Weapons Of Silat::

Silat Deadliest blades : The Kris

the Kris (also spelled Keris) is the national weapon of the Malays and the oldest distinctive weapon in both Malay and also Indonesian culture. It is found throughout the archipelago, as well as in Malaysia and the Philippines. It was the tool of ancient heroes and kings, becoming a symbol of both courage and beauty. Sultans had elaborate versions of the Kris made for them by famous bladesmiths.

Kris blades are hammer- welded of special iron, even meteoric iron. According to the legend, Empu Ramadi around A.D 230 made the first Kris. Early krises were leaf shaped and were called pasopati, paso or pisau, meaning knife, and pati, meaning deadly. Antique Krises are kept as heirlooms or votive objects, and some are said to possess magic power.

The curved blade appeared around A.D 329. the number of curves is always odd, and the correct number for a particular owner is based on a thumb- beside- thumb measuring rital accompanied by "lucky" incantations. The wavy blade or sarpa lumaku (walking serpent) was perfected and began to decline in the 15th century, the last period of "magic" krises.

Each part of the kris blade has a name, as do the handle and sheath. The balde is attached to a handle by a short tang, which is not much of a disadvantage in a weapon used primarily for thrusting.

Mandau and Badik

The Mandau comes from South Borneo, the land of the Dyaks. The mandau is a jungle knife as well as the traditional Headhunting sword. The handle is usually decorated with goat hair or human hair. The Mandau may be used in combination with a shield, and the blade may be coated with poison for special occasions. While headhunting is supposedly no longer part of the Dyak's animistic religion, there is no doubt  that Mandau is still capable to kill the enemy in battle.

The badik comes from Celebes and is a weapon for infighting. Its blade is usually 5 to 7 inches in length. The Bugio people of South Celebes are most noted for using it. The Bugio fighting style emphasizes quick and fatal strikes to the heart, stomach or kidneys. They practice by tying a sash around the waists of two fighters s that each must sidesteps to avoid the stomach thrust of the other. In combat, the blade is sometimes poisoned

Golok And Pisau belati

The Golok is originated from the West Java, and was adopted in Silat fighting style in both Malay and Indonesian culture. The balde length of this bolo- style weapon is usually between 12 and 24 inches. They are sometimes coated with scorpion or cobra venom to increase lethality. Golok practitioners begin training by strengthening their wrist and hands. They do this by swinging sand filled bottles between the thumb and forefinger. When they move on the golok, they first practice techniques agains banana trees or bamboo stalks. As a jungle knife, the golok is unequaled. Event the British military issues its own version of the golok since its commando operations in Malaya (1948-1960) and Borneo (1965-1966).

While Pisau Belati is a blade lenght of 7 inches or less, it is legally sold in any open air market. It is carried everywhere by street vendors, fruit sellers, meat cutters, etc. It is the knife most likely to be available when a fight breaks out. Because of its ubiquity, most silat masters use it as one of the training knives.

Celurit and Tombak

The shaped of the Celurit is shaped like a question mark and been used in early time by the Madura clan. It has been employ in self Defense as a part of martial style called Pamur silat. The Celurit is difficult to evade because of its flexibility and hard to disarm because of its multiple directions of attack. It is sharp enough to cleave skulls or decapitate heads. The celurit has killed often enough to be notorious. The Indonesian government now punishes without pardon individual who carry one in public.

The tombak (Spear) is used in most Silat styles. In the old days, it was used from horseback or for long distance fighting on foot. Most traditional Spears today are kept at home as decorations, but as kate as 1945, they were used in combat againts the Japanese. Even sharpened bamboo spears were pressed into the fight agains Japanese and Duct oppressors. Sharpened bamboo makes for a slow death, and most enemy soldiers would have prefferred to be shot or stabbed with a sword. The spear could also be used effective againts a bayonet. They were not meant for throwing, like a Roman pitumm, but for stabbing, like the Zulu assegai.

The Other Weapon of Silat

Kujang

Rentjong

Kerambit