In Honor of Mang Ben!

(This letter was written by Master Michael Ronal Ramirez and was published at Rapid Journal, vol. 7 no. 4 Book 26, 2003. This is an excerpt from a series of letters written by many of Mang Ben's students after his passing. Every January, from the time of his death in 2003, we, the LSIA community, remember the passing of the legendary master from Panay; GM Ben Lema. I posted this letter as my way of remembering the passing of the great man of arnis. May he rest in peace!)

"Every once in awhile I get to bump into some of the old arnis masters who studied under Grand Master Benjamin Lema and when I hear the stories of his exploits in the fiel of arnis, I still stand in awe and amazement despite the times I had spent with this great old man. It is sometimes said that familiarity breeds contempt, but my rendezvous in Lightning Scientific Arnis under and side by side with Mang Ben has enabled me to gradually form a growing but appreciative opinion of him, seperating the man into his image as a formidable fighter and into his ordinary down to earth humanity. My personal concept lay in the latter, and that is why the narratives I hear and the dedication and devotion of all his former students continue to puzzle me, but with a feeling of respect and nostalgia.

Stories of His Past.

Many arnis grandmasters love to tell stories about their adventures and conquests; whom they hve beaten and whom they had killed. But not so with Mang Ben, who was more of a doer than a talker, preferring to take a challenge or give one than talk about it or excuse himself form it. He was never wont to tell me about his World War 2 experiences as a guerilla under General Macario Peralta. Tales of his past would trickle slowly and only when he let them tumble out, and it was for this reason that his past was a jigsaw puzzle to be pieced together by all his relatives, students acquiantances, and friends, each of who had a story to tell.

He once mentioned to me that during his youthful days, he owned a carabao, as many land-tilling men in Capiz did before. Another farmer offered a challenge to let their animals battle it out and the owner of the losing brute would have to give the other owner a bottle of tuba, a real treat during those days.

Mang Ben, being the competitive person he has always been, accepted the deal and wisely sharpened the horns of his field-animal, and that was the beginning of the end of the carabao competition. Displaying one of the negative traits that characterize Filipino culture the other owner whose carabao passed away, in short notice, got pikon, pulled out a bolo, and hacked out a "chip" of Mang Ben's hair. (I mentioned "chip" because Mang Ben's hair was a bit hardened by some concoction, Valentino style, maybe pamode - that was the late 20's). Eventually, the farmer's leg got notched by the swift movement from the young arnis expert.

Then there was the "Battle of the GrandMasters" in which Mang Ben demolished in grand style a top, formidable fighter from Cebu.

Everyone Wants To Be Like July.

Two groups of people continue to amuse me: The Mang Ben wanna be's and those who claim to have beaten (or can beat) Mang Ben. Of the former, there are many; of the latter, there is now a growing number.

Mang Ben loved clothes and a spanking look was the image he always wanted to portray. Long sleeves, slacks, and leather shoes were his trademark in a field were camisa de chino and red pants, muslim garbs, and sporty outfits were the norm. To top it all of, he also wore a cap. At certain times, he liked the Mark Twain all-white look and this made him really stand out from the rest.

Nowadays, many arnis practitioners also wear semi-formal outfits, or caps, or even all-white clothes in arnis gatherings and exhibitions. Ay, Caramba! I see this not only among some of the practitioners of other arnis styles, as well. Moreover, some of Mang Ben's former students claim to have learned all the secrets of the old man and are the legitimate heirs becoming the new Mang Ben/s.

Outside LSAI is a growing number of men claiming to have beated Mang Ben into a bloody pulp in some far away province during the early times and would like to teach their style (for a fee, of course) to anyone willing to learn the secrets of it all! Mismo! Incidentally, no witnesses to any of these confrontations can be found.

Whatever impact thos may bring, I do see some good in them, but in a larger scale. Mang Ben has become truly the standard of arnis, the point of comparison for all practitioners, whether he is the arnis master to be emulated or the arnis master who had supposedly been beaten. Not only will those groups who exploit his name and memory benefit, but all other groups as well. Whatever martial art that has anything to do with such men as Bruce Lee, Tan Ka Hong, Sun Lu Tang, Morihei Ueshiba, Jigoro Kano, Helio Gracie or any other formidable grandmaster, is worth its salt and wothy promoting. In like manner, arnis will surely flourish because of the memory and legacy of Mang Ben."

Baston: The Great Equalizer

Many members of the LSAI community have often used the famous phrase "the baston (arnis stick) is the great equalizer". But, unfortunately, they failed to explain to the students of the art of Lightning Arnis the true definition of the phrase or the person responsible in coining the phrase. Often a student of theirs would always end up confused with their "own" definition, using "new age" philosophies, without even coming up near the mark to its true meaning. Master Ronald Ramirez, my mentor, would often describe them as "armchair philosophers"; all talk but no sense. Only a few knew that this phrase "the baston is the great equalizer" was actually coined by, none other than, Master Ronald Ramirez; founder of the Iron Viking Society.

But, somehow, faith has conspired to make the author of the famous phrase unknown. Why? I have my theories but I will not divulge my thoughts as of now. Suffice it to say that I only wish to set the record straight and to, finally, give credit to where it is truly due by describing exactly why the baston is called the "great equalizer."

According to my mentor, Master Ronald, the real reason why the baston is the "great equalizer" is because the baston (arnis sticks) "levels the playing field." It "equalize" or neutralize any advantage the enemy has over you in a fight. It doesn't matter whether you're a man or a woman, an adult or child, or weak or strong' it is all the same to an arnisadores expert. An arnis player, armed with the deadly sticks of his craft, can immediately gain a 50% or more advantage of winning and be victorious in the field of battle. It is an advantage that no other unarmed martial art can ever have. It is a boastful claim, one may say by those who are not familiar with the art, but it is the absolute truth in every sense of the word.

Let me give you an example to give you a clear idea of what I am saying. Imagine that you are a karate black belt expert, 5th dan, weighing 150 lbs., with a height of 5' 6". And then imagine your opponent is also a karate black belt, with the same style of karate as yours and a rank much lower than yours, but the only difference is he is 7 feet tall and weighing 300 lbs. of pure muscle. Who do you think will win? Isn't it obvious?! The one who is more stronger, and whose reach advantage is greater than he's enemy, who usually wins in this fight.

Let us try the same example, but the difference is both are arnisadores black belts and the smaller guy ranks higher in skill than the bigger guy. Who do you think now will win? Of course, obviously, the one who is more skillful than the other will win. Why? Because in a fight with weapons the one with the most experience and skill will always win since the fight is dictated, not by the strength of ones muscles, but by the players skill and strength of his/her weapon (baston). That is the reason why "the baston is the great equalizer."

Many of you may not believe my argument, for it is after all debatable, but still no one can argue that it does not make sense. Let's be truthful for once shall we? Isn't it true that no matter how strong you are, or skillful in fist fights, the man that holds a very powerful and deadly weapon always wins?! Even Mr. Tim Larkin, founder of the self-defense seminar called TFT (Target Focus Training), believes on these premise. And this is one of the many reasons why I studied and practiced the art of arnis de mano, the ancient combative art of our forefathers, in the first place.