Hello everyone.
This article will be an introduction into a series of articles addressing the lesser know animal movements techniques and mannerisms that are found in Pencak Silat and the martial arts of the surronding peoples of South East Asia.
As you know ours and other systems have five main animal mannerisms which make up Pukulan Cimande Combat, Pukulan Cimande UK Pukulan Cimande Combinasi and Pukulan Cimande Pusaka.
These main animal mannerisms are for those of you who dont know the
- Harimau (Tiger)
- Ular (Snake)
- Monyet (Monkey)
- Blekok / Bangau (Crane, Stork, Heron)
- Naga (Mythical creature, Long Dragon type moster)
There we become the less known sixth animal "Man" or Woman sorry ladies ;)
Im asked sometimes by other practioners of Silat outside of Cimande as to why we make such a big deal about the animals almost "venerating" them, when man is the "Pinicle of creation" made in "Gods own image"
We dont venerate any one thing over another, the animal systems to me are a personal journey in which we meet and learn from "Animal guides or friends" like once seen in Native American socities, these animal helpers teach us about themselves we stay with them for a while. In their company we are shown how they hunt, stalk, move think fight etc we learn from them, we thank them and move on the the next friend who in turn teaches us, until we have learned and experienced a jorney; a time in the life of a tiger, snake, monkey, bird these are combined into a ever changing mystical blending of the four which becomes the Naga.
Until we have learned and lived as them how can we be whole fighters whole people, from here we become "Man" but a man or women with a strong appreciation, love and respect for our guides and friends in the animal kingdom, because whether we like it or not we are animals, we have all this technology , art, mathmatics high culture but we are essentially clever apes.
I often wonder that if a control group of us where dropped into the rain forests of say Papua New Guinea and left without our gagits, toys, tools, modern trappings, removed from the fine culture and arts all the things we hold dear and "civilized", may soon start to become less and less important replaced by the needs of survival, food, shelter etc.
How many generations down the line , left fending in the wilderness with nothing would remember how to play the piano, or do calculus? how long would our fine ideals and social trappings last?
Perhaps completly removed from what we have now 10 generations later re woulkd'nt even remember what all this stuff was, like some long lost magic perhaps eventully centuries even language would change.
Yes we would still be "Human Beings" but would that mean the same thing ?
Now lets say that we do the same experiment with our closest cousins the Orangutans, take them away from having to fend and live as they do under the constant threats of living in the rain forests, deforestation, starvation, Man!!! and left in a world like ours how many generations would it take for them to forget how to forage for food, to hold that mental map of the whole of there forest , where the trees grow at certian times of the year what fruit is safe, which animals not to play with they would'nt need to! move as they do through the trees how long before they picked up some of the things we do now? What would they be like a few centuries down the line, more like us than I think most religious leaders and clerics would like to say.
Basiclly we are not "Better" just different! We live in a world where we were able to shape and control, take that away for a millenia or two and things would be very different.
Food for thought!
So I will be doing a series of articles on the lesser know animal "friends" seen and discussed in the arts of South East Asia.
First one will be Celing (Boar)
