— Hand-Striking Traditions, Mindung-Ssireum, and Korean Physical Heritage

By Han Seong-ho
Former Governor of Hongwon County, Hamgyeongnam-do
Advisory Chairman, World Subak Federation LLC (Wyoming, USA)

Rikidozan (Kim Sin-rak), widely remembered as the founding figure of Japanese professional wrestling, was originally born in Hongwon County, Hamgyeongnam-do, in northern Korea. While his legacy is often discussed within the context of modern wrestling history, less attention has been given to the traditional physical culture environment in which he grew up before migrating to Japan.

In recent years, interest has gradually emerged regarding the possible relationship between Rikidozan’s early bodily practices and the traditional movement culture historically practiced in northern Korean communities. In particular, references published in Japanese wrestling media, including remarks reportedly made by Rikidozan during his lifetime concerning hand-striking practices from childhood, invite further cultural and historical examination.

Of course, such accounts should not be interpreted through simplistic or exaggerated claims. However, historical communities in Hamgyeong Province are known to have preserved diverse forms of traditional body culture, including hand-oriented striking traditions, communal movement practices, and forms of beltless wrestling remembered today as Mindung-Ssireum.

These traditions existed not merely as combat systems, but as part of broader communal life involving festivals, seasonal gatherings, physical expression, and village-based activities. In many traditional Korean communities, wrestling, striking, bodily rhythm, and performative movement were not rigidly separated categories, but interconnected aspects of shared physical culture.

Within this context, the cultural environment of Hongwon County during Rikidozan’s youth deserves renewed scholarly attention. Rather than asserting direct technical lineage, it is more meaningful to approach these traditions as part of a wider historical ecosystem of Korean traditional physical heritage.

Today, many traditional body cultures of Korea face serious challenges due to modernization, demographic decline, and the dominance of institutionalized modern sports systems. Traditions such as Subak — historically associated with hand-striking and body movement culture — survive only through limited preservation communities, educational activities, oral transmission, and digital archiving efforts.

At the same time, forms of traditional Korean movement culture also survived within diaspora communities outside the Korean Peninsula following migration during the colonial period and subsequent historical upheavals. These cases demonstrate that Korean traditional physical culture should be understood not only within national borders, but also through the broader experiences of displaced and overseas Korean communities.

For this reason, the World Subak Federation LLC has begun promoting international archival and research initiatives concerning traditional body culture of northern Korea, including Subak, Mindung-Ssireum, communal movement traditions, and diaspora transmission cases connected to Hamgyeong communities.

Rikidozan should therefore be remembered not only as a global wrestling icon, but also as a figure whose early life may reflect part of the traditional physical culture environment of northern Korea during the twentieth century.

Traditional body culture is not simply about techniques or competition. It represents memory, identity, movement philosophy, and the lived experiences of communities across generations. Preserving these traditions is not only a Korean issue, but part of a broader international safeguarding effort concerning endangered human cultural heritage.

© 2026, 편집부. All rights reserved. 모든 콘텐츠(기사)에 대한 무단 전재ㆍ복사ㆍ배포 등을 금합니다.