Training Krabi Krabong in Thailand. Ch 1, Pt 13. From Becoming a "Warrrior" in Thailand.
The Renaissance Man Project is an original non-fiction novel by Nathaniel Kostar, occasionally known as Nate Lost. Follow @natelost.
I have said that the soul is not more than the body,
And I have said that the body is not more than the soul.
—Walt Whitman, Section 48 of “Leaves of Grass.”
One day after yoga during my third week at Tiger, Simon invites me to his Krabi Krabong class. Krabi-Krabong is an ancient Siamese military fighting technique that has been practiced in Thailand since at least the 16th century. In Thai, the word krabi means curved sword and krabong means staff—the two main weapons used by soldiers and members of the Thai Royal Guard. Over the past few weeks, I’ve noticed this class tucked off to the side of the training camp just beyond the MMA ring. It’s usually a smaller group, five to ten people, and it's the only class I’ve seen where students have weapons—fake knives and long, wooden sticks—which they hold above their heads as they crouch low to defend, or attack by stepping forward and wind milling the sticks like characters in a Tarantino movie.
From a distance the class looks odd, if not completely ridiculous. But if this project has taught me anything so far, it is to not fear the ridiculous, the absurd, the unknown or the uncomfortable.
“A man can be all things if he will,” but he can’t be much of anything if he’s afraid to try anything new.
I accept Simon’s offer and take my place in his class. And before I even have time to say (or think,) what-the-fuck-am-I-doing-here?, one of the English chaps who comes to Lars’ meditations greets me with a jovial “hello mate!” and hands me a pair of my own sticks.
The class begins and Simon’s language changes. In yoga class just moments ago, he spoke about breath, relaxation and inner peace. Now he says things like, “You strike down here to cut your opponent’s tendon at the leg, or across the neck, or here to disembowel or castrate. When you stab an organ with the knife, you twist.”
His accent is the same but the tone of his voice has shifted. It is harsher, choppier, more direct.
“Many evil men have a lot of skills with weapons in this world. I like to teach some good people those skills, at least to defend themselves,” he says. And for the first time I notice he has a thin scar from his ear down to his chin thinly veiled by facial hair—perhaps a remnant from his own experience with the brutal nature of this world.
Throughout the class I use my staff, an inch and half thick and about four feet long, to block swipes to the leg and be spared from having my Achilles split in two. I practice defending myself against (plastic) knives thrust at my throat and stomach, and return the gesture with “fierce” eye-gauges (without actually gauging out my partner’s eyes, of course).
Although the training camp is full of Muay Thai Champions, boxers, and MMA fighters with shins, elbows and fists of steal, after seeing what Simon can do with a stick and a knife—quick, stealth, agile, efficient, powerful, James Bond assassin-type shit—I decide that he is the last person at Tiger I would fuck with. God have mercy (if Simon himself chooses not to) on the unfortunate thief who decides to steal Simon’s wallet in some back alley.
But at some point during the class, I can’t help but think to myself—I’m not a member of the Thai Royal Guard. I’m not even in the military. If someone pulls a knife (or sword) on me while I’m walking down some street in New Jersey or New Orleans, I plan to throw my wallet on the ground and get the hell out of there! By no means will I crouch into my Krabi Krabong stance and try to gauge out a madman’s eyes. So what is the practical use of this? Is there any?
Since I began training in Thailand I have struggled with the purpose of this aspect of The Renaissance Man Project. In theory, I am here to become a “warrior.” But I neither feel like a warrior nor do I desire ever become one. To be a “warrior” you must fight, and by nature, I am not a fighter. It's doubtful that I will ever use a Muay Thai style kick, elbow or knee in real life. I certainly hope I don’t.
And so, if I never do, then what is the point of this journey? Throughout my time at Tiger I’ve wondered about this time and time again, and in this class, which is practically a military training session, my doubt becomes more acute.
And then it hits me like a wooden stick smack in the forehead. Perhaps this aspect of The Renaissance Man Project is not about Muay Thai at all, or even combat. It is about one thing—the body.
Since I arrived in Thailand three weeks ago, the body has been the focus. Each day I train it to react a certain way, attack a certain way, defend a certain way. With the assistance of my trainers we attempt to stretch the limits of what my body can do. We nurture it with proper diet, and expand its capabilities with constant exercise and practice. Even meditation with Lars is extremely physical and brings me into deeper contact with the rhythms of my body.
I'm also discovering that it is not just about the body, for the body is intricately connected with the mind, and I cannot train my body without also training my mind. Perhaps the reason the trainers here are so unlike what I had expected—kind, gentle, joyous—and not aggressive or angry like I’d imagined fighters to be—is because they have successfully trained not only their bodies, but also their minds.
We cannot deny the significance of our bodies and if we do, it is at our own peril. They are, after all, the only tangible aspect of ourselves. Our body gives us form, allowing us to be seen, to exist. It enables us to hear, feel, smell, see, and taste. And from it we can physically manifest our thoughts and ideas—we act through our body. Ultimately, there is no us without our bodies, at least not in this life we’ve been given, and so to neglect it would be foolish.
In Krabi Kabong class, of all places, with a plastic knife in my hand, I reevaluate the importance of what my body means. And I decide then and there that rather than neglect the body, or consider it superfluous (as many poets and artists often do), I will learn how to treat it, heal it, and train it to the best of my ability while I’m here at Tiger and as I continue my journey through life.
This is the practical lesson of studying Muay Thai. This, I realize, while Simon demonstrates how to properly deflect a knife thrust at my heart, is the point.
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Other Sections.
Read Intro, Part 1
Read Intro, Part 2
Read Intro, Part 3
Read Intro, Part 4
Read Ch 1, Part 1
Read Ch 1, Part 2
Read Ch 1, Part 3
Read Ch1, Part4
Read Ch 1, Part 5
Read Ch 1, Part 6
Read Ch 1, Part 7
Read Ch 1, Part 8
Read Ch 1, Part 9. Yoga