Customer Reviews

The Filipino Martial Arts as taught by Dan Inosanto

5 star:		(3)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(0)
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Dan Inosanto has been one of the best teachers and proponents of the martial arts.His resume need not be repeated.In this book he explains and teaches the fighting system of his homeland.Unless a system realistically addresses weapons, sadly few do, it cannot call itself a complete martial art.For non ballistic( firearms) weapons, Kali has stood the test of time.Amongst my most prized books is a signed copy I received from Dan Inosanto attained at a seminar.His teaching ability is legendary and at your fingertips with this book or anything he does.

As most martial artists know, Dan Inosanto was Bruce Lee's top student. However, Master Inosanto had been a seasoned martial artist with a background in various Filipino martial arts before meeting Bruce Lee. This excellent book covers the basic history of the Filipino Martial Arts, the use of the arnis sticks and knives. The combinations taught in this text are effective and practical.

As a lifetime student of the martial arts, including the Filipino stick and knife arts, I found this book an excellent reference source when combined with actual hands-on training under an instructor.

Rating: 5 Stars. Joseph J. Truncale (Author: Use of the Monadnock Straight Baton).

This book is excellent, in terms of diagrams, it has a good brief history of the Filipino Martial Arts, and the lives of some of the masters of the art who actually taught Dan Inosanto. The sections are broken down for the novice clearly. It is an old book, one out of print- if anybody is really interested in Filipino Martial arts, this book is a must. But the problem is how many are still available.

I already had Black Belts in Modern Arnis and Taekwondo, and I was still training in Jujitsu, Silat and Muay Thai for several years when I went to Stockton, California (Some people say Sticktown, Kalifornia.)the Mecca of FMA in the United States,to train in Serrada Escrima from Grandmaster Vincent Angel Cabales Sr. I had started FMA in the 70's, then in 1992 I attended the FMA tournament at University of Pacific, in Sticktown. I noticed Master Vincent Angel Cabales Jr. getting cheated out of points, and I didn't know if the cheating was intentional or accidental as some strikes are so fast that they could easily be missed by judges, but it was obvious to me that whoever trained him did an excellent job. Most of the strikes were direct solid hits. Other people were furious that he was getting cheated so bad, one woman asked if the judges were watching the same fight or if they were blind. She was so mad she was spitting. After the fight was over I asked the fighter who it was that trained him so well, and he introduced me to his Dad, Grandmaster Vincent Angel Cabales Sr. I'm glad I made the right choice to learn Serrada. Many of the Masters in Danny Inosanto's book attended that tournament. This book should be back in print.

Train hard and have fun!

Guro Dennis Servaes

This excellent book on the Filipino martial arts has become an out of print collectors item.

It covers angles of attack, empty hand infighting parrying, double dagger, rattan stick single and double as well as an excellent solo training skills section.

The only area that it falls short in is in the historical description of Magellans death at the hands of King Lapu lapu.

According to many Filipinos magellan landed with his men ready to assault the local village, Lapu lapu and his corageous tribe of warriors attcked the spanish with only rattan sticks.

The firceness and bravery of the filipino warriors were too much for the spanish bandits and after a good fight, Lapu lapu overcame magellan and killed him Thus he became a Legend.

The above story sounds amazing, however we do know from historical spanish records and by recreating the conditions weaponry and situation of the 1600s that the above version found in Inosantos book is a fallacy.

In fact there were fewer than 40 spaniards accompanying Magellan( a portuguese explorer) to shore on that fateful day, Magellan had thought he had rights of passage due to a pact he had with another chief.

Not long after disembarking Magellan and his men realised they were in an ambush. Surrounded by more than 2000 filpino warriors the lightly armoured spaniards who thought they would be on a scouting mission were soon in the midst of a hail of arrows and spears and gunshots ( yes the filipinos had small cannons albeit handheld as historians noted).

Here we then have the truth of the matter, over 2000 filipno warriors armed with high powered bows, spears swords and to some extent hand held cannons against 40 spaniards that were manly armed with sword and dagger and a few muskets. They fought back the Filipinos fiercely, killing hundreds of them in close range combat before being completely overun by the ferocity of the arrows and spears being hurled at them from a greater vantage point, magellan was pierced by several spears and arrows thus he was leaning forward half dead when Lapu Lapu and his thousands of warriors finally surrounded the spaniards. It was at this point that LApu Lapu took advantage of the situation and felled magellan with a blow to the back of the head severing it from his body, not with a rattan but with a kampilan sword.

The Filipinos were intrigued by the efficiency of the dagger and sword method, it is said that it was a combination of portuguese , Italian scrimia methods and Spanish techniques that the Filipinos incorporated as the bulk of what later would become the Escrima that we know of today.

Incidentally just in the last 10 years or more ancient Italian books on their art scrimia dating back to the early 15th century were translated into English, it is strikingly similar to the later art we now know as Filipino Escrima. Evidence that the European Martial arts were in full force and influential in helping to forge modernised FMA.