Timing

Timing: {  Baekja } is the relationship of two points in motion in space and requires that a person be able to track, evade and encounter a specific target as it relates to oneself. More than just Eye-Hand co-ordination, Timing requires an appreciation not only of where a specific location is in time and space but where one can reasonably expect that point to be at a later time given its distance, motion and speed. 

In the most immediate sense, Timing is often a matter of assessing an eminent attack and gauging the manner in which a response will meet that attack. However, Timing likewise refers to choosing an appropriate or advantageous time to act as well. Such common wisdom as "pick you battles" is often a matter of Timing. So is the idea of "doing the right thing at the right time". Likewise Western culture has a way of labeling a person with notably poor timing as a "bull in the china shop" and "a loose cannon". 

Perhaps more than other attributes Timing inter-relates most directly with the Three Principles than any of the other attributes. Nowhere is this seen more clearly that in the case of selecting when action is, and is not required. In such cases Timing is often divided into two broad categories. 

One is a "Pre-emptive strike" ("seon eui seon"), in which conditions are such that an individual takes the initiative in defending himself. Such a case might be typical of a policeman who is arresting a suspect, but does not wait for the suspect to give the policeman cause. In such a case the circumstances are such that the policeman is both prudent and responsible to act before the suspect acts out. 

The second is a "Retaliatory strike ("hu eui seon"), in which a person waits until the very last moment to respond to an attack, using only sufficent force to negate the immediate attack. Notice that in both case, the use of Timing can refer not merely to the execution of a technique from a tactical standpoint but from a great strategic standpoint as well. In such terms, the idea that all actions must having good Timing includes that action must come not merely as the correct response but in under the proper circumstances. 

Since Timing is a matter of assessment, it is not surprising to find that the counter-attributes include impacting Judgment (“Un-timing”), as well as Perception (“Mis-direction”) and Concentration (“Un-Focusing”) in the attacking partner..