- Flail weapons
- Ekor pari
Literally meaning stingray tail, the ekor pari is a whip. Also known as a sauku, it is usually made of rope. Whips were originally used for urging animals forward or punishing criminals, and also as a form of torture. It was carried by wrapping it around the waist underneath the sarong. The whip was said to be popular among female silat exponents because of its light weight.
- Rantai
The rantai is a chain which can be swung or used to lock and seize opponents. It can sometimes be substituted with a length of rope (tali). In some styles, a spearhead is attached to one end of the chain or rope.
Range weapons
Gandewa
The gandewa is a bow, though it is more often referred to as a busar or busur today. It was a common hunting weapon even among the region's aboriginal tribes (orang asal), but was later replaced by the senapang or rifle. The gandewa is very rarely taught in modern silat schools.
- Sumpitan
The sumpitan is a blowpipe, a hollow bamboo tube through which poisonous darts (damak) are shot. It is one of the oldest weapons in the region, having been used as a hunting tool by Proto-Malays since prehistoric times. The blowpipe is also the most popular long-range weapon in silat and was most often used to kill someone unawares. It typically measures 1.8m long and is made from two pieces of bamboo, one for the barrel and one for the casing. In close combat, it could be wielded as a stick. In Malaysia, the orang asli are considered the greatest masters of the blowpipe. Tribes such as the Iban of Sarawak used a hollow spear which could shoot arrows, thus combining the characteristics of a projectile and hand-to-hand weapon.
Imported weapons
The jian is a straight Chinese double-edge sword. It is one of the oldest known weapons to have been adopted from outside Southeast Asia, and is depicted on bas-reliefs in Srivijaya dating back more than one thousand years. Because it is lightweight and easily broken, the jian is hardly ever used for blocking. Instead, the fighter must rely on agility to dodge and avoid attacks. In silat, the Chinese sword can be used singly or in a pair.
The katana is a Japanese sword with a slight curve and a single edge. When it was first brought to Southeast Asia is unclear but the katana became more widely adopted in the region around the time of the Japanese Occupation. Its application in silat is quite distinct, more reminiscent of krabi krabong or banshay than actual kenjutsu.
