The Art of Serak is a very
scientific and practical fighting system that has evolved out of the desire to
survive and protect. It has always been
a family system shared with only a select few.
The founder of the system Pak Serak was a man with certain physical
limitations. A clubbed foot and a atrophied
arm on the opposite side of his body. He
was a Horse trader that often traveled the silk road all the way from
Indonesia to the Middle East and Back. Pak Serak was from Cirebon in
Indonesia and he was of Arabic, Chinese
& Indonesian decent. Some
speculate he was a student of Cimande Master Embah Kair. Others say he was a colleague of his. In his travels Pak Serak encountered many
martial practitioners. He spent time
studying the methods originating from the Island of Macao, which is why in the
system of Serak you see similar expressions and sciences as found in Tai Ji,
Xing Yi, Pakua. It is believed that He
studied the science of combat known as Kuntao before Kuntao was split in to
various subdivisions of one larger internal system. Tai Ji, Xing Yi, Pakua was once one art. Serak
is a snap shot of those 3 internal
systems as one. The art as well has
aspects of Javanese Cimande (which historically came from southern Shaolin
Fist, 7 Star Praying Mantis, & Pakua), Harimau Minangkabau (Sumatran Silat
which goes back to old Tai Chi & Shaolin Lohan Postures for combat &
Health). The Animals with in the system
of Serak are the Monkey (Monyet) , Tiger (Machan), Snake (Ular) , Eagle
(Garuda), Water Buffalo, & Golden Spider .
The art itself originally had a very simple Langkah Pantjar (Web) platform
which was a diagram of the human body on the floor (Platform) it consisted of a
square, a cross, and a triangle. Pak Serak taught several students who in turn taught their own students who including taught the Devries & the de Thouars Family. Pak Serak was teaching sometime in the late
1800’s. Below are the names of his
accomplished students.
Pak Arjorno
Pak Adjyo
Mas Mustafa
Mas Roen
Mas Djut
Pak Edgar Vandengroen
The Devries Family & the De
Thouars Family once they were taught the system of Serak they began to use the
system in everyday life. Some of the
Uncles used it in World War I such as Uncle Eddy. Others used in conflicts in Indonesia
during Dutch occupation. Others used it
in WWII. The de Thouars family &
Devries family through their extensive combative background stemming back to
the Gauls versus the Romans and later on the Knights of Templars and even military men
during the times of Napoleon influenced
the art of Serak with their knowledge of Fencing, Bare Knuckle Boxing and
European Combative Strategies. So Serak
is very different than the current Sera found in Indonesia. Because of this
alchemy of Spanish & Dutch Fencing Platforms, Dutch Bare-knuckle Boxing , Kuntao
Internal Martial Arts Indonesian Native Fighting arts you have a very
scientific approach to the original MMA known as Serak.
It is a very scientific form of
training to develop a very straight to the point combative expression to
destroy a system and to shut down any attacker no matter the size.
There are a few main goals in
Serak.
1)
Take the Consciousness of the Opponent through
attacking anatomical regions and physical weaknesses.
2)
Off Balance the Opponent rendering them unable
to fight back or to counter. Shutting them down as soon as possible and with
the most efficiency.
3)
Do both of these simultaneously. By
hitting and manipulating the balance 3 dimension-ally at all times with
every part of the Body a weapon.
The main areas of study are
Djurus - Hand Forms
Langkah - Foot work and Platforms
Sambut - 2 man combative sets & drills
Position
Structure
Timing
Spontaneous flow & returning to Natural movement - Kembangan
Power generation through Internal & External training. Strength training, Tenaga Dalam & Chi Kung.
Healing through the use of Internal Cultivation & pressure points.
Because of Pak Serak’s Physical
limitations he had to discover a more efficient way to move with superior
position, timing, and structure and rooting. As this method was passed on the Devries and
De Thouars Family they enhanced the system to the modern era of combative
understanding. The Langkah became more
subdivided geometrically and understood more as a Web of a Spider. So in any given moment the attacker is caught
in a trap and is webbed in to a position where they cannot fight back because of
being shut down immediately. Serak is known for its devastating take
downs, Body leverage balance manipulation, Advanced Angulation and
use of lines, positioning and Timing,
and aggressive striking to Vital areas known as Pukulan. Despite what many have claimed Uncle Willem
de Thouars has been training the art of Serak since he was a small child
directly under the eyes and guidance of
his Uncles. He began Serak training
before his older brothers even started training. He was the 1st to learn and is now
the last to train the longest out of his entire family. His 70 + years of training Serak, Cimande, Kuntao & Internal cultivation have given him a better understanding of how the genius of Pak Serak interpreted his art. Bapak Willem de Thouars is a living treasure
in the world of Martial Arts and of his family’s heritage of Pukulan Pentjak Silat
Serak. Many have deviated from Serak and are interpreting teachers approaches but few are really showing how it is that Pak Serak interpreted his art. When you see a serak practitioner moving ask your self is that how Pak Serak would move? Could it be done by any one at any age with or with out disability? How is it that an elderly person could use Serak against anyone of any size or strength? What is it about Serak that allows one to have the upper hand in combat? It is not done through brute strength, external means only and through speed alone. It is achieved through internal training, timing, positioning, structure, and feeling natural movement. So a Serak player must go back to the founder's way to truly understand the art and to give the founder proper Adat & Hormat.
Hormat to Pak Serak, Bapak Willem de Thouars, the de Thouars Family & to all elders of Serak.
Terima Kasi
Guru Santiago Dobles
