Modern Arnis

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Modern Arnis

A guró (Filipino, "teacher") wielding rattan sticks used in

Arnis
Also known as Arnis
Focus Stick fighting
Country of
Philippines
origin
Creator Remy Presas
Eskrima, Judo, Karate, Small
Parenthood
Circle Jujitsu
Olympic sport No

Modern Arnis is the system of Filipino martial arts founded by the late Remy Presas as a self-
defense system. His goal was to create an injury-free training method as well as an effective self-
defense system in order to preserve the older Arnis systems. The term Modern Arnis was also
used by Remy Presas' younger brother Ernesto Presas to describe his style of Filipino martial
arts; since 1999 Ernesto Presas has called his system Kombatan. It is derived principally from the
traditional Presas family style of the Bolo (machete) and the stick-dueling art of Balintawak
Eskrima, with influences from other Filipino and Japanese martial arts.[1]

Arnis is the Philippines' national martial art and sport, after President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo
signed the Republic Act. No. 9850 in 2009. The Act mandates the Department of Education to
include the sport as a Physical Education course. Arnis will also be included among the priority
sports in Palarong Pambansa (National Games) beginning 2010.[2]
Contents
[hide]

 1 Training
 2 History
 3 Belt ranks
 4 Organizations
 5 See also
 6 Reference
 7 External links

[edit] Training
One of the characteristics of Filipino martial arts is the use of weapons from the very beginning
of training and Modern Arnis is no exception. The primary weapon is the rattan stick, called a
cane or baston (baton), which varies in size, but is usually about 28 inches (71 cm) in length.
Both single and double stick techniques are taught, with an emphasis on the former; unarmed
defenses against the stick and against bladed weapons (which the stick is sometimes taken to
represent) are a part of the curriculum.[3]

It is said that, originally, the cane was considered sacred by practitioners (Arnisadores), and
therefore an arnis practitioner was expected to hit his cane at the hand or forearm of his sparring
partner and not at the latter's cane. This had the advantage of being the preferred method in
actual combat, referred to as "defanging the snake", that is, making the opponent drop his
weapon so that he is less of a threat. However, it discouraged many would-be practitioners who
found this training too painful and injury-inducing. The result was that the Filipino martial arts
became in danger of dying out; in most areas of the Philippines, Japanese martial arts such as
Karate and Judo were much more popular than the indigenous systems. Remy Presas'
modernization of the training method was intended to help preserve the Filipino martial arts. He
taught the method of hitting cane-on-cane during practice, which attracted more newcomers to
the art and also allowed the art to be taught in the Philippines' school system. "Defanging the
snake" remains a principle of Modern Arnis, however, and in practical application, one would
typically strike the hand or arm. The technique can be used empty-handed, where it is known as
"limb destruction".[4][5]

Training covers empty-hand self-defense (striking, locking, throwing, etc.) as well as the
trademark single and double stick techniques of the Filipino martial arts. Other aspects of the art
include espada y daga (sword and dagger fighting), sinawali (double stick weaving patterns),
and tapi-tapi (locking drills with the stick). In addition to partner drills, Modern Arnis includes
the use of anyo (kata), solo forms both with and without the stick. Emphasis is placed on fitting
the art in with a student's previous training ("the art within your art"), smoothly reacting to
changing situations in the fight ("the flow"), and countering the opponent's attempt to counter
strikes directed at him ("tapi-tapi"). Practitioners are called arnisadors or Modern Arnis
players.[6]

In addition to its Filipino influences, elements of Judo, Shotokan Karate, and Wally Jay's Small
Circle Jujutsu appear in the system.[7]

[edit] History
Remy Presas studied his family's system from an early age. He went on to study the Japanese
systems of Shotokan Karate and Judo, achieving high rank in each; but he simultaneously
studied a variety of other Filipino systems, most notably Venancio Bacon's Balintawak .
Beginning with a small gymnasium in Bacolod in the 1950s, he attempted to spread the art to the
local youth as both a cultural legacy and a form of physical development or sport. He also taught
the art at the University of Negros Occidental-Recoletos. His desire to reinvigorate interest in his
country's traditional martial art grew over time, and he began making modifications and
improvements to what he had learned. In 1969 he moved to Manila at the request of a
government official, and formed the Modern Arnis Federation of the Philippines. He was
assisted by individuals such as those who now are on the Modern Arnis Senior Masters Council:
Rodel Dagooc, Jerry dela Cruz, Roland Dantes, Vincente Sanchez, Rene Tongson and Cristino
Vasquez. He continued to develop and spread his art, including via books, until political
considerations forced him to relocate to North America.[8]

There he met Wally Jay, George Dillman, and other martial artists who influenced his
development of the art of Modern Arnis. In particular, many locks from Small Circle Jujitsu
were added to Modern Arnis. The art continued to grow and change, in technique and in
emphasis, though it always retained a focus on the single stick and on general self-defense.
Those who trained with Remy Presas in the United States in the 1970s and early 1980s
experienced the art differently from those who began training in the late 1990s. Throughout the
1980s and 1990s he traveled extensively for seminars – the principal form of instruction in the
system was through weekend training camps held around the world but especially in the U.S. –
and also produced books and videos. During this time he also experimented with different forms
of titles and leadership in the art. The International Modern Arnis Federation Philippines would
come to be the lead Modern Arnis organization in the Philippines, and the Deutschen Arnis
Verband of Germany would be the lead organization in Europe. In the United States, the
International Modern Arnis Federation (IMAF) was the principal organization as far as
certification was concerned, but the founder created a variety of titles that indicated some level
of organizational or leadership authority in the art (as opposed to titles such as guro ("teacher")
or Punong Guro ("Head teacher") that recognized teaching and/or technical ability). Most
prominent among these titles were Datu, meaning a chieftain or leader, awarded in this order to
Shishir Inocalla, Kelly Worden and Ric "Bong" Jornales (of Arnis Sikaran) (all in the 1980s),
Dieter Knuettel (1996), Tim Hartman and David Hoffman (both in 2000); and Master of Tapi-
Tapi, awarded to Jeff Delaney, Chuck Gauss, Jim Ladis, Gaby Roloff, Randi Schea, Ken Smith,
and Brian Zawilinski. The Masters of Tapi-Tapi titles were created to provide leadership and
steerage for the IMAF following Remy Presas' passing; the Datus were expected to take
leadership roles that might see them move in different, and perhaps less conventional, directions.
Through 2001, however, the art remained largely united under the founder.[9]
In the wake of the 2001 death of Remy Preas, there has been a splintering of the remaining
leadership of Modern Arnis. The IMAF, previously the organization of record for North
American Modern Arnis practitioners, split into two subgroups, one headed by Randi Shea and
one headed by Jeff Delaney; the remaining five Masters of Tapi-Tapi continue to be associated
with the former group. Remy Presas' son Remy P. Presas and his siblings also formed a group
following his father's death, and Tim Hartman and Dieter Knuettel increased the independence of
their organizations (the WMAA and DAV, respectively). Other groups, such as that headed by
Kelly Worden, had become independent well before the founder's death (and with his support).
Dan Anderson formed another branch of the art which he calls "Modern Arnis 80" and runs this
out of Gresham, Oregon. While both IMAFs have claimed that rank must be certified through
them to be valid, other individuals feel that the dynamic structure of the art, Remy Presas'
frequent instructions to "make the art your own", their rank or title, and/or specific authority
granted to them by the founder, mean that they are entitled to head their own organizations or
groups that teach their own interpretation of the art.

In many ways, the situation is analogous to what occurred in the Jeet Kune Do and American
Kenpo communities following the deaths of their popular and charismatic founders. In particular,
the question of how high-ranking arnisadors should test for higher rank has been settled by
different organizations in different ways. In some cases this has caused controversy. However,
the fact remains that several groups are promoting what they see as 'traditional' Modern Arnis,
while others are promoting variations of Modern Arnis, in keeping with its "modern" approach.
The art is healthy and continues to attract students.

Current practitioners of Modern Arnis or arts strongly influenced by Modern Arnis who head
their own organization or group or are otherwise prominent include: Jeff Delaney, Tim Hartman
and Dieter Knüttel.

[edit] Belt ranks

Modern Arnis uses a ranking system similar to the Dan ranks used in Karate or other Japanese
systems. There are some minor variations between organizations as to the exact number of belts.
There are 10 or 11 black belt ranks in Modern Arnis , depending on the organization. They are
numbered in Tagalog:

1. Isa (pronounced as i-sah or e-sah; which literally means "one")

2. Dalawa (pronounced dah-la-wah; as literally means "two")
3. Tatlo (pronounced as tat-loh; literally means "three")
4. Apat (pronounced as Ah-pat; literally means "four")
5. Lima (pronounced as li-mah;literally means "five")
6. Anim (pronounced as ah-neem; literally means "six")
7. Pito (pronounced as pi-toh; literally means "seven")
8. Walo (pronounced as "wah-loh"; literally means "eight")
9. Siyam (pronounced as si-yam; literally means "nine")
10. Sampu (pronounced as sam-po; literally means "ten")
11. Labing-isa (in some organizations) (pronounced as lah-bing-i-sah; literally means
"eleven")
Many groups use a "zero-degree" black belt rank as a probationary stage that comes before Isa.
The actual name of the ranks is gender-specific. For men the rank is referred to as Lakan
(Tagalog for male) while for women it is referred to as Dayang (Tagalog for "female").[citation
needed]
Thus, a first degree black belt in Modern Arnis would be referred to as either a Lakan Isa
or a Dayang Isa, depending on his or her gender. The "zero-degree" rank, if used, is referred to
as simply Lakan or Dayang. The black belt is traditionally bordered with red; however, some
groups use a plain black belt.[10]

In addition to rank, titles such as Datu, Commissioner, Master of Tapi-Tapi, Senior Master,
Punong Guro, etc., have occasionally been granted to certain high-ranking individuals. The title
Guro is typically given to all Lakans and Dayangs.[11]

[edit] Organizations
Modern Arnis is currently perpetuated by a number of organizations worldwide, with some of
the largest being the DAV of Germany, the International Modern Arnis Federation (IMAF) under
Randi Schea, and the World Modern Arnis Alliance (WMAA). Countries where the art is most
popular include the Philippines, the United States, Canada, and Germany, but there are
practitioners in many other nations.