BURMESE MARTIAL ARTS

Bando means the disciplined way or the way of the warrior. It is about 2,000 years old. Burmese martial arts have successfully provided self-defense in Burma and around the world for many centuries. Great emphasis is placed on developing disciplined, skillful, knowledgeable martial artists. The roots of bando have been greatly influenced by its geographical neighbors: India, China and Thailand. The diverse martial arts of these countries have had great impact on the development of Burmese martial arts. Bando in the U.S.A. has been greatly influenced from the great Ghurkas warriors of Nepal.

There are three levels of bando. The lowest level is full contact fighting. The middle level is used to destroy your opponent and has forms, free thinking sparring, and weapons training. The highest form is closest to the internal arts of China.

Despite the Chinese influences, bando is credited as a style of armed and unarmed combat native to Burma. It is an assimilation of karate-like striking and kicking techniques, judo-like throwing techniques, swordplay and fighting with knives, spears and sticks.

There are numerous interpretations of the term bando, and different linguistic and ethnic groups hold to diverse translations. It is generally interpreted in three ways:

"way of discipline"

"systems of self-defense"

"art of fighting or combat"

Some bando groups have combined all three translations in one, making it similar to the Japanese term budo (stop conflict), the Chinese word wu shu (war art), or the English terms military arts or martial arts. Some etymologists believe the term bando derives from Chinese, while others claim Indian or even Tibetan origins. Bando is also called "Thaing."

There are many styles of bando, but most follow basic instructional patterns. The art emphasizes initial withdrawal followed by an attack outside the opponent's reach. All parts of the body are employed in these attacks, and once the initial technique is delivered, grappling and locking techniques are used. Techniques are learned first through formal exercises in some systems and only later through sparring.