Where did Myo Sim Karate come from?
Myo Sim Karate’s founder and Grandmaster, Sung H. Hong, is from Korea. In Korea, Mr. Hong studied and earned a Master’s rank in Chang Moo Kwan Tang Soo Do. In the 50’s, the Korean government began to unify Korean martial arts into what is now known as Tae Kwon Do. Mr. Hong did not agree with the abandonment and prejudice against traditional martial arts schools in Korea. In 1958, he established his own style of Hong Sung-Hyun Tang Soo Do. In 1963 he came to the United States and started teaching his style of martial arts in Northern Virginia and DC. After moving to the States, Mr. Hong officially named his style Myo Sim Karate and Self Defense. An equally valid name of this style is Myo Sim Karate Do (the Way of the Ultimate Mind and the Empty Hand) but Mr. Hong prefers simply Myo Sim Karate. Mr. Hong originally studied martial arts in Korea. Some of these traditions were originally from Okinawa (now politically part of modern Japan). These martial arts were influenced by Chinese Kempo
