The Britsh Silat association is home to styles such as Silat Lincah, Pancasila Gayong Harimau, Pukulan Madura Pusaka Sapu Jagat.....

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The arts derive from the need to protect one’s environment- self, family village state. We are, however, no longer at war. For the arts to progress, there should be some teaching towards tolerance understanding and peace. Martial artists should be seen as the peacemakers, learning about etiquette and respect, and not the destroyers. We have that collective responsibility. My silat teachers don’t just talk about it they live it. Gandhi said “Hate the sin- love the sinner”. I was taught by Pak Flohr to look for the good in everyone- it is there if you seek it. When you find it you must nurture it and help the person develop it. Sometimes it is difficult.

When you don’t have a search for depth of character, self, etiquette, and respect, then what you have is people who are armed with a great physical capacity for destruction and the least mental capacity for restraint. A violent instructor is a bully and abuser, and mis user of his knowledge. A bully is a coward. A coward is less than a man. I read an article a few years ago where a silat practitioner appeared to extol the virtues of violence in martial arts. He and his students have subsequently gone on to break legs and do serious damage to others. I find it abhorrent. I believe this behaviour to be appalling, yet some people will hail this as a sign of great fighting ability. It is not. It is the sign of a weak character. There is no place for violence in martial arts. Because we learn the techniques of fighting it does not make what we do violent. Violence is an attitude of mind: the use of excessive force. When it becomes violent is no longer Martial ARTS but Martial (fighting) PRACTICE. I truly believe that as martial artists we MUST be responsible, and must be seen to be dignified and responsible. “Human dignity is best preserved not by developing the capacity to deal destruction but by refusing to retaliate. If it is possible to train millions in the black art of violence, which is the law of the beast, it must be more possible to train them in the white art of non-violence, which is the law of regenerate man.” If the public see Martial artists as weapon toting psychopaths, then Martial Arts in Britain will go the way of hand guns, and is doomed. It is in our hands to behave in a manner where Martial artists, arts, and weapons are respected, not reviled. Dunblane was a great tragedy. As martial artist we must learn from this and safeguard our arts and the people of this country from similar national disasters. We must also do more, and ensure that we NEVER need to take collective responsibility for a similar act.

The tenets to which I adhere through my silat are humility, honour, respect, dignity, brotherhood and friendship. They are the building blocks for a morally upstanding martial artist. Why then do you see supposed masters insulting other teachers and styles in the magazines. I believe it is because they either were not taught this, have hidden their true nature, or have been carried away by their ego’s into believing that they are something that they are not.

Humility and Fear

Humility is an odd fellow. In silat terms and to the unknowing, silat teachers are nobody- self effacing and unassuming. Yet humility in the Martial arts is a confusing topic. How can you be confident in your ability and yet not brash and arrogant? Let me tell you what it is not. Modesty is acceptable, false modesty is meant to mislead others- to deceive. It is not the man who insults others to promote himself, and who denigrates other styles to advance his own style. As a martial artist I believe in what I do. I think I have trained hard and have achieved a lot of things through my art. I believe in what I do, and for what I stand. I think my art is good. I have been taught well (how I have absorbed that is apparently the subject of some debate). I don’t need to tell you that I am good- it is not my way, or the silat way. Some take that as a sign of weakness, to some, humility is strength. You must still, I feel, know when and where to draw the line.

Anyone who has done the training in whatever style of martial art is worthy of respect. Anyone who lives is worthy of respect. You don’t have to like them, or anything they do or say, yet you still have to respect them, simply for being. Yet some say that to fully understand Kung Fu you must be Chinese, and to understand Silat you must have lived in Malaysia or Indonesia, speak the language and navigate by the stars. Does that stand true for eating satay and Peking duck?

I have seen many people show their interpretation of respect. One JKD instructor told me that the way they (collectively) work, is to find a style that they want to learn. Then they go and flatter(to deceive) the teacher- showing their version of respect. Eventually, and after a fair amount of what the rest of us call arse-kissing they learn the techniques and depart, showing their true colours, and little real respect in so doing. Unfortunately they also acquire little real knowledge and understanding.

There is no honour in that, no respect. That is rape of an art, and abuse of a position of trust.

Fear is a great motivating factor. People used to learn a martial art out of fear for their lives, or for their families. Now I see martial artists learning bits from styles so that they can overcome their fear that someone else might know something that they do not. One sees it often in people attending courses and seminars, mostly from a multi style background. I have had people ask me how a reverse punch to the ribs would deal with an assailant armed with double knife. Basics teach technique. Do the simple things right....FIRST. then make it more complex. There is a tendency to look for the hidden meaning in everything. A punch is just a punch.

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