page_title: Malla-yuddha
section_title: Training
hierarchical_section_title: Malla-yuddha / Training
caption_attribution_description: English: Jarasandha's_Akhara is an ancient historical monument at Rajgir in Bihar, India
context_page_description: Malla-yuddha is the traditional form of combat-wrestling originating from the Indian subcontinent. It is closely related to Southeast Asian wrestling styles such as naban and is the ancestor of kusti. Indian wrestling is described in the 13th century Malla Purana.
  Malla-yuddha incorporates grappling, joint-breaking, punching, biting, choking and pressure point striking. Matches were traditionally codified into four types which progressed from purely sportive contests of strength to actual full-contact fights known as yuddha. Due to the extreme violence, this final form is generally no longer practised. The second form, wherein the wrestlers attempt to lift each other off the ground for three seconds, still exists in south India. Additionally, malla-yuddha is divided into four categories. Each yuddhan is named after Hindu gods and legendary fighters:
  Hanumanti concentrates on technical superiority.
  Jambuvanti uses locks and holds to force the opponent into submission.
  Jarasandhi concentrates on breaking the limbs and joints while fighting.
  Bhimaseni focuses on sheer strength.
context_section_description: Wrestlers train and fight in a traditional arena or akhara. Matches take place in a clay or dirt pit, thirty feet across and either square or circular in shape. The soil of the floor is mixed with various ingredients, including ghee. Before training, the floor is raked of any pebbles or stones. Water is added approximately every three days to keep it at the right consistency; soft enough to avoid injury but hard enough so as not to impede the wrestlers' movements. Wrestlers begin each session by flattening the soil, an act which is considered both a part of endurance training and an exercise in self-discipline. During practice, wrestlers throw a few handfuls of dirt onto their own bodies and that of their opponents as a form of blessing, which also provides for a better grip. Once the arena has been prepared a prayer is offered to the gym's patron deity, most commonly Hanuman. Every training hall has a small makeshift altar for this purpose, where incense is lit and small yellow flower garlands are offered to the god. This is followed by paying respect to the guru by touching the head to his feet, a traditional sign of respect for elders in the Indian subcontinent.
  Many wrestlers live at their training hall but this is not always required. Traditionally revered as extensions of Hanuman, all wrestlers are required to abstain from sex, smoking and drinking so the body remains pure and the wrestlers are able to focus on cultivating themselves physically, mentally and spiritually. This purity is also said to help achieve the highest level of martial and sporting perfection. A wrestler's only belongings are a blanket, a kowpeenam (loincloth) and some clothes. In this regard, they are often compared to Hindu-Buddhist holy men.
  Boys typically start training at the age of ten to twelve. To avoid stunting their growth, young trainees are first taught kundakavartana, callisthenics and exercises to develop their overall strength and endurance without equipment. Exercises that employ the wrestler's own bodyweight include the sun salutation (Surya Namaskara), shirshasana, Hindu squat (bethak) and the Hindu press-up (danda), which are also found in hatha yoga. After acquiring the necessary power and stamina, students may begin khambhasrama, referring to exercises that use the mallakhamba or wrestler's pillar. There are a number of pillars, although the most common is a free-standing upright pole, some eight to ten inches in diameter, planted into the ground. Wrestlers mount, dismount and utilize this pole for various complex callisthenics designed to develop their grip, stamina, and strength in the arms, legs and upper-body. In a later variation, the pole was replaced with a hanging rope. Rope mallakhamba is today most commonly practiced by children as a spectator sport in itself rather than its traditional role as a form of training for wrestling.
  Other training concepts include the following.
  Vyayam: Physical training in general. This includes rope climbing, log pulling, running and swimming.
  Rangasrama: Refers to the wrestling itself and its techniques. Includes locks, submission holds, takedowns and, formerly, strikes.
  Gonitaka: Exercises done with a large stone ring called a gar nal in Hindi. It can be swung, lifted, or worn around the neck to add resistance to press-ups and squats.
  Pramada: Exercises performed with the gada (mace). An exercise gada is a heavy round stone attached to the end of a meter-long bamboo stick.
  Uhapohasrama: Discussion of tactics and strategies.
  Mardana: Traditional massage. Wrestlers are given massages and also taught how to massage.
caption: The historic Jarasandha's Akhara (wrestling arena) mentioned in the Mahabharata epic, at Rajgir in Bihar, India.
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