wes tasker
06-30-2008, 04:32 PM
In my never ending quest to keep up with Mr. Jack Latorre - I thought I'd post this article I wrote for one of the PTI newsletters that I feel dovetails nicely with Mr. Latorre's "Why Espada Y Daga" article......
Pekiti Tirsia Kali – System Large or Small?
“When the Ten Thousand things are viewed in their Oneness, we
return to the Origin and remain where we have always been.”
- Jianzhi Sengcan
When I first started researching Pekiti Tirsia there was one thing that stuck out as both intriguing and worrisome: the breadth of the PTI curriculum. It was worrisome because I had seen other arts make attempts at being all-inclusive and only end up with a patchwork of disparate and unrelated pieces. It was intriguing because if this was indeed a cohesive art held together by a contiguous set of principles and basics, then I had found what I was looking for. Obviously, the later was born out as truth.
The PTI curriculum can be a rather daunting thing to behold when looked at in its entirety. I believe, though, that it is not as large and looming as it first seems. It is one thing to memorize the blocks of material, but it is another thing altogether too actually learn them. A very good friend of mine is fond of saying “Information becomes knowledge once it’s used.” This is the crux of what should be done with the curriculum of Pekiti Tirsia. When one actually “learns” and seeks “knowledge” of the material, it’s not as large as it once seemed. One actually runs into more commonality and overlap then anything else. Contrarywise, if one just wants to “memorize” and seeks only “information”, then the curriculum will always be large, unrelated, and ultimately unusable.
Figure I represents a progression through the PTI curriculum from the vantage point of actually learning and gaining knowledge from the material. One starts with footwork and the basics of all the weapons categories. The second stage is learning actual techniques, forms, and drills that show a myriad of ways these basics can be utilized. The longest horizontal line represents the end of the formal curriculum. Then one should start examining all the techniques, forms, and drills for the principles and concepts that they are trying to teach. It is in this stage that a lot of overlap is discovered. It is also at this stage that the system starts to get “smaller” in a way. One soon discovers that instead of having 4 different “techniques” what one has is one principle that is manifested with slight differences due to the situation (i.e. – the opponent’s reaction, multiple opponents, weapon type, etc.). Then, after exploring the principles and concepts of the techniques, forms, and drills then drilling them in sparring and other like drills, one is left with the footwork and basics that one started with. The only difference is that, with all the experience of the middle two stages, one can now apply those basics to a wide range of situations and weapon types. That is why one learns by ascending the diagram and then applies by descending. One’s ability to apply the principles through basics occurs on the top part of the diamond.
Figure II represents what happens when the techniques, drills, and forms are just memorized and not examined, drilled, sparred, etc. If a student stops at the ‘end’ of the PTI curriculum and doesn’t examine the entirety for principles and concepts, then they are limited in application. Without the experience of the principles, the only things they can apply are the techniques, drills, and forms themselves. This is problematic for two major reasons. The first is that the reality of sparring and/or combative drilling rarely matches the techniques, forms, and drills exactly, if at all. Secondly, Hick’s law takes effect if one is only armed with a large number of techniques. Hick’s law states that when the number of options increases, so does reaction time. So even if one were to find a situation that fits a technique or form in the middle of sparring, the reactionary gap would be far too large to even begin to act. Hick’s law is also the exact reason one should start paring down all the standard techniques and forms to base principles and concepts.
Some styles and/or instructors try to avoid the problems with techniques and forms by simply teaching with only principles. One way is not better or worse than the other. I view them as two different routes up the same mountain; each with its advantages and pitfalls. The advantage of a principle-only pedagogy is that there are no standard techniques and forms for the student to concretize and be trapped by. Another advantage is the practitioner is trained from day one to start using principles and concepts. The disadvantage is that a student can be trapped by having a lot of principles and no way to connect them. Also, without standard forms and techniques, it is sometimes very difficult to keep track of ways of using the principles and how they interrelate. Techniques and forms, when learned and used correctly, can work as examples and references to principles and how they work and interrelate.
Again, both “technique/form” and “principle-only” based systems are perfectly good models. They each have their advantages and disadvantages. The PTI curriculum is technique based but only insomuch as the techniques are a stage that needs to be passed through then transcended and its principles included in one’s expression of Pekiti Tirsia. If not, then all one has done is accumulate a massive amount of movements that won’t be able to function in a dynamic environment. If one truly learns and transcends the techniques, then one can apply and explore all the many things they have to teach. This is why, in reality, Pekiti Tirsia is not as large a system as it may first appear. Behind its many techniques and forms lie several profound principles and concepts that cover a wide array of weapons and situations. But it takes work and analysis to get there; where the learning and memorization of a technique or form is only the beginning.
Pekiti Tirsia Kali – System Large or Small?
“When the Ten Thousand things are viewed in their Oneness, we
return to the Origin and remain where we have always been.”
- Jianzhi Sengcan
When I first started researching Pekiti Tirsia there was one thing that stuck out as both intriguing and worrisome: the breadth of the PTI curriculum. It was worrisome because I had seen other arts make attempts at being all-inclusive and only end up with a patchwork of disparate and unrelated pieces. It was intriguing because if this was indeed a cohesive art held together by a contiguous set of principles and basics, then I had found what I was looking for. Obviously, the later was born out as truth.
The PTI curriculum can be a rather daunting thing to behold when looked at in its entirety. I believe, though, that it is not as large and looming as it first seems. It is one thing to memorize the blocks of material, but it is another thing altogether too actually learn them. A very good friend of mine is fond of saying “Information becomes knowledge once it’s used.” This is the crux of what should be done with the curriculum of Pekiti Tirsia. When one actually “learns” and seeks “knowledge” of the material, it’s not as large as it once seemed. One actually runs into more commonality and overlap then anything else. Contrarywise, if one just wants to “memorize” and seeks only “information”, then the curriculum will always be large, unrelated, and ultimately unusable.
Figure I represents a progression through the PTI curriculum from the vantage point of actually learning and gaining knowledge from the material. One starts with footwork and the basics of all the weapons categories. The second stage is learning actual techniques, forms, and drills that show a myriad of ways these basics can be utilized. The longest horizontal line represents the end of the formal curriculum. Then one should start examining all the techniques, forms, and drills for the principles and concepts that they are trying to teach. It is in this stage that a lot of overlap is discovered. It is also at this stage that the system starts to get “smaller” in a way. One soon discovers that instead of having 4 different “techniques” what one has is one principle that is manifested with slight differences due to the situation (i.e. – the opponent’s reaction, multiple opponents, weapon type, etc.). Then, after exploring the principles and concepts of the techniques, forms, and drills then drilling them in sparring and other like drills, one is left with the footwork and basics that one started with. The only difference is that, with all the experience of the middle two stages, one can now apply those basics to a wide range of situations and weapon types. That is why one learns by ascending the diagram and then applies by descending. One’s ability to apply the principles through basics occurs on the top part of the diamond.
Figure II represents what happens when the techniques, drills, and forms are just memorized and not examined, drilled, sparred, etc. If a student stops at the ‘end’ of the PTI curriculum and doesn’t examine the entirety for principles and concepts, then they are limited in application. Without the experience of the principles, the only things they can apply are the techniques, drills, and forms themselves. This is problematic for two major reasons. The first is that the reality of sparring and/or combative drilling rarely matches the techniques, forms, and drills exactly, if at all. Secondly, Hick’s law takes effect if one is only armed with a large number of techniques. Hick’s law states that when the number of options increases, so does reaction time. So even if one were to find a situation that fits a technique or form in the middle of sparring, the reactionary gap would be far too large to even begin to act. Hick’s law is also the exact reason one should start paring down all the standard techniques and forms to base principles and concepts.
Some styles and/or instructors try to avoid the problems with techniques and forms by simply teaching with only principles. One way is not better or worse than the other. I view them as two different routes up the same mountain; each with its advantages and pitfalls. The advantage of a principle-only pedagogy is that there are no standard techniques and forms for the student to concretize and be trapped by. Another advantage is the practitioner is trained from day one to start using principles and concepts. The disadvantage is that a student can be trapped by having a lot of principles and no way to connect them. Also, without standard forms and techniques, it is sometimes very difficult to keep track of ways of using the principles and how they interrelate. Techniques and forms, when learned and used correctly, can work as examples and references to principles and how they work and interrelate.
Again, both “technique/form” and “principle-only” based systems are perfectly good models. They each have their advantages and disadvantages. The PTI curriculum is technique based but only insomuch as the techniques are a stage that needs to be passed through then transcended and its principles included in one’s expression of Pekiti Tirsia. If not, then all one has done is accumulate a massive amount of movements that won’t be able to function in a dynamic environment. If one truly learns and transcends the techniques, then one can apply and explore all the many things they have to teach. This is why, in reality, Pekiti Tirsia is not as large a system as it may first appear. Behind its many techniques and forms lie several profound principles and concepts that cover a wide array of weapons and situations. But it takes work and analysis to get there; where the learning and memorization of a technique or form is only the beginning.