The Symbol of the Rat: Origin and Meaning

"I am the self proclaimed acquisitor.
I am a link yet I function as a complete unit.
I aim at encompassing heights and strike my target sure and steady.
Life is one joyous journey for me.
Each search must end with a new quest.
I am progress, exploration, and insight.
I am the womb of activity.
I am the rat."

Many of my students have asked me why I chose the "rat" as the symbol or power totem of my martial art school? Since the rat is one of the most unassuming of all animals its quite a surprise that I would choose it to represent my art. The answer is quite simple. One of the many reasons why I chose it is first because I was born in the year 1972; Year of the Water Rat. A old chinese legend once said that when Buddha was about to die he summoned all the animals to come to him. Since the rat is not as fast and powerful as the other animals he used his cunning and intelligence to beat them to the race to reach Buddha. He accomplished it riding the backs of the different animals and used their heads as leverage to jump from one animal to the next until he finally reached Buddha who then rewarded him for his ingenuity by giving him the gift of immortality. This is the reason why the rats are very hard to get rid of. The Rat has a very strong survival instinct much the same as our ancestors of old; when they fought against the many invaders of our land, the Philippines, using arnis de mano as one of our many defenses. I wish open the eyes of my students how powerful the system of arnis de mano is that won our freedom many times over. I also stress to my students that true power lies not in great strength nor great speed but the greatness of the mind.

A friend of mine, by the name of Mel, a drawing artist and an arnisadores, draw the logo of my school. I told him to draw the "rat" as my logo because I wish to choose an animal that has not been used by the many martial art schools in the Philippines and abroad. I wished to be unique and not be like the others who have chosen the more common animals as their totem of power like the tiger, crane, dragon...etc. The word "daga", here in the Philippines, has two meanings. In my native language, "daga" means the rat. But in spanish, the word "daga" means dagger. The dagger are part of the weapons that I teach in my system. In fact, Traditional Lightning Arnis is famous in the use of the espada y daga.

Whether or not many people would agree with my choice does not matter. What matters is once journey in the realm of the martial arts; his personal development, whether physical or within himself.