Seni Gayong
| Also known as | Seni Gayung |
|---|---|
| Hardness | Semi-contact |
| Country of origin |
 Malaysia
|
| Olympic sport | No |
| Official website | gayong |
Seni Gayong is a style of silat from Malaysia. It was the first martial arts association to be registered in the country, and is now the biggest and most internationally known Malaysian silat discipline. Gayong is overseen by the Pertubuhan Silat Seni Gayong Malaysia (PSSGM) or the Malaysian Silat Seni Gayong Organisation. This organisation is currently led by Dato' Ismail Jantan. While it is most popular in Malaysia and Singapore, there are also branches in Vietnam, Australia, France, Kuwait, Tunisia, Britain, and the United States.
Seni Gayong originated among the Bugis people of Sulawesi and was called Silat Sendi Harimau. Literally meaning "tiger joint silat", the system utilised the tiger claw technique to lock opponents' joints. The Bugis prince Daeng Kuning, descended from a long line of warriors, brought the style to the Malay Peninsula in the 1800s. It was eventually passed down to his great-grandson Meor Abdul Rahman. The teaching of Seni Gayong, as with most styles of silat, was once restricted to relatively few students under each master. In 1942 during the Japanese occupation, Meor Abdul Rahman taught Seni Gayong publicly in Sudong island, Singapore when the locals feared an attack by the Japanese. Having inherited the art from his father, Dato Meor Abdul Rahman eventually founded Malaysia's first martial arts association, Pertubuhan Silat Seni Gayong Malaysia. It was and still remains the method of unarmed combat taught to the Royal Malaysia Police force
Seni Gayong incorporates strikes, grabs, joint manipulation, and weaponry. Acrobatics are also included but are comparatively less than other styles of silat. The curriculum is divided into the following stages:
The student begins by learning foundation stances and footwork patterns or tapak along with basic punches, kicks, blocks, counterattacks and reversals.
After learning the basic forms of attacking and defending, the student is next taught seizing techniques, takedowns and how to manipulate, lock or strike the opponent's joints.
Having becoming proficient in unarmed techniques, the student is ready for training with weapons. The first weapons taught include the kris (dagger), pisau (knife), kerambit (claw-like knife), kapak (axe), tekpi (three-pronged truncheon) and sundang (sword).
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