Jakarta (AFP)

Anwar bin Sholeh's pencak silat, an Indonesian martial art, workout this weekend had a special resonance as this practice has just been inscribed on UNESCO's intangible heritage.

"It is an honor to see the pencak silat recognized internationally," said the 38-year-old who trains from primary school. And "it will motivate us to preserve our traditions and our culture".

According to legend, this martial art was created by a woman who observed a battle between a tiger and a giant hawk, and then reproduced their techniques to get rid of a group of drunk men.

There are traces of this martial art from the 6th century on in the archipelago. But pencak silat covers hundreds of traditions of traditional combat sports in Southeast Asia using various weapons, such as knives, sickles and machetes.

It has made a breakthrough in film lately after being used in scenes from the Star Wars and John Wicks series.

"I am glad that the pencak silat is not only recognized in Hollywood," notes another follower, Rian Irawan bin Maswan Hasan.

"It is a unique martial art because it not only serves for self-defense and preserving one's health, but it also promotes solidarity and fraternity between its members," he said.

The inscription on the UNESCO list of intangible cultural heritage of humanity was decided during a meeting in Bogota last week.

"In addition to its sporting dimension, the tradition of pencak silat also includes mental and spiritual, self-defense and artistic aspects," said the UN agency for education, science and culture.

"The movements and styles of pencak silat are strongly influenced by various artistic elements, based on a unity between body and movement, in line with musical accompaniment," adds Unesco.

This martial art figured prominently at the Asian games organized last year by Indonesia, which won the gold medal in this discipline.

Unesco has also included on its list the Malaysian counterpart of this practice, the silat, "a martial art of self-defense and survival rooted in the Malaysian archipelago".

The traditional pencak silat covers a wide variety of styles which may be different from its version practiced in competition.

"Many practitioners of silat-based traditions could not participate in these competitions since the standards are different," said Rian Irawan bin Maswan Hasan.

© 2019 AFP