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Pankration
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Pankration is a martial arts sport introduced in the Greek Olympic games in 648 BC. This martial art was founded as a blend of boxing and wrestling. Because of this, the term pankration comes from the Greek pa????t???, literally meaning "all powers" and that from p?? (pan) "all" + ???t?? (kratos) "strength" or "power". The term is also used to describe the sport's modern variations. Some also argue it to be the first all-encompassing fighting system in human history, and modern mixed martial arts have many similar techniques.
Structure of ancient competition Pankration competitions were held in tournaments, most being outside of the Olympics. Each tournament began with a ritual which would decide how the tournament would take place.
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Pankration is a martial arts sport introduced in the Greek Olympic games in 648 BC. This martial art was founded as a blend of boxing and wrestling. Because of this, the term pankration comes from the Greek pa????t???, literally meaning "all powers" and that from p?? (pan) "all" + ???t?? (kratos) "strength" or "power". The term is also used to describe the sport's modern variations. Some also argue it to be the first all-encompassing fighting system in human history, and modern mixed martial arts have many similar techniques.
Structure of ancient competition Pankration competitions were held in tournaments, most being outside of the Olympics. Each tournament began with a ritual which would decide how the tournament would take place. Greek Poet Lucian describes the process in a detailed manner: “A sacred silver urn is brought, in which they have put bean-size lots. On two lots an alpha is inscribed, on two a beta, and on another two a gamma, and so on. If there are more athletes, two lots always have the same letter. Each athlete comes forth, prays to Zeus, puts his hand into the urn and draws out a lot. Following him, the other athletes do the same. Whip bearers are standing next to the athletes, holding their hands and not allowing them to read the letter they have drawn. When everyone has drawn a lot, the alytarch or one of the Ellanodikae walks around and looks at the lots of the athletes as they stand in a circle. He then joins the athlete holding the alpha to the other who has drawn the alpha for wrestling or pankration, the one who has the beta to the other with the beta, and the other matching inscribed lots in the same manner.” This process was apparently repeated every round until the finals.
If there was an odd number of competitors, there would be a bye (?fed???—ephedros) in every round until the last one. The same athlete could be an ephedros more than once, and this could of course be of great value to him as the ephedros would be spared the wear and tear of the rounds imposed on his opponent(s). To win a tournament without being an ephedros in any of the rounds (a??fed???—anephedros) was thus an honorable achievement.
There is evidence that the major Games easily had four tournament rounds, that is, a field of sixteen athletes. Xanthos mentions the largest number—nine tournament rounds. If these tournament rounds were held in one competition, up to 512 contestants would participate in the tournament, which is difficult to believe for a single contest. Therefore one can hypothesize that the nine rounds included those in which the athlete participated during regional qualification competitions that were held before the major games. In this context, it should be noted that it is quite certain that such preliminary contests were held prior to the major games to determine who would participate in the main event. This makes sense, as the 15-20 athletes competing in the major games could not have been the only available contestants. There is clear evidence of this in Plato, who refers to competitors in the Panhellenic Games, with opponents numbering in the thousands. Moreover, in the first century CE, the Greco-Jewish philosopher Philo of Alexandria—who was himself probably a practitioner of pankration—makes a statement that could be an allusion to preliminary contests in which an athlete would participate and then collect his strength before coming forward fresh in the major competition..
Techniques Pankratiasts employed a variety of techniques in order to strike their opponent as well as take him to the ground in order to use a submission technique. There were also multiple strategies documented in ancient literature that were meant to be used to obtain an advantage over the competitor. These strategies and techniques include:
Fighting stanceThe pankratiast faces his opponent with a nearly frontal stance—only slightly turned sideways. This is an intermediate directional positioning, between the wrestler’s more frontal positioning and the boxer’s more sideways stance and is consistent with the need to preserve both the option of using striking and protecting the center line of the body and the option of applying grappling techniques. Thus, the left side of the body is slightly forward of the right side of the body and the left hand is more forward than the right one. Both hands are held high so that the tips of the fingers are at the level of the hairline or just below the top of the head. The hands are partially open, the fingers are relaxed, and the palms are facing naturally forward, down, and slightly towards each other. The front arm is nearly fully extended but not entirely so; the rear arm is more cambered than the front arm, but more extended than a modern-day boxer’s rear arm. The back of the athlete is somewhat rounded, but not as much as a wrestler’s would be. The body is only slightly leaning forward.
The weight is virtually all on the back (right) foot with the front (left) foot touching the ground with the ball of the foot. It is a stance in which the athlete is ready at the same time to give a kick with the front leg as well as defend against the opponent’s low level kicks by lifting the front knee and blocking. The back leg is bent for stability and power and is facing slightly to the side, to go with the slightly sideways body position. The head and torso are behind the protecting two upper limbs and front leg.
Striking techniquesStrikes with the LegsStrikes delivered with the legs was an integral part of pankration and one of its most characteristic features as was discussed above. Therefore, kicking well was a great advantage to the pankratiast. Epictetus is making a reference—albeit derogatory in the context of Epictetus’ discussion—to a compliment one may give another: “µe???a ?a?t??e??” (you kick great). Moreover, in an accolade to the fighting prowess of the pankratiast Glykon from Pergamo, the athlete is described as “wide foot.” The characterization comes actually before the reference to his “unbeatable hands,” implying at least as crucial a role for strikes with the feet as with the hands in pankration. That proficiency in kicking could carry the pankratiast to victory is indicated in a—albeit sarcastic—passage of Galen, where he awards the winning prize in pankration to a donkey because of its excellence in kicking. Below are the striking techniques with the legs that have been identified from the ancient sources (visual arts or literature). Any counters to these techniques identifiable in research of the sources are also provided. This is followed by the identified strikes with the arms and with the head, respectively.
Gastrizein - Straight kick to the stomachThe straight kick with the bottom of the foot to the stomach (???t?sµa e?? ?ast??a?—laktisma is gasteran) was apparently a common technique, given the number of depictions of such kicks on vases. This type of kick is mentioned by Lucian.
Counter : The athlete sidesteps to the outside of the oncoming kick but grasps the inside of the kicking leg from behind the knee with his front hand (overhand grip) and pulls up, which tends to unbalance the opponent so that he falls backward as the athlete advances. The back hand can be used for striking the opponent while he is preoccupied maintaining his balance. This counter is shown on a Panathenaic amphora now in Leiden. In another counter, the athlete sidesteps the oncoming kick, but now to the inside of the opponent’s leg. He catches and lift s the heel/foot of the kicking leg with his rear hand and with the front arm goes under the knee of the kicking leg, hooks it with the nook of his elbow, and lift s while advancing to throw the opponent backward. The athlete executing the counter has to lean forward to avoid hand strikes by the opponent.
Locking techniquesArm locksSingle shoulder lock (overextension)The athlete is behind the opponent and has him leaning down, with the right knee of the opponent on the ground. The athlete has the opponent’s right arm straightened out and extended maximally backward at the shoulder joint. With the opponent’s right arm across his own torso, the athlete uses his left hand to keep the pressure on the opponent’s right arm by grabbing and pressing down on it just above the wrist. The right hand of the athlete is pressing down at the (side of) the head of the opponent, thus not permitting him to rotate to his right to relieve the pressure on his shoulder. As the opponent could escape by lowering himself closer to the ground and rolling, the athlete steps with his left leg over the left leg of the opponent and wraps his foot around the ankle of the opponent stepping on his instep, while pushing his body weight on the back of the opponent.
Single arm bar (elbow lock)In this technique, the position of the bodies is very similar to the one described just above. The athlete executing the technique is standing over his opponent’s back, while the latter is down on his right knee. The left leg of the athlete is straddling the left thigh of the opponent—the left knee of the opponent is not on the floor—and is trapping the left foot of the opponent by stepping on it. The athlete uses his left hand to push down on the side/back of the head of the opponent while with his right hand he pulls the opponent’s right arm back, against his midsection. This creates an arm bar on the right arm with the pressure now being mostly on the elbow. The fallen opponent cannot relieve it, because his head is being shoved the opposite way by the left hand of the athlete executing the technique.
Arm bar - shoulder lock combinationIn this technique, the athlete is again behind his opponent, has the left arm of his opponent trapped, and is pulling back on his right arm. The trapped left arm is bent, with the fingers and palm trapped inside the armpit of the athlete. To trap the left arm, the athlete has pushed (from outside) his own left arm underneath the left elbow of the opponent. The athlete’s left hand ends up pressing down on the scapula region of his opponent’s back. This position does not permit the opponent to pull out his hand from the athlete’s armpit and puts pressure on the left shoulder. The right arm of the athlete is pulling back at the opponent’s right wrist (or forearm). In this way, the athlete keeps the right arm of his opponent straightened and tightly pulled against his right hip/lower abdomen area, which results in an arm bar putting pressure on the right elbow. The athlete is in full contact with—and on top of—the opponent, with his right leg in front of the right leg of the opponent to block him from escaping by rolling forward.
Choking techniquesTracheal grip chokeIn executing this choking technique (???e??—anchein), the athlete grabs the tracheal area (windpipe and “Adam’s apple”) between his thumb and his four fingers and squeezes. This type of choke can be applied with the athlete being in front or behind his opponent. Regarding the hand grip to be used with this choke, the web area between the thumb and the index finger is to be quite high up the neck and the thumb is bent inward and downward, “reaching” behind the Adam’s apple of the opponent. It is unclear if such a grip would have been considered gouging and thus illegal in the Panhellenic Games.
Tracheal dig using the thumbThe athlete grabs the throat of the opponent with the four fingers on the outside of the throat and the tip of the thumb pressing in and down the hollow of the throat, putting pressure on the trachea.
Throws and takedownsHeave from a reverse waist lockFrom a reverse waist lock set from the front, and staying with hips close to the opponent, the athlete lift s and rotates his opponent using the strength of his hips and legs (a?aßast?sa? e?? ????—anabastasae eis ypsos). Depending on the torque the athlete imparts, the opponent becomes more or less vertically inverted, facing the body of the athlete. If however the reverse waist lock is set from the back of the opponent, then the latter would face away from the athlete in the inverted position.
To finish the attack, the athlete has the option of either dropping his opponent head-first to the ground, or driving him into the ground while retaining the hold. To execute the latter option, the athlete bends one of his legs and goes down on that knee while the other leg remains only partially bent; this is presumably to allow for greater mobility in case the “pile driver” does not work. Another approach emphasizes less putting the opponent in an inverted vertical position and more the throw; it is shown in a sculpture in the metope of the Hephaesteion in Athens, where Theseus is depicted heaving Kerkyon .
Heave from a waist lock following a sprawlThe opponents are facing in opposite directions with the athlete at a higher level, over the back of his opponent. The athlete can get in this position after making a shallow sprawl to counter a tackle attempt. From here the athlete sets a waist lock by encircling, from the back, the torso of the opponent with his arms and securing a “handshake” grip close to the abdomen of the opponent. He then heaves the opponent back and up, using the muscles of his legs and his back, so that the opponent’s feet rise in the air and he ends up inverted, perpendicular to the ground, and facing away from the athlete. The throw finishes with a “pile driver” or, alternatively, with a simple release of the opponent so that he falls to the ground.
Heave from a waist lock from behindThe athlete passes to the back of his opponent, secures a regular waist lock, lifts and throws/ drops the opponent backwards and sideways. As a result of these moves, the opponent would tend to land on his side or face down. The athlete can follow the opponent to the ground and place himself on his back, where he could strike him or choke him from behind while holding him in the “grapevine” body lock (see above), stretching him face down on the ground. This technique is described by the Roman poet Statius in his account of a match between the hero Tydeus of Thebes and an opponent in the Thebaid. Tydeus is described to have followed this takedown with a choke while applying the “grapevine” body lock on the prone opponent.
Strategy and tacticsPositioning in the SkammaAs the pankration competitions were held outside and in the afternoon, appropriately positioning one’s face vis-a-vis the low sun was a major tactical objective. The pankratiast, as well as the boxer, did not want to have to face the ever-present Greek sun, as this would partly blind him to the blows of the opponent and make accurate delivery of strikes to specific targets difficult. Theocritus, in his narration of the (boxing) match between Polydeukes and Amykos, noted that the two opponents struggled a lot, vying to see who would get the sun’s rays on his back. In the end, with skill and cunning, Polydeukes managed so that Amykos’ face was struck with sunlight while his own was in the shade.
While this positioning was of paramount importance in boxing, which involved only upright striking (with the eyes facing straight), it was also important in pankration, especially in the beginning of the competition and as long as the athletes remained standing.
Remaining Standing Versus Going to the GroundThe decision to remain standing or go to the ground obviously depended on the relative strengths of the athlete in ano pankration and kato pankration, respectively. However, there are indications that staying on one’s feet was generally considered a positive thing, while touching the knee(s) to the ground or being put to the ground was overall considered disadvantageous. In fact, in antiquity as today, falling to one’s knee(s) was a metaphor for coming to a disadvantage and putting oneself at risk of losing the fight, as argued persuasively by Poliakoff.
Identifying and Exploiting the Weak Side of the OpponentAs indicated by Plato in his Laws, an important element of strategy was to understand if the opponent had a weak or untrained side and to force him to operate on that side and generally take advantage of that weakness. For example, if the athlete recognizes that the opponent is strictly right-handed, he could circle away from the right hand of the opponent and towards the left side of the opponent. Moreover, if the opponent is weak in his left –side throws, the athlete could aim to position himself accordingly. Training in ambidexterity was instrumental in both applying this strategy and not falling victim to it.
Modern pankration In the modern times Pankration could still be seen in cities like Smyrna and Constantinople even in the beginning of the 20th century. It was after the burning of the city of Smyrna by the Turks that caused many of the Athletic associations including those who practiced and taught Pankration,to scatter to mainland Greece and other parts of the world and try to rebuild their lives. Of those Pankratiasts that went to Greece, life was unmerciful given Greece's poor economic and political stability and providing for their families was the foremost priority. It was then where Pankration took a back seat to the reality of survival for those old Pankratiasts.
The revival of pankration was essentially the innovative effort of Kerios Grandmaster Jim Arvanitis, world recognized today as the "father of modern pankration." A visionary considered far ahead of his time, Jim cross-trained in a number of martial arts and combat sports before it was common to do so. This included Western boxing and wrestling, combat judo, and muay thai. He extracted the best techniques from each and, using his research of what remained of the legacy of his ancestors, reconstructed ancient pankration into a modernized form. It was Arvanitis who reintroduced the combat sport at a time when such practices were criticized in favor of the more traditional Asian styles such as karate and kung-fu. MMA and even pankration in Greece would not surface until more than 20 years after Arvanitis appeared on the cover of Black Belt magazine. It was through this ground-breaking article that he and writer Massad Ayoob first exposed pankration to mainstream martial arts.
Pankration has also periodically been reintroduced in the modern Olympic Games, but not with much success due to scarce participation. Given the rise in popularity of Mixed Martial Arts around the world in recent years, interest in the sport has been renewed and even talks about entering MMA in the Olympics under the banner of pankration.
In the lead-up to the 2004 Athens Olympic Games, a modern non-nude version of pankration was tipped as being a new sport in the Olympiad, especially due to its being an event in the ancient games. However, its application was not approved. The International Olympic Committee was unconvinced that Greece could handle the total number of sports proposed. To placate the IOC, the organizers removed all new medal sports and pankration missed out.
While Arvanitis was the one who reintroduced it to the world , it was Aris Makris who took it to a new level of global awareness by showcasing Pankration's originally intended combative side .....a non sport version meant for the battle field as it was originally intended. His work was based on over 30 years of hard work and research which was documented on the History Channels's Human Weapon series, "Pankration: The Original Martial Art." Grand Master Aris Makris's Armak-Pankration is presently sought out by Military and Federal intitutions in the US and around the world. However, it should also be noted that Kerios Grandmaster Arvanitis has trained law enforcement and S.W.A.T. team members, United States Marines and elite Army Special Forces.
Further readingBooks authored by Jim Arvanitis
- MU TAU: The Modern Greek Karate, Todd & Honeywell, NY, 1979
- MU TAU PANKRATION: Volume 1/Concepts and Skills of "All-Powers" Combat, Spartan Publications, Boston, MA, 1997
- PANKRATION: The Traditional Greek Combat Sport and Modern Mixed Martial Art, Paladin Press, Boulder, CO, 2003
- GAME OF THE GODS: The Historical Odyssey of Greek Martial Arts, Black Belt Books, Valencia, CA, 2007
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