Muay Boran

WHAT IS MUAY THAI BORAN?

Muay Boran refers to the collective Thai fighting styles before the 1930s. After this period, Thai martial arts were regulated and made into the combat sports of Muay Thai. Both disciplines share numerous combat techniques and fundamentals.

However, Muay Thai Boran focuses on unarmed combat used on the battlefield rather than a regulated ring sport. It also has fewer rules, and some styles even use weapons. Moreover, Muay Thai Boran also has deadly techniques that aren’t allowed in combat sports.

On the other hand, Muay Thai has been known as a more modern and “sportified” fighting style. It’s a watered-down version of the Muay Boran. Several forbidden Muay Boran techniques meant to kill the opponent were immediately banned. Cheap shots, like hitting the groin or the back of the head, are also prohibited in combat sports.

In contrast, tactics considered “dirty” or foul in combat sports are allowed in Muay Thai Boran. Actions such as striking the throat, hitting the back of the head and even headbutts are also taught and encouraged in Muay Boran. To better understand what Muay Thai Boran is and how it came to be, let us look into its colourful history.

SHORT HISTORY OF MUAY BORAN

Muay Thai Boran is considered the ancestor of Muay Thai. Its roots can be traced to the Kingdom of Ayutthaya (now Thailand). In the late 18th century, the Kingdom of Burma and Autthayathe were at war. In 1776, King Mangra of Burma captured the Thai capital.

According to legends, the invaders captured several Thai Boxers. In 1774, these boxers participated in matches for a 7-day festival to honour Buddha’s relics. The Burmese King organized the event to sate his curiosity about how their martial arts would fare against their opponent’s Thai boxing.

Among the captured Thai boxers was Nai Khanomtom, who defeated ten opponents, including the Burmese champion. Even back then, Thai boxers are already performing Wai Kru as part of their pre-fight dance ritual. The Wai Kru mystified and enthralled Khanomtom’s foes and the crowd.

Khanomtom’s performance impressed the Burmese King that he gets to choose between riches or two beautiful wives for his reward. The Thai Boxer gained two wives and his freedom. Today, Thailand celebrates Muay Thai Day on March 17 every year to honour what Khanomtom has accomplished.

Whether Khanomtom used the same techniques that Muay Boran fighters practice today remains a mystery. To further understand Muay Boran, let us compare it with the more popular boxing sport in Thailand- Muay Thai.

SIMILARITIES BETWEEN MUAY BORAN AND MUAY THAI

As a martial art, Muay Boran and Muay Thai are pretty similar in utilizing all parts of the limbs to attack and defend. Muay Thai practitioners retained many of the core fundamentals of Mua Boran.

In short, Muay Boran was simply Muay Thai before it adopted Western rules for ring fights. While creating Muay Thai during the 1930s, several strikes and attacks from Muay Boran had to be removed.

Muay Thai matches penalize unsportsmanlike strikes such as a kick to the groin, gouging the eyes, and hitting a grounded opponent. While this may be the case, both Thai martial art has a common ground, such as:

• Utilizing different punches and combinations such as jabs, hooks, uppercuts, and crosses.
• Constantly using kicks such as axe kick, front kick, diagonal kick, push kick and roundhouse kick.
• Throwing knees in close range such as the diagonal knee, horizontal knee, straight knee, knee bomb and knee from a clinch.
• Performing Wai Kru as part of the pre-fight ritual.
• Both Muay Thai and Muay Boran fighters also use twisted hemp ropes or chuak to cover their knuckles.

Muay Boran also uses clinching as an effective weapon to set up strikes and locks, much like Muay Thai. Both martial arts target the opponent’s joints and pressure points to wear down their enemy. This might get you thinking, what is Muay Boran for if it can’t be played in a ring? Well, the answer is quite profound, as Muay Boran is still evolving in lieu of its modern-day revitalization.

Today, the World Muay Boran Federation (WMBF) promotes the historical and cultural significance of this combat practice.

DIFFERENCES BETWEEN MUAY BORAN AND MUAY THAI

At its core, Muay Boran and Muay Thai are almost identical. Both employ a human’s legs, feet, elbows, and hands. Muay Thai fighters call these limbs the “eight deadly weapons.” However, Muay Boran uses an additional body part- the head. Muay Boran doesn’t have a unified system, and different parts of the country seem to have distinct styles. Aside from being less restrictive in movements and incorporating headbutts, Muay Boran differs from Muay Thai. Among them include:

• The basic form of Muay Boran follows a centerline, and the fighter tends to align his fists. In contrast, Muay Thai uses a less compact stance where the fighter’s fists are outside the head’s centerline.
• According to some theories, Muay Boran’s centred stance makes deflecting the opponent’s incoming strikes easier. It also allows the defence to morph into a grapple instantly. Moreover, it also protects the fighter from blows aimed at the vitals.
• Muay Boran’s stance is also lower and broader compared to Muay Thai. Fighters usually assume a more defensive and wide stance that helps cover the groin and other vulnerable spots.
• Muay Boran fighters must protect themselves from strikes that may be illegal in Muay Thai. For this reason, a broader and more defensive stance is a better strategy.
• In terms of offence, Muay Boran is famed for its emphasis on hitting the opponent’s limbs until they become numb. The simple reason behind this tactic is that removing your enemy’s limbs is taking away their best weapon against you.

In contrast, Muay Thai also has attacks aimed at the limbs. However, these strikes don’t score points during Muay Boran matches; hence fighters pay less attention to them. Muay Boran also promotes flashy strikes that could devastate the opponent. Several of these attacks often have a broader swing to generate more power. However, this also opens more vulnerable spots and exposes the attacker to more potential danger.

For example, Muay Boran uses a lot of flying elbows and flying knees to take down the opponent. This Muay Boran style also centres on getting in the most strikes even if it means exposing the attacker to more risks—additionally, Muay Boran centres on barehanded combat.

As such, Muay Thai Boran techniques favour fast-paced fights. The goal is to knock the opponent as quickly as possible. In essence, this is what is Muay Thai Boran famed for. It often favours explosiveness rather than pacing oneself during matches. Muay Boran matches also require fighters to quickly evaluate their opponents rather than probing them in the early rounds.

MUAY BORAN STYLES AND VARIATIONS

Thailand is a country that has numerous ethnic groups that have self-defence techniques and even martial arts. For this reason, different areas of the country usually have their variation of the Muay Boran. Below are some of the known variants of Muay Boran and their area of origin.

MUAY THASAO

In Thai, ThaSao roughly translates to “Monkey Feet” Boxing. The style best represents the art of Muay Boran because of its fluid movements. Muay Chaiya favours a lower stance that leans on the defensive. This stance allows huge fighters to use leaping knees and splitting elbows.

MUAY LOPBURI

Central Thailand also has its own style called Mua Lopburi. This style is heavily based on efficiently using punches and boxing smartly.

However, speedy and evasive fighters may not benefit from this stance. On the other hand, Muay Korat uses an upright standing position with a higher guard. This stance allows the fighter to generate powerful kicks and punches such as the buffalo swing or weang kwai. Knowing this fact, you might also be asking what is Muay Boran used for other than self- defence? The martial art can be a great exercise to keep you fit and even teach you discipline and mental toughness.

HOW MUCH MUAY BORAN IS STILL IN MUAY THAI?

One of the common questions about Muay Boran is how much of it can still be seen in Muay Thai? The short answer is- nobody knows how much exactly but its a significant amount. If you compare the moves of both disciplines you can still see a shadow of Muay Boran to the more modern Muay Thai.

However, plenty of “old skills” and techniques is lost. Only a small group of people may have exclusively been practising it. Some of the commercial Muay Boran schools may also not have the more traditional techniques in their curriculum. This begs the question, what is Muay Thai Boran good for if you can’t learn it? Below are some of the places in Thailand where you can learn this martial art.

WHERE TO LEARN MUAY BORAN?

Because of the popularity of Muay Thai, numerous martial art practitioners and even regular people have also become interested in Muay Boran. Today, the majority of Muay Boran training camps and trainers are open to teaching this fighting style even to foreigners.

Muay Boran training facilities are also located in some of the popular martial art centres in Thailand such as Chiang Mai and Phuket. Some schools and trainers charge tuition of around 300 Thai Baht per hour. These are some of the training centres and gyms where you can learn Muay Boran:

1. Baan Chang Thai Arts School
2. Muay Sangha in Chiang Mai
3. Muay Thai Conservation Centre
4. Tiger Muay Thai
5. Rawai Muay Thai Camp

You may even find Muay Boran centre or trainer in your area today or in the next few years since its popularity. Muay Boran has gone global and even has schools as far as Hawaii.

CONCLUSION

Muay Boran is significant to Thailand’s history and culture. It has helped defend the country from invaders and paved the way for one of Thailand’s well-known sports. We hope this article has helped you understand what Muay Boran is and why it is an interesting martial art.