New to MT

[MahaKaal]

Hi All!

Just thought Id introduce myself as I joined MT yesterday. Im from Birmingham, England and aged 26 years. Ive always been a fan of martial arts, I did some Karate when I was a kid but it was more conditioning and katas then learning how to defend myself.

I practise an Indian martial art called Sanatan Sikh ShastarVidiya (Traditional Sikh Science of Weapons) and have been practising for the last 4 years. This art is fairly unheard of as it is going through a revival phase due to the lack of commitment and dedication within the last 100 years from the people in our communitee. Even within the warrior orders this art has been lost and most Sikhs practise a very watered down exhibition art called Gatka.

The art is the traditional battlefield art of the Akali Nihang Singhs, basic levels of this art deal with modern day street self defence (Svai Rakshah). Higher levels take inspiration from classical forms of Mahakaal (Great Death), Kalika (Goddess of Death), Chandika / Durga (Goddess of War) and Shiva (God of Destruction) and in its purest form is the battlefield art against Swords, Spears, Lances, Sheilds, Punch Daggers etc, one vs many, many vs many in formations.

I hope to learn some things from the experienced members of this forum and also share my limited knowledge with you guys.

MahaKaal

 

[terryl965]

welcome and enjoy

 

[myusername]

Hello MahaKaa, I must say that Sanatan Sikh ShastarVidiya sounds really interesting. It must feel wonderful to be practicing and reviving a martial art that is born from your own heritage and culture.

Welcome to MT and enjoy.

 

[14 Kempo]

Hello and welcome to MartialTalk ... enjoy!

 

[Jack Meower]

Greetings! That does sound interesting. I hope to hear more about it.

 

[MBuzzy]

Welcome to MT! Happy posting!

 

[Ping898]

Welcome to Mt :wavey:

 

[MJS]

Welcome!

Mike

 

[newGuy12]

Hello, MahaKaal!

 

[kidswarrior]

Welcome to MT, MahaKaal. Look forward to learning more about your art, and its revival.

 

[Kacey]

Welcome, and happy posting! :wavey:

 

[IcemanSK]

Welcome to MT. Glad you're here.

 

[Sukerkin]

Welcome, MahaKaal. It will be interesting indeed to hear your insights into an art that is new to me. Feel free to share as I'm sure the martial devotees here will devour your words eagerly.

 

[Hawke]

Greetings MahaKaal,

Welcome to Martial Talk.

Wow you have a very interesting art. Looking forward to your posts.

 

[arnisador]

Welcome! It would be great to hear more of your art!

 

[morph4me]

Hello, welcome to MT

 

[MahaKaal]

Thanks everyone for your warm welcome. I have a short article which explains some basic history and elements of the art which I have pasted below. This was published in an issue of Martial Arts Illustrated a few years ago. I would put it up on the main board somewhere but Im unsure where to place it cos there is nothing which emphasises on Indian Martial Arts

Shastarvidiya - Indian Martial Arts by Krishan Godhania

As a native of India, I have always had an interest in the vast array of traditional Indian Martial Arts. Locating such martial arts is difficult; teachers in India are highly secretive by nature. This is due to the deadly nature of these battlefield arts; the treasured knowledge is passed only to a select few. Nidar Singh - who has been practising the art of Shastarvidiya for over two decades and is perhaps the senior gutu of this particular art in the UK - shares the background and development of this ancient martial art.

Krishna Godhania: What is Shastarvidiya?

Nidar Singh: Shastar literally means weapons, Vidiya means knowledge. Shaster Vidiya is the name of traditional Indian martial arts of Northern India.

KG: Can you tell us briefly about the history of Shastervidiya?

NS: There is no single source of history of Shaster Vidiya. There are a number of mythological Indian stories regards the origins of Shastar Vidiya. One that is popularly spoken of by Sikh warriors, the Akali Nihangs, is how once the king of Indian demigods Indira, defeated by demon Muru, fled from thefield of battle. Then Brahma (Hindu God of creation), as commanded by highest God, lit a great sacrificial fire. Then on composing the mystical incantation, Brahma Kavch (still recited by Akali Nihang warriors for protection to this day) offered sacrifices and praised God's divine power Goddess Chandi as a sword. She then manifested herself as Goddess Asi (sword). Taking hold of the sword, the demigods Vishna, Shiva, Indira, etc. defeated their demonic foes. This sword was then passed to the great Sage Manu (Noah of India). He created the Khashtriya (Indian martial) cast and gave then the Asi and all its knowledge of Shaster Vidiya. In time this Vidiya was taught in the great ancient university city of Taxila (now in Northern Pakistan) from where Buddhist monks took it to China and beyond. The Sikh warriors of the 16th century founded by Guru Nanak (1469-1539) are the inheritors of this ancient Khashtriya Indian martial tradition.

KG: Is it unique to India or was it influenced by other oriental martial arts?

NS: The art is basically unique to India but in the past it was influenced by Arabic and Persian arts, such as 'Shamshir Baji', both through friendly and hostile interaction.

KG: What areas of combat does it cover, eg unarmed combat, warfare and street?

NS: The art exists at four levels.
Sava Raksha - Traditional, Unarmed, armed self-defence techniques.
Greh Rakha - Tradtional tactics and strategies of home-defence.
Goah Rakhia - Tradtional tactics and strategies of village-defence.
Jangi Vidiya - Traditionan Indian Sikh battlefield techniques.

KG: It seems to specialize in using strategy and deception. How would you employ this in a one against many opponents situation?

NS: Knowing the appropriate strategy and employing the appropriate tactics is the key to success in this art. The best strategies and tactics are, on the whole, though not always, concealed from the opponent. So the Vidiya is very devious and deceptive in application. What you don't see coming has the most impact. As for one fighting against many and what strategies and tactics are to be employed in this situation; it depends on the scenario. One simple strategy is to explode the the approaching opponents then, staying on the periphery, close in and aggresively herd them together knocking them all off-balance, confusing their sense of direction. Then appropriately using them as shields, making them obstacles for each other, quickly mixing amongst them and dispatching them employing unarmed or weapon techniques. Do not pull away from them and let them gain balance or space for maneuverability, pile them togehter and cut or strike them down. This strategy is known as Satha Vashona (clumping and cutting down crops to lay in the field) in Shaster Vidiya.

KG: Is there a spiritual side, I hear about a 'warrior yoga' you teach?

NS: Yes, there is a deep spiritual tradition. It incorporates a special form of dynamic martial Yoga, 'Sanjam Kiriya Viriyam', the self-disciplining excercises of a Sikh warrior.

KG: You mentioned battle with external foes and internal ones, could you elaborate on this.

NS: External foes are Dusht Dokhian meaning evil beings who cause pain to others. They disrupt the universal Dharma. Internal foes are the vices within Man. Chief amongst them are five: Kaam (illegitimate lust), Krodha (Out of context anger), Lobh (inappropriate material desire), Moh (misplaced love) and Hankar (Egocentricity).

KG: Do you have any texts or scriptures on war and battle?

NS: Yes, there are two main martial texts amongst the Akali Nihangs. Dasam Guru Darbar and Sarbloh Guru Darbar both authored by the great warrior Akali Guru Gobind Singh (1666-1708).

KG: Tell us about the ancient Sikh warrior traditions like hunting and applying blood to weapons and battle standards. Do you still maintain these? Is this relevant in today's modern world?

NS: Since ancient times hunting has been part and parcel of Indian warrior tradition. To build and test their courage ancient Hindu, Sikh, Mogul and other warriors would engage tigers, bears, elephants, etc. in single combat using a variety of weapons on foot or horse back. Today the Khalsa Sikh warriors, the Akali Nihangs, in order to maintain their martial spirit, still hunt as much as modern times allow or more generally decapitate goats and with its blood anoint their weaponsm standards, battle drums and the foreheads of warriors. For Akali Nihangs these traditions are as relevant today as in the past, in the sense that they keep them attached to their martial heritage.

KG: Some people would say, what is the point of training with a sword when an AK-47 would do the job a lot quicker. What is your view?

NS: Akali Nihang warriors in India do keep and train in use of all forms of modern firearms such as AK-47, but the AK-47 alone cannot attach a Sikh to his martial history, heritage, ideology or philosophy. Any undisciplined Tom, Dick or Harry may pick up an AK-47 and kill, as in the 1980s during the nightmare years of terrorism in the Punjab. Swordsmanship and its related arts take years of assiduous disciplined training. These long years of hard training under the guidance of a Gurdev (master) forge the spirit, mind and body, tempering it with all the best qualities of an enlightened soul such as morality, ethics, character, intellect, wisdom, physical-mental discipline and spiritual equipoise. All these are the qualities of a true Sikh warrior. Such warriors upholding Dharma seek to bring peace and prosperity to all. In contrast, the AK-47, weapon of choice of most terrorists in the world, in the hands of undisciplined fools gives nothing but death and suffering.

KG: On your website, a Nihang Warrior is seen decapitating a goat (on video). How is this related to your martial art?

NS: Chatka (to kill quickly) is the fundamental principle behind Shaster Vidiya. Chatka does not come easy to humans even though they may sit down with their ham sandwich and munch away. Ask most meat eaters would you have killed, skinned and cooked what you eat? The answer in most cases would be 'no'. Humans have a natural aversion to killing, so Sikh warriors, in order to overcome this natural human inhibition to kill and shed blood, decapitate goats. Goats are chosen, apart from the obvious fact they are a good source of meat and leather, because a mature goat's neck is very close in size to a human neck. Akali Nihang warriors state that the same amount of force is required to decapitate a goat as humans, so it is good martial strategy. Once decapitated, the cutting and butchering of the goat also serves to help overcome the human inhibition to shed blood.

KG: Each of the forms you demonstrated were based upon Hindu Gods in animal forms. Could you describe these a little and their effectiveness in combat?

NS: These Khat Ang Yudhan (Six classical combat forms) are:
1. Virah Yudhan (Wild Boar form) characterised by explosive close quater multiple strikes to bodies 107 Marma.
2. Sheshnag Yudhan (Cobra from) characterised by close quater fluid strikes and limb-snaring, joint-breaking, dislocating and choking techniques.
3. Garrur Yudhan (Eagle/Gander/Peacock/Cockerel form) characterised by angling off opponent to maneuver around opponent to devastate with a long-range barrage of hand and foot strikes to Marma.
4. Nandi Pentra (Bull form) characterised by close quarter explosive digging strikes and stand up grappling and body mangling techniques.
5. Nar Singha Yudhan (Tiger form) characterised bu evasive hypnotic footwork with sudden pouncing attacks to take opponent down to ground fighting.
6. Hanuman Yudhan (Langur monkey form) characterised by low ground hugging baiting postures. It is strong in low high explosive adroit attacks to take the opponent down to the ground to destroy but quickly springing up so as not to get entangled in ground fighting.

Each of the Pentras (forms) are highly effective by themselvesm but when combined they are most effective.

KG: There is a huge variety in bladed weapons, what are your favourite weapons and why?

NS: Shaster Vidiya has the largest range of weaponry of any martial art in the world. To say that any particular one is my favourite is impossible. I get pleasure in training with all the weapons of the art in particular the mind and spirit.

KG: Some of our readers may have seen 'Gatka' (more popular Sikh martial art) being demonstrated around the UK on Sikh festivals. How is Shastervidiya different and why is it virtually unheard of, even in Sikh circles?

NS: Gatka is a Sikh martial exhibitionist art, which evolve under the restrictions of the British Raj in the 1860s. Shastervidiya is the original Sikh combat art that, under the restrictions of the British Raj, went underground. Due to Shaster Vidiya's secretive nature, not even many Sikhs now know of its true form. Today, because mention of Shaster Vidiya is still found in ancient Sikh texts, you will still occasionally hear of its name amongst Sikhs. Though on a whole at present the general Sikh public, including practitioners of Gatka, are confusing the tmasha (circus act) of Gatka with Shaster Vidiya.

KG: How easy and practical is it to learn?
NS: The self-defence aspect of Shaster Vidiya is very practical and easy to learn. On the other hand, the classical battlefield aspect of Shaster Vidiya with its classical Pentras and live blade sparring is extremely practical and effective in application, but it is not very easy to learn.

KG: Does it cater for women and children?
NS: Yes it does. Children, women and adult males are taught in seperate syllabuses.

KG: Do you have a grading structure like belts or sashes?
NS: No.

KG: In your opinion, what makes Shaster Vidiya unique as compared to Eskrima or Wushu?
NS: In terms of character, Shaster Vidiya is unique in its Punjabi Indian-ness. In terms of technique its unique in the vast array of strategies, tactics and techniques it enshrines, combining the six classical forms. Further, its uniqueness lis in the manner it combines unarmed techniques with weapons. Even the attire of the Akali Nihang warrior from his bracelets to the arrowhead protusion from the top of his war turban are but deadly weapons. Yet the most outstanding uniqueness of this ancient art, which strikes all its observers, lies in its exceptionally fluid footwork and technique.

KG: How long hav you been learning and teaching this martial art?

NS: Over 20 years.

KG: Are there many masters of this art?

NS: As guns became more popular the emphasis on this art decreased in the itinierant Akali Nihang armies. Today there are not many masters of this art alive. The ones I know, if still alive, are Nihang Baba Ram Singh in UP, India and Bhai Ranjit Singh of Patiala who has partial knowledge of this art. There are no doubt others in Budha Dal (oldest Sikh martial order established in 1606) but they being itinerant mendicants of secretive nature, are not easy to track down.

KG: Plesae tell us of any real-live encounters where yu have had to use this knowledge to protect yourself or others?

NS: In self-defence, it is taught to circumvent and avoid violence where possible. Only a fool goes seeking violence. Yet over the years I have encountered knife, stick, sword etc. attacks. One Nihang fool I disarmed and knocked out in Anandpur sought to shoot me. I have also encountered mobs in Delhi targetting Sikhs. Each time my Vidiya stood me well. In the UK I have had numerous indiviuals test my art in the Akhara. Our Baba Darbara Singh Akhara established in the middle of the 17th century allows for anyone to come and challenge the Akhara master. It is challenges that keep the Vidiya strong.

KG: Does one have to be a Sikh to learn this art?

NS: No, the art is open to all of any race, creed, religion or colour provided they make these three pledges:
Not to abuse the art.
Not to sell the art.
Not to teach anyone who does not pledge to the above two pledges.

KG: You don't have set fees - how are your classes funded?

NS: Each student according to his/her capacity, gives monetary contribution as they salute weapons and ancient Gurdevs at the beginning of each class.

KG: Thanyou for sharing your knowledge woth the readers of Martial Arts Illustrated.

NS: Its my pleasure, thankyou Krishna for giving me this oppurtunity to further propogate Shastarvidiya.

MahaKaal

 

[bydand]

Welcome to MT! Look forward to reading some more from you.

 

[Drac]

Greetings and Welcome to MT...

 

[Andy Moynihan]

Welcome aboard.