The ground is just another arena in which to fight, as is upright. It shouldn't be focused any more or any less than any other aspect. Find yourself on the ground, and be sure to know how to fight from where you land, and then try to get back up ASAP.
In a upright fight what is your primary weapon of attack and does that change when the fight is brought to the ground, how will this effect fighting style?
primary weapons Hi Narrue Primary weapons in upright defence/attack in general would hands/feet/elbow/knees supported on 2 legs or 1 if you was kicking. On the ground would be the same except you would probably use either 3 supports or more to base from i.e use hips hands or feet to support from the floor. Harimau from the mingangkabau is more of a mentality than style or method. No fool would get down on the floor to fight any body either which is general misconception of Harimau. The Hanafi/de-bordes method of Harimau is functional 3 levels upright,semi recumbent & recumbent. Once you know these levels there is no difference in upright or low or ground its just all the same. Sorry if you get no reply from me as i am going to Tuscon now won't be able to post for 2.5 weeks Regards bela diri
FIGHTING LOW AND GROUND FIGHTING ARE TWO DIFFERENT THINGS, I DID NOT MEAN TO IMPLY THAT SILAT IS JUST GROUND FIGHTING, I MEAN TO SAY THAT COMPARED TO KUNG FU, KARATE, ETC. THE CENTER OF GRAVITY IN SILAT IS MORE GROUNDED AND LOWER THAN MOST MARTIAL ARTS. OF COURSE THE SITUATION, THE ENEMY AND PURE NEED DICTATE WHAT YOU DO. IF YOU ARE ENAGAGING AN ENEMY YOU DO NOT SIMPLY DROP TO THE GROUND AND LET THE CHIPS FALL WHERE THEY MAY. PERSONALLY I THINK ATTACKS FROM THE STOMACH DOWN ARE VERY EFFECTIVE AGAINST VERY ERECT, TALL, SLOW, STRONG OPPONENTS. I THINK IT IS LESS EFFECTIVE AGAINST PEOPLE WHO ARE SKILLED IN GROUND FIGHTING AND WHO FIGHT LOW TO THE GROUND. THIS WOULD INCLUDE A LOT OF THE SOUTH EAST ASIAN STYLES. I AM JUST A HUMBLE STUDENT WITH A SMALL OPINION, HARDLY THE LAW, JUST SOME OBSERVATIONS BASED ON MY LIMITED EXPERIENCE
I Guess My Comment Implies That Ground Fighting Is The Answer To Evrything, Hardly The Case. Fighting Low To The Ground Is Not Ground Fighting, They Are Seperate.the Silat That I Practice, If You Are Attempting To Master All Of The Elements, If You Get 25% There You Will Be In Super Shape, So Maybe I Am Just Speaking Of The Silat That I Practice.
My Teacher Is In His 60's And Fights Lower Than All Of His Students So I Do No Think Age Is Necessarily An Issue.it Does Require More Energy Without A Doubt, But If You Become Proficient In At Least In The Style That I Practice, It Is Very Mobile , Very Agile And You Do Not Lose. But It Is A Lot Harder Without A Doubt. Any Fight Is Based On Need, So Of Course You Do Not Have A Prepared Response To An Unknown Enemy, His Attack Will Make Known What The Proper Defense And Counter Attack Should Be.
YES I AGREE, AS I HAVE STATED BEFORE I DID NOT MEAN TO IMPLY THAT SILAT IS JUST GROUND FIGHTING AND NOTHING ELSE THAT WAS NOT MY INTENT. QUOTE=Wali]The ground is just another arena in which to fight, as is upright. It shouldn't be focused any more or any less than any other aspect. Find yourself on the ground, and be sure to know how to fight from where you land, and then try to get back up ASAP.[/QUOTE]
when we talk of ground fighting are we talking about a) 2 people lying on the ground facing each other,b) 1 person in a superior position to the other,c) 1 person stood up and i on the ground,d) more than 2 people involved either standing up or on the ground,e)weapons involved,f) what type of ground are we talking about,hard ,soft,wow so many variables! can we plan? can we practice the "what iffs and get somewhere near truths of the matter? i know for me personally i enjoy trying and base my training in silat around the what ifs,how a bout you guys?
My View Is That When On The Ground, Your Attacks Are Smaller, Faster, More Deceptive And Sneakier.everything From The Lower Stomach To The Toes Are Targets Of The Attack, Balls,thighs, Knees, Etc. When You Are Upright Your Targets Would Tend To Be Head,arms Shoulders, Stomack Hips, Etc. Even Though Your Upright Attacks Can Focus On The Lower Extemities And Vice Versa.
My View Is That When On The Ground, Your Attacks Are Smaller, Faster, More Deceptive And Sneakier.everything From The Lower Stomach To The Toes Are Targets Of The Attack, Balls,thighs, Knees, Etc. I agree to disagree When you are on the ground meaning what? your back on ground or your stomach on the ground or just merely jongkok (lower stance). In all the above, its more difficult to move, not wise in a real situation, meaning in a bar/nite club or crowded and strange place. Only good during the class. in lower stance (jongkok) your body weight is heavier close to the ground, therefore, is harder to transfer your weight to properly execute your technique. Again, I'm talking in praticallity. Ground technique in my humble opinon is a defensive move to over come disadvantage for being down and quickly recover and stand up to continue to fight or run for safety. When You Are Upright Your Targets Would Tend To Be Head,arms Shoulders, Stomack Hips, Etc. Even Though Your Upright Attacks Can Focus On The Lower Extemities And Vice Versa. Again I disagree, when you are upright, your target can be everything, what is the best target to you? The target that closer to you, first to disrupt and to follow with something, anything. Stay vertical my friend, that's the normal thing to do. To stay horizontal is to defy the normal way of living I could be wrong too, Tristan
I would agree with that but I guess everyone has different ability’s and some are more at home on the ground then others. Personally I would only fight from the ground if someone put me there and then I don’t have a choice. My aim would be to get up as fast as possible. Being on the ground will also increase the chances of you getting seriously injured in a crowded situation i.e. stomping, kicking or striking you with an object. In my opinion being on the ground is not a good place to be. I don’t see any advantage of fighting in a very low stance either unless the ground is slippery and you have to widen your stance. As for concentrating strikes from the foot up to the waist most of the more dangerous targets are higher in the body. I think ground fighting is useful for conditioning the body to make it strong and defence but not as a choice of attack during a real fight.