Proudly Presents
The Midwest's Premier Muay Thai Kickboxing Event
MUAY THAI HISTORY & TRADITION
The Wai Kru (respects to the teacher) also known as Ram Muay (boxing dance) is an important part of any evening watching Thai Boxing. These are ceremonies that are performed before each Muay Thai bout. Sometimes the Wai Kru are brief and basic, but other times they may be eloquent performances that draw praise and applause from the crowd. It is said that those who see well can determine who will win the fight by watching two fighters perform their Wai Kru.
TBA Wai Kru (Simple Version)
This is a ceremony performed before a fight to honor one's teacher.
The fighter stands in his own corner and prays. The trainer places the Mong Kon (ceremonial head-band) around the fighter's head and prays, finally blowing his spirit into the fighter.
The fighter goes to the center of the ring and kneels down facing the direction of his home and places their hands in a Wai (praying) position. The fighter thinks of his religion, father & mother, teacher and someone who has passed away.
Bow three times in respect, first for country (chat), religion (sassana) and then for king (ramma) then return to the Wai position.
Rise to a kneeling position by picking up your right leg. Hands move into an overhand guard position reminiscent of Krabi-Krabong
Rise to a standing position to perform the Yam Sang Kung (three step dance). Ajarn Chai's version of this dance is heavily influence by the defensive hand and body mechanics of Krabi-Krabong.
While performing the Yam Sang Kung make your way to each corner, stopping at each point to pay respects. (Note: Do not stamp your feet in your opponent's corner as this is a signal that you intend to kill your opponent--unless you have an armed escort to make sure you make it out of the stadium alive.)
Return finally to your own corner to pay respects last in that corner.
Muay Thai (pronounced [muāitʰāi]; Thai: มวยไทย) literally Thai Boxing and also known as The Art of the Eight Limbs is the Thai name for a form of hard martial art practiced in several Southeast Asian countries including Thailand. It is known as Pradal Serey in Cambodia, Tomoi in Malaysia, Muay Lao in Laos and as a similar style called Lethwei in Burma. The different styles of kickboxing in Southeast Asia are analogous to the different types of Kung Fu in China or Silat in the Malay peninsula. The Thai military uses a modified form of Muay Thai called Lerdrit.[1]
Muay Korat (Northeast) emphasized strength. A technique like "Throwing Buffalo Punch" was used. It could supposedly defeat a buffalo in one blow.
Muay Lopburi (Center region) emphasized movements. Its strong points were straight and counter punches.
Muay Chaiya (South) emphasized posture and defense, as well as elbows and knees. Muay Pra Nakorn (North) emphasized speed, particularly in kicking. Because of its faster speed, it was called as well "Ling Lom" (windy monkey or Loris).
The practice of Muay Thai was later kept up largely by Buddhist monks who were the keepers and teachers of all arts both practical and spiritual. As every Thai man is compelled to live as a monk at least once in his life the art grew in popularity among common people, so much so that it was said that any man worth his salt would practice it. As well as continuing to function as a practical fighting technique for use in actual warfare, Muay Thai became a sport in which the opponents fought in front of spectators who went to watch for entertainment. This kind of muay contests gradually became an integral part of local festivals and celebrations, especially those held at temples. It was even used as entertainment to kings.
Eventually, the previously bare-fisted fighters started wearing lengths of rope wrapped around their hands and forearms. This type of match was called muay kaad chuek (มวยคาดเชือก).
Royal Muay Muay gradually became a possible means of personal advancement as the nobility increasingly esteemed skillful practitioners of the art and invited selected fighters to come to live in the Royal palace to teach muay to the staff of the royal household, soldiers, princes or the king's personal guards. This "royal muay" was called muay luang (มวยหลวง).
Some time during the Ayutthaya Period, a platoon of royal guards was established, whose duty was to protect king and the country. They were known as Grom Nak Muay (Muay Fighters' Regiment). This royal patronage of muay continued through the reigns of Rama V and VII.
After the occurrence of a death in the ring, King Rama the VII pushed for codified rules for Muay Thai, and they were put into place. These included the rules that the fighters should wear modern gloves and cotton coverlets over the feet and ankles. It was also around this time in the 1920s that the term Muay Thai became commonly used while the older form of the style was referred to as Muay Boran.
In 1774, in the Burmese city of Rangoon, the king of the Burmese, King Mangra decided to organize a seven-day, seven-night religious festival in honor of Buddha's relics. The festivities included many forms of entertainment, such as the costume plays called likay, comedies and farces, and sword-fighting matches. At one point, King Mangra wanted to see how Muay Boran would compare to the Burmese art Lethwei. Nai Khanom Tom was selected to fight against the Burmese champion. The boxing ring was set up in front of the throne and Nai Khanom Tom did a traditional Wai Kru pre-fight dance, to pay his respects to the Burmese king, as well as for all the spectators, dancing around his opponent, which amazed and perplexed all the Burmese people. When the fight began, he charged out, using punches, kicks, elbows, and knees, pummeling his opponent until he collapsed.[2]
King Mangra was so impressed that he remarked, "Every part of the Thai is blessed with venom. Even with his bare hands, he can fell nine or ten opponents. But his Lord was incompetent and lost the country to the enemy. If he would have been any good, there was no way the City of Ayutthaya would ever have fallen."
King Mangra granted Nai Khanom Tom freedom along with either riches or two beautiful Burmese wives. Nai Khanom Tom chose the wives as he said that money was easier to find. He then departed with his wives for Siam. Other variations of this story had him also winning the release of his fellow Thai prisoners. His feat is celebrated every March 17 as "Boxer's Day" or "National Muay Thai Day" in his honor and that of Muay Thai's.
Today, some have wrongly attributed the legend of "Nai Khanom Tom" to King Naresuan, who was once taken by the Burmese. However, Nai Khanon Tom and King Naresuan were almost two centuries apart.
One of the most important traditions of Muay Thai is Wai Khru (Paying Respect to Teachers). In order to become a fully-fledged Muay Thai fighter, a person has to pass through a series of ceremonies. First comes the Initiation as a Trainee Fighter Ceremony (Kuen Khru), in which the khru muay accepts young fighters as his students and pledges to teach them to the best of his ability. After fighters have been accepted, they must demonstrate a good conduct, diligence and endurance, in addition to training as hard as they can, following implicitly all the teacher's rules
It is only when fighters have passed all these three milestones (initiation, training and participation in contests) that they are entitled to call themselves as real Muay Thai fighters. When fighters have satisfied their teachers on all these counts, then they can participate in the fourth Wai Khru ritual, the Initiation as a Teacher Ceremony (Khrob Khru), which bestows on them the rank of khru muay and again involves a performance of the Ritual Dance of Homage.
In ancient times, Siamese people believed in the power of incantations and protective amulets, the common belief was that everything was ruled and inhabited by unseen spirits, and that places were either blessed or cursed. Because of these beliefs, it was necessary to perform special rites before a fighter entered the ring, asking the spirits' permission to do so.
Even today, before entering the ring many fighters perform rituals. It is very much a matter of individual preference these days, with no prescribed rules. Some may kneel before the ring, others might pray with their khru muay or perform a series of repetitive movements, such as touching the ring ropes 3 times and avoiding the bottom stair before taking the first step up to the ring are actions thought to bring good luck!
Fighters always leap over the ropes into the ring, because the head is considered to be more important than the feet and therefore it has to stay always above the feet while entering the ring, then they will go to the center and pay respect (panom muae wai) in all four directions to the spectators.
Wai Khru Muay Thai is a tradition which goes back to ancient times, it is not an optional ritual or reserved for special occasions: the official Muay Thai regulations specify that both fighters must perform the Wai Khru Ram Muay before each and every bout. It's a tradition in which fighters pay respect to their teachers, parents and things they hold sacred and pray for their safety and victory. The ritual has been developed in different ways, in different regions, even under different teachers and therefore it is theoretically impossible for two fighters to perform identical Wai Khru.
The Wai Khru is graceful and aesthtic ritual, both practical and spiritual. In a practical sense, it functions as a final pre-fight warm-up and gives the fighter some time alone before the fight to collect his thoughts. It can be divided into three main sections:
This was originally intended to show devotion to the King, going back to the days when fighters were selected to display their skills in front of him. It has three subsections: Prostration, Outstretched Arms and Act of Homage.
The Kneeling Sequence
This section is performed in a kneeling posture, one knee on the ground and the other leg out in front. the fighter pivots around on the spot to repeat the same sequence facing all four sides of the ring, a tradition which comes from Krabi Krabong.
The Standing Sequence
In this section, the fighters go out from the center of the ring in one direction, to perform the Dramatic Interlude. Some fighters imitate the motions of "Rama Shooting an Arrow" from the Ramakien, a hunter, a soldier, or an executioner. Some fighters use this ritual to attempt to scare their opponents, commonly by stomping around them. But in a deeper sense, the fighter is expressing religious devotion, humility, and gratitude. Transcending both physical and temporal limitations, he opens himself to the divine presence and allows it to infuse his heart.
After the Wai Khru is completed, the fighters return to their own corners for the Removal of the Head Circlet Ritual (Pitee Tod Mongkon). The fighter stands in his own corner, lowers his head and raises hands to his chest for panom mue wai pose, while khru muay standing outside of the ropes facing the fighter, raises his own hands to return the wai. A fighter maintains the posture while the teacher utters an incantation and blows three times on top of fighters' head before removing the Mongkon. On the completion of this ritual and after a review of the rules by the judge and a glove shake, the contest may begin.
The crowd of spectators that gathers to see a Muay Thai match provide almost as much entertainment as the contestants in the ring, and are vital to the sport. Muay Thai matches are awash with color and pageantry and alive with music and spirit. The crowd provide a sense of electricity in the air for each fight.
The music during the actual fight is similar in that it starts off slow and as the battle between the contestants heats up so does the music. the last thirty seconds of the rounds are where the fighter tries to steal the rounds. the music at this time is a frenzy of drums. much like how the warriors of by gone days were led into battle with music, so too is the muay thai fighter.
Turn up the volume and listen to the crowd...Aay!
| HOME | RESULTS | RULES & DIVISIONS | WANT 2 SPONSOR? | CONTACT US | GALLERY | HISTORY & TRADITION |