Adimurai
Tamil bare-hand striking art from the Kanyakumari area; the only style that also teaches the secret varma points.
Quick Facts
IndiaCharacter & Origin
Organisation & Competition
What the style is built from
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About Adimurai
Adimurai is a Tamil martial art from the southernmost tip of India. It comes from the Kanyakumari area, formerly known as Cape Comorin, and was practiced in the district of that name in the state of Tamil Nadu, in the north of Sri Lanka, and in adjoining parts of southeastern Kerala. The name is built from two Tamil words: adi means to strike and murai means method or procedure, so adimurai literally means the method of striking. Within the region it is regarded as the oldest and most significant martial art, and its combat strategy is attested in literature going back as far as 400 BCE. Technically, adimurai rests on strikes with the bare hand and defenses against them, that is, without gloves and without weapons, to which kicks and joint locks are added. The system originally had no armed component, and the modern form only acquires one by combining with Tamil weapon arts. What gives it a special standing is its work with what are called varma, the vital points of the human body. Adimurai is described as the only style that teaches the varman, or secret point, and it is for this reason that it is linked to the art of varmakkalai. It is also closely related to kuttuvarisai and to kushti. Today adimurai is taught in schools throughout Tamil Nadu, usually already combined with other Tamil combat disciplines.
Similar styles
Selected by overlap in the style profile, not by historical lineage.