The Endless Journey

In essence: peacefull non violent marches. demostrations. Sit-ins, along with several effective boycotts which resulted in equal rights in all arenas of
The Endless Journey                       

    Recently in Atlanta, Georgia- Extrodinare martial arts expert/actor Gradmaster Michael Dee made a special pilgrimidge from his martial arts headquarters out of Cleveland, Ohio, in order to pay special homage, and respect at the Martin Luther King, Jr. Natiomal Historic Site.

 Grandmaster Dee is a national/ international martial artist with well over 35 years of actual training, and teaching experience within the illustrious field of martial arts. the various combat arts that he has intently studied and mastered are, Kajukenbo, Chinese Kempo Karate, Western Boxing, Muay Thai Boxing, and the ancient Egyptian/Asian martial arts known today as Kali and Escrima.

 In similarity to Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., Grandmaster Dee' combative spiritual training was influenced by a humble man from the far away east. In the case of Martin Luther King, Jr. it was the legendary Mahatma Ghandi that inspired Dr. King, Jr. to instrumentate and to execute the universal concept, and law of civil disobedience.

Tribute to GM Filemon " Momoy" Canete (+playlist)

An outstanding display of speed, power & precision that shows the complete excellence of the Filipino Martial Arts regardless of system.  

Sparring With Angel Cabales by Ron Saturno

"Why in the hell won't that damn ash fall.", I said to myself. It was damn embarrassing that an older man could walk through ten or twelve men and not only was he hardly breaking a sweat, but could do this and the whole while could keep a long ash hanging from his lip. J.C. Cabiero had brought his crew in from Merced, Ca., and Jimmy Tacosa was also there with some of his crew from the Bay Area.

Angel Cabales had asked all of us to attend the Saturday training session. We had been training on Wednesday and on a Saturday. For some reason the afternoon training sessions would be the ones where we stayed the latest. There were times that we didn't leave into really late in the night.

These were the times that we would sometimes just sit around and shoot the shit after training. These are the kind of times that I so dearly want to have again and also share with my students. It was an honor and a deep blessing to have sat at the knee of Angel Cabales during those late night training sessions

. He would keep us enthralled with his stories and just by his taking the time to talk with us about life. when people tell me how lucky I was to have trained with Angel Cabales: They can never truly understand how well that I know this. Manong Angel made you feel that you were the only one in the room that he was speaking to. He had charisma leaking from his diminutive frame. GM Carlito Bonjoc and myself had tried to do our best to avoid being the first ones to spar Angel. We continually gave our spot up to others. We thought that he would surely be tired by the time that he finally got to the both of us.

Come on...there were at least ten guys ahead of us that Angel was going to spar. He intended to take everyone one on one until everybody had a chance to spar with him and he was going to do this non-stop. Most of the students were already advanced graduates of either Jaime or Angel himself. He had never done this before that day and so we figured that it would take a toll upon him, because of the sheer number of people that he would have to spar.

Shit, were we wrong. As I was standing in line watching I could see the ash of his cigarette just get longer and longer, but it just wouldn't fall. I don't know what was more fascinating: Angel fighting a dozen men non-stop, or that he could do this without the long ash hanging from his cigarette not coming off while doing this. You could see the tip glow a little more bright red periodically. By the time that Carlito and I were getting to our turn, not only was there a really long hanging ash, but Angel was now really warming up and was ready to go full blast.

Now Carlito and I were gently juggling each other to be next. We both knew that we didn't want to be the very last one up. I can't truly say who was the last man up, but it may have been myself. Hell, I don't really remember too much about actually sparring Manong Angel that day, after all its been many years ago. But, what i can remember was a man in his upper years being able to go through at least a dozen trained men without breaking a sweat or dropping his ash off of the end of his cigarette. I do remember towards the end of the sparring session that he had a little perspiration forming on his forehead.

Now days GM Bonjoc and I get to periodically attend functions together. I know that he looks at me sometimes and wonders why I am staring at him. During those staring moments I am fondly remembering this time and moment that we shared so many years ago. There are many more. There are some things that we can never ever forget, it is how we are made. We can't help this. There are a lot of men that I have met who have out grown their teachers. They say this and they say that about their teachers. I say that I will never forget Angel Cabales, because of the many gifts that he gave me and the honor that it was to have been trained by him. As I write this I am picturing that long ash hanging from his lip. God Bless you Manong: If they allow smoking in heaven light one up on me.

Speed, Flow, & the Joy of Play-Play with a Short Stick by Ron Saturno

Master Ron, "You do a disservice to the FMA Community Sir, by using a short stick for your demo's on Youtube." Using a short stick makes you look faster than is possible. "We will sometimes talk about you Serrada short stick users in class", he told me. Obviously, the short stick using Serrada players have pissed in peoples pots of adobo again. So I tell him, " I don't use a short stick." And then I tell him that, "I slow my hitting down so it can be seen on video. In the old days guys would stop me for banging their pretty sister's and/or cousin's. Times change, but I'd rather get complaints about my indiscretions than my speed. I'd rather fight about something that I did with someone's sister than fight over the years that it took me to develop unconscious speed. I had been walking around the San Jose, Ca. Flea Market yesterday with a small piece of ballistic material hanging from my belt with my name and the U.S. and Philippine flag embroidered upon it. It is supposed to be used as a stick bag tag or on my luggage bag. I wanted to have a few more made at the Flea Market. It was a birthday gift from Master David Mah. He had it sewn overseas. The guy recognized my name and struck up a conversation. The guy looked stout and I really didn't want to imitate a star wars light saber scene, but with real weapons on an otherwise good day. So I asked him, "Do you have a sister?" Yes, he says, I have three sisters,"But they are in the Philippines and have never came to the U.S." So I then relaxed and started chatting with him. Are you sure about your sisters?", I asked. He then said, "Why do you keep asking about my sisters?" "Oh shit", I think. I answer, "You look like a girl that I once knew." I tell the guy that I developed speed in order to deal with what I learned in play-play. He then says, "What is play-play?" Play-Play is when you stand around with padded sticks and play-play. I had been swinging sticks for a long time. Yet, when the light padded sticks came out, it was really hard to deal with the speed of the play, because my footwork couldn't keep up with the speed of the weapons. My foot work that I really can depend upon is practically nullified and can even be negated when weapon speed increases beyond a certain point. Padded stick play is extremely fast and is almost too fast for the mind to properly deal with. And so I developed swift weapon speed to use against guys that slither back and forth and attempt to use their foot work as a means to defeat me. I also use weapon speed to quickly come behind a regular blow during a sparring match, because the tempo change is unexpected by an opponent and I can usually score if I had wanted to. I use weapon speed to increase the number of hits that I can deliver within a given amount of time. I would use weapon speed and accuracy to hopefully end a fight quickly. Mohammed Ali did say that, "The firstest with the mostest is the bestest." Yet, just hitting something, even anything first, is not the end all of end alls. Hitting at the right time in the right way is truly what it is all about. I like to hit where it's least expected, least wanted and hopefully never seen, but just felt. Now I'm talking about the good shit! I can take a normal Escrima player and pick their speed up appreciably. And oh how they will fight me. They will huff and puff and tense up and argue with me. They will fight me every step of the way sometimes, because they just can't believe that what I teach to actually use, really is actually usable in a combative situation. I teach simplicity! I teach natural flowing responses against men with nasty and evil intentions. The real problem that they will have is my slowly taking away what they took so many years to learn. Some are bound and wrapped within their respective systems. Sometimes I have to tell them that, "If you want to get your ass kicked as a died in the wool member of your school than go ahead, our training is over." I am not against "any" system. I am against holding on to your system when it no longer offers answers to the deep riddles that weapon fighting can usually offer us. I have had the opportunity to watch some really good Escrima players: As I have also had the enjoyment to watch some of these men teach. How they teach many times is "not" how they would really fight. I do not spar the way that I teach. I teach a basic system that allows a man to hopefully survive until he can accomplish an ability to flow! It is flow that I teach. If my system doesn't have an answer to a problem I will lovingly put my system on time out and search for the answer to my riddle. I later usually discover that my system had the answer, but I was too stupid to see it. Some men will keep a death grip upon their system's teachings. If their system didn't invent something than it doesn't exist in their hearts and minds. In the end flow is when you have to allow the moment to cut out most unneeded movements and if you are good enough...all unneeded movements. Flow is purity of movement. Flow is lightning with a stick or blade. Flow doesn't give a shit about a man's system or lineage. Flow is the perfect blending of mind, body and spirit. Flow is a beautiful example of actualized body mechanics. Flow is the quickest way from point A to point B. Flow is what the great Master's do when they dispatch you for your permanent dirt nap. Flow is a man who gives himself to the almighty and trusts the almighty to move for him. Every system aims for the achievement of flow. Some men acquire flow and some don't. Every system is a basic way to learn to achieve flow: Some systems are just better vehicles than others. But it is the desire of a man to become great at what he does that outweighs the system that he chose to be the vehicle he will ride toward his greatness. In the end, it is not about your system limiting you, it is about you limiting your system. You are the system and don't let anyone tell you otherwise.

The Trombonists Son Learned The Beats by Ron Saturno

My Dad was a trombone player. He sang with a professional voice. I can still hear his voice sometimes while walking around the house. He played some of the better venues in the 40's. When he was a 16 year old kid while in Hawaii someone had decided that he would play the trombone in order to fill out a make do band on a sugar plantation in Hawaii. I never got to hear him play a trombone, but was rasied on his great voice. In better days he might have become a noted singer. He was the one who started teaching me about music, although my training was with a retired Nun and a Baby Grand. Angel Cabales finished my classical music training. Lest anyone not know of my teacher: He was a truly gift Escrima Maestro who waved a very gifted stick. Many may not see any connection between an Escrima stick and music. They could not be more wrong. My rather inept knowledge of Escrima truly puts me in the back row of the Escrima Musicians Band. A third or fourth chair Escrima Band Member and I say this, because I've barely learned how to play with my stick on the off- beat. Oh, I'm good on the beat, but truly becoming a Maestro with your stick requires perfecting the off-beat and you're being able to effortlessly put your personal interpretation into your creativity and still remain true to your sheet music of survival. Some of this and some of that, some of the time is much harder than I could have ever imagined. To have stood near my teacher and in front of him and getting lessons in timing was truly priceless and something that I have honored and cherished for many a year now. Teaching what I gleaned from Angel Cabales has been my primary life focus. To be able to distill the totality of a very gifted martial artist and pass it on has not only been hard, but very challenging as well. To date, there has not been one of my students who I feel truly understands the truly gifted teacher that was mine and many others. Angel Cabales had MoJo. Just describing MoJo is an effort in itself, than teaching it becomes just that much harder. I do see a lot of men swinging sticks. Some talk a lot of shit before they start swinging and afterwards as well. As if that is truly needed. Now don't get me wrong, as an initial part of intimidation: I do get it. But, what I am talking about is walking up to another man and making your martial arts discourse with that other man a very part of the musical fabric of the Universe. For that moment of time, the performance that is transpiring between you and the other man becomes noted in the annals of time. It is not for anyone else, but your posterity. You will have made your mark, scratched the 33 LP of time. Wrote your name on the rock of ages. Scratched your name into the bark of the Tree of the Universe: Otherwise you are just another hairless monkey swinging a stick, like our many ancestors have done since time immemorial. Becoming a meaningful member of the Universe is quite a goal. Thousands will come and thousands will go. To play with your stick and display beauty and gift is my goal. Maybe someday I will be looked upon as my teacher, although I have a while to go, but this does not mean that I can't hope and pray for that day. But, it really Isn't about fame, nor adulation. It is about Mastery! So today I hope to put a little time in with my stick. Pushing and hoping for the day that I can look into the mirror and smile back at myself. On that day I hope to see Angel Cabales looking back at me with a smile as wide as mine will be.

Espada y Daga by GM Ron Saturno

Espada y daga. There is no way for me to put together the totality of my thoughts 
on this subject. Espada y Daga is a subject that vexes me and keeps me up at night. This is hard on my psyche because I really and truly believe in simplification. If I can't explain something in a few words or less: How in the hell will I be able to perform Espada y Daga under stress with another man who wants to make me even shorter, by lopping my head off. I have already tried to sue the City of Stockton for building its streets too close to my ass. They laugh at me. They talk to me about shoes with heel extensions and finding shorter women to entertain my lonely nights. Most Datu Puti ni anang mo are tall and like to make fun of us short guys. I guess as long as us shorter guys can get our urine in the toilet, we are tall enough, according to the City of Stockton. Espada y Daga is like a fine wine, you must allow your Espada y Daga to develop over time. After many years of practice, it becomes rich and enjoyable, just like a finer wine. But, I am a peasant. I've never cared about the absolute finer tasting liquors. Give me a cheap beer and an even cheaper looking women at my side. If I am playing for keeps I'll truly be loving and faithful to my right type of woman, but just like my Espada y Daga: Please don't make me wait too long to begin enjoying myself. I'll soon try to find other ways to fullfill my needs. So I have looked high and low for the secrets of Espada y Daga. I have found many, but they were secrets revealed after a lot of hard work and pain. Espada y Daga is a part of my art that cannot be revealed to you outside of many sleepless nights, hard work and dedication: Just like everything else truly special. What a good teacher can do is cut a few miles off of your search and be able to show you where you will eventually arrive. There is an eventual destination: You hope to arrive at FMA Mastery. One of the things that I've listened to other Master's say, especially from the Philippines is that Espada y Daga "is" a true sign of Escrima achievement. A good Espada y Daga player can display true beauty, martial achievement, mastery and fighting ability when he shows his Espada y Daga skills. Many may bristle at my always mentioning my Master's skills, but this is out of respect and admiration. Angel Cabales truly displayed wonderful Espada y Daga skills: Skills that I can only hope to duplicate in my lifetime. Having spoken so highly of my Master: Did he impart his unique abilities to his student's? Yes and No. Some may believe that they may have surpassed Angel Cabales, but I have yet to see this with my own eyes. Angel Cabales had one thing that few of any of his student's have acquired: He had superb timing. Timing allows you to be behind your opponent and still beat them. Timing allows you to be slower than your opponent and still be faster. Timing to me has become "the" single most important focus of my martial training and I especially focus upon timing, when focusing upon Espada y Daga. Espada y Daga should be practiced to improve your timing. There it is! This is the secret that Espada y Daga reveals. You can be fast as hell and really accurate, but still be an average Espada y Daga player. It is not about hitting! It is about superlative movement under pressure. No matter what! No matter how they come at you! No matter how hard that they can hit! No matter how fearsome they swing their stick and the things that they say! Espada y Daga is the heart and soul of Filipino martial arts. It is the deep and fearsome fighting spirit of the Filipino people. It is Fuck You with weapons in your hands. The nature of Espada y Daga is to develop fighting spirit. It is about fighting any man, any place and at any time, "No matter what". Give me what you've got, as hard and as fast as you can and I'll defend myself and come for you. If you do not practice Espada y Daga in any other way you are wasting your time. Every Espada y Daga session of training will be different. No blow, stab, twist or strike form an opponent will ever be exactly the same. You must treat every training session as unique and different from the time before. Angel Cabales truly believed that Escrima had a spirit. The spirit would come to you when you were in need. Your heart had to be fearless to be worthy of the Spirit. I can only hope that who ever reads this understands my deep love of Espada y Daga and the wonderful benefits that may come to you with dilligent and faithful practice. I truly believe in Espada y Daga and hope that those who may begin to engage in the practice of Espada y Daga grow to love this beautiful aspect of Filipino Martial Arts as much as I do.

Espada y daga. The capstone of Escrima mastery by Ron Saturno

Espada y daga. The capstone of Escrima mastery. Blade and dagger to the less informed. In Serrada Escrima we defend against the blade and dagger with just our sword. If you have never faced an Escrimador with good espada y daga skills, you have no idea what you've missed. You have not been under the pressure of having an almost simultaneous two sided attack. You have not had a pesky dagger cutting your arms and hands while you are dealing with the sword. A hand check is now lethal when they have a dagger in their hand. Blades seem to come at you from out of no where and at the wierdest times and angles. Sometimes you only feel the blade and never know how you got hit. Espada y daga makes you feel like a girl on her first date with a sixteen year old boy. Your are constantly getting touched, because they want you to lay down right away. I am always tickled at the comments that I get by other Escrimador's outside of my system regarding the Espada y daga footwork of Serrada Escrima. They watch our feet and marvel at the switch stepping. They want to know why we do what we do, when we do Espada y Daga. Historically Serrada is an Espada y Daga art. Our system is based upon Espada y Daga. Angel Cabales taught our system as a dueling system. Our system was designed to fight other good Escrimador's. Many Filipino system's were originally 3 or 5 strike systems and that is all that they needed. Our system is a 12 angle of attack system. Angel Cabales prepared us for any attack under the harshest conditions. Espada y daga was the principle way that he prepared us for battle. Serrada Escrima is a complex system and it takes many years to really understand and especially Espada y Daga. It should be taught one on one to a student. My system cannot be taught properly in a group setting. Many people misunderstand my complaints about needing student's. I could give a shit about teaching numbers of student's. I want 2-4 devoted students at all times to really teach the old ways to. Most students cannot survive my teaching methods. I am not harsh or cruel. I simply demand excellence and it is hard to find this type of student. I don't want to hear too many excuses. I only want to help make you the best that you can be. I'll do my damndest to help make you one bad mother fucker. Many people talk the talk, but just can't walk the walk. Pussies need not apply. The whole basic concept of "basic" Serrada Espada y daga is to put you in the lion's den. You square up with your training partner. He has a blade and dagger and you just have a blade. He comes at you from both sides and you must defend against his blows. It requires that you constantly switch your foot work, without changing the distance between you and your deliverer. Keeping the proper distance insures that neither training partner gets hit. It also makes the reciever feel extreme pressure, because he has to remain in front and center of his deliverer. It is a bad place to be. Remaining inside is dangerous when facing a double bladed attack. This is basic Espada y Daga. In real life you want to go outside as soon as possible, but we train our student's to be able to survive front and center long enough to get outside. Espada y Daga can grow from there. Both men holding blade and dagger? A knife against a blade and dagger? Hands alone against blade and dagger? I've done all of it. I must tell you that going against a good blade and dagger man is lunacy with just your hands. I have had really good goose sized eggs put on my skull for trying it. But I am a nut. But, I believe that this type of training can really increase someone's abilities as Escrimador's. Would I try it in real life? In a word "yes", if I had to. I might at least be able to poke your eye out and make you walk around the rest of your life a one eyed cock-sucker. I just wanted to explain the foot work of basic Serrada Espada y Daga. I watch the video of Serrada on Youtube and wondered if most people understood what we were doing. We do not ever see advanced Serrada Escrima Espada y Daga on Youtube. I really don't know why? But, what the hell. I don't put any up myself. Maybe some things should stay in house.

Simplicity Of The Figure 8 By Ron Saturno

The simple figure eight. Escrima's bread and butter attack movement. Thrown with or without a firm grasp upon the stick or blade: The figure eight is and will remain frighteningly effective. Few movements in Escrima offer quite as hard an exasperating riddle to solve. Figure eights come at you in almost one unbroken movement. The first portion of the figure eight can deflect your weapon off line and the next almost seamless strike can be the finishing blow. The figure eight is a one-two and almost evil combination that is an unquestionably very hard riddle to solve in the heat of battle. When the figure eight is thrown at you with weapons that have any reasonable weight: The figure eight conundrum becomes an even harder riddle to solve. Imagine a given distance between yourself and an opponent. Imagine that you are one beat from one another. It will take at least one full beat for you to clear the distance between you and your opponent to deliver a meaningful strike. Your body cannot clear the distance between the both of you faster than your opponent can begin his first revolution. I repeat: You cannot easily clear the distance between you faster than he can deliver his first revolution. All your opponent has to do is wait, twirl his wrists and watch you stress. Your bodies given mass is harder to move around than the lighter mass of his arm. If he can deflect your weapon, hit you, or avoid your first strike: He can possibly finish you with his next revolution, especially if he can get off the line of your attack. One-two and you may be through. Even if the man starts his attack behind your attack and he than comes in behind your first strike with his second blow (especially) off line: He can still beat you to the first hit even tho he started behind you, by connecting with his second hit. Who is faster between two men? The one who hits first! The figure eight is a bread and butter movement that has worked in jungles, in alleys and bars and may have dropped more opponent's than any other Escrima combination because of its utter simplicity and ruthless effectiveness. I have been tagged in my back yard more times than I care to remember by the bread and butter figure eight. No complicated movements and setups have hit me more than the simple figure eight. Let your attention or timing wander just a little bit and the sound you are soon hearing is a stick bouncing off of your body. Angel Cabales loved to attempt a figure eight attack with a beginning back hand and then immediately coming back up with a return blow and repeating the process. He said a good Escrimador should than go to a tighter figure eight as a response to the repeated down and up blows. It works. If you can break your opponent's timing or strike a hand, you should immediately come in with a finishing blow. Unbelievably simple, but effective. I wanted to give my teacher's response to the figure eight attack. I have developed other answers and hope to put up video to explain my reasoning. Seeing is believing. We are not going to the mountains, but are going fishing tomorrow. Maybe, we can shoot some video between fish. Everyone please have a great weekend. By the way my graduate Master has just promoted his first Master in the U.K. Escrima has a newly minted Master. I want to Thank Master Lee Gagnon for his hard work, it is deeply appreciated. Here here!

12 hours ago · Stockton, CA

Outside Comfort Zone & Inside Personal War Zone in Seconds... by Master Ron Saturno

Today I am going to cross some very set and determined lines, regarding the study of martial arts. I am going to write about letting yourself go. I am not talking about having several more drinks or letting your panties fall quickly to the floor: I am talking about letting yourself go in a martial way. Some people balk at martial artists for their freely using the term: martial artist. They say that what we do as martial artists has little to do with war.

Well, if someone attacks me, it may be "just" a battle between two pugilists, but to me although it may be a small war, a war it is: So I freely call myself a martial artist.

You call it what you may, but anyone who firmly states that they wish to harm me and than acts upon their stated purpose is an enemy: And you can't have a war without an enemy. We may be one man armies, but a war it is going to be.

We will never be able to compute the countless hours so many men and women have devoted to achieving martial prowess. They choose a martial system, or several systems and many become devoted to their system's, teacher's, fellow student's, schools and way of life. Some will willingly die for their system, teacher and fellow student's. There may be other ways to achieve martial prowess, but as far as they are concerned: There is no other way than their way. Other martial practitioner's are much more ecclectic and Bohemian in their search for martial prowess. They will shop, steal, borrow and accept and adapt parts of other system's teaching regimens and formats. Fighting to the death over who has the best system is the furthest thing from their mind. They started martial arts in order to survive being attacked: Willingly putting themselves in harms way, in their mind is foolish and they do have a very valid point.

People who want rank and the structured way to achieve rank and martial knowledge, tend to fall on the traditional side of the fence. People who care little for rank and prefer broad based skill knowledge and effective and realistic combative street applications, tend to fall on the other side of the fence. They seldom meet upon middle ground. Both groups are martial artists, but both groups are usually as far apart on agreeing upon all things martial, as Republicans and Democrats. It's a free country...kind of anyway nowdays: So you picks 'yer poisen, belly up to the bar and start slingin' 'em down,"Your chosen brand of martial way spirits of course". Both ways of doing things are great.

Some people have certain mentalities and are driven to choices by their very make-up. They many times couldn't help but choose certain ways to do things: They can't hope to do things in any other way. So wasting time trying to be what you are not and doing things that you just don't want to do is self-defeating.

Figure out who you are martially and do it quickly: Time is a wastin'. In the end both groups seek the same path and even in the same way, as much as they would forever argue the point. Neither member's of either group seldom achieve martial prowess without countless hours perfecting their craft. However much we downplay set structure or non-structured practice of the martial arts: The big winner's will always be the men and women who simply buckle down and suit up and play regularly. Both types of practitioner's will start seeing patterns within movements. Both groups will start seeing similarities between themselves and other practitioner's. It has always amazed me that we don't have a Universal Martial Arts Society.

 Show me upper level practitioner's of most systems displaying their respective art's and wether they are hard or soft sytem practitioner's, they look alike. The harder get softer and the softer get harder. When upper level martial practitioner's stop trying to do things against their nature and start following the dictates of the physical underpinnings of the Universe: The are not only a whole lot smarter, but a whole lot faster, deadlier, than they ever hope to be following a set script, or trying not to follow a set script.

 In the end: The very best martial artists simply follow the voice that has always been whispering in their ears. That voice to me is the very voice of God. Please don't contact me pointing out my need for medication. God does talk to us. When we really start listening to our bodies (stop hearing )and it's relationship to its surroundings....and when we calm our minds and learn to achieve absolute focus: Strange and wonderful things happen. We start becoming one with he moment. We will start doing the appropriate move at the appropriate time. Trying "not" to do the movement in a certain way as well as trying to do a movement witin the guidelines of a particular system, is self-defeating. When we reach this level we will have transcended our system or non-particular style.

We can never be thankful enough for the teacher's or system's along the way who helped us achieve liberation from mental and physical bondage. Am I advocating the throwing down of my beloved Serrada Escrima? Hell no. I am advocating the one thing that I will willingly seperate myself from my art for: The love of God. The highest level martial practitioner's usually practise oneness with the infinate. Do you love Allah? The Buddha? Yahweh? The first 40 some odd letter's of the Old Testament? I will not judge you, because there is only one God and his true name is beyond our knowledge. Feeling God in your movements and depending upon him in a time of need is not only very deep, but the highest expression of martial ability. Putting yourself in the hand's of God when the time of need comes is priceless and exceedingly great. The great ones greet their possible death with calmness and resignation. They watch their opponent with sadness and absolute focus. They are one with themselves, their opponent, the moment and with the almighty: What comes comes. In the word's of my Bahala na Escrima Brother's: Bahala na.

The Origins of Eskrima By: Dr. Ned R. Nepangue

The Origins of Eskrima By: Dr. Ned R. Nepangue 

We can only make a guess as to the origin of Eskrima/Arnis/Estocada since there are no conclusive written records available in the archives to assist us in our research (that is, if we are really serious about this).

Earlier writings did mention in passing something regarding pre-Hispanic martial arts in the islands.

But we should remember this, that the earliest Europeans who visited the islands did not know the native languages, were not familiar about the native culture at the time, were ethnocentrists, and were in the Orient primarily to look for spices and not to do research on martial arts.

Nobody can really say what kind of martial art these early travelers saw (if that was truly a martial art) when they first came that summer.

We cannot even say that it was Kali they saw, since they were not familiar about martial arts (like Don F. Draeger, Robert W. Smith, or Mark V. Wiley).

Let us also take note that during those times, there was no unified form of government and people were not hooked in the Internet.

People in the archipelago then (and this is still true until today) speak many languages, thus what was true in the island of Panay then, was not necessarily true in the nearby islands of Cebu or Samar.

Forcing ourselves to believe that Eskrima/Arnis/Estocada is something pre-Hispanic even without enough proof to support the theory is not advisable.

We only have the following objective facts to help us prove or disprove the current theory of the origin of the eskrima or arnis.

Fact 1

No written records available, which describes what this allegedly pre-Hispanic martial art of Kali really was and there is no evidence to prove that Eskrima/Arnis/Estocada martial arts are related to the art of Kali.

Earlier writings mentioned how good those early natives were in hand-to-hand combat.

These early European adventurers were maybe accurate in their appraisals since they were soldiers/fighters themselves and knew what was good form and what was not.

But still the same, these available literatures do not give us details as to what Kali really was.

So Kali can be everything, it can be stone throwing, wild boar hunting, yo-yo playing, etc.

Fact 2

Research found out that the natives in the islands before the Europeans came used shields and spears, weapons that are no longer visible in the majority of the contemporary Eskrima/Arnis/Estocada schools.

If it is true that Kali is the martial art practice by the ancient warriors in the islands then it must have included the use of the tameng or shield and the bangkaw or spear.

Since the art of Eskrima/Arnis is derived from Kali as some suggested, then it must have these weapons included in the curriculum.

Tameng is still useful even in the modern times; in fact, riot police are still using this contraption to control angry crowds.

Spears, on the other hand, are still found in many other martial arts.

Fact 3

The claims that historical personalities like Lapu-Lapu, Tupas, and others were really into Kali or Eskrima remained unproven.

Some so-called authorities of Filipino martial arts (FMA) always associate names like that of Lapu-Lapu to Eskrima, as if they were around already in 1500s.

The funny fact is they could not even provide name(s) of who's who in the latter years (in the 1600s, 1700, 1800s) to strengthen their claims.

How one could claim he is the great-great grandson of the great Mr. So-And-So if he does not even know who his biological father is?

Fact 4

All Eskrima/Arnis styles share more common traits than differences.

The Filipino stick fighting in many ways is really different compared to other stick fighting systems in the region.

The Eskrima styles as practiced by many Ilocanos in the far north of the archipelago are basically familiar to the styles found in the south, in the Visayas.

There maybe differences in some expressions but generally speaking they are the same.

Fact 5

Practically all Eskrima systems/styles are practiced only in the Christianized groups (or those who are under the direct influence of the Spanish conquistadors for 333 years), and that no known Eskrima system/style is found among those peoples in the hinterlands of Luzon, among the Lumad and the Muslims in Mindanao.

The Spanish colonized the islands for 333 years, but they were not able to convert the entire population to the Christian faith.

There were many ethnic groups left who were not directly controlled and influenced by them.

Many of these groups are slowly assimilated still retain many of their pre-Hispanic practices.

But if the theory is true that Eskrima and the like is something originally pre-Hispanic, then at least one of these many tribal groups could show us sampling of a functional Eskrima-like stick fighting art, but there is none.

Fact 6

A link between Kali and Silat styles is yet to be proven, both are really different in form and substance.

Many creative Eskrimadors want to have this "Moro motif" integrated to their styles.

In actuality, Eskrima/Arnis has nothing to do with the Muslim groups in the south who have their own very beautiful and lethal martial art of Silat.

Many people foolishly attempted to establish link between the two, but until now they could not provide us enough evidence.

In books and articles on Eskrima, they always include stories about juramentado just to add dramatic effect, but in reality all of these, has nothing to do with Eskrima/Arnis.

Some insist that some of these Muslim tribes do practice some form of Kali art. But if we inquire what tribe is that, they could not readily give answer.

Some say it is in Sulu, but if we ask further which part of Sulu? Again there is no clear answer.

Since the 70s, when this claim first appeared, and until now nobody can really give the correct answer.

Why?

Well, the truth of the matter is, there is no Kali in the Moroland.

Just a pure fantasy.

Is it possible to invent stories and fool the martial arts community?

You bet!

If you are familiar with the story of the Neolithic they reportedly found in Mindanao called Tasaday, you will easily understand how/why.

In Eskrima/Arnis, emphasis is on weaponry first then unarmed fighting later, but in Silat they have the weapons training only later.

Fact 7

About 65% of technical terms used in all Eskrima/Arnis/Estocada styles developed and propagated by many linguistically diverse ethnic groups are of Spanish origin.

The Spanish language was never totally adapted by the Filipinos unlike those in other former colonies of the North and South America.

This was because the colonial authorities in the Philippines did not encourage the natives to learn the language.

For three centuries, only the elite and the educated could speak and write the Spanish language.

A strange fact is, a great percentage of technical terms used in Eskrima/Arnis/Estocada (and even the supposedly pre-Hispanic Kali styles) are in Spanish, the language most Filipinos then (and now) did not speak.

This is also the language used by the authorities who outlawed the practice and propagation of this native martial art.

If the practitioners at that time were forced to practice in hiding, then why did they not use their own respective languages and dialects instead of using Spanish?

Fact 8

The connection between Kali and Indonesian martial art of Tjakalele is not yet proven.

Tjakalele is practically just a war dance originated in the Mollucas.

It uses spears and shields, the weapons, which are not found in 99% of Kali schools.

Words like Kali and Tjakalele may sound familiar and related but this not proves anything that both are actually related.

Fact 9

The suggestion that Kali is the root word of some words found in different Filipino languages and dialects is not based on linguistics, in fact a study on this claim is yet to be made.

Important pre-Hispanic household words like diwata, Bathala, datu, ulipon are still understood by many and this same is also true with words associated with the warriors, like bangkaw, baraw, tameng.

So what is supposed to be the ancient name for the Filipino martial art? Kali?

If it is Kali then, why don't we find this word in dictionaries of the different Filipino languages and dialects?

In fact, this particular word was just "re-introduced" years ago.

Kali is never a traditional name for the native martial art.

If one goes to a secluded place in Cebu, for example, and ask those Eskrima old-timers there if they know what is Kali, the will probably say they don't know. And these people are supposed to know better.

Fact 10

The earliest technical description about Eskrima/Arnis was available only lately.

The very first known book available in public was Placido Yambao's book in 1957.

Fact 11

Many modalities in Eskrima/Arnis/Estocada techniques like espada y daga are also found in European fencing arts.

Fact 12

The once Spanish colony of Venezuela in far away South America also have their own form of stick fighting.

The Garrote Larense stick fighting art of Venezuela reminds one of Eskrima.

There must be a connection between these two martial arts somewhere and further research is needed.

Fact 13

It is baseless to say that Eskrima and Arnis are just phases of the natural evolution of Kali; that is, Kali being the original form, Eskrima and Arnis the modern and diluted equivalents.

Kali that we can see today doesn't differ from Eskrima/Arnis.

Some say that Kali is on blades while Eskrima/Arnis more on sticks implying that Kali is more combative, realistic and original form while Eskrima/Arnis as sanitized intended for sports.

But in places where the word Kali is not the traditional term used, the Eskrima/Arnis also included the practice of the bladed weapons.

In fact, many of those who categorize their styles as Kali were actually derived from Eskrima/Arnis styles.

Fact 14

There is no lack of good blacksmiths and is not the reason why many Eskrima/Arnis fighters use sticks now instead of real blades.

Many good Eskrimadors are not found in areas known for their machete-making skills.

Many panday or sword smiths do not know Eskrima and it is never mentioned in the Philippine history that Philippines were running out of bolos.

Fact 15

That the theory proposed is actually not corroborated in the works of the experts of the Philippine history, anthropology and sociology.

Intertribal war was a reality especially before the islands became a colony of Spain.

When there is war, there are warriors, weapons, and military arts.

If Kali was a military art, then history books in high school and college must mention it.

I do not remember reading a word Kali in our history books when I was still in high school and college, instead in our world history I read words like samurai, katana, etc.

Books of anthropology must also provide details about it.

It is not mentioned, not because historians are not interested, it is simply because there is no sufficient information about it.

So, basing on the aforementioned facts, we can only offer logical comments as to the possible origin of the contemporary Filipino martial arts (a bigger portion of which is the Eskrima/Arnis/Estocada/Kali).

It is basically a product of Filipino creativity and no doubt whatsoever, it is very Filipino.

The bulk of its repertoire was developed during Spanish colonial times, and plausibly it got its inspiration from European fencing concepts and practices.

It was greatly developed and refined (and the evolution still continues) only here in the islands of the Philippines

Master Ron Saturno Gives Back to the Veteran Community

My honey worked Saturday morning and there was someone who needed to be trained. It was a perfect opportunity to ask a former soldier to meet me for training. The necessary connections were made and at around 09:30 hours on Saturday morning we met and began training. The trainee was a former member of several U.S. Army Airborne units. He was wounded in time of battle and generally worn down by repeated jumps. I began his training with classical Serrada Outside number 1. He was asked to begin practicing the movement set and meet up with me again on Wednesday of this week. He is now forced retired and was referred to me by Master Michael Schwartz of the Wounded Warrior Project. I'll train this man for free and hope that I can find ways to work around his disabilities and allow him to be able to fully make an account of himself in a time of need. I hope to give back to my country, my teacher and my system of martial arts. I showed him a variety of fixed position combat techniques that require little movement and that are quite capable of being used for self defense. I seldom show these techniques in public, because they appear non-nonsensical to the untrained eye and would only make me available for public derision. I showed him Mano Viejo techniques that are based upon right-eye manipulation and the drawing and pushing of an opponent by breath control and mental focus. We are talking about pamako and tagabalag, or the freezing of a person and the art of invisibility. Freezing and the art of invisibility are ancient Filipino martial techniques that are shrouded in time and seldom seen by most modern practitioner's of Filipino martial Arts. I am a baby in these techniques and I am stumbling along the path of learning. I have nobody to train me any further. I froze my student a few times, drew him too me effortlessly, controlled him by mental focus, breathing and relaxation. Whatever else that I do and how I do it, is beyond me. I have no idea where all of this leads, but my hope and desire is that it just gets better. I will say that pamako and tagabalog are nothing what I thought they would be. It is about a clear mind and not having a desire to harm someone, it is about no desire. If they do not attempt to harm you, than without their commitment, the techniques won't work. They will harm themselves by their own devices. It is about a cleansed mind with a blank slate of any intent. You simply allow something to happen. You cannot have any desire to harm, maim, break, dislocate, nor destroy. You simply open yourself up and let the energy which permeates all things, do what needs to be done. I honestly believe that using such energy for harm would be harmful to the person attempting to use it in a wrong way. That's it. I suppose that you could use the techniques in a wrong way, but I wouldn't know how to do this. I have found "a" way and will simply follow along to wherever it wishes to take me. This is why I really don't show much in public. I feel myself keying up and worry about harming my student in public, because of forcing the techniques, remember, it works "for me" when I simply let everything happen. When my student and I are alone we both can relax and just flow. I don't need to show particular techniques, or worry about displaying my art in a gracious fashion to the public, because I represent Angel Cabales. Angel Cabales exposed me to these things many years ago when he showed something to me when Jimmy Tacosa was visiting. He asked me to block a technique and I repeatedly attempted to block his hit and he just wasn't there and the next thing I knew he had placed his weapon on my shoulder and I had no idea how he had accomplished this. He had frozen me and had also disappeared. I quit Escrima that day, because I knew that I would have been effortlessly killed by him and I also knew that I would have to discover what he did on my own. Hell, if you don't know what was done to you, "How the hell was I going to able to figure it out alone". Can I eventually teach these techniques to another human being? I don't know, but hopefully I can. Apparently, you have to humble yourself before you can be able to use the techniques that I speak of. The manipulation of energies could be immense. You can lock someone's skeleton and cause great harm with minimum effort. Once, when training wit Bob Stewart and Anthony Lo Presti I grabbed a hold of Anthony and we both felt a great deal of energy. I knew that had I continued my throwing technique: I felt tat I could have thrown Anthony 20 feet away without effort. I had focused my mind upon his wrists and when I started moving, it was as if he was being tugged by a hugely powerful machine. I wish that I had full control of these techniques. It's like reading the old accounts of past martial artists. A wounded warrior in possession of these abilities would have little problem, in defending themselves. Even if I can't Master these techniques, or not be able to teach this to a wounded warrior: I will do my best to do so. I can only hope that he stays with me and becomes an accomplished warrior, it is a fond hope.

True Martial Ability ... by GM Ron Saturno

Manong Angel, "You are teaching me outside number one. I first step out to my left after he strikes to the left side of my neck or head and then I must swing my right foot back behind me to re-align my body. Why?" He could have said because "he" said so, but instead smiled and calmly answered my question. Manong Angel answered my question very simply, as he answered most Escrima related questions. He had an innate ability for answering (we felt) complicated questions very simply and that many of us (his students) found very perplexing. Answering my questions very simply was a blessing, because at times I was truly a dumb-ass. I found mystery in the very fiber of Serrada Escrima. Serrada was a deadly art form from a far off Archepalego. Small brown men with fabulous fighting abilities was fascinating. His art had mystical beginnings and hidden origins, yet Manong Angel's answers were never mysterious at all, but were simple, direct, always pushed effectiveness and were usually deadly answers to deadly questions. He always answered simply, but I have grown to discover that taking complex information and being able to distill the information down into simple answers, truly requires thorough knowledge of a subject matter. If you can't answer something very simply: You probably don't really understand the question, or the subject matter. This is where I developed my saying that, "Simple movements practiced over time become deadly". Utter simplicity in my martial arts was something that took years for me to understand and that I have yet to even begin achieving. Simple and direct beats complicated most of the time. Perfect basics are unbelievably hard to perfect and even harder to overcome. To me, a well thought out martial art has to be inherently fast by design, must be easy to apply, must have redundant movements, should not require great physical strength or speed and these are stringent requirements. Asking these things of any martial art is quite a request. Many arts propose that their arts posses these qualities, but unless the individual practitioner of an art fully understands a system's underpinnings and can display their art effectively: Their claims are just words. I didn't know of these things decades ago, nor even cared to know of such things. I just wanted to hit someone, before someone could hit me back. I needed to believe that Serrada Escrima possessed mystical powers and was unbeatable against any opponent. We live and we learn. What the years of practicing my art have done for me is to slowly bring me to the conclusion that "any" art form only provides a theoretical frame work to start from and that if we remain within the given arts basic guidelines, the art form can and will many times get us home safely, if the art is well thought out. Yet, at some point in any martial artist's growth: He must start releasing shackles and the restraints of his parent art and venture forth alone and at times, very lonely. He has to make himself the martial art and not have the art form make him. Any art form is just a guideline. In order for "you" to perfect your self: You must become the guide and "you" must perfect yourself. What someone said or did to help you perfect your self, how ever much appreciated, will never be truly understood by you, until "you" can fully decipher the true meanings of the words and movements given to you and this can only be done when "you" make the effort to do so. In the end,"You may not be seeking to pit your knowledge against your Master's", or seek to develop a new and more improved art and I do see where this may happen. I am talking about fully understanding the underpinnings of your chosen art form by empowering your self. When we can do this...when we can fully decipher a system's movements, theories, applications and taboo's, then and only then do we fully understand our chosen art's. If we can learn to understand the physics of movement, human physiology, human anatomy, psychology, strategy, timing, etc., of man: Than we can move within the guidelines of our system's, or choose to go outside the guidelines at will if needed, because we are "not" limited by anything or anyone, we will understand what few seek and even fewer achieve: True martial ability.

100 mph Down I - 5 With SGM Angel Cabales in the Driver's Seat .... by GM Ron Saturno

Angel Cabales had a small light blue Buick, which he loved to drive fast. On this night he had been drinking a little and he, myself and Bobby Johnson were speeding down I-5 towards San Jose, Ca., to a GM Max Pallen event as fast as the little Buick could go. I knew my teacher's reflexes were superb, but never really knew how well he could use his superb reflexes to travel in between traffic so smoothly, so fast, so efficiently, in and out and around traffic without hitting something. We were rocketing down the freeway and after about 15 minutes out of Stockton with our speedometer pegged: I had snuck my hands under the seat and had retrieved the seat belt mechanisms and had quietly snapped everything together. Bobby saw me latching my seat belt together and laughed at me. He thought that he was on a theme park ride and was giggling like a little kid. He was sitting shotgun and I was in the back seat scared shitless. Angel Cabales was my Master and I would'nt ever dare say a word about his driving, but the thought starting crossing my mind that if I got home all in one piece: I'd be lucky. While he was driving, he started talking about many things, including family, travels and eventually Escrima. Both Bobby and I asked a few pointed questions, which he answered quickly and frankly. There were at least 20 much more important questions that I should have asked him that night. I now will never have the chance to ask him the many questions that I should have asked but didn't, but this is just true proof of my humanity. We always seem to hardly ever truly be in sync with another human being. We ask our women to really stay, when they are really leaving. We ask to keep our jobs when we are really heading out of the door. We do and say things that should have never have been said and done. We hit when we should have stayed our hands and feet and walk away when we should have gave our hardest blows. When we should have done or said something to or for others, we don't. We wait, we hesitate. We usually seem to do and say things at the worst of times and places, or not at all. We are indeed human.
I remember Bobby asking him about what it was like to challenge another man to a fight. Bobby felt that it was exiting and manly to fight, but never started fights on his own. Bobby didn't start fights, nor did he even want to fight at all. But, I did see him on several ocassions square up with much larger men and against more than one large man on an ocassion outside of a club in San Jose, Ca. In fact, in the San Jose incident, he squared up with two rather large bouncers with police flashlights. The bouncers were wrong in how they were treating Bobby. Eventually, the two bouncers actually backed down from him, because of his fearless attitude and matter of fact way of dealing with them. Bobby was a skinny Black kid from South Stockton, who didn't have an "off-switch". He didn't give a fuck and would roll on the ground with anyone, any place, any where and any size. Luckily, his Momma had instilled a lot of 'Ol Southern Baptist in him and the luck was in the favor of anyone fucking with him. Bobby had 11 brother's and sister's and fighting and standing up for yourself was just a way of life. Fighting was like breathing, it was just something that we had to do and he loved Angel Cabales for his ability to stand up for himself. When Manong Angel started telling a few stories: I just sat back against the cushions in the back seat, started relaxing and really started to enjoy the ride. Little did I ever guess that I would some day write parts of the ride down.
Angel Cabales said that he was never so alive as when he fought. What this meant is up to speculation, but he obviously felt the effects of adrenaline dumps, just like any one else. Did he become addicted to the rush? Was he like an old soldier who immediately comes alive at the first report of a weapon? Do Martial Arts' Master's get addicted to adrenaline? I can't personally imagine men of Angel Cabales's martial ability being addicted to fighting: Always looking to re-recieve the shots of adrenaline that they may actually need to feel fully alive. This is a scary thought and may in my mind go a long way to answer the whole issue of challenges. Putting everything on the line, must be a rush from hell. What higher stakes gambling can there be than betting your own life? Yes, winning a fight against another opponent gets you adulation and respect and this can and does have a lot of meaning to a Master of the Martial Arts, but only really feeling alive when fighting may have much more meaning....personally.
Angel Cabales said that everything slowed down for him before he fought. He felt like he was floating, like he was on a cloud. Like he had drank really good coconut wine and lots of it. When the blows started getting exchanged, he would see blows going by him, but they wouldn't hit him for some reason. He said that the hit that he would give that started the end of the fight wasn't ever felt by him, or that he ever really knew that it was "the" hit, because he never stopped hitting and only when the person fell or started cringing in real pain did he know that the fight was over. This is why he said that he always told us to keep "working". We would never really know when the fight was over, until it was over and to keep hitting until it really was. He said that he had seen men hit before by other men that should have fallen down, but were too stupid or pumped-up to fall down. He said that we should "never" depend upon one hit to end a fight. He than said that all of a sudden after a fight that he would find himself back in reality and everything was back to normal. He would re-join the real world.
Some of things he told us that night would only cause pain and strife within the FMA community, if I were to write them down. There is a lot of back-biting and double dealing within the FMA community. Some men won't pay up and it took a lot for Angel Cabales to allow this. Maybe, some day I'll write a little about these things, but not today. What I did want to share was a little bit about a ride taken by us going down I-5 going over a 100 mph.

Centered in Drill & Real Life by GM Ron Saturno

MySpace son-in-law was camping yesterday and it being a lazy Sunday, there was no one to work out with, so I sat down and pondered a few things and wrote them down. I thought a lot about the central position, its dangers and advantages. My definition of the central position is your being stuck between the left and the right hands and feet of an opponent. Angel Cabales was no fool, his instance upon our heavily emphasizing espada y daga training in our Serrada was not just because it was something to do, but something to perfect. His admonitions about facing an opponent blows as an example, was purely for survival value, but many times it is misunderstood. Facing blows was to help you survive an on-slought of swift and powerful blows. The admonition to face blows was to help you deal with getting caught in the central position and to get you out of that situation quickly.
If a person were to throw a machete blow over and toward the left side of my neck and I were to step inside and toward the blow and than performed an inside block: I do expose myself to his left hand and if the blow travels thru may be coming back from the other side and may find me with my feet and body out of position to deal with the new blow. If the opponent has a dagger in his hand, or decides to grab me: I am temporarily in real danger. I have willingly put myself into the central position. I may have put myself in this situation due to combat never allowing us to reply to attacks with textbook precision. We live in the real world, where attacks are sometimes met any way that we can deal with them. How can we turn this situation into our advantage? Angel Cabales felt that perfecting lock and block was a tailor made answer to this type of situation. First of all: The opponent's blade may be moving faster than our bodies can hope to move out of the way of the next blow in many instances. We have real issues and problems soon coming our way. Angel Cabales's answer was than "not" to "move" the body into a new position, by attempting to completely relocate it, but to use economical foot work to spin the body, or "twist" the body to meet the new blow and remaining in the same spot. Twisting our bodies is much faster than relocating it to a new position. We have to re-set our weight to take steps and every time we lift our feet leave ourselves vulnerable to attacks. It also takes precious time to re-locate our bodies, but twisting our bodies can be done via our heals or toes and this spinning can be done very quickly. We do leave ourselves in the central position when just spinning our bodies, but may be able to end the fight because we are hoping to get out of the central position as quickly as possible and if we do so, are in a much better position to end the fight. Facing all four corner's of an opponent, is simply dangerous.
I mentioned turning a bad situation into a good one. Using the right overhand machete strike to my left side of neck example: We stepped inside and are now facing the opponent's right side. I mentioned that he went thru and is than coming around with a strike to the right side of your neck or body, but "you" are still facing his right. You are weak on your right side. The safest way out is to "move" the body out of the way, if you can't immediately hit him. But, I mentioned that the body may be too slow to move to avoid the incoming blow, but it can be done, if we block or strike "while" moving the body and we do it in "one" direction, while doing so. If we step the body out of the way, we would need to step in the situationally dictated direction and block "while" stepping and all in one continuous motion and without hesitation and without any stops along the way. The general rule is that one of your steps to move your body equals one or more of your opponent's blows. This is a little understood rule by beginner's. If you just step without hitting or blocking and your opponent "is" continuously hitting, sooner or later he will get a hit in. But if we "hit" in conjunction with our stepping movements, we are continuously attempting to punish our opponent for trying to hit us. We step with purpose, hit with purpose, evade with purpose, spin with purpose. All in all, if we hit while steppng along with moving our bodies and understand angulation the next blow we throw may end the fight because of the superior position we put ourselves in, by going outside. Yes, going out side is safe. We should always be trying to move ourselves to a better neighborhood and that is usually outside of where we currently are. Remember we stepped out to get a superior angle on our opponent. If we just stepped out to avoid blows, we are hoping for luck to save us. Stepping out with purpose "makes" our luck. We don't have to stand around waiting for luck, when can make it for ourselves.
We can also simply sweep hit the other side in-coming blow using the example above. Sweep hit? Yes. The inside block we started with, is itself a sweep-hit to his right side. Any thing he could throw at us from his right side can normally be hit with a sweep-hit and the left side as well. Sweep hit means coming from the top down with your weapon and simply dropping the weapon "along" his side and just going down with the blow and it works for both sides. OK? He threw a blow to your left neck right? You struck his blow with a sweep-hit and he then comes around with a blow to your right side. You "don't" know if he will hit you high, medium, or low to your right side. All you know is that he's coming around now towards "your" other side, by starting your blade high and dropping it all the way down on his left side you can "catch" any blow he may throw, even feints, fakes-outs, abanico's etc. By starting your strike high and going low and facing the angle, there is no blow coming from that side that you can't block, if you time the hit correctly and strike hard. This is how you stop multiple hits, If you do have to block, pass another hit etc., you hit on the next blow. That is your focus, always make him pay for attempting to harm you. If you want his respect, hit him. If he's too fast and you want to slow him down, hit him. Is he big? Hit him. Did he bring friends? Hit him and then them. Is he talking shit with a weapon in his hand? Hit him, If no one is looking and you believe his threats are real towards you and members of your family, hit him. I do not condone violence, but hitting someone has a way of ending hostilities in your favor. I "am" talking about self defense. Anyone with a weapon in their hand and offering violence clearly meets the definition of a self defense situation.
I know that a lot of this is complicated to understand. But, what I wrote is very simple and direct. We want to treat multiple blows as one, quick blows as slow, powerful blows as weak and this normally can't be done without proper foot work and distancing. In the end: If you are in get out. If you are out, stay there. Developing a general feel for the situation really helps. Feeling out opponent's is a wonderful ability. In the end, quickly becoming a general and controlling the playing field, dictating the tempo and limiting your opponent's options may dictate the outcome of a fight. Make him or her fight your fight.
This one was hard to write. Many people practice to prolong fights. Either through frequent drills, sparring etc., and I myself love drilling. But, ending the fight within three blows should be "the" primary focus of training. It is said that you respond in real life how you've trained. If you train to prolong a fight you may respond this way when the bad times come. I once stood outside of a bar in San Francisco and watched my friend who could definitely kick my ass on most days, get his ass kicked by a much less skillful opponent. He blocked several punches and then stepped in with a reverse punch and "pulled it", because that is how he trained! The guy hit him with a relatively slow hook and knocked him down on his ass. Out came my little black book that I write important things down in, "Note: In real life you respond to a fight how you practice." There are a lot of guys making money teaching drills and I know many and like many of these very qualified men. I just wish the drills were pushed into usable techniques. I guess that we should go home and learn to use drills in real life situations, but many don't. They hope to use complicated drill techniques against simple blows. Good Luck.

Speak Softly But Carry A Big Stick or Big Pipe or Big Knife by GM Ron Saturno

Master Ron Saturno
Master Saturno you've been showing me  Largo, "Could you please show me Serrada now".  I then showed him some more Serrada based movements.  After a few more movements he gets the same puzzled look on his face that he had earlier and I then stopped and asked  him, "What's the matter?". You are still showing me Largo Mano movements Master Saturno, "I came to you to learn Serrada". I then answered him, "We will stop for the day and get back together another day"
. The next student in line to take lessons  who had been sitting upon a park bench said,  "Do you get  offended when student's ask too many questions Master Ron?". He was looking at the back of the prior student walking to his car. "No, I answered". That student came to me to learn Serrada. When I showed him movements and he constantly interrupted me to teach him Serrada, it was simply time for him to find another Serrada teacher, a better and more knowledgeable Serrada teacher. Never having taken "one" Serrada lesson, "How could he possibly know what Serrada was all about". He would fit better with a lot of other Serrada teachers, the fit wasn't good between us. I then asked the next student, "What is Serrada?". He answered me, "I think that Serrada is a close in fighting system". You would be correct I answered, "Is there more I ask?". He then said, "That is what I am here for Master, to learn more about the Serrada System". How could the last student learn more from me, if he already knew more about Serrada than I did
. The next student than said, " Did I answer the questions correctly?". Of course I said and than said," There are no right or wrong answers in combat. If you walk away than your answers were correct, if you don't than you answered your given situation incorrectly".  Walking into battle with a can-do attitude and a no-nonsense frame of mind with firm and practiced skills can go a long way to insure survival: Add in a little luck and you have a better than not chance of going home in one piece and not a body bag. I chose Serrada Escrima to get me home when times get bad, other's chose other systems and that's OK with me. But a man can go a long way with Serrada Escrima and I take my system as far as it can take me. It is better than most, but no system is the best. On any given day any body is as good as any one else. Luck, God and unforeseen circumstances can all have a part in survival. Nobody can rule out  life's ability to cluster fuck you  in an other wise peachy situation that "was" otherwise going  in your favor. FUBAR lives
.       For many years I've mastered the Kamakazi Serrada entries that we are so well known for. But, forgive me for learning  Largo at the same time. How can a man be expected to really understand the advantages of in close fighting without learning the disadvantages. How can a man learn Largo  Mano without learning the disadvantages of his preferred fighting weapon and range? That is why I usually use the 28' Escrima stick, it is a good balance between a short and a long stick. But, I can very  comfortably use a 36" stick and can go up to a 42" stick and can also go down to an 18" stick. I can use a long stick up close as well as come into fighting range against a longer stick with a short one. I want to be able to get busy with whatever is  with-in my reach. This is the reality of a thinking Master. We many times don't get a chance to pick  and choose our weapons, we have to do what we can do with what we have available.
A true Escrimador should feel comfortable with whatever weapon a given situation has  presented him. The age old arguement of what is a superior fighting length weapon means little to me. I can do Largo Mano and short inside fighting with a very short weapon. I can put the sticks down and use my hands and feet. Angel Cabales preferred a shorter weapon, it does not  mean that he couldn't beat your ass with any other size weapon. When I hear Serrada people and others speak about the advantages of the short weapon, it's OK with me. If I someone is going to  hurt me, "I just want  something to hit back with". A bat? Just peachy. A meat cleavor, butcher knife, golf club, OK with me. I'd really prefer  to just have something to hit you back with and this is the thinking that propels my Escrima thinking. Practicing with a prefered weapon of a given weight, length and material is OK. But, it seems to me that practicing with a variety of weapons of different sizes, weights and lengths adds a lot of survival value. All of this is kind of backing up the system of Serrada.
Serrada is "not" a close range fighting system anyway, it is usually a medium range system, that some became confused about because of the name Serrada. Many think that Serrada means "close". It really means "closed". Serrada means closed, because we close the door after every movement. Angel Cabales called it the locked position. This means closed and ready for the next movement. We fight medium range because this distance  Isn't  so close that we can't react to an attack and not too far that we can't take advantage of a given opportunity, which may come about in the fluidity of combat. Manong Angel usually didn't  include low line kicking, elbows, knees, eye jabs, etc. during normal practice, but this doesn't mean that many Serrada practitioners can't effectively perform close range hand and feet combatives. Many of Angel Cabales Master's and advanced student's  also hold ranking in martial systems other than Escrima: Karate, Gung Fu, Judo are some of the systems that students of Angel Cabales talk about from time to time. Many of Angel's students' have also cross-trained in a variety of other systems.
Many forget that Max Sarmiento, an early student  of Angel Cabales was also a knife hand Master. A lot of the early students were very lucky to have been exposed to Max Sarmiento. We can see Max today in various forms of Cadena-de -mano. I truly consider Max Sarmiento as one of the very best hand practitioner's that I've ever witnessed. Well, as you can see I am bored senseless. It's a mild 82F in Stockton, but the constant heat takes a toll on you. Hope all is well out there in Martial Arts land. Hope that anyone reading this has a little better understanding of what I do and the system of Serrada Escrima.

Master Teacher: An Expository Essay In Leadership .... By GM Jerome Barber

         It is my belief that a Master Teacher is someone who knows, understands and is very dedicated to the art and science of teaching.  A Master Teacher goes well beyond simply presenting information or training regimes to his/her students. Transmitting information or transferring knowledge is an important and necessary activity that must  happen with every new generation whether it is in a formal educational setting, an apprenticeship program, a job training program or martial arts academy.  There are some subtle yet significant differences between a trainer, a coach and a teacher.  The main difference is that a teacher educates his/her students for both the current moment and a future time which neither can fully anticipate or predict.  Trainers and coaches are usually concerned with preparing their people for the immediate short term successes of the times, here and now, without any real concerns about the long term future.  The Master Teacher educates his/her students by giving them both the physical and intellectual tools that they will need to make their own informed decisions about what directions to take in life.

            The life lessons that a Master Teacher provides to his/her students are not always obvious nor immediately understood by the students.  These lessons are realized and utilized later in life and in ways that neither the student nor the Master Teacher could have fully anticipated in advance.  One of the most important components of these life lessons centers on making the students independent from the tyranny of conformity and seeking the lowest common denominator as an acceptable standard of social existence.

            Those students who have learned to think for themselves, ask critical questions and research the possibilities and alternatives for themselves.  They will usually find alternatives to the standardized, generally accepted societal answers that give so much comfort to those people who are willing to accept the opinions of the so-called ‘experts’.  Those simplistic, canned, oft-recited statements that serve as the correct answers to our social and political problems are actually mental, social, intellectual and emotional blindness.  This type of socio-emotional blindness allows the emotionally insecure to escape taking responsibility for their own behaviors and ideas. 

We can see it so clearly in the martial arts when students cite the opinions of their instructors as hard and fast facts, beyond any need for questioning.  We can see it in instructors who refuse to get involved in calling into question the moral or ethical shortcomings of other instructors, because they do not want to get involved!  They were the people, who as students, followed the party-line and faithfully quoted their own instructors, word for word, idea after idea, until they were given their black belts.  We can see it in so-called martial artists who will jump from system to system and instructor to instructor until they find someone who promote them based on how much money they were willing to pay for those promotions.

             Master Teachers are the bane of every dictatorial minded person and their emotionally weak true believers in public as well as private life.  We can find those dictatorial personalities in every area of human activity including the martial arts. The Master Teachers are there as well and they offer a viable alternative to this conformist malady.

            Teaching is both an art and a science.  It is a learnable craft and there are formal institutions established for the express purpose training people in the art and science of teaching.  In the USA, we have teacher education colleges as well as teacher education programs in some larger colleges and universities.  There is no such equivalent in the martial arts systems as they are taught in the USA.  In fact most current martial arts instructors in the USA have never had a formal instructional training program made available to them.  For most martial arts school owners-operators they opened their schools with little to no formal training in the art of teaching.  They are engaged in on-the-job-training with their paying customers as their students.  It is very difficult for these instructors – owners – operators to move beyond being someone who coaches or instructs martial art students to the status of Master Teacher.  Set all the titles aside and simply look at what these coach-instructors are actually doing.  They are providing guidance and instruction in acquisition of physical movements and skills.  Punching, kicking, rolling, tumbling, grappling and weapons manipulations are physical skills or exercises for the body.  Beyond the cultural courtesies of bowing, training barefooted, learning some words and expressions, counting in another language, what life lessons are being taught by most martial arts coaches/instructors? 

This does not mean that all these coach-instructors are not skilled teaching professionals.  A good number of them are accomplished trainers with students who have earned many awards and lots of well-deserved accolades.  The problem is that these coach-instructors are focused almost exclusively on the development of physical skills in their students.

            Most of the coach-instructors teach what they were taught and in the very same manner in which they were taught.  They do not know how to develop a curriculum or lesson plan.  The do not have instructional alternatives for their students – they use a “one size fits all” approach and if a student is not successful within the confines of their program it is the student’s fault – the student is ‘defective’, has a ‘flaw’, lacks ‘heart’ or is not motivated for success within ‘our championship black belt dojo program’.  Coach- instructors are primarily technicians who are focused on physical skills development.  They are not well versed in character development nor have they mastered the critical principles of teaching and learning beyond the physical realm.

            Coach-instructors are generally at the center of attention while their student- trainees are interchangeable, disposable and continually replaced.  After all is said and done, the “magic” of success resides with the coach-instructor, not the student-trainee who went on the floor and performed in the competition with student-trainees of other coach-instructors.  The student-trainees will come and go while the coach-instructor will remain in place over a long period of time.  In the end it is all about the coach-instructor and what they were able to accomplish with their student-trainees in competitions.  Within the martial arts world there are a large number of coach-instructors who establish the training regimes and schemes that their student-trainees followed in the quest for championship medals and recognition.  We have to recognize and appreciate that it is the coach-instructors who have pushed their student-trainees through the physical training programs that focused on winning at the tournaments.  Their teaching methods were centered on providing the correct mechanical and technical skills development needed to win medals, but they did not intentionally work on helping their student-trainees to understand how those skills could be blended into other aspects of lives in society.

            Master Teachers are skilled people help their students to move beyond the mechanical and physical skills development.  They use the lessons taught in the present to prepare their students for future situations both inside and outside of the martial arts.  Master Teachers understand that they are involved in a ‘performance art’ which can be improved on and further perfected through practice and experience.  They are inclined to critically evaluate their own performances as teachers just as they will evaluate the accomplishments of their students.  Master Teachers demonstrate the importance of continual learning and the lifelong pursuit of knowledge through their active behavior on a daily basis.  They lead by example while clearly demonstrating to their students that they know, understand and live the maxim:

                  “Proper prior preparation prevents piss poor performances.” 

            Master Teachers place their emphasis on the intellectual, emotional, and physical development of their students.  They are not seeking the limelight; they do not need to be viewed as legends in their own time.  They understand that success is only possible if one has also failed from time to time and learned from those experiences.  As with coach- instructors, the students of Master Teachers come and go over time, the major difference is that Master Teachers encourage their students to learn the lessons well, and then move on, continuing to learn as they grow.  The Master Teacher is an educator, even if they are not working in a formal educational institution.  They bring out the very best in their students and prepare them for life in the future. 

            As a student I had the benefit of learning from and being under the guidance of a number of people whom I consider to be Master Teachers.  They were people who in some cases I sought out and in other cases I was assigned to them by some means without any input from myself.  I want to acknowledge and thank, Mrs. Whetstone, Mr. Harry Whitesides, Dr. Harry Randles, Dr. Sidney Willhelm, Sifu Don Zanghi, GM Tom Bolden, Ama Guro Billy Bryant, Gat Puno Abundio Baet, PG Eddie Lastra and MG Roberto Torres.

            Master teachers are leaders.  They lead by example and inspire others to accept the challenges of studying, learning and teaching.  They were teaching role models who presented learning as a lifelong pursuit and sharing as an ethereal gift to those who are able to accept it.  They are educators in mind and spirit who share a common bond even when they have never met or talk with one another because the gift of knowledge that they gave lives on through their students as well as their student’s students.

            No one can legitimately claim to be a Master Teacher.  It is not a title that one can confer on himself or herself.  The title is earned over time and comes from the accomplishments of your students as seen and understood by people totally outside of your sphere of influence.  A number of people have tried to claim the title, but they never accepted the responsibilities that always come with the designation, Master Teacher.  We all know a true Master Teacher when we meet him/her.  They never have to tell anyone that they are Master Teachers and they will not use that title to describe themselves.

Jerome Barber, Ed. D.,  
Grand Master and  Principal Teacher, 
Independent Escrima-Kenpo -Arnis Associates, 
Hamburg, New York.
 April 12, 2013