A new offering, for an expanded audience of seekers willing to 'take a chance' and dedicated to one student in particular who unfortunately learned the hard way to take his training seriously...
More to come.
Welcome to THE BALISONG JOURNAL An online journal of Southeast Asian Martial Arts, Culture and Spirituality from Guro Jeff Davidson and Detroit Kali-Silat. We will focus on Filipino Kali, Batangas Knife, and Silat Melayu (especially Silat Kuntau Tekpi) - along with Yoruba (West African) fighting and healing arts- and other interesting diversions along the way.
Monday, July 18, 2011
Coming Soon...
A new offering, for an expanded audience of seekers willing to 'take a chance' and dedicated to one student in particular who unfortunately learned the hard way to take his training seriously...
More to come.
Friday, July 15, 2011
Happy GURU'S DAY!
As many of you may not know, today happens to be Guru Purnima which is celebrated by many in the Hindu/Buddhist communities across the world. I don't usually quote wikipedia, but I'll save you the trouble of clicking over there right now with this brief summary:
The relationship between the Guru and the Disciple is considered very sacred. This relationship is purely spiritual in nature and is independent of age of the two. It is based on maturity of Gyan (Spiritual Knowledge) and Shrada (Spiritual Practice). The only awareness that a Disciple should foster is, ‘I should be uplifted spiritually’. The Guru too harbours only one thought, ‘May this Disciple be uplifted’.
So, specific religious overtones aside take some time today and think on this. Of course just like your mother, father, and every other important person in your life, you should always carry a feeling of gratitude and "connection" to your Teacher.
My deepest and most sincere Salutations to all of my Teachers everywhere in gratitude for all you have - and continue - to share. On behalf of my own students...
HAPPY GURU'S DAY!
The relationship between the Guru and the Disciple is considered very sacred. This relationship is purely spiritual in nature and is independent of age of the two. It is based on maturity of Gyan (Spiritual Knowledge) and Shrada (Spiritual Practice). The only awareness that a Disciple should foster is, ‘I should be uplifted spiritually’. The Guru too harbours only one thought, ‘May this Disciple be uplifted’.
So, specific religious overtones aside take some time today and think on this. Of course just like your mother, father, and every other important person in your life, you should always carry a feeling of gratitude and "connection" to your Teacher.
My deepest and most sincere Salutations to all of my Teachers everywhere in gratitude for all you have - and continue - to share. On behalf of my own students...
HAPPY GURU'S DAY!
Thursday, July 07, 2011
Even More Class Notes: Silat Melayu
Here are some important questions from last week’s class. If you can answer them, you are well on your way to refining your skill in combat – or you were at least paying attention:
1. Which petua deals specifically with the transfer/release of energy?
2. In sequence, this petua would be […] gerak? (fill in the blank)
3. How does this petua apply to grappling in Silat? Do other forms of grappling – wrestling, jiujitsu, etc - employ this principle?
4. Find this petua (if it exists) in Pekiti-Tirsia:
a. In footwork
b. In a stick drill
c. In a stick disarm
5. Cite a specific buah that clearly emphasizes this petua –hint: it’s the one that puts the opponent “to sleep”.
6. Cite an example of this petua somewhere in nature.
The first person to email me with the correct answers wins a prize!
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