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Pekiti-Tirsia System of Kali HISTORY:
(from PT-GO Official
Site)
The Pekiti-Tirsia Kali system is one of the few remaining authentic
and complete Filipino combat systems in existence today. Pekiti-Tirsia
is system and technology of combat fighting with the Blade. It encompasses
all traditional weapon categories and is formulated on the strategic
principle of the Triangle. The triangle serves as the basis for
footwork, striking, and the tactical principles of close quarters
combat.
The Pekiti-Tirsia system of Kali originates from the provinces
of Panay and Negros Occidental in the Philippines and was formulated
and perfected by the Tortal family. The family patriarch and Grandmaster
of Pekiti-Tirsia, Grand Tuhon Conrado B. Tortal, passed this system
and its attributes onto his only grandson, the sole heir and its
present guardian, Grand Tuhon Leo Tortal Gaje, Jr.
Pekiti-Tirsia is a traditional family system of Filipino martial
art that traces its existence back to a time and era when carry
and use of the bladed weapon was common and required among most
men. Oral history of the Tortal family testifies to four generations
practicing the family system of Pekiti-Tirsia. Norberto Tortal taught
the system to his son Segundino Tortal. Segundino taught his five
sons; Balbino, Tedoricio, Francisco, Quirino, and Conrado. Of the
five brothers, Conrado was chosen as inheritor of the system with
Balbino as one of his principal training partners. Balbino was later
shot and killed by Japanese soldiers in the area of Barangay Conception,
Talisay, Negros Occidental, in 1945 after disarming a Japanese officer
of his samurai sword and killing two soldiers who attempted to bayonet
him.
These generations of Tortal family leaders utilized the laboratory
method of research and testing of combat Bladefighting tactics and
techniques. Through friendly instructional exchanges, sparring duels
with other recognized family and system leaders, and direct combat
resulting in the death of the enemy, the system of Pekiti-Tirsia
was continually trained, executed, and validated.
Grand Tuhon Conrado B. Tortal or “Tay Dadoy” as he was
popularly known, was a highly respected man in the western Visayas
and northern Mindanao regions of the Philippine Islands. Born in
1897 in Tigbawan, province of Iloilo, Panay, the Tortal’s later
emigrated to Negros Occidental where they owned and cultivated several
agricultural properties. As was common for the time, Tay Dadoy was
fluent in English, Spanish, and his native dialect Illongo, as well
as Cebuano and other regional dialects of northern Mindanao where
he travelled for commerce and as a Christian Missionary. Grand Tuhon
Tortal later served as the first Chief of Police of Victorias, home
of the largest Sugar Central (Mill) in Negros Occidental with a
reputation as a strict disciplinarian yet compassionate mediator.
Tay Dadoy’s expertise in the Filipino Fighting Arts was well
known and recognized through several encounters such as his public
defeat of two of the Lizares brothers, a prominent political ruling
family from Talisay, Negros Occidental, in 1928. After attempting
to take control of a Tortal property, Conrado, with hardwood Espada
y Daga engaged both the Lizares brothers armed with Bolo’s
and disarmed them by direct strikes to the hand and body yet spared
their lives. In 1933 Conrado Tortal defeated Tansiong Padilla, authority
for the Aldobon style from Panay, in a highly publicized duel arranged
by the mayor of Bago, Negros Occidental.
In 1938 in Legaspi, Albay, Grand Tuhon Leo Tortal Gaje was born
to Feliza G. Tortal (the daughter and only child of Conrado Tortal)
and Leopoldo P. Gaje, Sr. Shortly after his birth and the subsequent
death of his twin sister and his mother Feliza, Leo was taken into
custody and raised by his grandfather Conrado. From the age of six
years old Leo was trained in the system of Pekiti-Tirsia. From the
ages six to nine he was trained exclusively in footwork. Daily he
was placed on top a wooden table with Conrado striking at his feet
as he mastered the strategic maneuvering patterns that remain one
of the signatures of the Pekiti-Tirsia system. Leo was then trained
in the Doce Methodos, Contradas, and other advanced combat methods
twice a day beginning in the mornings before school and continuing
late into the evening throughout his secondary, high school, and
college studies.
At the passing of Tay Dadoy, Leo Tortal Gaje, Jr. inherited the
treasure and legacy of Pekiti-Tirsia. At this time, family combat
systems in the Philippines were closed to only those that shared
genetic history and chosen for their discipline to keep and protect
the family secrets. For the next decade Tuhon Gaje kept this promise
and soon entered business where he served as President of the Confederation
of Free Trade Workers Union and Executive Vice-President of the
Bataan Free Trade Zone Industrial Development Corporation. Here
he trained his own Security Forces for the escort of cash funds,
trained Bodyguards and Protective Teams for local and provincial
politicians, and, in his own words “my wrecking crew”
of confidants that provided his personal security.
In 1972, Tuhon Gaje emigrated to the United States of America and
settled in New York City. Upon seeing the popularity of the martial
arts sweeping America at the time, he envisioned the success of
Filipino martial arts and recognition of the cultural and martial
achievements of the Filipino people through the superiority of its
combat systems. In keeping with the philosophy of the Pekiti-Tirsia
system and its belief in Life, Health, and Success, Tuhon Gaje opened
the door of knowledge to a select few of advanced Black Belt students
and embarked to offer to the world, those that persevere, the mastery
process of Kali.
Continuing now into a fourth decade, Grand Tuhon Leo T. Gaje has
been the leader in promoting and teaching authentic Filipino Fighting
Art around the globe not solely in the martial arts field but throughout
the Military and Law Enforcement professions as well. During this
time he has joined together with other Filipino Grandmasters in
this endeavor and until this day works with the highest levels of
the Philippine government in the promotion, recognition, and preservation
of the cultural legacy of Filipino Martial Arts.
Grand Tuhon Gaje was the leading Filipino Martial Arts authority
in the 1970’s in the eastern region of the United States at
the same time Guro Dan Inosanto and other Filipino Grandmasters
were doing the same in the western region (New York and California
being home of the largest Filipino communities in the US). Since
the introduction of Filipino Martial Arts to the US and across the
globe Pekiti-Tirsia has hallmarked many “firsts” in this
history.
Grand Tuhon Gaje was the first to organize and conduct large-scale
promotions and demonstrations of Filipino martial arts in the eastern
US in such venues as New York’s Lincoln Center and displayed
the first ever public demonstration of full-contact Filipino stickfighting
at the Great Gorge, New Jersey Playboy Club.
Grand Tuhon Gaje was the first to open a Filipino Martial Arts
school at the Philippine Consulate in New York City and first to
promote Filipino martial arts among other martial discipline national
organizations. Grand Tuhon Gaje joined with other recognized leaders
such as Alex Sternberg of the Jewish Karate Federation and Grandmaster
Robert Trias of the United States Karate Association conducting
training programs for senior Black Belt students and joint public
demonstrations. Grand Tuhon Gaje was recognized as style head of
the Filipino martial arts for the United States Karate Association
(USKA) by Grandmaster Trias and was inducted into the Indonesian
Pendekar Banting, association of Indonesian Silat Pendekars.
In 1979 Grand Tuhon Gaje was a principal organizer, with other
Grandmasters, of the First National Arnis (Kali) Tournament in the
Philippines sponsored by NARAPHIL (National Arnis Association of
the Philippines). Tom Bisio, a student of Grand Tuhon Gaje for 3
and 1/2 years, won as Grand Champion of the Instructor’s division
against a field of senior instructor competitors. In 1980 Grand
Tuhon Gaje was appointed NARAPHIL Commissioner for North and South
America and promoted the Filipino Martial Arts extensively throughout
these continents. Throughout the 80’s the first generation
of Pekiti-Tirsia students and instructors dominated the full-contact
stickfighting tournament scene across the US defining their reputation
with speed, power, and footwork.
Grand Tuhon Gaje was the first to introduce the Filipino martial
arts to the New York Police Department (NYPD) and conduct department
endorsed training programs. This program led to Grand Tuhon Gaje’s
development of the Safety Baton and Edged Weapon Awareness/Strategic
Knife Defense programs – the FIRST Defensive Tactics system
based on safety and liability reduction at a time when the accepted
methods targeted the vital areas of the body resulting in substantial
liability to police officers and departments. Grand Tuhon Gaje was
later appointed National Training Director for the Justice System
Training Association and the U.S. Police Defensive Tactics Association
leading to his position as Technical Advisor and appearance in the
Calibre Press video SURVIVING EDGED WEAPONS in 1988. This highly
acclaimed video substantiated the threat of edged weapons to the
law enforcement community and established Grand Tuhon Gaje as the
leading authority on edged weapons defensive tactics.
Throughout the 1990’s until today, Grand Tuhon Gaje has been
the leading propagator of authentic Filipino Martial Arts based
on the use of the Blade, in the Republic of the Philippines. Through
hundreds of radio, print, TV, demonstrations, festivals, tournaments,
and training programs conducted at the local, provincial, and national
level, Grand Tuhon Gaje has been the leading voice for the education
and recognition of Kali and the indigenous Filipino Martial Art
systems. Throughout this time he has been endorsed and recognized
at every level of the Philippines government including recently
as recipient of an Exemplary Achievement Award from the Office of
the President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo, for worldwide promotion of
Pekiti-Tirsia Kali and the Filipino Martial Arts.
Today in the Philippines, Grand Tuhon Gaje’s system of Pekiti-Tirsia
is the ONLY Filipino Martial Art system recognized as official warfighting
doctrine by the Armed Forces of the Philippines. The Military Edged-Impact
Weapon System of Pekiti-Tirsia is the official close-quarters combat
system of the Force Reconnaissance Battalion, Philippine Marine
Corps (PMC) and is part of the official PMC Schools command being
taught at Enlisted Basic Training and the Officer’s Basic Course.
The success of this program has spurned training requests from all
other branch services of the AFP and the Philippine National Police
(PNP). Today, the Filipino Fighting man is now recognized as a world
leader in close-quarter combat skills. Since the program inception
in 1998, the Philippine Force Recon Marines have trained US special
operations forces and other combat arms units up to battalion level
in Close-Quarters-Combat demonstrating the superiority of the Filipino
martial technology as acknowledged by the US unit trainers and commanding
officers. Presently, Grand Tuhon serves as a Senior Advisor to the
Armed Forces of the Philippines and the Philippine National Police
conducting advanced training programs for operational units engaged
in the Global War on Terrorism.
Throughout this history, Grand Tuhon Gaje has trained and influenced
thousands of martial artists, several who have gone on to formulate
their own styles such as the late Edgar Sulite of Lameco Eskrima,
Chris Sayoc of Sayoc Kali and many, many others. The Supreme Grandmaster
of Pekiti-Tirsia Kali remains the world’s leading authority
on the Filipino Martial Arts and his name is synonymous with the
blade, the Grand Tuhon Leo T. Gaje, Jr.
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