Muay Plam - The Lost Thai Wrestling

Muay Plam (Thai: มวยปล้ำ), sometimes transliterated as "Muay Plam" or "Muay Plam" is a generic term for Wrestling, but it also refers specifically to Ancient Thai Wrestling; little is known about this art as it got lost over the centuries.

The oldest record of Muay Pram ever found is a small statue from the 14th century, depicting two kneeled wrestlers grabbing each other.

One of the earliest mentions of the term "Muay Plam" comes from a collection of laws called The Three-Seals Code (1351-1767) dating back to the Ayutthaya Era. Article 117, Clause 1 explicitly mentions Muay and Muay Plam, making a clear distinction between the two.

If two people agree to box or wrestle, that is fine. Perhaps one gets hurt or even dies. This is not punishable by law. If someone incites them to fight or offers a prize to box or wrestle, that is fine. The promoter cannot be punished because he had the intention of providing entertainment. It is in the Karma of the participants.

Wrestling is also mentioned by Simon de la Loubère in his book Du Royaume de Siam (1691) confirming again that Muay Plam and Muay were two separate arts. The Ayutthaya Chronicle, issue of Somdet Krom Phra Paramanuchitchinorot mentions that:

Phra Chao Suea disguised himself as an ordinary villager to wrestle with the villagers of Wiset Chai Yachaan

According to the chronicles, King Sanphet VIII disguised himself to practice Wrestling, and not Boxing as it is commonly known nowadays.

In the book "Teung Dton Huaa Jai Phra Wi-Nai Keu Apamaju" (The heart of the Vinaya Pitaka is Apamajupa) by Thep Sarikabut, Wrestling and Boxing are again separated and require a different pre-fight ritual to increase the chance of winning. In the book "Many lives that have not yet been seen" by Chan Panarat, it is mentioned a Wrestling Manual (Tamrap Muay Plam) compiled by Phraya Charoen Ratchamaitri and located in the National Library of Thailand. The manual refers to a set of Gaan Plam (Wrestling Techniques), and some principles in this manual are also found in the book "Khlet Kan Plam" by Luang Wisan Darunkorn; like Pinching, Twisting, and Breaking.

From the limited information that survived, it seems that Ancient Thai Wrestling was not a pure Grappling discipline, but that it also had elements of Striking.
Among the Wrestling techniques featured in Tamrap Muay Plam there are;

Teep "Shove away with the foot"
Thub Kho "Pound the Neck"
Thub Krohng "Pound the Ribcage"
Gratub Naa "Crush the face with the foot"
Gratub Ook "Crush the chest with the foot"

The most important question is; why has Muay Boran been handed down until today, while there is no longer any trace of pure Muay Plam? There are no certain answers, so we can only make hypotheses. One possible answer is that Muay was supported by the Royals and had even given the opportunity to acquire a rank, while this did not happen with Wrestling, so it is possible that given the low chances of making a career, wrestlers have switched to Muay Boran and have stopped passing on Muay Plam. This thesis is reinforced if you also consider how Muay Boran began to have permanent rings in which fighters from all over Thailand could clash.

However, Muay Plam has not completely disappeared, but it has been absorbed into Muay Boran, or perhaps it derives from it from the beginning, the Wrestling area of Muay Boran is in fact referred to as "Muay Plam" by many masters.
One of the most convincing hypotheses on the correlation between Muay and Muay Plam is that both arts were part of a single Thai Military System that consisted of Weapon Fighting, Wrestling, and Boxing and that later split into sports with different rulesets, with the different arts conserving traits of each other.
We can therefore reconstruct the repertoire of Muay Plam through the cross-study of the Wrestling maneuvers scattered all over the different Muay Boran styles, and the records of Muay Plam that survived till our days. Wrestlers target the entire opponent's body (legs, hips, neck, wrists, hair, etc.) biting (the ear for example), pinching (the eye, throat, etc.), pressing (the eyes, throat etc.) were part of the repertoire, together with pounding (with a hammer-like motion), stomping with the foot, thrust kicking (Teep), striking with the hips and body, and choking. The wrestling techniques of Muay Plam and Muay Boran generally follow the formulas

Kod (Hug) - Rad (Bind) - Fad (Sway) - Wiang (Hurl)

Tum (Throw) - Tap (Overlay) Chap (Grab) - Hak (Break)

However, these elements can be combined in a different order, creating infinite actions and techniques.

The oldest Muay Boran manuscript ever found (1830) illustrates Military Techniques, and includes examples of Ancient Thai Wrestling techniques. There is great emphasis on controlling the arms at different heights, probably to counter an eventual use of short weapons.

Grabbing the wrist with the hand but without the thumb

Grabbing the wrist with the hand and the thumb

Grabbing by flanking a target in the middle, this principle is called Prakab (Conjoin)

Grabbing a target from a single side, this principle is called Prakob (Adjoin)

Trapping down the front hand, and trapping up the rear hand.

Overhooking the opponent's arm

Underhooking the opponent's leg and arm to counter a Teep

Regarding throws, in Thai Wrestling every type of throw is allowed; there are shoulder throws, hip throws, sweeps, reaps, hand throws, and more.

The throws are aimed at making it hard for the opponent to break the fall, and can also end with the opponent being spiked or being thrown on the thrower's knee, to damage the spine for example. Due to the Military origin of the art, generally, the practitioner who performs a throw should not fall to the ground with the opponent and should keep control of him, as it allows to quickly finalize with a joint break or by striking, but in some Muay Boran styles, especially Muay Chaiya, there are sacrifice throws and throws in which the practitioner falls together with the opponent, usually to crush him with his entire bodyweight or to quickly break a joint.

Joints are broken by causing them to hyperextend or by twisting, both actions are done explosively; they were not designed to submit an opponent through pain, however, they can perform this task if the practitioner gradually increases the leverage on the joint, this usually done in training to avoid injuring the partner.

I've been working to reconstruct a coherent repertoire of Ancient Thai Wrestling by reuniting the fragments scattered in more than 10 different Muay Boran styles and surviving records. The principles have been reorganized and linked together, and the most effective technique has been selected. This reconstructed repertoire is part of the Modern-Traditional Style of Muay Boran that I have founded, called Muay Nam, and will be shared in the future.

Part of it can be found in my online course Muay Nam Advanced