Kalaripayat: The Martial Arts Tradition of India

by Patrick Denaud, Marie-Claire Restoux (Foreword)

The first book in English on the Indian martial art that was the precursor to the Chinese and Japanese traditions

• A rigorous martial arts practice that also promotes harmonious self-development

• Provides practices for controlling the circulation of energy and vital forces throughout the body

Originating in the southern Indian province of Kerala, kalaripayat is the most ancient of the Eastern martial arts. Yet today it has been practically forgotten. Former CBS war correspondent Patrick Denaud looks at this neglected tradition, whose history spans millennia, from the time it was transmitted by the god Vishnu to the sage Parasurama and his twenty-one disciples, the original Gurukkals, to its present-day practice.

More than an art of combat, kalaripayat is a way of life and a spiritual discipline. Its martial techniques are designed to create states propitious for deep meditation. Long the jealously guarded art of the Nair warriors of southern India, kalaripayat was banned by the British East India Company in 1793 and was long believed by outside observers to be extinct. Several Gurukkals continued a clandestine practice and secretly trained the students who would transmit the teachings to today’s keepers of the art, such as Gurukkal Pratap S. Balachandrian.

Like other spiritual disciplines, kalaripayat draws from the science of breath. Focused, silent breathing creates highly concentrated trance states and helps control the inner circulation of vital energy. The practitioner learns not only how to be a capable fighter with or without weapons but also an accomplished healer. The emphasis of this practice on circulating energy throughout the body is not only of interest to martial arts practitioners but also to all those interested in the harmonious development of the self.

Genres: Martial Arts, Nonfiction

192 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2009

Reviews

[Udit Nair · Rating 4 out of 5]

The artform of kalaripayat has always evoked curiosity in me from a very impressionable age. I guess its partly because my grandfather used to mention legends and stories around this artform and I keenly looked forward to explore more along the way. This book does provide a nice introduction and a synopsis to the whole artform. Kalaripayat is a holistic practice and incorporates aspects of controlling mind and body together. I was surprised with various extensions of kalaripayat such as traditional medicine and other streams associated with it. Kathakali draws a lot of inspiration from this ancient martial artform and it's been beautifully mentioned in the book.

Now coming to parts where I had some discomfort. Kalaripayat is deeply entwined with religious and philosophical discourse. As a result there are caste rigidities and other barriers which makes this artform inaccessible to one and all. Although modern times have seen more openness yet that rigidity remains. Added to that is the fact that there various concepts of traditional medicine which might not stand the test of modern understanding of diagnosis and rationality.

For whatever reason, kalaripayat has not received the same worldwide attention as karate,judo,tai chi and so on. Its obscurity is especially astonishing in light of the fact that a number of scholars and researchers unanimously agree that kalaripayat has been the precursor of all asian martial arts.With modern times it becomes more important that one tries to master his or her own emotions and art forms like these can aid in that journey.

[Preetam Chatterjee · Rating 5 out of 5]

Book: Kalaripayat: The Martial Arts Tradition of India
Author: Patrick Denaud
Publisher: Simon & Schuster; Illustrated edition (13 October 2009)
Language: English
Paperback: 192 pages
Item Weight: 313 g
Dimensions: 15.24 x 1.52 x 22.86 cm
Price: 321/-

“In order to grasp the common essence of the martial arts, or the original unity of mankind for that matter, it is necessary to understand the truth of history. Patrick Denaud’s Kalaripayat reveals many important pieces of this enigmatic and fascinating puzzle. It is an important book for serious students of all martial arts.” ― William Gleason, author of Aikido and Words of Power and The Spiritual Foundations of Aikido

Through the prosperity of its culture and the antique of its civilization India has for centuries attracted thousands of travelers from the four corners of the earth. Some go to make their fortune, others to discover a country and its people, a culture, or a craft. Today, the major reasons that bring travelers to India are most often connected with tourism, but in India tourism often goes hand in hand with the discovery of—and then sometimes an immersion in—certain traditions whose origins are buried in the mists of time.

Kalaripayat is one such tradition. It is a martial art that originated in India, as did the martial arts of Vajra Musti and Varma Kalai.

Although not as well known as yoga, dance, or music, Indian martial arts are nonetheless very much a part of India’s cultural heritage. They are now budding from a long period of disregard as they steadily regain their former privileged status. Just as with yoga, Indian martial arts represent a method of personal improvement designed to strengthen the body and to accomplish a concord of mind and body with which to face life and its aggressions.

Patrick Denaud in his book informs the readers that Kalaripayat is an absolute discipline that combines physical training, mental tasks, and self-regulation. It demands knowledge of the body, of customary Indian Ayurvedic medicine, and of the art of massage.

As with all the other traditions in India, Kalaripayat is passed on today from master to pupil in the villages. More and more it is also attracting a noteworthy number of foreign students who are looking for the real essence of Eastern martial arts.

The book has been divided into seven sections, each section further subdivided into disctinct sub-sections. The contents of the book are as follows:

1. THE HISTORICAL AND PHILOSOPHICAL ORIGINS OF KALARIPAYAT
Kerala
An Origin in Myth
Hair Warriors
The Ten Principles of Kalaripayat

2. THE PRACTICE OF KALARIPAYAT
Training in the Kalari
Combat System
Weapons
Northern Style and Southern Style

3. THE PSYCHOLOGY OF COMBAT
Fear (Dhayam)
Looking Ahead and Anticipating in Combat
Use of the Eyes in Combat
Shouting with the Attack

4. KALARIPAYAT AND TRADITIONAL INDIAN MEDICINE
The Healing Role of the Gurukkal
Massage
Pressure Points (Marman)
Cleansing and Purifying the Body
Food
Breathing and Cardiac Control
Longevity and Immortality

5. KALARIPAYAT AND OTHER CULTURAL AND SPIRITUAL TRADITIONS OF KERALA
Traditional Festivals of Kerala
Fire Walking
Kalaripayat and Kathakali
Spirituality and Meditation
Legends and Tales of Kalaripayat

6. THE KALARIPAYAT WAY OF LIFE
The Meeting: Madras, 1994
A Kalaripayat Master’s Day
Interviews with Two Masters
Kalaripayat Practitioners

7. THE INFLUENCE OF INDIA ON ASIA AND OF KAIARIPAYAT ON THE MARTIAL ARTS
India’s Noble Art of War
Buddha: Martial Art Adept
The Spread of Brahmanism to China
Chinese Yoga: Tai (hi Chuan
Bodhidharma or Da Mo

The initial sections 1, 2 and 3 show us that Kalaripayat is not barely a martial art; it is especially a state of mind, a way of life. It is a righteous art that inevitably leads to purity of body and mind. It’s a unity: control of the body must go hand in hand with mastery of the psyche in order to move toward spiritual crfcction. The way is long and demands regular practice. Each element must be undertaken and learned at the right time, at the right moment. Steps cannot be skipped. “You must learn to walk before you learn to run.”

Sections 4, 5 and 6 inform the readers that Kalaripayat is based on a science of breathing, which is a very important aspect of the art. After years of practice, it allows control the essential organs of the human body (such as heart, stomach, and kidneys), leading to a flexibility of body and mind. Deep and silent breathing can lead to a “state of ecstasy.” The intended aim is the inner circulation of various vital essences. In a way it’s life in a dosed circuit. The techniques used are close to those used in yoga, and the practice of Kalaripayat allows one to enter into states that are favorable to meditation.

We get to learn that Kalaripayat is considered an instrument of spiritual attainment, but it is also related to Indian medicine. This makes sense because a human being is a unity—the body and soul are indivisible. And the soul cannot live in a body that is ill.

Kalaripayat masters often heal using plants. Each master has his secrets that have been passed down from his ancestors and that he will transmit in his turn to his grandchildren. Massage is also used a great deal to promote circulation of energy through the whole body and foster harmonious development of the individual. The study of pressure points is also part of the program for Kalaripayat practitioners.

Moreover, certain combat techniques are derived from the observation of animals in their respective natural habitats. These techniques are based on the stance and skills of these animals in defense and attack.

Kalaripayat is a physical discipline but a very spiritual one. This discipline demands rigor, order, and precision to a degree not found elsewhere. Arising first in India, Kalaripayat later influenced the martial arts practices of China and Japan in those places where spirit ual influences prevailed.

Everyone respects the moral precepts conveyed by the master such as respect, politeness, humility, patience, self-control, and obedience. The practitioner must be an example for society and must come to the aid of others. For us, as Westerners, there are great difficulties in understanding all the subtleties of this art, since we don’t really grasp Eastern spirituality.

However, the moral riches of Kalaripayat can bring a great deal to this world modern humanity has created—a chiefly material setting based on ownership and profit.

The concluding section harps of the fact that Martial arts in India grew out of an observation of the animal kingdom in its natural environment; their practitioners are thus plunged into a deep communication with nature herself.

According to tradition, Kerala residents owe this art to Parasurama, one of the avatars of Vishnu (one of India’s three main gods). It is said that, after having rescued Kerala from sinking into the ocean, Parasurama taught this art to twenty-one disciples so that they could protect the country and keep it peaceful.

Primarily an art of self-defense, Kalaripayat is meant to bring inner calm to the practitioner who, in turn, will then be in a posit ion to disseminate that state to those around.

Even informal and lackadaisical readers such as yours truly, could not but hep commend Patrick Denaud’s inventiveness in striving to bring to light one of the many misunderstood facets of Indian tradition.

In this book he offers his readers—beginners and specialists alike—a very absolute synopsis of this art, which leads the practitioner to improved self-knowledge and a transformed view of others.

Grab a copy if you choose.

[Bernie Gourley · Rating 4 out of 5]

There’s a dearth of books on Indian martial arts, in general, and Kalaripayattu, specifically. The few books that do exist, such as Ranjan Mullaratt’s “Kalari Margam” (a fine book which I’ve previously reviewed), focus heavily on the techniques of the martial art. Denaud builds a niche by writing perhaps the only English-language book yet that turns its focus on other aspects of the art, including the art’s history, philosophy, customs, psychology, and its influence on--and interaction with--other systems both in India and abroad (e.g. yoga, Kathakali, ayurvedic massage, and Tai Chi.)

After three forwards by luminaries and an introduction, the book consists of seven chapters. The chapters cover the history and mythology of the art, Kalaripayattu as a martial art (weapons and techniques in general terms), the psychological aspects of the art, the art’s relationship with Ayurvedic practices—particularly massage, its relationship to other elements of Keralan culture, the results of interviews with modern-day masters, and the influence of India and Kalaripayattu on foreign martial arts.

When I picked this book up, I was somewhat expecting that it would contain little in the way of intriguing and relevant information, and that it would be stuffed with generally known background information. I’ve come across far too many books on topics for which there’s little information, and have become well-acquainted with the many methods by which authors pad out a pamphlet’s worth of information into a book. However, I was pleasantly surprised by how much information on Kalaripayattu this book contained, and how relevant the background seemed. While there’s a fair amount of background, the book doesn’t feel padded. Granted, I can’t be certain how much of this information is accurate. I know common myths are repeated that are now believed to be false (e.g. Bodhidharma spreading Kalaripayattu to Shaolin), but I saw nothing that seemed like pure fabrication (though I’d be unlikely to recognize such a thing.) Denaud does cite his sources (not in bibliographic format, just by attribution of authors and texts) on most occasions and it certainly wrings authoritatively.

I’d recommend this book for individuals interested in martial arts, and the history of martial arts. It’s a rare glimpse into various aspects of Kalaripayattu. Also, some people who are interested in south Indian culture more than martial arts may also find it worthwhile.

[Jacob Lehman · Rating 3 out of 5]

Nice overview of the art; I would have liked more technique/training tips included.

[Zachariah · Rating 3 out of 5]

Kind of curious what an actual practitioner thinks of this book. Kalaripayattu is so protected, with so few books, there's almost no way to verify the information.