Kalaripayattu, the martial art of India

Kalaripayattu, also known as Kalari is a martial art that originated in the 4th century in Kerala, India. It is believed to be the oldest surviving martial art in the world. Historical believed that Kalaripayattu is the mother of all martial art forms. The word Kalaripayattu is a combination of two Malayalam words-‘Kalari’ means the battlefield and ‘Payattu’ means what are practiced inside the Kalari, which is roughly translated as “practice in the arts of the battlefield”.

     Lord Parshuram, the sixth reincarnation of Lord Vishnu, is known as the father of this martial art. He started this art for protecting his land. He learned the art from Lord Shiva. The Hindu saints and monks practiced this out for self protection. It is taught following the traditional Indian guru-shishya system.

Kalaripayattu is mainly divided into three stages. ‘Meithari’ is the initial stage of the training which includes body control exercise. The student’s practices different types of body exercises, different jumps, leads, kicks, animal postures etc. ‘Kothari’ is the second phase of the training. It is practiced with wooden weapons which takes three to four years to complete. The final stage of the training is the 'Angathari' which includes the practice with a dagger, sword and shield, spear and with a flexible sword. Some of the choreographed sparring in Kalaripayattu can be applied to dance. There are two major styles that are generally acknowledged within traditional Kalaripayattu, the northern style or Vadakkan Kalari and the southern style or ThekkanKalari. There is also another style which is practiced and it is known as the Central Style or Madhya Kalari.

The Indian Kalaripayattu Federation (IKF) in Thiruvananthapuram is one of the primary governing body of Kalaripayattu. After completing the three stage training, the students practice human anatomy and the ‘Marmas’. Every human being has a hundred and seven vital spots in the body. It is claimed that  an experienced Kalari warrior could disable or even kill their opponents by merely striking the correct Marmam(vital point) on their opponent’s body. This technique is taught only to the most promising and level-headed students so that no one can misuse the technique.

In 1804,the British banned Kalaripayattu in Kerela in response to the Kothayathu War as they thought it is very dangerous for every individual. Later after the British left, the Kalaripayattu re-emerged.

Ruchira Seal

1st semester.