Posted by simon on 10/19/2006, 5:10 am Introduction With over 1.800 different styles of Pencak Silat throughout the islands of Indonesia, you can imagine that no two styles of Pencak Silat look exactly alike, however all these share common fundamental laws and principles. Each style depicts the area of origin and its' ethnic group with their own characteristics The word pencak is originally from Java and it refers to the martial arts of that area. Penca, without the k is the original spelling of the Sunda language. In fact, the old masters from Tari Kolot Cimande call their art "Penca", "Ameng" or "Ulin", "Penca (Aliran) Cimande", "Ameng Cimande", or "Ulin Cimande" Pencak with the k , comes from Bahasa Indonesia, the national language of Indonesia and refers to the movement or beauty of the martial arts. The word Silat comes from the areas of Sumatra, the Philippines, Malaysia, Singapore, Brunei and others. Silat refers to the actual fighting and its origins with the famed walisongo mystical teachings S = syariat I= ibadah L= laku A= aqidah T= tariqat. Or commonly known as silat The (composed) term "Pencak Silat" is of quite recent origin, it was officialised in 1973 by the IPSI, and had been growing in use since about the late 1940ies..As there are numerous styles of silat here in the west being propagated by their western disciples , whom have kindly imparted their opinions and interpretations of this obscure martial arts majority of the time leading to confusion due to lack of appreciation of the cultural dimensions of the art and much personal ego! Therefore it gives me great pleasure to introduce a true native master of real traditional silat cimande whom hails from the island of java a native in particular of west java (sunda), which has a very rich martial heritage termed as pusaka / karahun by the sundanese. The beautiful rice fields, tea plantations and rubber tree crops are the result the rich earth that is surrounded by volcanoes making West Java beautiful and colorful in the scenery, culture and the arts. The West Javanese people, otherwise known as the Sunda people, are easy going and happy and very martial by nature having a rich martial tradition. In West Java you can see Pencak Silat routinely performed in village ceremonies. It is commonly seen at weddings, celebrations of the rice harvest and circumcisions. It is especially important to perform Pencak Silat at circumcisions because it is believed when a boy is circumcised he changes from a boy to a man. Pencak Silat was a reflection of his manhood and it also helped divert his concentration from the pain of the procedure. In Indonesia, Pencak Silat was originally taught as a secretive art to the family and to members of the village. Now there is a modern version of Pencak Silat which caters to the public. It is taught in the school systems starting in elementary schools and continuing throughout the colleges and universities. There are very few teachers here in the west that can transmit true and real traditional pencak silat in its entirety and pure original form with an emphasis on a holistic approach of training mind body and soul in harmonious way into a balanced entity. Which brings us to the introduction of Guru Haji Pak Muhammad Ariffin Mang Ipin whom is a renowned and infamous master teacher of the highest caliber from the Cimande silat tradition. He was born and raised within the heartlands of west java in the port city of Banten.in Java their was 2 main historical spots for Cimande "Banten area" and "Tari Kalot area".In Banten, Cimande is a very famous style, a lot of people is practising it. Banten is also famous for alot of 'ilmu batin' (ilmu means science, knowledge) and the performances of this silat is traditionally called debus which is basically a show of invincibility and invulnerability. People walk on fire, climb ladders of sharp swords and so on. Historically debus was used by the Wali's to get people attracted to Islam by demonstrating the magical powers of the spirit most of the traditional Schools from Banten the Debus are connected to the Pencak Silat schools some are doing Debus some not but they are going together during demonstrations, celebrations...Once the capital of the empire Banten now Banten is a small town at the north western coast of Java. At this point the Dutch and the English first landed on Java and were held struggles and trade. There are still many places in Banten which remind to the colonial time.The main site in Banten is the Mesjid Agung. This mosque was built in 1559 by the son of Sultan Hassanudin and is the major sight in Banten. In opposite of the mosque are the remains of the royal palace Surosowan which was built by the Dutch Muslim Hendrik Lucas Cardil and destroyed by the son of the son of the sultan. Later the Sultan Agung rebuilt the kraton but it was destroyed again by the Dutch in 1832.On the road to Serang close to the Surosowan is the Kaibon Palace which is now partly restored. North West of the mosque are the ruins of the fort Speelwijk. This fort was built by the Dutch in 1682 and overlooks the see. Close to the fort is the old Chinese temple Klenteng. This 200 years old temple is now completely renovated and still in use. was the founder of Cirebon. He married the sister of Sultan Trenggono of Demak, and led military expeditions for Demak against Banten As "Fatahillah" he defeated the Portuguese when they tried to take Sunda Kelapa (now Jakarta) in 1527.Some stories have Sunan Gunungjati active around the 1470s and 1480s, under the name "Hidayatullah", other stories have him active around the 1520s, and associate him with the name "Fatahillah". In the 1480s he would have been the grandson of the king of Pajajaran; in the late 1520s he would have fought the Portuguese near what is today Jakarta. he passed away in 1568, by which time he would have been as old as 120 years Banten's founder and first ruler, posthumously known as Maulana Makhdum or Sunan Gunung Jati, is considered as one of the nine saints of Java; he and his first three successors, Hasanuddin, Yusup and Muhammad, are given the religious-sounding title of Maulana (commonly used for very learned or saintly ulama) before their names. This seems to indicate that these early rulers were saints or had the possession of (esoteric) Islamic knowledge and powers (ngèlmu) and are associated with the martial arts and the world of the jawara, the strongmen dominating much of rural Banten. Debus, the cultivation of invulnerability to fire and sharp metal objects, is the most conspicuous representative of these techniques. Their techniques are an eclectic blend of Muslim spirituality and mysticism, their sacred formulas including Islamic Arabic invocations alongside Javanese and Sundanese formulas (jampé for healing purposes, jangjawokan for martial prowess, invulnerability. The central element in debus, "playing" with pointed iron skewers that are violently thrust against the body, There is one striking difference between debus Banten and of the Middle East and India: in Banten the skewers, however violently thrust or hammered, do not pierce the skin, whereas elsewhere the miracle consists in their passing through the body without causing any harm. The emphasis in Banten (as elsewhere in Indonesia where similar techniques exist) is on invulnerability, not on indifference to pain, and this is explicitly related to warfare and the martial arts. (An accomplished debus practitioner is also believed to be bullet-proof). Debus techniques were part and parcel of the martial arts arsenal of the jawara, along with other magical (or psychological) techniques for such purposes as invisibility, hitting an adversary from a distance. Tarekat-related techniques are only one part of debus, and debus teachers are not necessarily, also tarekat shaikhs. Some of them lead tarekat-type communal devotions but none is an authenticated tarekat khalîfa. Others are primarily martial arts teachers and are not acquainted with dhikrs and râtibs at all. Even the Islamic formulas used, in order to be effective, have to be "filled" or "bought" by fasting, bathing with water of sacred springs such as the Sumur Tujuh on the slopes of Mt Karang, and various other ascetic exercises. Identical results may, incidentally, be achieved by different means: one may recite a formula (that has been "bought" in advance), wear an amulet (that has similarly been "filled"), or temporarily "borrow" some of his master's powers (that are transferred by means of a jiad, a "blessing formula").
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Traditional Pencak Silat Cimande Girang Walisongo
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Sunan Gunungjati (walisongo)
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