Silat, also known as pencak silat, is the Southeast Asian style of martial arts that originates from Indonesia. Although it has now spread from Java to Singapore, Thailand and is said to have influenced Okinawan karate and Chinese kuntao. Legend has it that the silat was originally created by a woman, Rama Sukana. Rama is believed to have developed various fighting styles by observing fights between animals in the jungle, including monkeys against tigers and tigers and large birds. This is undoubtedly the basis for many styles named after animals that were so popular when martial arts were first brought to the big screen.
Joint locks and pitchforks, hey!
Silat is known for his focus on joint manipulation, striking, throwing, and weapons. Like other Asian martial arts, silat weapons are primarily derived from what was at hand at the time, including machetes, daggers, and forks. Practitioners known as pesilat. One of the most important beliefs in silat is about energetic forces and it is believed that high-ranking practitioners have the ability to inflict an attack on an opponent’s pressure points with their energy alone, without actual contact.
Intense body conditioning
However, one of the best things about training or viewing silat the way it was originally designed is the body conditioning exercises that practitioners perform. There is no place for the weak here. Body conditioning by true pesilat involves undergoing a spanking to develop tolerance for pain. You can see this in various YouTube videos that show instructors beating students with bamboo, canes, metal rods, and even what looks like a machete.
Students getting beat up and coming back for more!
You can witness how martial arts students take blows, not only to the body, but also to the head and shins, and in full force. Silat demonstrations to show their conditioning, including students sitting up and being hit by four or five other practitioners with force blows to the head and even letting cars roll over their arms. Don’t try this at home, although it’s interesting how different modern martial arts training is in many American and Canadian gyms and dojos.
