The artist transcends within himself, and
in that lonely region of stress and strife,
if he is deserving and fortunate,
he finds the term of his appeal
-JOSEPH CONRAD

Introduction

The world abounds with martial arts "masters." A relatively large number of these individuals have only a theoretical understanding of the techniques that comprise their arts. Moreover, many have not had the opportunity to employ their skills in an actual fight. As a result, the training methods of some martial arts have become largely antiquated and over-stylized. Since the Philippines is an archipelago which is in constant turmoil, its martial arts practitioners are able to maintain a practical experience in the arts-many having employed their skills in the defense of their country during World War II, the Filipino-American War, and against other practitioners of the arts in patayan "death-matches."

It has only been in the past twenty years that the practitioners of Filipino martial arts have come together to form organizations to govern the propagation of their martial traditions. Following the example of martial arts organizations in China, Japan, and Korea, the Philippine organizations have attempted to standardize their ranking structure and titles within the various systems as a means of "legitimizing" their arts and establishing them in tandem with the rest of the martial arts world.

Although various Filipino martial arts organizations have since awarded a relatively large number of practitioners "master" titles, many of these individuals were not included in this study. This is because some organizations have awarded titles for reasons other than proven skill level: the practitioner has reached the age of sixty and has spent at least forty years in the art; the practitioner has promoted at least one student to the master's rank; the practitioner arbitrarily ascribes his name to an existing system and proclaims a false inheritance from a dead relative or master and is duly recognized as the head of a system; or the practitioner is an important political or entertainment figure and will, in return for recognition, support and promote the organization.

For the purpose of this study, however, it was necessary that the selected individuals be of the upper echelon of Filipino martial arts practitioners. The eighteen masters included herein were not selected on the basis of popularity and purported skill level alone. Criterion for selection included the individual's age, experience, reputation, critical acceptance by peers, established lineage, verifiable history, demonstrable skill level, and general availability for a face-to-face interview and photograph session. The distinguishing factor that sets these individuals apart from the mainstream is that they are not mere masters in a general martial art style, but masters of a specific martial art system. A concerted effort was made to contact as many "heads-of-martial-systems" as possible. This made it possible for the book to highlight eighteen masters representing an equal number of different Filipino martial arts.

Contact was made with the masters included in this text in one or more of the following ways: initial informal contact was made by way of verbal and/or written communication; participation in private training sessions, group classes, and/or seminars was arranged; travel to the masters' homes or schools to conduct interviews. Due to limited time and financial support I was, unfortunately, unable to meet and interview all of the deserving individuals. To remedy this, I have mentioned the names of other established masters elsewhere in the text and placed photographs of them accordingly when available. For the reader interested in information on the masters not presented herein, I direct you to Dan Inosanto's The Filipino Martial Arts, and Edgar Sulite's The Masters of Arnis, Kali and Eskrima.

The following section provides historical sketches of eighteen contemporary masters of Filipino martial arts. The diversity of backgrounds, training, life experience, and achievement of these individuals is necessarily reflected in the martial techniques and concepts that shape their fighting arts. Through the following narrative and interview accounts of these masters' lives and training, we are able to gain emic insight into the evolution of the Filipino martial arts-that is, from the perspective of the participants. Accompanying these narratives and interviews are a number of individual photographs depicting the martial techniques found within their respective systems. Sequential photographs depicting their martial techniques are placed side-by-side in chap. 27 for ease in comparing their movements.

As to the question of which master and system is the "best," it is anyone's guess. Having practiced and observed a great many martial arts, I unequivocally assert that no single system is best. While I do believe that certain systems are more combat efficient than others, when it comes to applying their techniques, it is largely the individual who makes them work. However, I did pose this question to each of the informants I spoke with. And while each master thought their style was the best, they respected and revered certain individuals more so than others. The general consensus is that Antonio Ilustrisimo, at the age of eighty-nine, is a force to be reckoned with, and is still feared by many masters; the late Islao Romo was said to be unbelievable, and eye-witness accounts attest to his defeating Felicissimo Dizon, among other revered masters, in challenge matches; and the late Teodoro Saavedra was well respected and also said to be unbeatable. To everyone's disappointment, these men never met socially or in combat.

To this end, this section is a dedication and acknowledgment to the contemporary Filipino masters who have achieved the most revered status of being the head of their respective martial arts "family." In an effort to pay no disrespect to any of the masters by the arbitrary placing of their chapters, I have ordered them alphabetically by the practitioner's last name. In this way it is hoped that any confusion over why one master's chapter appears before that of another will be eliminated. While the reputations of these men certainly precede them, it is hoped that these brief life-histories will shed light into the inner workings of these men and their fighting arts.