Thailand Martial Arts

Thais are famous for being a warm, gentle and welcoming race. However over the course of history they had to continuously fight for their land to defend themselves against any invaders that tried to overpower them. Six main Martial arts were employed during this period that are associated with Thailand and almost all techniques of Thai boxing were developed as close quarter combating styles.

The 6 main martial arts in Thailand:

Muay Boran

Muay Boran includes all ancient styles of unarmed Saimese martial arts such as Muay Chaiya, Muay Korat and Muay Tasao. Prior to the introduction of modern equipment and styles, all Thai martial arts were a part of this style. All ancient styles have their own stances, blocks and punches. While Muay Thai is considered the 8-limb sport, Muat Boran is considered a nine-limb boxing style as it employs the head as a weapon in addition to the 8-limbs.

Muay Chaiya

While Muay Thai is the martial art that we all associate with Thailand, Muay Chaiya is comparatively older and more technique oriented as opposed to the brute force approach of Muay Thai. Typically what you will learn when you start training with Muay Chaiya is movement, it is the essence of this martial art. Muay Chaiya is not so much about strength as it is about technique, and is mainly practised as an exercise by the locals. The fighting techniques are very diverse from the other martial art forms practised within Thailand.

Lerdrit

Taught and used by the Royal army, Lerdrit is a fighting style derived from Muay Boran. A variety of techniques were hand-picked from the vast accumulation of techniques in Muay Boran, that were considered most efficient and adapted to close quarter combat. Lerdrit is slowly gaining popularity over Europe owing to tours conducted by the professionals of the sport.

Krabi-krabong

Slightly weapon oriented, this martial arts is said to have been mastered by the royal bodyguard corps of King Rama IX. The name of this system is a reference to the main weapons that are used, Krabi – a sword and Krabong – a staff.

Silat Pattani

Silat pattani is said to have originated from the Pattani kingdom, now a state of Thailand. Its origin is attributed to Pandita Guru, the youngest of the 3 brothers who had been trained to be warriors. They crossed a bloody battle while they were heading north to attain Moksha (enlightenment) as directed by their master. The youngest escaped into a forest upon being wounded and began to incorporate the trait of animals in his fighting technique and Silat Pattani was born. There are 5 basic animal forms that he focused on- deer, monkey, snake, bird, tiger and dragon.

The two main philosophies that Silat pattani revolves around are Jantan Betina, which is similar to the Chinese yin-yang and panchabhuta, the 5 elements that humans are believed to be made of according to Malay philosophy.

Muay Thai

The national sport of Thailand, this sport, till date, employs a technique that was part of the basic training of the Thai army. This technique is also used in many tournaments and competitions around the world.