CompleteMartialArts.com - Filipino Martial Culture (Martial Culture Series)
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List Price: $21.95
Our Price: $14.93
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Manufacturer: Tuttle Publishing
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Average Customer Rating:  
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Binding: Paperback
Dewey Decimal Number: 796.815
EAN: 9780804820882
ISBN: 0804820880
Label: Tuttle Publishing
Manufacturer: Tuttle Publishing
Number Of Items: 1
Number Of Pages: 376
Publication Date: 1997-05-15
Publisher: Tuttle Publishing
Studio: Tuttle Publishing
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Editorial Reviews:
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A classic reference for martial artists and aficionados of Filipino culture, Filipino Martial Culture is an unprecedented excursion into the history, ideology, and techniques of Filipino martial arts. Beginning with a comprehensive study of the history of civil turbulence in the Philippines and the participation of its warriors in fights for independence from colonial rulers, Filipino Martial Culture proceeds to explore the worldview, spirituality, folklore and weaponry of this ancient tradition.
Mark Wiley has collected extensive interviews with Filipino martial arts masters, as well as photographs of their practice and weaponry, in his preparations for this book. He explains basic and rare techniques, elucidating the ethos of much of Filipino culture in the process. The authority and depth of his materials are unsurpassed; Filipino Martial Culture is as much a definitive anthropological textbook as it is a practical guide to the martial arts
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Spotlight customer reviews:
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Customer Rating:
Summary: Good place to start
Comment: If you've ever wondered about the Pinoy warrior, this is a good starting point. Wiley's writing isn't the best and the book has numerous grammatical errors. You will find this piece interesting and it will point you in the right direction if you desire more details. I rated this 5 stars because it's a must addition to any martial artist's library. Buy it and judge for yourself. I don't consider spending $20 on any book as a waste.
Customer Rating:
Summary: 88 words for Coconut
Comment: Actually I am not sure how many words for coconut there are in the Phillipines. With all the languages, dialects and sub-dialects in the PI there must be at least 88. Where am I leading too? If you read around the web you will find some respectable criticisms concerning this book and Mark Wiley, maybe even Wileys ancestry. Mostly this is concerned with the "origin" theories for the Filipino Martial Arts. I think some slack could be given here as, you guessed it, "there are 88 words for coconut in the PI!" Much of the history in the early and mid ages concerning the PI(Phillipine Islands) was oral history, the chain of which has long since died out. Anyways, when looking through the internet and bookstores at all the flakey-bakey, wavey gravey type books out there dealing with Martial Arts in general I have to say this book is a refreshing and educated effort. The first half of the book deals with the physical spiritual and mental aspects of the FMA. There is a history and a close look at the role played in the Independence of the PI by escrimadors, Kalistas and Arnisadors. I found the real strength of the book to lie in the interviews with the Masters at the end of the book. I also find it very telling that many of the martial arts today which have little if any relevance in the street as self defence, hold as their heroes poets, bhuddist priests and assorted high minded ilk. Nothing wrong with this butwhereas in the FMA the heroes are cops, security guards, humble soldiers and in some cases out and out streetfighters, who were ready to accept a challenge at a moments notice and fight any and all who dared to question their skill with the hands, stick or knife. Their skills and legacy come to us today in most cases without the ritual and high philosophical thought as baggage as some of the previously hinted at Martial Arts do. This leaves us today with a very effective and unique martial art. As some people say, Kali is complete, but never Finished, so too should the reader be aware that this book offers one of literally hundreds of explanations as to the origins and what constitues FMA. In light of the criticism levelled against it, in fairness it should also be noted that before this book was written, there were only a handful of books covering this knotty topic. Since Guro Mark Wileys effort has been published and raised such a stink, other such books have made their appearance and voiced their credentials and thoughts to the world. At the time it was easily the best researched and most educated attempt at it's subject matter. It is easy to see that for many in this field of study it was a spur to publish more writings. While I do not agree with all of the ideas and concepts espoused in this book, as an FMA instructor and avid martilist I must say I encourage my students to read this book. You could do much much worse time investments in martial arts books.
Customer Rating:
Summary: Trailblazing
Comment: Mark Wiley's thorough examination of the ancient and modern Filipino martial culture is ground breaking, exemplary, and extremely well researched (there are 175 books referenced in the bibliography). My wife is Filipino so I've had a long time fascination with the martial culture of that archipelago, but had difficulty finding English-language texts to study prior to discovering this outstanding work. This book covers all aspects of those arts. It is well written and very informative, covering the martial history of the Philippines, the ethos and worldview of the Filipino warrior, structure, rites, and symbols of the indigenous martial arts, typology of weapons, and more. Eighteen masters of the Filipino arts are interviewed, covering arnis, escrima, kali, and a variety of lesser-known arts (e.g., hagibis, sikaran, sagasa, and kuntaw lima-lima). There are some great pictures as well. In 1521 Filipino natives killed the famous explorer Magellan. Learn about the fighting spirit, weapons, and tactics of these fierce warriors, ancient and modern.
Lawrence Kane
Author of Surviving Armed Assaults, The Way of Kata, and Martial Arts Instruction
Customer Rating:
Summary: A work of surprising depth and scope
Comment: The only books which I can readily think of which approach this book in depth and scope are those by Donn Draeger.Kudos to Wiley for producing such an interesting sourcebook which presents the contemporary mosaic of Filipino martial culture with a thoroughness rarely seen in the world of martial arts writing.
Customer Rating:
Summary: I've read better
Comment: I feel that this book is Mr. Wiley�s personal view on the Filipino Martial Arts. The history in this book is far from valid. The information is presented in a way to support his perception on the Filipino Martial Culture. Written history about the Philippines is distorted or deleted in order to provide the reader with an accurate perception of his fictional writings. Obviously, the author wants to destroy anything that supports Kali being a Pre-Hispanic art. Inducing the reader to believe it did not exist during Pre-Hispanic times. With this false foundation, the author can then steal what truly belongs to the Filipinos and say it originated from European Fencing methods. Therefore, transforming it into a European art. Sadly, giving credit to the colonizer who oppressed the Filipinos, denied them equal rights, while governing them with no progress for over 300 years. In reality, anybody who has seen Kali/Arnis/Eskrima and Fencing can see that they're two completely different arts. Filipino blades like the Kris and Kampilan do not resemble Spanish rapiers nor are they designed for their fighting methods. Filipinos carried these weapons even before Magellan arrived according to Magellan's historian, Antonio Pigfetta. While reading this book I felt very upset. This book tarnished the history of countless Filipino warriors who preserved, developed and passed the Filipino arts down to us. Their history is being portrayed and altered by an author�s personal perception. With this book, their true history is erased like words on a notepad. They are then filled in with bias views, in a book that claims to be �scholarly.� I hope that the reader keeps an open mind while reading this book. Seek out other sources on this topic as well. This way the reader can broaden their perspective and not become limited to the information presented in Mr. Wiley�s book.
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