Originally Posted by Sigung Tom Elias
It is a mantra for those of us who have spent any length of time in Kajukenbo when explaining our system: KA is for Karate, JU is for Judo and Ju Jitsu, KEN is for Kenpo and BO is for Chinese Boxing or Kung Fu. We have said it a thousand times. I humbly suggest that given the strong influence of the Filipino Martial Arts one could say KA is equally for both Karate and Kali just as JU is for Judo and Ju Jitsu.
I would clarify that I use the term Kali in place of Escrima, a term more often used in the Kajukenbo nomenclature. In the Philippines, terms like Escrima, Kali, Arnis, and others are all used interchangeably when referring to Filipino martial arts as a whole. As with the Chinese language, there are so many dialects and different terminologies for the same strike or techniques that it is difficult to decipher. I use the term Kali then for two reasons:
1.) Kali fits so well with the KAjukenbo name.
2.) The term Escrima tends to project the misconception of stick fighting only.
In the Filipino Martial Arts all the training and techniques, whether using a rattan stick, machete, knife or an open hand are the same. The movements only differ in extension.
I am not suggesting that Sijo’s Filipino influence is not recognized, as it most certainly is. Talk to any of the GM’s and they will speak of Sijo’s early training with his uncles. Nor am I ignoring the wonderful Escrima stick fighting side to Kaju, which is a fundamental part of our tradition; however, it does tend to be labeled as a sub-set of the Original Method. I am simply observing that Kali is as profound an influence of a style as any of the five methods. It may even be, in my opinion, the entire structure of our system.
I have read that it was decided by the five founders that Kenpo would be the foundation for Kajukenbo as it served as a strong base for the other arts. If this is so, one could say that if Kenpo is the roots of Kaju then Kali must be the stalk.
This is not to minimize or take away anything from the other contributing styles as their presence and influence is clearly apparent. Nevertheless, from my study I can see Kali is intrinsically woven into almost every aspect of Kaju. Like the silk wrappings of the connective tissue in the human body, Kali subtly permeates the movements in almost all the techniques we do.
As an example, our entries and limb destructs are clearly Kali based. Limb destructs serve as a primary weapon in our Kaju arsenal. Almost all of the Tricks I learned in the 80’s began with the Gunting strike. Furthermore, a majority of the basic Punch Defenses and Grab Arts use Filipino style entries. Alphabets may be an exception as they are heavily Japanese and Chinese based. Observing Professor Harper's class on You Tube you can see his appreciation for Kali style Gunting and entries.
Another example of Kali’s influence can be seen in the positioning, anglings, and footwork of Kajukenbo. As with all the Basic Punch Defenses, positioning is essential to the set up and flow of the technique. Sure, this can be said of all the martial arts, but one only needs to compare a Kali practitioner with a Kaju practitioner side by side to see my point. Their angles and positioning are almost identical. Japanese or Korean styles tend to square off, and Chinese styles put just as much emphasis on elegance as they do effectiveness. Kali, however, will position, join, take down, and follow up just as in Kajukenbo.
As I tell my students, Kajukenbo is easy! You destroy the limbs to get to the head, rip out the throat, throw your opponent to the ground, breaking their back on the way down, stomp their head and go on to the next guy. All of this is accomplished in fewer than three seconds. See, easy!
As a point of contention, Kajukenbo angling and footwork is mostly attributed to western boxing. While this may be true, there are some martial art historians such Dan Inosanto and Ron Balliki who have linked modern boxing to Filipino roots. European boxers before merchant sailors brought back fighting techniques from Asia had a completely different style of boxing than what passes today for ‘modern boxing’. You can see the old style in pictures of boxers like Sullivan and other of his era.
I would omit the comparison of hand styles as most strikes and hand positions ultimately have their roots in all the original Chinese Arts. Elbow striking in Kajukenbo, however, is without question a Filipino technique.
What is uniquely Kajukenbo is that you can see a beautiful blend of cultures woven into a cohesive flow -- Chinese, Korean, Japanese, Okinawa, Filipino and yes, our beloved Hawaiian culture (which I will discuss more of in a later blog). Kaju is a Neapolitan swirl of Asian martial arts working together as never before seen in history.
In closing, we in Kajukenbo have the opportunity to explore the various roots of our system. In my class, I always have a flavor of the month. One month we work on Judo throws, another month we do Korean Tang Su Do Kicks. Moreover, what was supposed to be the Filipino Boxing flavor of the month has turned out to be a year and a half long study in Kali. This is where I discovered the beautiful source of Sijo’s ultimate inspiration; his Filipino roots. Therefore, when I explain the word Kajukenbo to someone I now say KA is for Karate and Kali.