Wai Kru Ram Muay

What is Wai Kru Ram Muay?

Wai Kru Ram Muay is a traditional pre-fight ritual performed by Muay Thai fighters. It is a form of respect and homage to their trainers, ancestors, and the sport itself. The ritual combines elements of dance and prayer, and it serves multiple purposes:

  1. Show Respect: Fighters pay respect to their teachers, the sport, and their opponents.
  2. Warm-Up: The movements help the fighters to stretch and prepare their bodies for the bout.
  3. Mental Focus: The ritual helps fighters to focus their minds and prepare mentally for the fight ahead.
  4. Cultural Tradition: It preserves the cultural heritage of Muay Thai and emphasizes the importance of respect and discipline in the sport.

Wai Kru Ram Muay is usually performed in the ring before the match begins and often involves a series of graceful and deliberate movements, which can vary depending on the fighter's training camp and personal style.

Related Article: Pre-fight Muay Thai Ritual: Wai Kru Ram Muay

There is a difference between working out and training. So far, you just work out. You sweat a little and get a good amount of exercise. Yes, you do get a little better, a little stronger and a little smarter, but mostly your skills are derived from your natural abilities. Training is very different. When you train, you have to push your body and your fighting spirit to the point of breaking every time. When you train, you have to go right up to the limits where your physical being and your spiritual self scream ‘no more.’ And at that barrier, which naturally evolved throughout your lifetime as protection against possible physical harm and mental anguish, you must force through or be forced through into a world of seemingly unreasonable pain in order to glimpse and then realize another level beyond your current abilities. This must happen over and over again in order to truly progress on this journey. And of course, the cruelty of all this is that the next level itself is illusory, as is the one after that, and the successive barriers you must force your way through will seem boundless.” “Even for the strongest person, training extracts a heavy and oftentimes damaging toll on your body and on your psychic health, which is why I rarely push my students that hard,” he continued. “The harmful effects of such hard training is also why you need a trustworthy guide and teacher, someone who can catalyze your training but, more importantly, someone who can pull you from the abyss and show you that the white hot pressure to advance and constantly surpass your previous achievements is also an illusion in and of itself.
Kathryn Yang

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