Monkey in our Silat style teaches you one of the most valuable lessons for combat. To be unpredictable (and in turn not telegraph strikes). To go from 0 to 100% violent in a heartbeat. To only train just to physically respond to violence and not train the mental aspects is basically like carrying a gun around with no bullets. This is why in PCK the focus is on the ATTITUDE and not just the movement. You train to let go, to adapt, to do whatever is necessary. To be calm, explosive and back to calm. This helps get you into a mindset where you are controlling your demeanor, your breathing, your awareness and also your opponents awareness.

It trains you to understand that bringing out the violence is not necessarily to go into or have a "combat mode" but rather to be so thoroughly trained that you have this attitude kind of coiled and ready to release when something escalates. It is like a switch. It is a skill, like anything else that must be trained just as much as the physical. 

Really think about that concept. Monkey is detached and calm and looks away until it attacks. This detaches you from the situation slightly mentally (which will affect your attacker), helping keep your nerves under control, also allowing you to scan your surroundings. Then within a second you attack with no warning, greatly increasing the success of your attack. Then within the attack is the zig zagging, unpredictable nature of the movement with off timing and indirect hitting. Here is a clip from our manual on monkey:

"Basic PCK Monkey mannerisms teach evasiveness and redirection of strikes along with hard hitting slaps and violent parries that are severely disruptive and disorienting to attackers. In combat monkey is used when you need to be fluid but destructive. You learn to flow like water but at the same time use those same fluid motions to develop devastating power." 

It is calm then erratic. Eerily calm until the last moment. Looking away from the opponent.

The lessons monkey can teach are how to get out of the way of something with no warning. To be truly capable of adapting. Wits composure and confidence. Not adapting out of fear, but adapting with assuredness. PCK Silat monkey is not an imitation of the animal or a fancy way to do silat differently. It is borrowing the very nature of the animal when it escalates to its most violent. That was the reason the animal Silat was created. They are better at it than us. We learned from them. Mother nature is a good teacher.

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

Greetings from Tennessee

As you may or may not know, Guru Muda Chris Henslee has been named as the new director for the state of Tennessee. He – um, that is I - will be taking over the administration of PCK activity there. I live just outside of Nashville and have a brand new email address for PCK Tennessee business (pcksilattn [AT] gmail [DOT] com), so feel free to contact me if you have questions or concerns. Also keep an eye out here for me to ramble on and on about stuff I probably know nothing about. Guru Derek gave me free rein to post on the blog, and when time permits, I hope to abuse that privilege mercilessly.

I am also exploring the possibility of setting up a discussion forum where Tennessee students and instructors can share ideas and compile information about our art. Invitations to this forum will be sent out via email, so be sure to update your contact info with me or Guru Derek if you are in Tennessee and wish to participate.

-- Guru Muda Chris
 

PCK MICHIGAN

PCK SILAT IS BACK IN MICHIGAN!!!

PCK Silat Grand Master Guru Besar Jerry Jacobs is now in Dowagiac, MI! He is offering private instruction, group training and seminars in PCK Silat. If you are in the area don't miss out on the chance to train with the Grandmaster of PCK and one of Silat's finest instructors. For more information on training email Guru Besar at gurubesar@pcksilat.com

NEW PCK SILAT SHIRTS

PCK International now offers a variety of training shirts and some other PCK Gear! Check it our at the links below

MEN'S PCK TRAINING SHIRTS

WOMEN'S PCK TRAINING SHIRTS

New PCK Classes in Cleveland!

NEW PCK CLASSES FORMING AT TITANS GYM IN CLEVELAND, OH

New PCK Silat and Pekiti Tirsia Kali classes forming at Titans Gym with Guru Besar Jerry Jacobs! Come learn from the Grandmaster of PCK Silat and the Pekiti Tirsia Director of Ohio!

Titans Gym 619 Prospect Ave E, Cleveland, OH

For more details gurubesar@pcksilat.com

PCK Cimande Jurus

This is a breakdown of the first 20 Jurus Cimande from PCK Silat. We break them down into categories to make teaching them easier, and their applications more apparent. You can learn more about the Cimande Jurus in our new book "An introduction to PCK Cimande" which covers Jurus 1-20 and includes a DvD of Jurus 1-20. For more info visit pcksilat.com. 

PCK CIMANDE JURUS 1-20

Basic Striking/Covering
1. Teunggeul Ambreg
2. Teunggeul Sabeulah 

Basic Entries/Destructions 
3. Kelid
4. Selup

Basic Conditioning/Counters 
5. Timpah Sabeulah
6. Dug Degan
7. Timpah Dua Kali
8. Timpugan
9. Batekan

Knife Defense/Counters
10. Teke Guar
11. Teke Tampa
12. Teke Purilit

Knife Offense/Recounters
13. Tagogan
14. Tawekan
15. Guaran

Intermediate Counters 
16. Tagog guar
17. Kelid Dibeulah
18. Selup Dibeulah

19. Kelid Tonjok 

20. Selup Tonjok

Training Realistic Combat Effectiveness: The PCK Way

PCK Silat focuses heavily on combative effectiveness. All of our Jurus (Entries and Striking), Langkah (Footwork), Kicking, Weapon Styles and Bela Diri (Self Defense Techniques) are based on real world application and mindfulness of multiple attackers. Most systems talk about combative effectiveness and teach combative-type drills, but never really train the things that actually make students "effective in combat". They are deluding their students into thinking that “because your teacher said so” the material will magically destroy multiple attackers who have no value for your life and are probably more mentally accustomed to actual combat than you. This is putting the students at risk and wasting their time.Combative effectiveness requires a few key things:

Realistic Material: You must train material that will actually work. The material has to be based on realistic, destructive, multiple attacker based concepts. It has to be taught from the ground up, with out shortcuts so that the student has an art based on and built up from these principles. Based on their own fluid knowledge of the material so they are non just regurgitating a collection of techniques that will only work under certain circumstances.

Adaptability and Non Compliant Training: That material must be trained with a non- compliant partner and must learn to be adapted to any body type or situation. Students need to know what it feels like to perform the material under stress. This also includes treating a weapon as an extension of the art and not supplemental training. Adapting the material to fit the situation. This requires application and stress testing not just theory and “well if this were a real attacker I would do this”. Non- compliant drills and sparring must be constantly trained.

Combative Mindset: The student must learn to have a Combative Mindset. To automatically assume that you will go into some special mode of consciousness where you defeat a bunch of armed attackers is ridiculous and dangerous. This is something that must be actually trained constantly. It has to be a part of everything you train and not just theory. It must be ingrained into the practice of all material as you learn it. The mind is the most important aspect of training because if you lose control, you will lose the fight. If a student does not automatically assume that there will be multiple attackers then while he may be doing impeccable striking and technique on one attacker, he will be getting stabbed in the back by the other. This type of training helps eliminate tunnel vision in combat. 

Combative Awareness: You must learn to have Combative Awareness. Awareness of your surroundings at all times. You do not want to end up grounded against multiple attackers because you tripped over your own 2 feet. You have to learn to scan for hazards in the environment, potential places you could get cornered, look for improvised weapons, all while dealing with attackers.

Assessing the Threat: Learn how to asses and avoid the threat all together. The ultimate goal is to not have to use force in the first place by avoiding combat all together. Learning to watch for potential threatening situations and avoid them.

Some Martial Artists dismiss the animal aspects of Silat as non- combative or for show. This could not be more opposite the case. Real Animalistic Silat trains the animal instincts of the practitioner to come out. It is the primal instinct to survive and the controlled expression of that instinct is what we want to train. 

Real combativeness comes from our core desire to survive. But "survival" is not enough. We train to have control over our brains when this mode kicks in, rather than being hijacked by emotion, fear and brain chemistry. In PCK Silat we control ourselves and we exploit the natural instinctive responses in our opponents and use it against them. 

Each animal teaches its own unique lesson. They each have their own place in combat. We do not just imitate the animal movements. We invoke the attitude of each animal. The way it is energized and animated when faced with a threat. The violent unpredictable nature of monkey and the maliciousness and relentlessness of Tiger are good examples. We train indirect vision and scanning to allow for multiple attacker awareness and a type of control of opponents that bares in mind that we could be attacked from behind at any time.

The core Jurus and Footwork of PCK Silat are the foundation of the art, but it is the unrestricted, unpredictable, volatile nature of the animal aspects of the art that make that material come to life. It is what makes our Silat so destructive. The focus and refinement of technique combined with the raw primal energy of animal instinct. It is not enough to train "for combat". This is the trap most students fall into. You have to constantly "train combativeness". If it is not a part of everything you do, body and mind, at its very core then you are just scratching the surface. Selamat,

Guru Derek

New Year's Message From PCK

PCK Silat has had a fantastic year. We have had students promoted, we had a successful PCK Summer Camp in Florida, we have many new students training in the Online Training Course, and we released the new PCK Manual and the new book "An Introduction to PCK Cimande".

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!

Black Friday Sale!

HUGE SAVINGS ON ALL PCK MERCHANDISE BLACK FRIDAY THROUGH CYBER MONDAY!!!

PCK International will have all of it's merchandise on sale Friday the 27th- Monday the 30th. 

Our latest 2015 Summer Camp DVD will be open for purchase by Non PCK Members!!! We will also start accepting Pre- Orders for our new book Introduction to PCK Silat Cimande. This book covers the blocks, basic strikes, concepts and the first 20 Jurus of Cimande with step by step instruction and pictures. It will also include a brief DVD covering the Jurus and Blocks!!! Get ready for the best sale of the year, and your chance to stock up on PCK DVD's and merchandise.

Guru Besar never stops! He is the new PTK representative for Ohio!

Guru Besar Jerry Jacobs was recently appointed as the state representative for the state of Ohio in Pekiti Tirsia Kali! A lot of PCK Silat's practitioners are no strangers to Kali. Tuhon Mel Tortal has a wealth of knowledge and Guru Besar is continuing his education in combat by learning from him and representing Pekiti Tirsia Kali as well as showing PCK Silat to an entirely new audience.

Promotions at this year's Summer Camp

We had the privilege of being able to promote a few students at this years camp, and we gave out an achievement award and the highest achievement award attainable in PCK Silat, the Gold Sash Award.

 Guru Darren has been training in the art since the mid 90's. He has been a teacher for quite some time now, even producing a few instructors himself. He has been an absolute beacon for what PCK as an art is all about. He is an example of the humble nature we expect of our students and teachers as well as an example of the extreme opposite end of that spectrum, the ability to take PCK Silat onto the streets and use it effectively. He has proven at every turn to be the type of student and teacher that everyone in this art can aspire to emulate. He received the Gold Sash Award this year for his years of dedication and contribution to PCK Silat. 

We had an interesting opportunity to do a surprise testing at this years summer camp. Only a select few even knew it was taking place. It was a test of combat against multiple attackers. Guru Darren's long time student Nick Mettille has been training for quite some time now and has proven himself to be a dedicated student, a good example to his fellow pesilats, and worthy to be a representative of our art as an instructor. Nick has been at all of our camps and has always represented our art well with his humble nature, willingness to help others and his knowledge of PCK Silat. He did great in his test was promoted to Guru Muda at the camp and we all are looking forward to seeing what he has to offer to PCK as an instructor!

Chris Henslee has been training with me in Tennessee for about 5 yrs now. I have pushed him harder than any other student I have ever had. He has been dedicated, going above and beyond in countless ways for his school, his teacher and the art. He helped tremendously with the online course by letting me beat him up on camera. He has been a great example of what we look for in a student of PCK Silat. Chris has a deep understanding of our art. He is going to make a fine Guru some day. Chris was promoted to Instructor Candidate at the camp. 

Tim Crea is one of PCK's Online Training Course students. He received a PCK Silat Achievement Award for his hard work and dedication. Tim has been training in the course since day 1. He was actually waiting for it to launch. He is an example of what we were looking for when we created the course. He has taken full advantage of all of the resources given to him through the course and it has payed off. He is hungry for knowledge and has a love for the art and sense of dedication that is inspiring. He is not only an example to his fellow students for these reasons, but also a testament to the possibilities that lie within the online course. He is a perfect example of what the course is capable of. Tim has taken the art and made it his own. He is a great student and friend and I look forward to seeing where he goes in our art.




Everyone at the Camp deserves recognition for their hard work and dedication the the art. It isn't easy to do what we do. It takes a lot of dedication (and balur oil) to survive in PCK Silat. It is great time for PCK Silat. We are seeing people being rewarded for their hard work, we are producing instructors and we have a fantastic and diverse group of students. I couldn't be more proud to be a part of this organization. We are only growing stronger with each year and it is because of you. You are the face of PCK Silat. You represent our art. And that makes me very hopeful for our future. I got to see such a great display of brotherhood at the camp this year. People helping each other, training hard, learning, displaying skill, and most importantly an intense and inspiring willingness to learn, to get bruised and gain some knowledge. Thanks again to Guru Besar, Guru Darren for making this camp happen and Guru Muda Nick and Dave for helping out as well. We may not be the largest art in the world, but it's camps like these that remind me just how lucky we are to have such a great group representing us. I was reminded this camp that the things that make PCK Silat such an amazing art to be a part of are not only alive and well, but thriving. 

The conditions are right for PCK Silat to grow and spread. Let's make this new year count. Help us take PCK Silat even further. Continue working hard and bringing new people into your schools. Spread our art in any way you can, by word of mouth, social media, and most importantly by being a good example yourselves for what PCK Silat represents. Terimah kasih, selemat.

- Guru Derek

PCK Silat Summer Camp 2015

PCK SILAT SUMMER CAMP 2015 WAS A HUGE SUCCESS!!!

This years Summer Camp was a huge success. We had a fantastic turnout that was a great mixture of old faces, new faces, online training students, and of course Guru Darren and his great group of local students that hosted the event. 

This year we focused on PCK Snake mannerisms, close quarter combat, knife attack/ defense, internal energy and healing, just to name a few things. Guru Besar brought the theme of this years PCK camp back to focusing on what makes PCK Silat unique. We have a very particular way of moving and a very unique set of concepts associated with our in close and knife fighting systems. Guru Besar showcased these at the camp and brought all of the information together with the Ular style of PCK. Fast, darting, devastating striking, as well as wrapping and breaking techniques, ground defense and breathing. He brought the Cimande Jurus and Jurus Dasar and Sera into the teaching to show how snake can transform these movements into something completely new.

Guru Ismail Sujadi was generous enough to spend Friday night offering up some great internal energy exercises for those lucky enough to attend this extra training session. He also taught some snake techniques and healing during the main training sessions on Saturday and Sunday. It is always a great honor to have him at our camps.

I would like to give a great big thanks to Guru Besar for putting on such a great camp. This was a great reminder that PCK Silat is such a unique art. The combination of hard hitting and then healing really shows how diverse our art really is. Thanks again to Guru Ismail for his contributions and of course to Guru Darren for hosting and organizing everything.

Blocking in PCK Silat

Blocking in PCK Silat is hitting. It is just striking the opponents limbs. Now lots of systems use this idea of Pukulan and hunting the limbs but in our art we put an emphasis on it.

In PCK we use the blocking methods of Cimande, Sera and the variations of those methods created by expressing them with the flavor of the 4 animal systems in our art. We have slaps, guntings, clawing, bludgeoning, crushing, smashing, pulling, punching, spearing, dislocating, breaking, splitting of muscles and a variety of other ways to destroy an opponent's weapons. We actively seek the opponents limbs to destroy their ability to effectively attack and defend.

It is a relentless and overwhelming method of defense. But in reality I have never really looked at it as defense. It is all attack all of the time. Just like the principle of the thorn where we impale the opponents strikes on the knees and elbows, any time we employ our blocking methods the harder the opponent strikes, the more he gets hurt.

Practice getting your blocks into a flow just like you do with striking. Mix the palms, forearms, elbows, web of the thumb, back of the hand, full fist, half fist and anything else you can think of into a flow and master being able to blend and adapt to ranges with your blocking. Then take that flow and absorb it into your striking. We use the same tools for striking as in our blocks, but the methods can be slightly different at times. Learn the difference. Learn to hunt the limbs on your way to your striking targets. Sometimes you will need to really break an opponent down before entering that closer striking range. Other times you will move in and just start smashing with strikes. The key is to have both skills equally available at all times, especially in a multiple attacker scenario.

Updates to the PCK Curriculum

Updates to the PCK Silat Curriculum are posted on the website at pcksilat.com. Below is the basic outline of ranks. The full PCK Curriculum can be found in the PCK Membership Handbook. A new version of the handbook will be distributed to students soon to reflect the changes. 

   

Entry level Practitioner- No Sash

The Study of basic PCK Jurus, Postures, Footwork, Striking, Principles, Breathing/Meditation and Kebatinan.  

Intermediate Practitioner - White Sash

An intermediate level comprehension of PCK Empty Hand and Weapons Material, Principles, Breathing/Meditation and Kebatinan.  

Advanced Practitioner- Green Sash

An advanced level comprehension of PCK Empty Hand and Weapons Material, Principles, Breathing/Meditation and Kebatinan.  

Instructor Candidate- Red Sash

Completion of PCK Jurus, Animal Mannerisms and Basic Weapons. Embodies the moral code of the PCK Warrior. By receiving this rank a Pesilat is being put under consideration for our instructor ranks.  

Guru Muda- Black Sash with White Naga

Advanced Applications, Specialized Moves and Concepts drawn from PCK Jurus, Principles and Animal Mannerisms. Naga Mannerisms and internalization of the 4 Animals. Advanced understanding of the 18 PCK Principles and Advanced Weapons. Advanced Meditation/Breathing and Kebatinan. As a Guru Muda of PCK Silat you must teach to be considered for full Guru Rank.

Guru- Black Sash with Green Naga

Completion of all PCK Material. Access to advanced Cimande, Sera and weapons training. Internalization of the 18 principles. The ability to combatively and creatively express the art as well as pass that information on to students clearly. A Guru of PCK should embody the art, its principles and the moral code of PCK Silat.

Pendekar- Black Sash with Red Naga

Guru Besar- Black Sash with Gold Naga

Gold Sash- PCK Achievement Award

This is the highest achievement award in PCK Silat, given to a practitioner that embodies the moral and fighting code of the Silat Warrior. This is the type of student that all others should look to as an example and one that they should strive to emulate.

New Online Course Videos

I have added a new Jurus Cimande video to the PCK Online Training Course that teaches up to Jurus 7 now! This will really help expand your ideas for applications as a long distance student. 

There is also a new Basic Animal Mannerisms video in Tier 2. This reflects the changes in our curriculum, offering material on the 4 animals sooner in your training. The video covers basic mannerisms for Monkey, Tiger, Snake and Crane and offers a look at how the art uses the general movements associated with the animals first, to teach the imitation of the animal before inserting the attitude and energy that makes it come to life.

The Jurus Dasar are next! Keep an eye out for a new Jurus Dasar video coming soon on the course too, as well as some cool new video extras! 

The 4 Animals of PCK Silat

PCK Silat is based on a combination of Cimande, Sera and Sera Kombinasi (Mas Jud Lineage of Sera that blends Cimande, Sera and Cikalong). Cimande and Sera as arts stand alone as symbols of what true Pencak Silat is all about. PCK Silat is rooted in these arts but these animal fighting techniques and mannerisms bring our Cimande and Sera to life.

We utilize the fluid as well as erratic aspects of the Monkey, with its evasiveness, ability to adapt and flow as well as relentlessly hit, this gives our movement the softness required at times for sensitivity and the ability to employ our primal instinct to survive in an instant. Monkey offers a glimpse into the finer points of the use of Tarik (Pulling) and Darong (Pushing) and causing disorientation and off balancing in opponents. Some of the more sensitivity based training we use comes from our Monkey system.

Within our Tiger (Harimau/ Macan) movement you will find the powerful, crushing, penetrating type hitting as well as  leaping, the hunting of the lower body from the ground, breaking, hunting of the head and neck for control of the body when upright and taking the opponent to the ground with powerful yet graceful destructiveness. Harimau is our fully grounded tiger and it brings our Jurus, kicks and principles to the ground fighting game. From the more upright Harimau positions that use multiple points on the ground for balance and power, we can use kicks, punches, Jurus as well as all of the 18 principles of PCK Silat. We also move all the way to our back like a cat with all 4 limbs free to attack. The tiger also has a fully upright expression (Macan). Here we bring out some of the most destructive nature of our striking. With its directness and eagerness to end the fight as quickly as possible this is a devastatingly effective style of fighting.

Our Snake system utilizes the more compact expression of our Jurus and kicks as well as mannerisms of the Cobra that dart rapidly hunting the limbs using ”Poison Hand” techniques to immobilize a limb before wrapping and breaking (Python). This rapid fire Pukulan style of hitting is one of our systems trademarks. This is our close range fighting and it includes vicious knee and elbow attacks, kicks that hunt the muscles and nerves in the legs and wraps and breaks that leave an attacker unable to fight back effectively.

The Crane has our longest range weapons and movement and uses speed, lightness, whip and ricochet movements. It uses sweeping motions, wrist blows, gunting (scissors) type striking along with the scanning head movements and upright one legged positions. The Kilap footwork and unique torture strikes with the finger tips (usually to the eyes or face) make our crane much more combative than what most people have seen.

 Lastly we have the Naga, combining all of the animal mannerisms and expressions of the Jurus and Langkah into one destructive yet mesmerizing synthesis of concepts, principles and energies. The Naga of PCK brings the essence of each of our streams together into one. Again, we do not isolate our Cimande and Sera material, but blend them seamlessly into one art. The Naga represents the combining of all elements, animal styles and energies within our system and therefore is the center of our PCK logo, representing the coming together of all of the streams into one.

PCK Handbook

PCK International will soon be offering the PCK Manual for sale to the general public! This is our official handbook and it is filled with all kinds of Silat information that would be valuable to any Silat practitioner. In the past this was only available to PCK Silat members but we will be making it available to all. It will still come free with a PCK Membership obviously. We will keep you updated on the release date for this as well as information on the release of a physical copy of the manual right here on the the PCK Blog. Both will eventually be available in the PCK Store.

PCK Silat Summer Camp 2015

Our Annual PCK Silat Summer Camp will be held in West Palm Beach FL this year in September! We are looking forward to seeing all of the familiar faces this time around, but we are hoping to see many more new faces as well. Our Summer Camps are open to the general public so anyone interested in Silat in general is more than welcome to join us!

We will be having a Selamatan and informal training Friday night followed by regular training Saturday and Sunday. For more details you can contact Guru Darren at gurudrf@gmail.com.

New PCK T Shirts

PCK International will soon be offering a new training T Shirt! Keep an eye out right here on the PCK Silat blog for more details on the date the new shirts will go on sale!