Introduction
- Silat Kuntau Tekpi is a Malaysian martial art that originates in Kedah, a State in northern Malaysia that shares its border with Thailand.
- Silat Kuntau Tekpi traces its roots back to 1556 when it was first taught to the Sultan of Kedah.
- Prior to 2005, Silat Kuntau Tekpi was a closed system that had never been taught outside of Malaysia.
- Silat Kuntau Tekpi is actively being practiced by and taught to members of Malaysia’s Special Branch Units (both in the Military and Police) and undercover narcotics agents.
- There are five levels in the Silat Kuntau Tekpi syllabus.
- Level One and Level Two focus on self-defense (beladiri), where the student stands in a relaxed and neutral stance and is attacked by an opponent. Beladiri teaches the student how to explosively counterattack and either control or incapacitate their opponent.
- Levels Three and Four teach the student combat against multiple opponents, ground fighting and weaponry, particularly the use of the Tekpi which is known as the “King of All Weapons” in Kedah.
- Level Five teaches the student the spiritual system.
- The beladiri (self-defense) phase of training has three components: the counteroffensive entry, the off-balancing throws and finally the locks and/or incapacitating finishing strikes.
- The entries teach the student how to counterattack while their opponent is still attacking. This way the force being generated by the opponent is deflected while the student steps in with a counteroffensive strike. The effect is like two cars in a head-on collision, with only the attacker being injured.
- The “crash” entry is designed to physically and mentally unbalance the opponent. The entries lead directly to off-balancing throws. The Silat Kuntau Tekpi practitioner then proceeds to throw the opponent in such a way that the fall itself disables the opponent so that no further follow up is necessary. Your body-weight + your opponent's body-weight is combined so that the opponent falls on an intentionally exposed and vulnerable joint, thus immediately incapacitating the opponent upon landing.
- Finally, the grounded opponent is either locked so he can be apprehended or he is struck since he is positioned in such a way that he cannot prevent the attack.
