Kalariworld.com - Vadakkan Style

Vadakkan Style



 

    This developed mostly in the northern part of Kerala especially in the region of Malabar. Though in the ancient days the place was ruled and controlled by local chieftains, they had only a minimal role as far as law enforcement was concerned. Disputes between persons or the chieftains were settled by duels in a specially constructed arena in the town square called ankathattu. If someone is not prepared or not good enough to fight, then they could always hire the services of professional fighters of the Chekava caste. (The people of this particular community were excellent warriors and include the legends like Aromal chekavar, and Unniyarcha (sister of Aromal chekavar) and their legendary fighting and the life style of those days can be seen in the Vadakkan pattukal, a collection of folk songs of Malabar). The fights often were lethal and one of them usually got killed. This led to the development of the skills needed for one on one fighting with sword and shield and other weapons like Churika and Urumi made of metal. Each family of the warriors were said to have developed secret fighting formula.

This style is characterized with the typical leaping and jumping movements which is unique to the system. The training starts at an early age- as early as 5 yrs. The place of training called Kalari has very strict dimensions. Details of dimensions and plan will be given later. Another unique practice of the Vadakkan style is the applying of oil on the practitioner's body before training. Herbal oils are applied and Chavutti Thirummal or foot massage is performed before undertaking training. This helps in developing flexibility and preventing injury. After the Meyppayttu (solo forms) the student progresses to Kettukari (long staff), Muchchan (short stick), Katara (dagger), Valum parichayum (sword and shield) and Urumi (flexible sword) and then to the Ottakkol (curved stick).

Kalariworld.com - Thekkan Kalari Weapons

Thekkan Kalari Weapons


After sufficient practice of the solo forms and then mastering the empty hand sets and prearranged sparring with partner the student of Thekkan or southern style Kalarippayattu moves on to the study of the use of weapons. The various weapons used in the southern or Thekkan system are:.

1.  Long staff or pirambu or neduvati ( means rattan stick)

This usually is as long as the distance from the ground to the ear of the practitioner while standing. Needless to say that the length of the staff varies according to the height of the user. Most kalari practitioners use rattan sticks about .05 inches to 1 inch thick and of the prescribed length. Training begins with the practice of many of the turning, twisting and swirling movements done as Chuvadu or solo forms. Long practice of these gives the trainee the necessary skill to hit from any and every angle and more importantly turn and block attacks from any direction or angle, even from positions of disadvantage. In many of the Thekkan schools a special equipment or training device called “Rattu” is used to prepare the trainees for the rigors of the long staff training. The next step is the prearranged sparring with partners. This is very dangerous since no protective equipments are used. Constant, dedicated practice of long staff develops the fighting skill along with terrific strength in the wrist and forearm regions.

2.  Kurunthadi

This is a short stick made of the trunk of the palm tree or coconut palm and measures about 2 feet in length and about an inch and an inch and a half thick. Striking and blocking techniques along with some grappling and submission holds are practiced with this weapon. Another important aspect of this weapon is that it prepares the student for the next stage of training i.e. , knife fighting, as many solo drills and prearranged sparring with the short stick forms the base for the first few drills in the knife fighting.

 
3.  Knife / dagger

This training begins after a pooja (performing of religious rite) on an auspicious occasion and is the stepping stone to the world of weapons made of metals. The practice and training revolves around prearranged sparring and is designed to simulate the use of knife in attack or defense in every conceivable way. Evasion, parrying, blocking and disarming techniques are taught. Again no protective gear is worn and even a split second relaxation of vigil on the part of the practitioners can spell disaster.

4.  Vettukathi ( a form of machete or Kukri)

Almost same as the knife training but with additional techniques for the cutting movements of the machete. Many sparring techniques using a combination of the knife and Vettukathi are used. Since this a common implement (and hence “legal”) used for the daily chores both in the households and by people working in the coconut plantations, learning these techniques can be handy in a street brawl.

5.  Valum parichayum ( sword and round shield)

Moving up to the training of swordsmanship in Kalarippayattu means graduation of the student. The most famous of all kalari weapons are the sword and the shield. The training demands unwavering concentration, utmost agility, fast foot work and quick reflexes form the students. Apart from the sword and shield combination, fighting with one sword without any shield and two swords (one in each hand) and against multiple opponents are included in the training.

6.  Churika

This is a weapon mostly used by the northern stylists, (and in the northern system it is called Katara. Churika in the northern system means another weapon) but some Asans (Asan = guru or teacher) incorporate the Churika training in their training. Thrusting, parrying and blocking movements are performed in linear fashion moving forward and backward.

7.  Chuttuval (flexible sword)

This is called as Urumi in the northern system. It is a flexible band of steel measuring in length from the fingertip of one hand to the finger tip of the other hand when the hands are held outstretched to the sides and1 to 2 inches wide. Here agility and mental sharpness counts more than strength or aggression. Twirling and controlling urumi is an art by itself possible only for those who spend long hours in the kalari. One false movement can slash the eyes, calves and many other parts of the practitioner. This one calls for utmost concentration even from the expert trainees. Some times two blades are attached to the handle so that the urumi can be made more lethal. If used in a crowded situation when attacked by multiple opponents, the urumi can save the dedicated kalari student by inflicting heavy injuries to the aggressors. Urumi has another advantage – this weapon can be worn like a waist belt and can be drawn when demanded.

8.  Kottukampu or Thavikkana

A small stick about the thickness of one’s thumb and measuring in length about the distance from the tip of the thumb to the tip of the smallest finger when the fingers and the thumb are held in an outstretched position. This weapon can be extremely lethal in the hands of a trained kalari master. It is used to strike the vital points or Marma points while blocking strikes of an opponent and/or while attacking. It is made from the trunks of palm trees or areca nut trees. Only those students stay with the Asan or master long enough to pass through the other stages of training will be considered eligible for training with this weapon. Understanding of the science of the vital point striking is a prerequisite for this training.

Kalariworld.com - Thekkan Kalarippayattu

Cultural differences and political divisions of the land of Kerala and the presence or the absence of a well established law enforcing machinery forced the ancient masters of the kalari fighting system to specialize in different methods of training and fighting. This in turn resulted in the evolution of the original martial form into the distinct verities or styles.

The three main styles of Kalarippayattu are:

· The southern style known as Thekkan
· The northern style known as Vadakkan And
· The very rare and most difficult system called Kathinayoga (Kathina = hard or difficult )


Southern style or Thekkan

This style, as one can understand from the name itself is predominantly practiced in the southern part of Kerala, especially in the erstwhile princely state of Venadu. The stances are comparatively higher than in the Northern or Vadakkan style and relatively less emphasis is placed on the weapons like sword and shield and Churika (double edged sword dagger about one cubit in length). More emphasis is placed on the empty hand techniques and knife, long staff and short stick plus the extremely effective and lethal weapon called Kottukampu. This could be due the presence of a well-established law enforcing system present in the southern part of Kerala right from ancient days. Use of weapons like swords by civilians was a crime whether in self-defense or otherwise and the ancient masters cunningly developed very effective empty hand sets. Then the science of striking the vital points or Marma developed as a great system of medical tradition and as a sinister art of killing a person without any visible mark of violence, this completely changed the nature of the southern style Kalarippayattu.
 
Certainly the vital point striking techniques are present in the northern style, but it is in the southern style that the art has developed to it's greatest extent. Sage Agasthya, one of the seven immortals according to the Hindu mythology is credited with the discovery of these vital points and his works have been documented by his disciples in the form of beautiful Tamil poetry.

      In short the southern style or Thekkan kalari system places more emphasis on the empty hand fighting, wooden weapons like the long staff, short stick or Muchchan vati and the striking of vital points while less emphasis is placed on the use of sword and shield. This style is more suitable for street fighting and especially against multiple attacks.
Training takes place in an enclosed space called Kalari. Beginning with the solo forms called Chuvadu the students progress to Jodi (prearranged sparring with a partner) then to Maravan Adi (training with long staff), Kurunthadi (short stick), and knife, Chiramam (fighting with short sticks), Valum Parichayum (sword and shield) then Urumi (flexible sword) and Kottukampu.

An interesting feature of the Thekkan style is the collection of specialized techniques and the use of unconventional weapons for women like the kitchen utensils

Surya Namakar

Surya Namakaar

The martial arts training, especially the strength training needs some sort of balancing work and the yogic stretching is the best complementary training.  However spending hours doing one of the streams of yoga, in addition to your martial arts will leave you with hardly enough time to pursue your personal life. Thus the ancient wise men of Bharatha conceived the wonderful set of exercises - the world famous Surya Namaskaar.

Sun Salutation as it is known around the English speaking world, is a complete system by itself. As kathinayogis we used, and still use Surya Namaskaar as a warm up prior to Kathinayoga training and on certain days as the only exercise.

Surya Namaskaar develops the physical, psychological and spiritual aspects of a human being. The physical form devolpes the body while the pranayama and the manthras develop the other two respectively.

For those who are on the spiritual side, chanting the manthras and doing the prescribed 108 repetitions is the ultimate. And of course they can chant the Aditya Hrudayam every day.Here a link:
http://sanskritdocuments.org/all_pdf/adityahriday.pdf

For others 24 to 36 repetitions will do the job. The minimum is the basic 12.

There are 9 - yes nine different versions of Surya Namaskaar or Sun Salutation that we do as part of Kathinayoga training. However, to reap the benefits the basic and the most authentic version is more than sufficient. here is a link for quick guidance:

http://www.hssus.org/sny/surya-namaskar-video-documentary/about/

Do it everyday (if possible) and reap the benefits.

The other more advanced and strength/kathinayoga specific versions are available only to the dedicated students of Kathinayoga. Apologies :-))

Have a nice training.

The Yoga Upanishads

Yoga Upanishads - The most ancient texts on Yoga

The first ever written data on yoga is in the Upanishads. (If older records are known to someone kindly enlighten me!)   These are called Yoga Upanishads and are the lesser known among the 120 Upanishads

1. Advayathaarakam
2. Amruthanaadam
3. Kshurikam
4. Tejobindu
5. Amruthabindu
6. Thrisikhi Braahmanam
7. Darsanam
8. Dhyaanabindu
9. Naadabindu
10. Pasupathi Braahmanam
11. Brahmavidya
12. Mandala Braahmanam
13. Mahaavaakyam
14. Yogakundali
15. Yogachoodaamani
16. Yogatathvam
17. Yogashikham
18. Varaaham
19. Saandilyam
20. Hamsam

Subsequent work are based on these 20 Yoga Upanishads.

The above Upanishads form the core of Kathinayoga training

Kalariworld.com - Kalarippayattu

Today is Vijayadashami. The auspicious day for Ayudhapooja. After a looooooog break i am back here.

After the pooja on the Mahanavami (Yesterday) I did the Vidya Arambha - for Sasthra and Saasthra. Sasthra is Weapon and Saasthra is Academical studies. I did the " 4, 6, and 8 " of Kathinayoga and the weapon forms. Did the Thekkan Salutation.

Then my inner mind told me "do something right now". After pondering over the "something" for a while I realized that my earlier webpage www.kalariworld.com is down for a long time. Back in 2003 when kalariworld was launched, it started a new era in Indian Martial arts. I was really moved by the overwhelming response and the daily hits. However work pressure kept me away from the Sudarsana Kalari Sanghom for about 3 years. I was in a remote village in the highranges of Kerala. This isolation did wonders for me and I could learn a lot during my solitude. It was unfair from my part to let the kalariworld to fade into history. i have a duty to bring it back to the lovers of martial arts. Ok. I will post the contents of that webpage here. Starting from the history.


Kalarippayattu

        The origin and evolution of every traditional art form of India can be traced back to the Vedic period and beyond. The legends say that yoga, classical dance forms like Bharatanatyam and martial traditions like Kalarippayattu evolved from Lord Shiva. The physical exercises practiced by Lord Shiva and other divine beings, were put together to form the base of present day yoga, by the great sage Patanjali. The dance forms were derived from the Ananda Thandava (ananda means pleasure, happiness etc.) of Lord Shiva and codified by sage Bharata in his famous work called Natyasasthra. From the war dance or Samhara Thandava of Lord Shiva evolved the martial traditions of India. Sage Parasurama who retrieved the land of Kerala from the sea was a disciple of Lord Shiva and Parasurama learned all of the martial techniques and the use of divine weapons from Him. (The art of warfare of the Vedic period can be seen in Dhanurveda where it has been codified systematically).

      Parasurama is said to have traversed the earth 21 times defeating all the Kshathriya (warrior caste like the samurai of Japan) kings. In doing so he had to kill many of them. In order to get rid of all those sins, sage Parasurama decided to perform tapa (a kind of deep meditation). For this he had to get some virgin land. He threw his battle axe into the sea from Gokarna - a place in the northern most part of present day Kerala, and the axe fell into the sea at Cape Comorin. The sea from Gokarna to Cape Comorin receded and the land of Kerala rose from the waters. Parasurama established temples, towns, Vedic schools and most importantly 64 kalaris or gymnasiums throughout the length and breadth of the virgin land Kerala. He entrusted each kalari to a specific family of warriors and taught them the secrets of the art of divine warfare which in the course of time became to be known as Kalarippayattu - kalari means training center and payattu means warfare or fight.

      In the southern system traditions can be traced back to sage Agasthya - one of the seven immortals according to Hindu mythology. Sage Agasthya taught many of the great mythological heroes the delicate art of warfare. The disciples of Agasthya like sage Pulastya and sage Bhoga spread the Thekkan or southern system along with the Marma or pressure point striking/treatment systems.

Slowly Kalarippayattu evolved into the three distinct styles that we can see at present. These are:
· The Thekkan (southern style)
· The Vadakkan (northern style)

and

· The very rare and almost extinct Kathinayoga style (yogic style). (there are no sub styles or versions of this Kathinayoga system)

Hanuman vazhi - way of Hanuman, emphasis placed on speed and agility, Bali vazhi - way of Bali, using the force/strength of the opponent by redirecting and putting him off balance like in judo, Bhiman vazhi - way of Bhima emphasis on physical strength, etc are some of the minor variants of the kalari styles.

Off the above, the Kathinayoga system still continues in its original way. In the other systems changes have been incorporated by the masters as and when they felt and none of the sub styles or variants remain at present in their pure original form.

The kalari system has influenced many traditional folk art forms like Parichakali, Kolkkali, Kambukalai etc ( all have one or the other aspects of kalari e.g. Kolkkali uses a wooden staff, Parichakali uses a shield and small wooden sword and so on).

Detailed history and background of Dhanurveda, Parasurama, sage Patanjali etc will be given later.

Kathinayoga

Hi!

Let me introduce myself. I am a kathinayogi!!! Well. Kathinayoga is a martial art which originated in Bharatha. For details please go to http://www.kathinayoga.com/ . I have created this blog to share my experiences- not just kathinayoga but lot more with like minded people. All are welcome to my blog and chip in with their comments.

It was in 1998- to be precise March 21 1998 I met my Kathinayoga Guru Sri K.R.Kumaran Asan.(See the above picture).  Till then my training in martial arts was centered around traditional Southern style Kalarippayattu and Silambam. Asan opened a new chapter in my life by introducing me to the wonder of Kathinayoga. FYI -  Asan = Guru/Teacher