All power in silat comes from gelek (twisting or
coiling), although sometimes this can be difficult to see. If you do a
strike or technique slowly enough, however, you should be able to tell
where the twist is. Pay attention to your entire body. The twist for a
kick or punch is often in the hips or waist, not the striking limb,
although it can be there, too. Some movements have gelek in more than
one place. Gelek even exists in stances. The ways in which a posture
allows you to twist defines the set of options that posture gives you in
combat. Find the gelek, and you find the source(s) of your power. Put
your consciousness in those places when you train a technique. Work to
keep those specific parts of your body strong and supple and
responsive. Then try to make the gelek smaller until you can deliver
the same amount of force with less wind up.
Also,
be mindful of gelek in your opponent. The job of the rasa (intuition)
is to detect tension. Find the tension, and you find the danger. With
practice, you will intuitively put yourself where an opponent has the
least gelek. Fewer blocks, more energy, less bruises.
Finally,
experiment. Find all of the parts of your body that can coil and
uncoil and all the ways they can do so. These movements are the roots
of your silat, and all of the techniques that you have learned or will
learn use them. They are what make silat strong, unpredictable, and
beautiful.
-- Guru Muda Chris
No comments:
Post a Comment