PCK has evolved a few times since we were created. We moved towards finding our roots by connecting with Kang Cecep and Kang Ismail. We have spent years looking at the foundations of the material we teach and deciding where we want the art to go. It is time for another one of those leaps forward. Guru Besar and myself sat down and had a very lengthy conversation about not just the material but the main focus in training and how we want to present our art to the world, how our students see the art when they sign on, and how we want our teachers to present the material. We agreed to make a few subtle change to the art to reflect these ideas.
PCK is known for its combativeness. We train hard. We teach material that is based on a combative mindset not a sport mindset. While we have looked at the more traditional aspects of Cimande and even Sera, this was not to take a step backward towards the traditional. It was to move forward. Moving forward into realistic, combative, modern application. True, Old Silat offers this, and this is why we looked there. We will be making a few small adjustments, not only in what we train, but how we train it and the order of focus in training.
The 18 Principles have been narrowed down to 8 to simplify the way we look at the core of our art. These principles make up our art at its heart. They have also been placed in order of importance. This can have a profound effect on how you train just by looking at what is a top priority. There has been an addition of 8 key attributes as well as a list of the Gates and Ranges at which we fight. A tightening of PCK vernacular and terminology to reflect our desire to make training easier to understand from day 1 and teaching more uniform across the schools. This will also allow those looking at the art to more clearly see what we are all about.
Along with these simple changes we have added a set Bela Diri section to the curriculum to make sure that specific responses are built into all PCK practitioners skill sets. They will be straight to the point and include weapon and multiple attacker concepts.
Our animal syllabus has been rebooted to more clearly show a progression and uniformity in each section. A combative progression has been added using: 1. Attitude and Mannerisms to teach simple defense and combative usefulness of each animal. 2. Core Specialized Material specific to the animal. 3. Applying the Specialized Material and Attitude/ Mannerisms to the rest of the art. 4. Building a Combative Flow. This will make the animals easier to teach all at once and make their combativeness easier to see by showing why we do what we do. Each movement is categorized so that students don't just have a list of concepts but rather a map that progresses from beginning to end.
We have taken a long hard look at PCK's past and decided that a few things were not necessary in the curriculum anymore. We have removed most of the supplemental weaponry and Jurus to be sure that once a student becomes a teacher, they focus on continuing to polish the material and are not bogged down by material only taught to preserve it. Some of this material was unnecessary.
We have moved away from the Pedang and decided to adopt the Parang. The Pedang and Golok are not particularly applicable for thrusting and the Parang has the weight and maneuverability of a Golok and the slightly longer length and thrusting point of a Pedang. It has always been my favorite of the longer Indonesian blades.
The next place we looked was at our Jurus. Cimande, at its core is unbelievably combatively applicable. If taught correctly you do not need to search for applications or add any extra movement to the Jurus to make them realistically applicable. Most Silat practitioners do not learn real Cimande. They borrow from it. The Cimande we have chosen to use in PCK Silat is ridiculously hard hitting and based on principles and concepts that hold up under the 3 assumptions we follow in PCK. Multiple Attackers, Armed Attack, and Surprise Attack. The Jurus have an unlimited amount of combative applications and combined with our animal material create a well rounded fighter whose foundation is solid defense. Cimande is well known for having a very offensive defense so that is more to say that the practitioner is well trained in how to stop anything that comes at them while simultaneously making sure that the limb that did the striking is damaged and won't return. The Jurus have been grouped into categories so that they are much easier to learn. This again is a focusing of how the knowledge is presented.
The Jurus also work well with our short stick and a Golok length weapon like a Parang because that is the length of weapons taught in Cimande. The applications are direct and do not need to be changed at all. We added a small section to the Langkah Parang (Pedang) to reflect some of the Cimande Pepedangan Jurus and to help teach beginner angles such as taught in Kali systems.
We have decided to keep the Cimande Jurus as the base of our system and make the Jurus Dasar a part of the animal syllabus, where they came from. The Jurus Dasar are a combination of Sera, Sera Kombinasi and the animal mannerisms of our art. We will teach the "specialized move" of each Jurus where appropriate, but the repetitious aspects of the Jurus will be left behind to leave more room for focus on the Cimande Jurus.
PCK is a progressive art. We want to stay true to our roots, but we also want to move forward with the times. Our art has always been known for its focus on multiple attackers, realistic training methods, real world applications, and relentless destructiveness in its application. The goal of looking at our art under the microscope was not to change it, but to focus the direction of our energy. Like focusing light through a lens to create fire, we are taking the material and giving students a direct, focused approach to the material, training and the way it is presented to them to make sure PCK produces a certain type of warrior.
We will be releasing a new Instructor version of the PCK Manual to help teachers by offering an expanded version of the curriculum with class outlines, drills, teaching tips and progressions to follow to make sure the art moves forward the same everywhere it is taught. This will assure that training groups who do not have the luxury of having a Guru will be able to easily see how to present the material to the public.
Thank you so much for all of your individual contributions to this art. You are all what makes this art amazing. Guru Besar and I worked to make these changes to benefit all of you. Our last camp was a testament to the potential the new generation has in PCK to become truly great. I can't wait to see what 2016 will bring.
You can go to pcksilat.com and visit the curriculum page to see some of the changes made. Happy New Year everyone!
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