Strengthen mind and body
What might look on the surface like any other sport or fitness programme, martial arts instead have a long history of building courageous and moral characters and training young people in the traditional principles of non-violence.
It takes courage to reach out to stop bullying, but this is what this week’s Anti-bullying Week is all about. In a world of prevalent polarisation, marginalisation, and bullying on the level of individuals as well as within nations, it’s considered essential by some to popularise practices and environments which encourage collaborative empowerment and acceptance.
Taekwondo, meaning the way of the foot and the fist, was developed in the Korean peninsula to empower the people to defend their values of peace and equality when threatened by oppressors.
They saw that the combination of fostering both strength and selfcontrol created the conditions to positively impact the world and uphold values held dear.
So, it evolved beyond a practice of self-defence and body exercise, into a journey of growth and dedication which helps one to overcome life’s challenges; be it study, hobbies, work, relationships, or bullying.
Bath SKY Taekwondo’s Dojang’ (the Korean equivalent of the Japanese ‘Dojo’) is a brave space where many children, teens, and adults have nurtured virtues they didn’t know they had. A supportive environment in which they can let off steam in a safe and healthy way and feel powerful without having power over one another. The club comes together twice a week to train hard, guided by the ‘Five Tenets of Taekwondo’: Courtesy, Integrity, Perseverance, Self-control, and Indomitable Spirit.
Children from ten-years-old and adults of all backgrounds and orientations are warmly welcome in the club, as long as they are willing to embody the five tenets.
For the occasion of Anti-bullying Week, the club is inviting everyone over the age of ten to join them for a full month of free taekwondo classes, starting from Saturday December 19. Everyone over the age of ten is also invited to join the club’s Open Day on Saturday, December 3, at the University of Bath Sports Training Village, for a free taster session and demos.
More information can be found on the club’s website. To book your place visit, www.eventbrite.co. uk/e/467865918557.
Bath SKY Taekwondo (www. bathskytaekwondo.com) is a notfor-profit club and an official member of British Taekwondo, the Governing Body for World Taekwondo (aka Olympic Taekwondo) in the United Kingdom (www.britishtaekwondo.org.uk). All of the club’s instructors hold an official BT Instructor certification and are Dbs-checked.