What is shastar vidya?

Shastar Vidya (), also known as Sanatan Shastar Vidya (), is a centuries-old Indian battlefield art which translates to "the science of weapons".¹²

History

The battle art has existed in the subcontinent for thousands of years and been preserved by people from many different cultures and religions. ³ Since the mid-16th century, the Sikh tribes of the Punjab became the chief custodians and masters of this fighting system. ⁴ In North India it is believed that this art is the father of all martial arts.

After the Anglo-Sikh wars the art was banned by the new British administrators of India in the mid-19th century. ⁵

Features

The basis of Shastar Vidiya is a five-step movement which includes advancing on the opponent; hitting his flank, deflection of incoming blows, taking a commanding position and striking. As a full combat martial art it also includes both unarmed and armed combat techniques using swords, clubs, sticks, spears, daggers and other weapons. ⁶

Principle of power

Shastar Vidya is a subtle art and does not rely on fitness, flexibility or strength like western fighting systems. Instead, it uses tactical positioning and body mechanics. ^{7 8}

References

External links

• Shastar Vidya

Original source: shastar vidya. Shared with Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 3.0 License

Footnotes

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