Silat is the generic term used to describe the martial arts of Malaysia, South Thailand, Indonesia, Brunei, Singapore, and the Southern Philippines. In Indonesia it is referred to as Pencak Silat, and in the other countries as Seni Silat. The American martial arts fraternity, have in their wisdom, renamed the Malaysian Silat as Bersilat. This is a misnomer. Bersilat means simply “to do silat” and is not the name of the style. It is called penchak or pencak or pentjak silat; in some places silek, in some gayong. They are all terms for the same thing. Some claim the spelling denotes ancient skills or wisdom. It is spelling from different regions.   Silat is a comprehensive combat art covering all ranges from weapons to ground fighting. Because the art is all encompassing, it has been described as a "Jack of all Trades". It has the power of Karate and Thai boxing with the sensitivity of kung fu; the locks and throws of ju jitsu with the weapons arsenal of Escrima, plus specialist areas not found in many other martial arts. Coupled with the fact that life or death challenges are not unheard of in South East Asia, the survival and success of Silat in the face of open challenges makes the system frighteningly effective.   Silat has existed in South East Asia for several hundred years. It was originally described as Pertikaman, which means to stab. This is because Silat is known as a keris art, and this is a stabbing weapon. It has been known as Silat only relatively recently. It is said to have originated in Indonesia during the Majapahit Empire. It spread to Malaysia and the southern Philippines, and then through the area. It is said that 2 brothers founded silat- Sang Persanta Nala, and Sang Adi Putra. I am told they disagreed on some issues, so to prevent the disagreement becoming serious, Sang Adi Putra left, and went to live in Malaysia. There he lived in Mount Ophir- gunung Ledang, and there he taught the greatest exponents of Malaysian silat. I am often asked which is better Malaysian Silat or Indonesian. The answer I give is that Malaysian silat is better ….for ME. I like it.   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 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.. I try to bring these beliefs in to our syllabus for all our students. Punch only as hard as you are prepared to be punched back, kick only as hard as you are prepared to be kicked back and at all times be aware of your partners safety.   The Silat we teach is different from others disciplines because it focuses on street effectiveness and practicality, as well as holding to the traditions of the art. We also cover “Urban awareness”, so that we include an element of personal protection to safeguard you and your friends/family in both public places and in private ones. We developed this system in order to teach you to combat the growing violence on our streets. The arts from which we derive our techniques are tested on old battlefields. Combat hasn’t changed, but the opponent has got more sophisticated and the lack of respect for person or life has moved to our streets. We aim to train YOU to combat this threat to your person your property and possibly even your life. ”You will be attacked fast, with what they think is overwhelming force”. Its not a fight its an ambush.  People wont attack you if they think they will lose. They attack you because they think that you are an easy target and will go down without much trouble. The arts we practice are simple, and follow natural laws of movement.. we don’t copy styles of animal or plant movement. This means that our combination of styles give you body mechanics that are reproducible under duress.. in a fight situation . under stress.. when someone is trying to HURT you and your family.. our devastating techniques COULD SAVE YOUR LIFE.  It has been said that in a fight your heart rate rises dramatically. We will, as part of your training, stress your body so that you feel that pressure on your body, and your mind, so that you will KNOW that when the heat is on YOU WILL RISE TO THE CHALLENGE. We use traditional methods in a more scientific approach to make them more functional and useful. You will simulate real life situations like being attacked by one or more people, training in the dark, training knives and others… Once the preserve of the military, now normal people like you are forced to face a more aggressive and nasty attacker. We provide you with the means to defend yourself.

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