But if he/she continues to practice the art for sometime say 3 years or it again as I have always personally felt depends, he would definitely understand that to learn an art form is not a difficult task at all. I would rather put it this way; it is not rocket science. But then where does the old wisdom that tells you practice for years and gain mastery stand. Friends, believe me it stands rooted at the same place it was as before. What I was referring to was as to what a person can learn in a short time. Never did I mention he can be guaranteed MASTERY. Here, I would refer to a saying (would post it in my next post) that the legendary Karateka “Mas Oyama Sensei” mentioned on what mastery of an art is and what learning an art is.

It will help you judge what learning an art is and what mastering the same art means.

Folks, but remember everything, including mastery, starts of from the first step, LEARNING. So never ever hesitate, learn with your heart into it and see how things start changing.

look into www.indianmartialarts.in

email us @      guru.fit@gmail.com

We also handle classes in the “Old Ways” of Okinawan Karate and Shaolin Kung Fu.

Check out this page as well to get detailed information about what we teach. We will be updating the page on a regular basis.

http://indianmartialarts.wordpress.com/courses-our-academy-for-martial-arts-training/

Here I present before you a brief intro about my Kalaripayattu Gurukkal (Master),  PV Balan Gurukkal. It has been a blessing for me to have had tutored under him. In fact I consider it a blessing to be one among his two senior students and also I see it as a privilege to introduce him to you.

P. V. Balan Gurukkal is a practitioner of Kalaripayattu for the past 58 years and has learnt various systems of Kalaripayattu.

PV Balan Gurukkal has learned are the CVN version of Northern (Vadakkan) Kalaripayattu and the Madhaya Kerala (Central) Kalaripayattu (the first system that Gurukkal mastered before starting his training in the CVN version of Kalaripayattu).

P. V. Balan Gurukkal has also mastered the arts of Kuravanjipayatu (Silambam), Ghusthi (Native Wrestling), Isshinryu Karate and Kobudo (both of which he has practised for the past 30 years). He has also accumulated great knowledge from various other masters in and around the Southern Tamil Nadu areas.

He has profound learning in the art of Varma Kalai/Marma Vidhya/Marma Adi. He started learning it as part of his training in Madhya Kerala Kalaripayattu and CVN Kalaripayattu. He later learned it as part of his advanced Kalaripayattu Therapy Methods and finally he also learned the Tulu Nadan system of Marma Vidhya.

However, he rates the Kathina Yoga system that he had learned from a sanyasi (monk) as the highest among all the skills that he has acquired.

He now teaches his blended version of the different systems of Kalaripayattu that he has learned, Kuravanjipayattu, Ghusthi, Varma Kalai as part of the Kalaripayattu curriculum and Yoga.

He has created a new system of Martial art called PV Balan Mei Abhyasbam which is a blend of all the arts that he has learned.

One point that Gurukkal keeps emphasising is that there should never be an end for any man’s learning while at the same time he should also master all that he has learned and keeps learning.

You can find videos of PV Balan Gurukkal showcasing his skills of Yoga, Kalaripayattu Breathing and Pranayama in the videos below.

PV Balan Gurukkal Breaking rock on his Head 1:

PV Balan Gurukkal Breaking rock on his Head 2:

Visit the link below to find the blog of PV Balan Gurukkal and his team.

http://pvbalankalaripayattu.wordpress.com/category/pv-balan-gurukkal/

In fact the Madhya Kerala style of Kalaripayattu is not one school of Kalaripayattu but a name give to the various schools that existed around the Central Kerala(Thrissur, Ernakulam,etc.).

The Thrissur based Kalaripayattu style as I had learnt it from P.V. Balan Gurukkal is not a combination of the techniques from the Northern and Southern Schools……….(a present trend exists where the two schools of system are mixed and the curriculum is taught as one complete system………….all is good if it is going to help the art spread and help the practitioners know more)………than being a combination of techniques it is a school which has its own unique features incorporated…….so the techniques would like the techniques from the Southern/Northern Schools but with its own intrinsic and extrinsic differences……… the lessons would seem same but will have a different way of execution……..and philosophy………..the vadivu having its differences from the northern schools is an example……..

So what am i finally trying to say……..as P.V. Balan Gurukkal puts it……...remember the method of execution or the style that you are practising is not important………it has to help you to protect yourself and also stay healthy (sounding like the philosophy of Jeet Kune Do (JKD) and its founder Sijo Bruce Lee)

hope i can get some videos of P.V. Balan Gurukkal and upload it for your reference…….and also learning………

and i am really sorry for making this article a bit difficult to understand ……may be my future post would do the trick.i.e., getting the info to you as you would like it to be………

keep watching for further updates………..

Before I start off………Wishing all readers and everybody out there a Great New Year Ahead………wishing you a great and successful New Year…….

I am pretty much confident that you would have heard of the Chinese Martial Art systems that exist and the way there classification goes. I am not going to relate to the Kalaripayattu and Shaolin connection…… a tendency many tend to start of  with when they refer to the Kalaripayattu – Chinese Martial Arts relation…………

Chinese Martial Art systems can be classified in many ways……. Hard Systems vs. Soft Systems…….. Shaolin, Emei, Fukien/Fujian, Hakka, Moslem, Wu dang/Wu tang, ….this list would keep going on and on………

In fact, I did leave out one classification purposefully, the Northern System and the Southern……  so what is new here would be probing your mind…… and that is precisely where I want you to come to……..so what is unique here…………

A study in to the Northern and the Southern Style of Chinese Martial Art would tell you it is not just one scholl but they have many styles under their banner……..examples of Northern Systems are…………..Qixing Tanglang Quan, Cha  Quan, Pek Siu Lum, Northern Ying Jow Pai (Eagle Claw), Mizong Quan, ……examples of Southern Systems are…… Hung Gar, Wing Chun, Choy Li Fut, Southern Ying Jow Pai, Chow Gar Praying Mantis, …….

Truly speaking in a similar way even in Kalaripayattu, the Northern and Southern Schools also have various styles under them. However the major difference is that these styles are not very different from each otherof the same school, unlike the Chinesese Systems where Wing Chun and Hung Gar, both systems of the same school of thought have varied difference………………

The next part of this topic would look into the varied systems that are now refered to as Northern/Southern/ other lesser heard schools of kalaripayattu……….

Keep reading this blog……………you will have more to know………

On a personal opinion I would not be supporting this claim nor I am not denying the certain similarities that can be seen between these arts. (folks no hard feeling here, It is just my opinion). I would may be down the line give my view-point as to why I do not strongly believe in the root theory and I would leave that job to the historians out there. I am not here for creating a new theory for ORIGIN.

Kalaripayattu has been in present times been predominantly classified into

• Vadakkan (Northern) Kalaripayattu
• Thekkan (Southern) Kalaripayattu
• Madhya Kerala Kalaripayattu
• and presently there are styles that have come out by combining the techniques from the Northern and the Southern schools. The techniques are taught as separate individual lessons.
• and finally there are lots of styles that are still unknown to the outside world………….
  

From my learning (I have had learned a few different systems) and my discussions with various masters I have seen that these classifications do not actually give the clear picture of the various Kalaripayattu systems that are available now (even after  certain dying out in its fight with time and the ban on its practise).

To me I see systems as part of the local region wise training component and the various techniques that has been incorporated as part of the curriculum as something that has got to do with what the masters in the region thought was necessary.

No to rephrase what I was trying to say……..in simple terms…..Vadakkan Kalari is not just one single system….rather it is a bracket name for all systems that were traditionally practised in the Northern region of Kerala…..

Some of the systems that are part of the Vadakkan Kalari BRACKET NAME are

• Pillathangi
• Arappu Kai
• Vattentirupu
• Vallabhatta

These systems have their own differences in their lessons , way of performing, applications an in fact even the syllabus at times.  There are times when even masters of the same style have differences in their performance, lessons and even the philosophy of their systems…….

Keep reading as this would be continued……….

Do not forget to read the remaining components…………. catch you then………. &&&& do come back………….

1. Kalaripayattu (obviously, and no credits for guessing)
2. Adi Murai
3. Silambam
4. Adi Thada
5. Kuttu Varisai/Kuthu Varisai
6. Varma Adi/Varma Ati/Varma Kalai
7. Marma Vidhya
8. Tamizh Murai/Tamil Murai
9. Ghusthi
10. Thang Ta
11. Garadi
12. Vajra Mushti
13. Pehalwani
14. Gatka

In fact there are many more out there, and I am hopeful that I will come across them and that I would be able to list them here and also provide you with details of the same here.

In fact, presently in India there are masters who teach the various oriental styles. A few among the styles practised out here are Kung Fu/Gong Fu, Okinawan & Japanese Karate-Do, Jujutsu, Aiki-Jujutsu, Tae-Kwon-Do, Ninjitsu, Judo and Shorinji Kempo. The list would be longer than you would be expecting it to be….

There are other styles like Muay Thai/Muay Boran, Krav Maga, Sambo and Pankration being taught here. I personally think that i have not been able to mention the entire list of systems being taught here.

There are martial arts systems that are nation specific among the above mentioned and also on the missed out list.  I will have them updated in the future posts.

As earlier said I would definitely update any Martial Art that I have missed here as soon as I come across one. Plz do not hold any hard feelings for missing out any system that you practise. I am sorry and I am human. To err is human and I stand by it………

Keep coming back,  I am really sorry for making this post a bit lengthy, but you see I had to……….

Expecting that you come back soon to visit this blog……..bye……….for the day……

I would be thankful to everyone out there who can help me in this journey that I have taken, with an intend, to keep the torch of Indian Martial Arts always burning.