Čeština
Extensive research across 14,000 islands of Indonesia and 7,000 islands of the Philippines revealed that the art of Malayabu Sibat is one of the rarest martial traditions, practiced mainly in the Moluccas, the southern islands of Negros, and the jungles of Mindoro. The word Sibat describes a wooden spear made of bamboo, the narrow bagacay (a bamboo species), or ironwood, with a sharp tip used by natives to hunt wild boar, snakes, fish, and primarily as a weapon of defense against attacking tribes.
The techniques used by the natives originate from applying the force of the spear point against a charging wild boar. A strong strike to the back of the neck, or beneath the throat, injuring the chest area and piercing the esophagus, prevents the running animal from breathing. A boar may not die immediately and might resist. A powerful strike to the head with the sibat will delay the animal’s attack long enough to follow with a killing thrust. After each downward strike, another follows, targeting any part of the animal’s body. The destructive action uses gravity, breaking all resistance. The use of the Malayabu Sibat is effective in every movement.
The foundation of Malayabu Sibat offensive and defensive action is the principle of the triangle—a fast, surprising movement. When encountering another weapon, the goal of the Malay warrior is to direct the sibat straight to the opponent’s hand or head, enabling an immediate follow-up counterattack—a killing knife hidden alongside the hip is drawn and driven into the enemy’s kidney, preventing retaliation.
The Malay warriors—cannibals in Iranjaya and Indonesia—use the sibat as their primary weapon. The devastating desire to destroy the enemy is the primary emotion connected with sibat usage.
Today, Malayabu Sibat is one of the indigenous weapons systems contained within Pekiti Tirsia Kali. It includes several methods that are effective techniques embedded within this system. Combined with the force of the Malayabu Sibat, it guarantees a destructive effect, making the survival of the enemy highly unlikely.
The Pekiti Tirsia training program includes Malayabu Sibat as preparation for encounters with long weapons. Training with a long staff teaches students to handle body mechanics, increases understanding of general principles of combat, and prepares them for the use of long weapons in general.
Training does not focus only on individual repetition of training sets, but also on partner drills. In Pekiti Tirsia, the spear and long staff are used for long-, medium-, and even close-range fighting. Training is physically demanding, fun, and provides unique experiences.
In certain situations, a long weapon may be an excellent self-defense tool. The same principles of combat can be applied using objects such as a chair, ski pole, broom, or part of a fence. Furthermore, the skills and fighting abilities developed through training with the Filipino long staff are highly useful even in empty-hand combat. No other method develops functional body strength, movement dynamics, and defender’s courage as effectively as long-staff fighting.
This is one of the reasons why Grand Tuhon Leo T. Gaje highly recommends long-staff training.