Kyeongdang Yedo 24 Se part 2; Point Sword Posture

Way back in March 2024 we looked at the first posture, the Keonjeongse (Lifting the cauldron posture), we looked at two different translations, one by Jack Chen who translated the source material for the Yedo chapter in Muyedobotongji, and one from Sang H. Kim's translation of the Muyedobotongji. I shared the illustration from both sources, and a video of how it was performed and practised in modern Kyeongdang (in the group I work with). In addition to this I shared a few thoughts on application in text only. This is also pretty much what we will be doing with the second "posture" in the system, and that is the "Jumkumse" as it is transcribed in Sang H. Kim's work. The "Jum" part of the name means "period", or "dot" in Korean, the "Kum" part of the name is Geom, Keum, Kum meaning "sword" and the "Se" part can loosely be translated as "posture. Together we get the loose translation of "Point sword posture", but the translation I was first given was inspecting the sword posture, as the initial posture seems like your holding the sword in a manner that you might take to inspect a sword. 

In modern Kyeongdang we usually think about the 24 postures as 24 miniforms, but originally it seems like the 24 postures represent single techniques from a starting point and then the author (Mao) gives example techniques for follow up which again explains why we get the "mini forms" from. While we today have a pretty "set" way of doing this technique or miniform I actually learned it a little different when I first learned it. That might be because the one who taught me it had little training himself in the system at the time, or that it was changed later because of research into the source material. I know that in later Yedo forms we in Norway do it a little different than they do today in Korea, while in older videos I see that the "norwegian" way is the older way. Im just throwing all this out there so you get where different versions "come from", since the source material itself is open for interpretation. I enjoy simply training the system as I have been given it so I am not playing a lot around with. I do what I am told as a good junior belt :-)

If we first look at the translation by Sang H. Kim of the Muyedobotongji we get the following:

"The Jumkumse is the Pointed Thrusting Posture. 

This posture is used to move forward quickly, seize and kill the enemy. 

The Balcho Shimsase is the Weeding and Searching for the Snake Posture. 

Make it with the right leg and arm, dragging the feet forward like driving a wagon."

-Sang H Kim Muyedobotongji page 146

Without further adu let's look at what Jack Chen translated from Mao yan-yi (or Mon Won-ui) original book that the authors of Muyedobotongji used as source material for their Yedo chapter;

"Point-Sword Stance

The Point-Sword Stance is the Point-Sword Thrust.

This technique can evade to one side and enter to grab a kill.

Right-Leg, Right-Hand: Search for Snake in the Grass.

Step forward fast into Drive-Wagon Stance.

Watch technique"

-Jack Chen, Ancient art of Chinese Long Straight Sword page 29

I do not read Hanja (ancient Chinese characters), or speak or read fluent Korean so the next best thing for me is to read as many translations I can get my hand on and compare them to see if I can gain a clear understanding. I much prefer Jack Chen's translation over Sang H. Kim's translation due to the fact that Jack's makes much more sense than Sang H. Kim's translation. If you look at the last part of their translations Kim says to make the Balcho Shimsase while dragging the feet forward like dragging a wagon. It seems like dragging the wagon part is just a poetic description of how to do the Balcho Shimsase, and if you knew nothing of the Yedo24Se you might very well believe that. But we have another Yedo which is "Driving wagon stance", and this is clearer in Jack's translation when after being told to do the search for the snake in the grass technique we should step forward into drive wagon stance which is another technique. 

When working with the sources the translation is important, as someone working out from Sang H. Kim translation of this material might get the starting position correct, but then they would be searching for the snake in the grass while dragging their feet like driving a wagon, they would not follow up from the searching for the snake in the grass technique into the driving the wagon technique. In short they would miss the ending of the mini form entirely simply because of a bad translation (I love the fact that we got a translation for the muyedobotongji, but here we see how bad that translation actually is).

Below is a video demonstrating how the mini-form is done today:

You see the starting position, Where the sword his held with the tip held down, you then see me doing a "block" and thrust to the neck, a downward angled cut and then stepping forward with a thrust to the neck. 

You can follow Grandmaster Lim's train of thought if you look back at the translation done by Jack Chen, the first part where we "block" from the low sword position in what I call the windshield wiper motion is the evade to one side to grab a kill, the thrust is what is referred in the opening when they define this posture as the  Point-Sword Thrust. I then put my weight on the back leg, while lifting up the other leg and do a diagonal descending cut (this is the searching for the snake in the grass), and I then step forward into drive wagon stance which is the thrust to the neck and is the same technique as in Yedo posture 8 which is the drive wagon stance. 

In application the initial position could be a low block in itself, or simply a starting position. The windshield wiper motion could be used as a parry to any linear thrusting technique, and could be as big or as a small movement as needed. When I first learned this posture many many many years ago I learned it with a very very small movement, akin to smacking a sword guard away to briefly control the center line so you could follow up with a cut or thrust while the opponent recovered. The part where I put my weight on my back leg and lift up my front leg could be either to remove an exposed limb and taking it away from danger by lifting it up and back from the opponent, or it could be used to coil up potential energy as in letting the body fall back down into a technique. In the sequence we follow today I would say it is a little of both, as you cut while the leg is lifted which protects the leg and also the momentum that you get by landing again is used into the drive-wagon thrust at the end. The thrusts themselves are simply thrusts. 

One pair drill could be that one playing opponent thrust toward the defenders midsection, the defender angles slightly and parries the thrust, then follow up with a counter thrust. The initial attacker defends the thrust and attacks the defenders lead leg, which he pulls toward him lifting it up and forces the opponents cut down and to the side with the angled cut. Using the momentum he ends the altercation by thrusting into the attackers neck. 

I hope you enjoyed this post and look into the second of the 24 postures of Yedo as documented in the Muyedobotongji and practised today by Kyeongdang Norway. Great thanks to Joakim, Ida and Jon Lennart for bringing this martial art back to life for others to enjoy :-)