Martial arts are codified systems and traditions of combat practiced for a number of reasons such as self-defense; military and law enforcement applications; competition; physical, mental, and spiritual development; entertainment; and the preservation of a nation's intangible cultural heritage.
Submission wrestling, also known as submission grappling, submission fighting or simply grappling, is a competitive martial art and combat sport that focuses on ground fighting and submission techniques. It is a hybrid discipline that incorporates elements of various grappling arts, mostly Brazilian jiu-jitsu but also Judo, Sambo, and wrestling. Submission wrestling is practiced both as a competitive sport and as a training method for self-defence and mixed martial arts (MMA).
The tombak, tonbak (تنبک), or zarb (ضَرب) is an Iranian goblet drum. It is considered the principal percussion instrument of Persian music. The tombak is normally positioned diagonally across the torso while the player uses one or more fingers and/or the palm(s) of the hand(s) on the drumhead, often near the drumhead's edge. Sometimes, tombak players wear metal finger rings for an extra-percussive "click" on the drum's shell. Tombak virtuosi often perform solos lasting ten minutes or more.
Gholamreza Takhti was an Iranian freestyle wrestler and varzesh-e bastani practitioner. He was a gold medalist at the 1956 Summer Olympics, 1958 Asian Games, 1959 World Championships, and 1961 World Championships, as well as a three-time Pahlevan of Iran. Popularly nicknamed Jahân Pahlevân because of his chivalrous behavior and sportsmanship, he was the most popular athlete of Iran in the 20th century, although dozens of Iranian athletes have won more international medals than he did. Takhti is still a hero to many Iranians. He is listed in the UWW Hall of Fame.
Indian clubs, originated in the Indian subcontinent, are supposed to be a type of exercise equipment.
Pehlwani, also known as Kushti, is a form of wrestling contested in the Indian subcontinent. It was developed in the Mughal Empire by combining Persian Koshti pahlevani with influences from native Indian Malla-yuddha. The words pehlwani and kushti derive from the Persian terms pahlavani (heroic) and koshti respectively, meaning Heroic wrestling. A practitioner of this sport is referred to as a pehlwan while teachers are known as ustad.
Many sports in Iran are both traditional and modern. Tehran, for example, was the first city in West Asia to host the Asian Games in 1974, and continues to host and participate in major international sporting events to this day. Freestyle wrestling has been traditionally regarded as Iran's national sport, however today, football is the most popular sport in Iran. Because of economic sanctions, the annual government's budget for sport was about $80 million in 2010 or about $1 per person.
A folk wrestling style is any traditional style of wrestling, which may or may not be codified as a modern sport. Most cultures have developed regional forms of grappling.
Iranian wrestling or Koshti is a martial art and combat sport that has been practiced since ancient times in Iran. A form today is koshti pahlavani practiced in the zurkhaneh. while regional variations differ from one province to another. Olympic freestyle wrestling is often referred to as the "first sport" of Iran.
Although the earliest evidence of martial arts goes back millennia, the true roots are difficult to reconstruct. Inherent patterns of human aggression which inspire practice of mock combat and optimization of serious close combat as cultural universals are doubtlessly inherited from the pre-human stage and were made into an "art" from the earliest emergence of that concept. Indeed, many universals of martial art are fixed by the specifics of human physiology and not dependent on a specific tradition or era.
Pahlavan Mirza Hashem Akbarian was an Iranian practitioner of traditional wrestling.
Alireza Soleimani Karbalaei was an Iranian heavyweight freestyle wrestler. He was the first Iranian to win the world superheavyweight title, which he achieved in 1989. He served as the flag bearer for Iran at the 1992 Summer Olympics, where he placed sixth.
Wrestling and grappling sports have a long and complicated history, stretching into prehistoric times. Many traditional forms survive, grouped under the term folk wrestling. More formal systems have been codified in various forms of martial arts worldwide, where grappling techniques form a significant subset of unarmed fighting.
Pahlevan of Iran is a national championship for pahlevani wrestling held annually in Iran. Though the competition has ancient roots, its modern form began in 1944.
Pahlavani is a village in Aspas Rural District, Sedeh District, Eqlid County, Fars Province, Iran.Pahlevani is a Tamil name, meaning people from desert, kept by the great tamil Pallava Kings for the people living in Iran. Pahlevani is pronounced as Pah-la-vani, Pah-la meaning Pallaivanam, vani refers to people living in that region. Pallava kings taught Pahlevanis how to make and use Karallakattai-the Indian clubs. Pahlevanis practice of the clubs has continued to the present day, notably in the varzesh-e bastani tradition practiced in the zurkaneh of Iran. At the 2006 census, its population was 456, in 102 families.
Shaban Jafari, often known as Shaban the Brainless or Shaban the Crown-Bestower, was a political activist and practitioner of varzesh-e bastani. A controversial figure in Iranian politics, he was instrumental in overthrowing Prime Minister Mohammad Mosaddegh's government in the 1953 Iranian coup d'état.
Javānmardi is a Persian word which refers broadly to the ideological or philosophical underpinnings an ethical system dominated by altruism, magnanimity and liberality linked to chivalry, and particularly spiritual chivalry. It is a concept usually discussed within Sufi contexts. It is also referred to as futuwwa (Persian: فتوت).
Wrestling in Pakistan, known locally as koshti, has been practiced since ancient times, mainly in Punjab (Pehlwani) and Sindh (Malakhra).
Rayehe Mozafarian is an Iranian women and children rights activist, author, and documentary filmmaker. The founder of Stop FGM Iran group and Woman and Zoorkhaneh campaign, she is best known for her researches and raising awareness about female genital mutilation in Iran and challenging the country's Zoorkhaneh Sports Federation to unban women from participating Iranian's ancient sport pahlevani and zoorkhaneh rituals.
