in 1945, it was not just to teach blocks and strikes and kicks, but a way of life. It wasn’t enough to divide the students into ranks based on skill – the ranks had to have meanings. It wasn’t enough to know that a red belt had achieved a higher rank than a green belt – there was a reason that the belts were red and green. There was a reason that the green belt was symbolized by spring and the red by fall, the green by wood and the red by fire.

One of the central symbols in Eastern Philosophy is the taeguk, the representation of Um (Yin) and Yang. The circle has two halves, each identical and opposite, swirling and melding into one another. Opposite and the same, the halves of the circle carry with them the meanings of night and day, dark and light, man and woman, hot and cold. The universe is balanced between opposites, but not in stasis – it’s balanced in a state of flux.

In the Tang Soo Do ranking system, there are two types of ranks, Gup and Dan. Gup members are beginners, starting to learn the art. Dan members have learned enough to begin serious training. Dan members wear a “black” (actually midnight blue) belt. Gup members wear white, green and red.

Some of the connections are obvious. White is the color of winter, as green is of spring and red of summer. Fire is clearly the element of summer and the color red. But, though some aspects of the elemental matchings are not obvious, that does not mean that they’re not meaningful.

The White belt is represented by metal. Metal is hard and stiff, like the movements of the Tang Soo Do beginner. It is a raw element that needs to be shaped and formed, but it is hard to do so.

When the beginner is promoted from 7th GUP to 6th GUP, it represents the first fundamental advancement in rank. Now, for the first time, the uniform jacket is trimmed to match the belt, as it will be for the rest of the student’s Tang Soo Do training. The element that represents the Green belt is wood. Wood is softer and more flexible than metal. Also, unlike metal, wood grows. Green belt students are beginning to grow in flexibility and in learning. The basic techniques that they’ve now been practicing for many months will start to blossom and flower.

The Sun is highest during the summer months, and the heat of the sun’s fire represents the heat of the Red Belts as they are starting to separate themselves from the lower Gups. They’ve learned and practiced all of the basic techniques, and many of the more advanced ones. They’ve worked on all of the basic forms, and they are starting to see the pathway to Dan membership. Yeats said that “Education is not filling a bucket but lighting a fire”, and in the Red Belt, the fire has been lit. Fire is more flexible than either metal or wood. Fire can melt metal, and fire can burn wood. Red belted Gups burn to master their techniques, to be worthy of testing for their black belts.

Finally, the student reaches Dan membership and earns his black belt. But it is not the end of a process, but rather the beginning of one. That is why the Tang Soo Do Black Belt is not actually Black, but midnight Blue. Black symbolizes death, and the Dan member is very much alive, and very much a work-in-progress. A Black Belt that was actually Black would be symbolic of the end of training, whereas a Tang Soo Do practitioner dons his Black Belt at a time when his training is, in many ways, just beginning. During the work through the GUP ranks, the student has learned basic forms, basic techniques, and has worked on mastering them. But the true work starts at the Dan level.

The first Dan has reached the point where he has learned enough to begin true Tang Soo Do training. The animal representative of the Dan is the turtle. The turtle is slow to anger, slow to attack, yet steady and purposeful. Turtles are long-lived, representing age and wisdom, and are always ready to defend themselves if attacked.

The season of the Dan member is fall. The black belt student has passed through the rapid growth of the spring and been tempered by the heat of the summer, but has not yet fallen into the hibernation of winter.

And the representative element of the black belt is water. Water, which can rust metal, rot wood, and quench fire. Water, that can get flow anywhere, can work its way through anything. Water, that cannot be hurt. Water can be soft enough to cushion a fall and it can be hard enough to destroy rocks. Water can take any form.

“Be shapeless, formless - like water. If you put water into a cup it becomes the cup. If you put water into a bottle it becomes the bottle. If you put water into a teapot, it becomes the teapot. Now water can crash or it can flow. Be water, my friend”

- Bruce Lee

As the student of Tang Soo Do begins, his movements are stiff, awkward. As he progresses and develops, he develops a fluidity, a flow, to his movements. He is able to “crash” or “flow”. The transition from metal to water serves as a potent philosophical illustration of the progress of the Tang Soo Do student.

- Mr. Lyford Beverage