Autobiography Part 12: More about Sensei Donn F. Draeger

Q: We are going to continue clip number 12, focusing on Sensei Professor Don F. Draeger, picking up where we left off in clip 11.

A: I met Sensei Draeger very often, sometimes once a year when he would come down to Malaysia to the Aikido dojo. He used to stay there, and I would bring him to meet teachers of various martial arts. These included Indian martial arts like Silambam, Chinese Kung Fu, and Silat, the Malaysian national martial art. We would visit all kinds of Silat masters, driving in my car.

Sometimes, in the morning, we would stop at a small stall on the roadside for a Malaysian breakfast. They make Malaysian tea right on the road, you know, like in India – very cheap tea. We'd sit down on a small chair under a tree and drink this tea. Sensei used to say, "Let's have a teh tarik." "Tarik" means they pull the tea, pouring it from one cup to another to create a foam. He liked using that Malaysian word.

I was surprised he used to like sweets and sweet tea because he was usually in top form. When it came to food, he had very good control. He had a fantastic body and did a lot of weight training. We also used to eat Nasi Lemak. Nasi Lemak is rice with sambal inside, served on a banana leaf. It is very spicy. Both of us would stand on the roadside, sit on a small bench, and eat on the go. He loved that. It was like tea for ten cents in those days, the beginning of the 70s, end of the 60s. After nasi lemak, we'd drive to visit the masters in the morning. I have all these good memories of him.

Sometimes, early in the morning, we would be training Jodo, that is the Jo stick fighting of Shindo Muso-ryu Jojutsu. He would teach for about two or three hours, sometimes in the hot sun. I hate the hot sun, but he loved it. We would train, sweating terribly. Afterwards, we would watch him change. There would only be a few of us, maybe five or six people. We were always amazed to see his physique when he took off his Gi.

He had a fantastic chest and six-pack abs. He looked like a Greek god, like Hercules. He had such a beautiful body that some people called him the "uncrowned Mr. America." We would always watch him. He used to bring his jacket and dry it in the sunshine. He would sunbathe under the coconut or rambutan tree, which bore fruit. He would lie down and write Japanese letters to his sensei, Shimutakaji. I used to enjoy all these moments with him.

I would also bring him to meet my own sensei. First, I introduced him to my teacher, Arumugam. At that time, we didn't call him Mahaguru; we just called him Master Arumugam. He was teaching the art of Silambam, which I had started learning again in the late 60s, after my childhood master died.

I wanted to introduce Arumugam to Draeger Sensei for an interview. Draeger Sensei was very pleased to meet him. I brought him to the Robert Estate area to visit him. Sometimes, I would bring him over to the Aikido dojo, where we had a big garden. Arumugam would demonstrate the art, and Sensei Draeger would take photos and interview him. Sensei Draeger was very pleased with his martial art, saying, "Oh, this is a very good martial art. It's a pity that it has been kept secret and not taught in public, as it was forbidden to teach at that time." They didn't have any license or anything; we were learning it illegally.

I asked Draeger Sensei if he could give us a recommendation letter stating that this was a good martial art. He agreed and gave us two wonderful letters. I still have copies of the letters. I can show you the letter. This is an old photocopy of my teacher, Master Arumugam. And here is the letter from Draeger Sensei. It's still a copy. If anyone is interested, they can have a look. It's written by Draeger Sensei and signed by Donn F. Draeger.

This is the letter, written under the letterhead of "Martial Arts International," his magazine. He used to publish this magazine, and I think they still do. The headquarters was in Hawaii, if I'm not mistaken. He wrote great things about Silambam in this letter. There's also another letter from Donn F. Draeger to whom it may concern from the Jodo Federation.

It's a Jodo Federation letter, signed by Draeger Sensei. He wrote about my teacher, S. Arumugam, stating, "To whom it may concern, S. Arumugam is an expert technician and master teacher," then he added in brackets, "Mahaguru of Silambam Kuttu and various other traditional arts of Indian combat." He recommends him in a long letter.

With these letters, we approached the registration department of the sports ministry. The Silambam martial art was later registered, and we were allowed to teach it openly.

So, Master Arumugam was allowed to teach. Thanks to Draeger Sensei's letter, it became publicly open for the public to teach. We got permission from the government.

He was also the one who gave him the title Mahaguru. "Maha" means great, and "guru" means teacher – great teacher or grandmaster.

I was the one who introduced the uniforms, like the karate gi. Before, they used to wear t-shirts and short pants to teach. I introduced the karate gi and promoted my teacher in 1990 to the highest rank available, 10th Dan.

That rank was maintained until his death, and he was officially recognized. Later, they organized and registered the Silambam association, a federation for all Indian martial arts groups in Malaysia. He was recognized as the only one with the Mahaguru title in that association. Malaysia became the headquarters for Silambam worldwide, even superseding India.

Q: That means you also had influence at this time?

A: Oh yes. In 1990, I was already here, but I still used to visit and train under him. I thought I had to bring him up and get him to the highest ranking.

I am very glad that this martial art, which was once restricted and kept out of the public's eyes, banned from being taught by the government, was given permission, a license to teach. With that license, they started opening many schools. Later, all the other Indian martial arts gathered together and formed a federation. Malaysia became the federation for the whole world.

That's a short story about Draeger Sensei helping us with Silambam, to popularize Silambam.

I can tell you more about Draeger Sensei in the next episode. I hope you enjoyed it. If any of you have any questions about the letter or doubt Draeger Sensei's existence, please ask me, and I will show you the copy. The original is currently with his son, whose name is in Malaysia.

Q: Okay. Thank you very much.

A: Most welcome. See you all in the next clip.