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Bando is one of those martial arts that a lot of people have heard of, but don't really know what it's all about. In this feature, we'll discuss bando's origins, major precepts, and combat effectiveness.
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Dr. Maung Gyi, credited with introducing bando to the USA, demonstrates a
bamboo staff technique while training a group of US Army Rangers. Gyi is currently
under criticism for allegedly exaggerating his military record. For details, see Page 3. Photo by U.S. Army, Fort Benning. |
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The nation of Burma, now known as
Myanmar, borders India, China, and Thailand, and as a result possesses a rich martial arts
heritage. As with the fabled Shaolin Temple of China, Buddhist monks from India introduced
the martial arts into the country a thousand years ago. Later, Chinese styles filtered
their way south, merging with earlier influences to form the martial body of knowledge
collectively known as thaing. Thaing includes both unarmed arts, of which bando
is the most widely known, as well as arts of the sword, staff, and spear. Other unarmed
arts include naban, or wrestling, and lethwei, or Burmese boxing. Naban,
derived from the strong heritage of Indian wrestling, and Burmese boxing, considered more
powerful than Thai boxing, were both powerful arts. So why is bando more widely known
today?
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Eye of the Tiger > Page 2, 3
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