Introduction
History
The Malay Art of the Sword known today as Seni Pedang Sukma Kencana was established by an Ottoman Turkish gentleman known as Effendi. He made his way to Acheh in the 18th century and took an Achehnese bride. His descendants married into the Minang community of Talu. In the 1880s, his bloodline Sheikh Abdul Latif Al Khalidi and his son Haji Muhammad Salleh made their way to Piandang in the state of Perak, in the Malay Peninsula. Father and son then parted ways as Haji Salleh was invited by the royal house at Rembau to teach the Islamic religion there. Sheikh Abdul Latif, who was a Nashabandi sufi practitioner, also travelled the Peninsula to spread the teachings of Islam.
The art of the sword was a closely guarded knowledge passed from father to son, and its final heir Teungku Nara Paduka, took it upon himself to share the knowledge to the public in 2018 with the foundation of Akademi Seni Sukma Kencana. The academy was established to conserve, preserve and propogate the traditional style of teaching the Seni Pedang Sukma Kencana.
In 2020, Nara Martial Arts Academy was established as a means to teach swordsmanship and other martial arts utilizing a more open and modular concept. It was also during this year that Teungku Nara Paduka - pseudonym to Haji Muhammad Hanif - was acquainted with Professor Jak Othman, world-renowned authority on Silat. This collaboration opened the doors for Seni Sukma Kencana to the international stage.
On 7 December 2021, Pertubuhan Pemedang Seni Sukma Kencana Malaysia - Seni Sukma Kencana Swordsmen Organisation of Malaysia - was officially approved by the Registrar of Societies, Malaysia. This was an important step in the evolution and development of Malay swordsmanship both local and abroad.