Silat for the Street: Using the Ancient Martial Art for Self-Defense in the 21st Century

Burton Richardson's "Silat for the Street" is straightforward in its approach and its appeal. The title is disingenuous, in a good way. The "street" appeal is used to make Silat -- and other -- martial arts practitioners re-examine the effectiveness of what they do. Richardson says the way to honing street effectiveness involves hard sparring, realistic training and cross-training.Richardson offers the central problem facing Silat and other arts: The divide between Pencak (the art) and Silat (the fighting). Similarly in kung fu, I've heard of demonstration and form champions referred to as having "flower fist and brocade leg." Ultimately, it's the difference between dancing and fighting, between applying techniques to compliant partners and executing techniques on resisting opponents intent on hurting you. It's a kung fu problem, a karate problem, a Taekwondo problem, a Japanese jujitsu problem, the Aikido problem.Richardson is upfront on the problem he faced: A six-month white belt in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu easily countered his years of Silat grappling. He had little to no answer on the mats. Richardson had trained in Silat under Dan Inosanto; he had fought in the Dog Brothers' full-contact weapons contests. Richardson retooled, earned a BJJ black belt with the Machando brothers, extensively studied Muay Thai (which he says is derived from Silat) and revised his approach. BJJ and Muay Thai, like boxing, follow a scientific method of testing and refinement. Richardson applied the same to Silat to tweak body positioning, to allow for the various head twists and tilts that -- as-is -- weren't dropping skilled grapplers with strong necks.The learning process shows. Richardson offers covered entries, guards, defenses and their potential issues, throws and ground work. The emphasis on defensive skills often is rare. Most books offer a few parries or blocks, which may deflect one punch but would fail before an onslaught. Richardson's techniques allow for deflection and entry to execute the throws and sweeps he shows. Richardson shows some great takedowns, from the ground, of standing opponents intent on kicking or stomping -- the way many ground fights really go. He then layers in the truly violent throws, MCL- and ACL-destroying leg kicks and other techniques that could maim an opponent. The author offers advice on how to train these realistically, some just by obtaining the correct body position, others by modifying the intent. I've seen the same approach in Japanese jujitsu and Judo, where the competition-banned techniques often are isolated or trained on stacked mats so you can practice without crippling a partner or breaking their neck.Some of the throws and ground sweeps mirror Judo and catch-wrestling and those found in other grappling arts. People, after all, have a universal bodily structure. Richardson expertly divides and explains the sections into a lesson plan covering all ranges of fighting, and where they bleed together. It's a dense book, and benefits from re-readings and thorough practice. The throws are quick and dirty, and their only intent is to slam someone to the ground and hurt them on the way down -- similar enough to Chinese Sanshou or the throws of pugilism under the London Prize Ring rules.

Silat is a martial art, versions of which are found throughout Southeast Asia. It is not as widely known or practiced in the United States as many other Asian martial arts. However, like those other arts, the traditional manner in which it is often taught and practiced aren't effective in the MMA arena or on the street in practical self-defense situations. Burton Richardson, who has practiced martial arts since 1979, recognized this and set himself the task of "pressure testing" silat methods. He has learned how silat can be applied in real world situations while staying consistent with the concepts contained within this art. In this book he articulately sets out the principles and techniques that make silat an effective art of self-preservation for those interested in protecting themselves in potential street encounters. The information Mr. Richardson provides in this book applies not only to silat practitioners but can enhance the practice of all martial artists.

I have been buying martial arts books since the 70's. A lot of them spent three pages on how to make a fist or tie your belt. I can honestly say that Burt's book is a solid entry for any type of martial arts. Great photography, clear writing, unique analysis and meticulous organization. This book is a huge step above those poorly designed and terribly written books of years gone by. The side by side comparison of this war art with modern sport arts such as MMA and muay Thai is alone worth the value. It's not a question of either/or, but what is the best outcome from personal discovery.

So finally, a book that uses filipino martial arts (FMA) concepts and applies them to self-defense and street fighting situations. A lot of other books out there that demonstrate the FMA, state that they can be used in street encounters and such yet fail to address a lot of the practical aspects of street defense and counter-ambush attacks on the street. Survival and street defense are very different from the martial arts that are taught in the dojos. This book definitely address the concepts of the FMA and extracts the concepts and idea and puts them in context of surviving a street encounter where life and death are very real possibilities. I wish other books took the FMA and show the extracted principles of the art and revealed the effective brutality of the art as it was initially created for!!Pros of the book:Well written, great examples, detailed descriptionsCons of the book:Needs more pictures, book was too short, and could've had more (or large section) in the book dealing with counter-offensive techniques with empty hand vs. armed assailant (empty hand vs. knife wielding attacker).Overall, a great purchase and definitely belongs in the library of one's FMA library collection.!!!!

A really good, in depth look at training silat for modern day encounters. Simple, effective and honest. Richardson demonstrates the ability to put across relatively complex ideas in a simple, easy to understand way.

Très bon livre à propos d'une approche plus pratique sur le Silat

really good book... home to have the chance to train with this guy one day

very good book !!

As a silat practitioner and self defense instructor, i found this book really clear, detailed with effective techniques . Highly recommended to self defense goers whatever your skills are. This book offers a wide range of techniques i really loved.