Most martial arts like many professions have a specialized terminology with many unusual words and phrases that can be confusing to someone unfamiliar with the art. The following is a glossary of the martial arts words and phrases that appear in this blog. If you have any questions ask them in the comments below.
Ba Gua (Pa Kua) -
Chi (Qi) – energy – a thermodynamic quantity equivalent to the capacity of a physical system to do work; the units of energy are joules or ergs; “energy can take a wide variety of forms”
Kun Tao – “Fist Way” – Indonesian kung fu – Chinese martial arts that have migrated to Indonesia. Kun Tao styles tend to be explosive, brutal and often faster to learn than their mainland counterparts.
Pentjak Silat -
Hsing I (Xing Yi) – An internal Kung Fu it’s name implies thought and action in unison. Xing Yi is based upon only five movements although many styles now have a bunch of animal based forms as well. This is a very powerful and direct art that is often compared to a crashing wave.
Qi – see “Chi”
Setia Hati – “faithful heart” This is an evasive style from central Java. Excellent timing and positioning skills allow one to maneuver behind an attacker.
Systema (The System) – An art from the Russian special forces (spetznatz.) This art utilizes relaxed and free flowing movement. It has no set techniques or forms (katas.)
Tji = a prefix for many silat styles from West Java.
Tjikalong – kalong=bat (bat style) Also from west Java this style barrows much from tjimande and it is rumored to have been born when a Kun Tao master demonstrated great skill at dodging blowpipe missiles and many students flocked to him to learn his training methods.
Tjimande – West Javanese style. Tjimande is a bone breaking art with devastating strikes. All basic techniques assume a minimum of 3 attackers and with practice 5, 8 and even 12.
Xing yi – See Hsing-I