Ok I've been searching on the internet and I only find a small limited amount of info on Silat. I've found a breif history, and a list of all the styles. (but it is limited on the info on the styles too) Can anyone tell me a good history on Silat, it's techniques, what makes it different from other martial arts, and good descriptions on the different styles of Silat. Thank you.
Silat is, as far as I know, is not one type of style, its SEVERAL styles, simply catergorized as Silat, I know for a fact Silat Pupil has some links that will help, mostly with Pukulan Cimande Pusaka Pencak (selt correctly?) silat, Overall Silat is different from other styles because of the region it bloomed in, indonesia, if im not mistaken. Dont worry, this post will get lots of reply's, but im sure someone asked this before. You might have wanted to use the search function on the forum.
There are indeed a few posts on this but I'll humour this one for now. www.cimande.com www.silateurope.com www.ballymenasilat.com are a couple to start with. Silat is indeed hundreds of styles commonly known as 1. theres Silat mandemuda, serak, cimande .... and many many more. indeed Pukulan Cimande Pusaka Pencak Silat is my style, under the instruction of Pendekar Sandars. Its general differences are its flow, once we initiate we NEVER stop the assault on the attacker until they are either incapacitated, or in extreme cases dead. We cover strikes, kicks, takedowns, groundwork, 'clinch', and primarily weapons - in specific, knife, sword and various lengths of stick. Information on the net for silat is 95% incorrect, either through mistake, or deliberate, I've come across both. Do not mistake kuntao for silat for instance, nor anything promoted as Indonesian 'Kung Fu'. There is malay Silat, Indonesian Silat, Dutch Silat, and even recently Im hearing of Philipino silat. I hope this is of some use to you in your search.
What I like is just from what I've read. It seems really great. But I have another question. Where did Silat originally come from? Indonesia or Malaysia?
Keeping in mind that Silat is a generic term to describe a multitude of systems, the answer to your question is yes. Indonesia, Malaysia, and even parts of the southern PI.
nice, brother ular sawa; as it is, Silat definitely IS a southeast asian martial art synthesizing various indigeneous combat arts of the region. in the philippines, mindanao and Sulu are the areas where one can find Silat being taught clandestinely (we're talkng various family styles here so they don't normally teach outsiders- ESPECIALLY foreigners). Kuntaw is the misnomer for the Silat practised here in my country(especially in Sulu); though what we do can be called a 'synthesis of sorts', with strong influences from hindu, malaysian/indonesian styles- merged into a Tausug Silat-Kuntaw flavor. Korpy, its good to know your doing research; go deeper into the origins/historical background of the art. dont believe too much from sources who say stuff about the art, yet havent actually travelled out of their Western enclaves to 'live and breathe' Silat, and live here in South East asia... too much marketing from self-styled Western gurus, you know. from what i gathered, the way lots of Silat being taught in the West is too watered-down (75%-80%), just like FMA; i personally have to see a foreigner who can move so gracefully (dancelike, even) and execute very good Silat- the very direct, combative aspect of it, whether via emptyhands or with weapons. then again, if you are into learning as a true seeker of the Silat arts, i welcome you and wish you lots of luck. Salaam.
ooops. pls pardon my lapse, Korpy- referring to my initial post here in your thread, i meant 'Westerner'- not 'foreigner''... again, my apologies.
Thank you. I also like where it came from. All parts of Asia have unique things there own way. Silat is one of them. To all Silat practicioners, can you tell me about your training?
Hm...the silat school I recieve friendship and love from is the PGB Bangau Putih and several Western websites of the branches of this school advertise as Indonesian kung-fu. Are they not silat because of this? PGB has been discussed in other forums with the conclusion that it is not silat but not kung-fu. This decission was made after watching several videos available on the web. However, just for the record, the late Grand Master Subur Rahardja was one of the first supporters of the 1945 Indonesian Revolution. He was the first silat master to open his house to anyone willing to learn regardless of race, religion or political party. He called his system Gerak Badan meaning Body Movement not only to be humble but also to subtly point out that in this modern world, life-styles and poor body-culture are much more a threat to humanity than assaults by other people or wild animals - which was the situation which created silat in the first place. If Bodidarma found the Shaolin monks weak from too much satipatana meditation, Subur Rahardja found humanity weak from sitting in cars for hours a day every day, watching television for entertainment, eating processed food and too much of it all the time, and so on. He created his system to answer the challenges of his time and in his patriotic and humanistic and modern outlook PGB is Indonesian. Although the base of Subur Rahardja's genius was Pek Ho Pai white crane he also mastered several Indonesian arts and do not forget he lived in Bogor, the ancient capital of Pajajaran and not far from the birthplace of the styles of Cimande, Cikalong, Sahbandar, Madi, Kari, Nampon and so on. PGB became a member of IPSI and was in Indonesia recognized as a Pencak Silat school early on, before Suharto's dictatorship banned anything Chinese. Recently when there were anti-Chinese riots and murders and rapes (in May 1998) in Jakarta, PGB also opened its doors and helped sooth traumatised victims. Now that the Chinese community is allowed to celebrate New Year PGB contibutes with its Kilin procession / dance with Indonesian players, many NOT of Chinese ethnicity. Even now PGB is still striving to help create a meaningful Indonesia through silat and silat knowledges. I asure you that the genius of silat was not overlooked by the Originator nor the current Grand Master of PGB. The schools doors are always open just drop in when you are in Bogor. It is only an hour or so from Jakarta. Hormat, Kiai Carita.
Korpy, Here are a couple of good and researched articles on Silat & Indonesia: 1. http://www.ict-silat.com/history.htm 2. http://www.silatmart.com/devastating_art_of_pentjak_silat.htm 3. http://www.silatmart.com/republic_of_indonesia.htm Sincerely, Teacher: Eddie Ivester
Having no individual connection or experience with PGB, I have to base my impressions on the content they provide via the websites. From that I would say they are a kung fu group with Silat influences, rather than a strictly Silat group. There appears to be elements of Silat, but not enough to warrant the term pesilat
To top it off, some are actually wearing Chinese Kung Fu uniforms.. which kinda gets to me.. but live and let live I guess!
yeah wali, I cant agree with or condone their their use of Silat, but if thats what they believe they are doing, then thats ok with me, I've made my opinion, they have theirs...
What exactly are the Chinese Kung Fu uniforms you are commenting on? Jawa was introduced to the merits of trousers and sleeved shirts in the 15th century Demak kingdom, by the mainly Chinese alchemists who spread Islam in Jawa, known popularly as the Walisanga. They also developed the local Jawa arts including the kanuragan, as fighting arts were traditionally called in Jawa until ethnic Chinese writers like Kho Ping Hoo began to use the word silat to describe these martial arts. Prior to this Chinese influence, Jawanese wore tapih/kain/dodot around their waists and a destar on their heads (men)and were naked from the waist upwards. Most PGB practitioners in the videos are wearing T-Shirts which I would quess is an American influence. One characteristic which makes an art 'Indonesian' or not, to my opinion, is not the uniforms worn, but rather the concept of flowing in 'art-as-worship' and also the concept of flowing in 'art-as-the-Expression-of-the-Almighty...this you will find in all Indonesian arts from healing to fighting to architecture to poetry to drama to textile design and so on. Between the 15th and the 18th century the Chinese communities and the Jawa communities lived in harmony and peace and mutual respect and alot of Chinese culture was absorbed by Jawa and made its own. During one struggle against the Dutch the Jawa people once even for a short time elected a Chinese king to rule over Jawa and called him Sunan Kuning, The Yellowman We All Bow Down to. This happened sometime in the 18th century after the Dutch massacered the Chinese of Batavia and sparked a Chinese revolt supported by the common Jawa man. The Dutch then practised an apartheid policy which stopped Jawa merchants from trading between cities or between islands and the curse of this sad policy is still being felt today. The real silat, the essense of silat, the part that is truly Indonesian (whatever that means) is the abstract part, not the form. There is a prayer used by performing artists in the marginal regions between Central and West Jawa which I repeat from memory and translate for you below: Niat ingsun muji - I intend to pray Pujiku puji Soleman- My prayer is the song of Solomon Patutane Dewi Wuryan- Sung at the wedding of the Goddess of the Moon Angsal putra saking pusering gunung - Who bore a son in the crater of our volcano kang jejuluk Raden Panggung - Who was later known as The master of The Stage. Tiyang sak katahing sak pusering gunung - All the people from around our volcano Samya mandheng jabang bayi slirane- Gather to greet the new born babe Samya welas saha asih- All feel great love and compassion Asih saking Allah - Love is from Allah La illah hail allah Muhammad ar Rasulallah - There is no God but God and Muhammad is God's Prophet. Nang ning neng nung - Victory Clarity Prosperity Contentment Lumakua saka lor mangidul- Walk thee from the north to the south. Datan noleh mangetan- Do not look to the East. Datan noleh mangulon- Do not look to the West. Datan ana aku - Let there be no ego. datan ana karsa lan pangira - Let there be no anticipation or pretension. Sing ana Ingsun Sunyata - Let there manifest the Eternal Soul Ingsun Sunyata iku tanpa rupa- The eternal Soul has no form. Ingsun Sunyata iku tanpa rupa- The eternal Soul has no form. This Eternal Soul that has no form is the essence of silat and most other 'Indonesian' arts. This is what we practise in 'kembangan' when we 'do not look to the East or the West' and move without 'pretension or anticipation'. Hormat, Kiai Carita.
Hi Kiai, I am familiar with the WaliSongo, trust me! I was reffering to certain schools that teach primarily Chinese-based systems, do a Chinese-style Halmat, use Chinese terminology, follow Chinese traditions and wear traditional Chinese uniform, and call their system Silat. These are found primarily in the US, and can be looked up with a simple Google search. I am not naming any schools, as it's not correct Adat, but thought I would mention it generally, as it was the running topic of the thread. Besides, my comment was just my own personal observation, with no specific intention on attacking or bringing anyone down. No more, no less. Cheers, Wali
Hi Korpy, If you want to read more about Pencak Silat, then I recommend to read the articles on the website of Oong Maryono: http://www.kpsnusantara.com/ He has many articles on his website about PS. Furthermore I agree that PS is difficult to describe in short, because it comprises so many styles. In Indonesia alone there are more then 800 styles registerd at the IPSI (The Indonesian PS Federation) and then there still are many other styles that are not registered. Add all the styles that are there in Malaysia, Singapore, Brunei, Southern Thailand and parts of the Philipines and then you realise that PS is an MA that is quite diverse. In Indonesia the largest styles are the following (if I remember correct): 1. Tapak Suci 2. Perisai Diri 3. Setia Hati Garuda...
