Peace to all, I just found this article and i wish to share it with all. http://hulubalang-lagenda.tripod.com/keris.html What do you guys/gals think?? Does this mark a new era between Silat and Okinawan Karate?? (sounds very dramatic doesn't it? ) Peace
It doesn't surprise me too much. Historically the Okinawans were known as seafarers. As the article indicates, they conducted trade with a number of nations. Okinawa was a melting pot of Chinese and Japanese culture, no doubt with influence from other cultures too. That said, just because an artefact turns up somewhere it doesn't mean that the locals had any knowledge of the culture that created it. It could have travelled great distances by trade (ie. it was passed on from one group to another and so on, the final recipients having no knowledge of where it originated). Mike
I agree with Mike. And I'm not suprise if any form of style has its similarity because it's the art of self defence. For example, wing chun may have similarity with silat because its the art of the fist. What I mean is, we all are born the same(two arms,legs,etc)we try to use our own natural 'weopa' to the fullest limit.
Good replies Peace to all, Mike, Cannot have said it any better. Thanks. What silat do you practice? Intan86, again, a belated birthday to you! Yup, similarities between one art and another are common and you have given one good reason why it happens. My reason of bringing this topic up is first to share that article, and second to let martial art communities realise the importance of getting to know other MA's and respect one another. Couple of days ago i saw in National Geographic, a series on Martial Arts done by Josette Normandeau. The episode was about Okinawan Karate i.e. Goju-Ryu. If i'm not mistaken, it was Saito Sensei, who by showing the applications of a kata, unmasked the somewhat similar connection between Bunga and Buah in Silat with that of Kata and Bunkai. But then this is just from my observation and my own opinion. peace
I don't, I practice (Okinawan) karate, although I do dabble in other things too. I suspect that both reasons that have been quoted to explain this similarity are true. The human essentially stays the same, so there are only so many ways of moving it and only so many ways of harming it. But I'm sure there has been a good amount of cross-fertilisation amongst the many different fighting traditions of the far east. Mike
