Silat

[HungryWolf21]

Does anybody in here have any experience in Silat? Does anybody know of any good videos available for purchase that covers the art?

[MikeJKD]

On the topic of Silat, there are at least two people on this forum that I am certain could help you. Burt Richardson and Harley Elmore have both studied Silat in its various forms as practically as anyone (although I've never trained with Burt, I have trained with several of his people, and anyone who's read his column in Inside Kung Fu for more than a few years can testify that he's done his homework). I have trained with Mr. Elmore, and he's one of just a handful of people that I would consider viciously effective with pure Silat (though he'd probably never choose to fight that way...), so post something for him, or check out his web site at http://www.warriorswaytx.com. I'm sure he'd be a great source.
Hope that helps,
Mike

[sikal]

Originally posted by HungryWolf21
Does anybody in here have any experience in Silat? Does anybody know of any good videos available for purchase that covers the art?

I've been training in Silat for the past 6 years. The videos that I would recommend are Stevan Plinck's video from Paladin Press and Victor de Thouars' video from Pointman Productions. There are some older ones with Paul de Thouars' still floating around ... but I don't know how easy they'd be to get. Also, there are some good tapes with Rudy Terlinden and Roberto Torres. Also, tapes from Mande Muda with Herman Suwanda.

As for "covering" the art ... there is no such thing. These videos give good intros into some of the basic principles of the various systems. If you got them all, you could get a broad overview of some of the best known Silat systems in America today.

Also, as someone else pointed out, Burton Richardson and Harley are also both Silat players. I only know Harley from here ... but I've been hearing about Burton Richardson for quite a while and from what I've heard, he's very good.

If you've got any specific questions, post them and I'm sure someone will answer them :-)

Regards, Mike

[phillyman]

Hey Sikal i have a question. Does silat say mande munda sorry if i spelled it wrong does silat have good takedowns and joint locks. Is silat say like japanese jiujitsu just a little more combat oriented. What good self defense aspects does it have. Do they have say defenses against headlocks etc. Sorry for so many question. Thanks

[Kevin]

In addition to the tapes that were mentoned...
I really like Bob Orlando's tape & book on Silat.
I think you can find them on PaladinPress.com

~Kev

[MikeJKD]

philly,
I know you asked sikal, but I have an opinion on your question regarding whether or not silat is like a more combat oriented Jiujutsu. I guess in the sense that all combative martial arts are similar, maybe the answer is yes, but in my experience, the techniques (and more importantly, the training methods) of silat differ pretty drastically. Mande Muda is a great system that is very complete in that it adresses pretty much every range, including weapons. Other systems that are worth looking into are Buhkti Negara, Serak, and Harimau (tiger system). Each of these have added some pretty useful elements to my personal JKD game, and Harimau has got some really fun ground drills (get ready to experience great flexibility training too...). All in all, I'd say explore whatever you can find...again, Harley has some good links to Silat Instructors via his website...but don't go in expecting jiujutsu. At least, not from the Indonesian guys. It's taught very differently from what I've seen.
Mike

[phillyman]

Het thanks mike im trust trying to find out how useful it will be to me on the street for selfdefense.

[MikeJKD]

Just like anything, man, some of it's great, some is...well, pretty wierd. Check it out, though.
Mike

[knuckledragger]

Gregg Alland put out a tape of basic langkah empat silat with Eddie Jafri that is one of the best silat tapes i have seen and there also is an Eddie Jafri seminar.They are designed to really teach you the very basic techniques and concepts of silat.

[aseepish]

Rick Tucci's Maphilindo Silat tapes are a pretty good intro to the Inosanto blend of Silat.

I'm still saving up for the late Pendekar Suwanda's tapes.

Silat takedowns and locks are different from jujitsu's as they are more designed to maim or incapacitate from the get-go rather than to restrain or get a submission. The throws are notoriously hard to breakfall from.

-Tony

[Chad W. Getz]

Could you guys give a quick review of the tapes and possibly a comparison?

The silat I use during the clinch and takedowns are helpfull in the right place and time. I've heard some good things about silat on the ground, but haven't experienced it yet, although I'm waiting for a friend to get back to Hawaii and roll with me.

[Jack Knife]

Silat ...my bane, and my redemption. I've been practicing silat for 6 years right now, and I've got to tell you, it's really hard to pull off without a lot of training and a really good instuctor. Reason being ... it's hard to get a grasp on it. The Dutch-Indonesian silat/kuntao styles, in my opinion, are easier to learn and a lot easier to pull off. I've had great problems with using most of anything I've learned in Mande Muda, yet there are quite a few people that can use that material very well. However, my standing grappling game is much better than it used to be. I mean, I can take down someone, but my references as far as the groundfighting is concerned are rather shabby at best. Again, lots of training and a good instructor is necessary.

I'd avoid any video with Eddie Jafri and William Sanders. I've viewed Jafri's videos, and found them rather ... lousy. I'd rather not, for the sake of being nice, say anything about William Sanders, except that you might rather spend your time and money investigating another instructor. I'm just being honest and helpful here, and I mean no disrespect.

As far as silat videos are concerned, try Pak Herman Suwanda's videos. They give you a great peek at what silat is. I own four in my collection.

I'm currently studying Pencak Silat Mande Muda, Bersilat Haqq Melayu, and Pencak Silat Sumbar. I find each art rewarding, but frustrating at the same time.

[phillyman]

Does anyone know anything about Maphilindo silat.

[aseepish]

Maphilindo is the Inosanto blend of Silat. It comes from Dan's various instructors from Malaysia (Ma), the Phillipines (phil) and Indonesia (indo).

-Tony

[sikal]

Originally posted by phillyman
Hey Sikal i have a question. Does silat say mande munda sorry if i spelled it wrong does silat have good takedowns and joint locks. Is silat say like japanese jiujitsu just a little more combat oriented. What good self defense aspects does it have. Do they have say defenses against headlocks etc. Sorry for so many question. Thanks

Sorry about the delayed response. I'm in the midst of moving and haven't been to this site in about a week.

Mande Muda specifically, in my exposure to it, definitely has good takedowns and joint locks. My exposure to Jujitsu has been very limited so I can't make a real good comparison.

Silat in general is geared toward survival (slightly different connotation from self-defense). As Pak Herman Suwanda (the previous head of the Mande Muda system, RIP) used to say, "The trisula [Japanese call it sai] in the Mande Muda logo has 3 points. They equate to, in order, talk, run, fight. You talk first. If that doesn't work, you run. If that doesn't work, you fight." It (and the other systems of Silat that I've been exposed to) assumes that all other avenues have been pursued and come to naught. When you fight, you go for the quickest and *safest* (relative term in a fight) exit ... and go around or through anyone who tries to stop you. Pak Herman also used to say, "What you call cheating, I call good Silat."

Silat (in my exposure) tends to focus more on breaking than on submission. More on damage than on pain.

Just my take, though.

Someone else here mentioned Bukti Negara and Harimau as well as Mande Muda. In America, there is also Silat Serak (the parent art of Bukti Negara), Silat Seni Gayong (a Malaysian system), some Silat Sterlak, Gerakan Suci (developed by a couple of Americans with a wealth of Silat training between them), some Kun Tao Silat mixtures, and others that I'm sure I'm forgetting right now.

Any of them are worth checking out if you can find someone near you who teaches. Is Silat "better" than anything else? No. It's better for some people and not for others ... just like anything else :-)

Regards, Mike