A millennial’s homage to Filipino martial arts
HUMANS have fought for millenniums with weapons.
The use of weapons, be they stone or steel, marks the superiority of man’s intellect over other living creatures.
In various warrior cultures, the sword is always held in reverence. The techniques of Filipino martial arts (FMA) were said to have been based on the blade.
The FMA system of Pekiti Tirsia, founded by Leo T. Gaje Jr. of Negros Occidental, developed the use of the blade into a sophisticated science. Pekiti in Negrense means “to close” or “closing the gap” while tirsia means “one third.” Like in other Filipino
primary learning tool in Pekiti Tirsia but the end goal is to master the blade.
Common training progression involves the use of solo baston or single stick, doble baston or sinawali, single knife, double knife or daga y daga, as well as sword and dagger or espada y daga. A student will learn that all the concepts of combative movements are applicable regardless of the weapon an individual wants to use. It can be an open palm or common objects like a 4 wood—all of these can be used to
One of Pekiti Tirsia’s tuhons (tuhon is a senior title of sorts) Jack LaTorre aptly described the deadly elegance of the FMA with the following words: “Slow is smooth, smooth is fast, and fast is deadly.”
This wide applicability is the reason why Pekiti Tirsia and FMA in general continue to attract a global following—from law enforcement and elite military units to the common civilian who just wants to learn a practical method of self-protection.
Even Hollywood has noticed the beauty and lethalness of FMA. Among the movies that featured FMA techniques are The Hunted, starring Tommy Lee Jones and Benicio del Torro, The Book of Eli starring Denzel Washington, and the Bourne series starring Matt Damon. FMA’s concept of improvised weaponry is evident in