Hunting Tigers with Katars: Fact or fiction?

[Lew]

i can't realize a guy go out hunting tigers with only a couple katars, but i can understand that, having nothing more practical at hand, he would 'parry' a tiger jump with one of such things.

Fernando

I don't know if you can parry a 500-700 pound tiger hitting you at 35mph with a couple of katars. Even if you were on the ground face up with the katars pointing up and the tiger jumped right onto them the force would probably break both your arms. Most hunting swords and daggers were often used to dispatch an already seriosly wounded animal. In the USA wild hog hunters kill the hog with a large dagger but only after the dogs have pinned him down.

Sorry but you would need a awfully long katar to reach this tiger in the picture.

[fernando]

The drawing hasn't been finished, yet .
The author still has to include the nobleman, who will be close to the tiger .

[spiral]

Legend has it to test bravery some Gurkha warriers would hunt a tiger with a kukri to proove thier bravery.

I understand many Mahrarajas of martial races {As the Brits called them.}put a lot of store in physical bravery as well?

Excerpt from Hunting Weapons from the Middle Ages to the Twentieth Century: By Howard L. Blackmore But originaly copied from Reverend Woods 19th century classic, "Travels in India and Nepal” by the Reverend Wood in 1896.

He also described the Gurkhas as "Brave as lions, active as monkeys, and fierce as tigers" Something not very many people aspire to today perhaps?


Spiral

[fearn]

Originally Posted by spiral

Legend has it to test bravery some Gurkha warriers would hunt a tiger with a kukri to proove thier bravery.

I understand many Mahrarajas of martial races {As the Brits called them.}put a lot of store in physical bravery as well?

Excerpt from Hunting Weapons from the Middle Ages to the Twentieth Century: By Howard L. Blackmore But originaly copied from Reverend Woods 19th century classic, "Travels in India and Nepal” by the Reverend Wood in 1896.

He also described the Gurkhas as "Brave as lions, active as monkeys, and fierce as tigers" Something not very many people aspire to today perhaps?


Spiral

Gotta love that picture, slashing with the back of the kukri...

Believable...? Not so much. It's that part about getting out of the way that strikes me as hard to do. See for example this YouTube Video, starting at 2:05.

I'm sure that if you were perfectly prepared, you could get one chop in, but not the easiest thing in the world. Note that I'm NOT questioning Gurkha bravery. Just their success rate, especially if they're going for the paw and not the head.

Then again, with tigers on the endangered species list, I think that it will be a few generations before anyone legally hunts a tiger with a kukri or with a katar. The world needs more tigers, anyway. Keeps men heroic.

Best,

F

[David]

Originally Posted by fearn

Gotta love that picture, slashing with the back of the kukri...

I don't think so Fearn. The kukri hooks inward on the bladed side. I believe the slashing direction is in a roundhouse motion towards the tiger. He is indeed giving the tiger the edge side in this illustration.

[fearn]

Originally Posted by David

I don't think so Fearn. The kukri hooks inward on the bladed side. I believe the slashing direction is in a roundhouse motion towards the tiger. He is indeed giving the tiger the edge side in this illustration.

If he's chopping, he's got his hand behind his shoulder and he's swinging forward. As the blade connects, he could dislocate his shoulder. Moreover, his elbow is facing backward and straight, so if he's swinging, it's from the shoulder and waist alone. This is one where it's a good idea to try this with a stick against a wall. Do be careful, because if you put force into it, it's going to hurt.

F

F

[bhushan_lawate]

Hi,

I guess we should take these as stray instances which went on to become legends. I do not believe this could have existed as a common practice.

Though I'm aware of a couple of instances and have also had a rare privilege of meeting a man (sadly now no more) who had killed a leopard with a sickle.

He was 95 when I met him a few years back in the jungles of Western Ghats.

However, these will be one off cases when people in self defense used what ever was available.


Regards,
Bhushan

[David]

Originally Posted by fearn

If he's chopping, he's got his hand behind his shoulder and he's swinging forward. As the blade connects, he could dislocate his shoulder. Moreover, his elbow is facing backward and straight, so if he's swinging, it's from the shoulder and waist alone. This is one where it's a good idea to try this with a stick against a wall. Do be careful, because if you put force into it, it's going to hurt.

It's just a drawing Fearn, i was merely pointing out that the swing is indeed moving foward with the blade edge towards the tiger. The physics and dynamics of whether or not this would be a successful cut on the Gurkha's part is not really at issue for me. I also don't think that the illustration's martial accuracy can be used as a basis to dismiss the stories of the practice all together. The artist might not have much knowledge of the proper arm position necessary to make the most effective cut on the tiger and in all probability wasn't even at the event if it actually occurred. It was most probably related to him later and he merely illustrated it. If he was on the scene it would have happened so fast (as that amazing video illustrated) that he wouldn't have accurately seen what happened anyway.