Master Abdur Rahman Blanchette, also known as Nicholas Blanchette, is a British martial artist and teacher whose path has been shaped by more than five decades of serious training, direct study and traditional transmission.
His martial journey began in Judo, where he trained from childhood, reached Junior Black Belt level and represented the British Judo Team in competitions across Europe and America. This early foundation gave him a deep practical understanding of balance, timing, pressure, discipline and the reality of live martial engagement.
He later spent many years studying Kung Fu, developing both as a practitioner and teacher. This period broadened his understanding of movement, structure, internal discipline and the relationship between martial practice, character and self-cultivation. Over time, his search led him into Silat, where he found a martial tradition that united combat, movement, etiquette and service.
Master Abdur Rahman trained in both Malaysian and Indonesian Silat, reaching instructor level and teaching for many years. His work eventually became centred on Silat Cimande Asli Tarikolot, the traditional Cimande lineage rooted in the village of Tarikolot, in the Caringin district of Bogor, West Java.
Cimande is recognised as one of the oldest and most influential styles of Pencak Silat in the Sundanese, or Pasundan, region of West Java. Its origins are traditionally associated with the figure of Abah Khair in the late eighteenth century, and the village of Tarikolot remains one of the cultural heartlands of the art.
A decisive stage in Master Abdur Rahman’s journey came when he travelled to Tarikolot and trained directly in the village environment from which this lineage is drawn. There he studied under Bapak Firdaus, a Pendekar of Silat Cimande Asli, and received authorisation from him to teach the art.
This authorisation is central to Master Abdur Rahman’s position as a teacher. His role is not based on self-appointment, branding or reconstruction, but on direct training and permission from within the traditional Cimande source. Through this connection, he carries Silat Cimande Asli Tarikolot as a living lineage between West Java and the United Kingdom.
The art he teaches is practical, close-range and deeply disciplined. Training develops footwork, evasion, striking, entries, limb control, off-balancing, locks, takedowns, sensitivity, timing and the ability to respond under pressure. Yet Cimande cannot be reduced to fighting techniques alone. Its method is rooted in adab, restraint and responsibility.
Before learning, students traditionally swear to the Talek Cimande, the moral code of the art. The Talek requires respect for God, parents, teachers and community. It forbids gambling, theft, arrogance, intimidation and the misuse of martial skill. It teaches that Silat is not for bullying, ego or provocation, but for self-defence, protection, discipline and service.
Today, Master Abdur Rahman Blanchette continues to teach Silat Cimande Asli Tarikolot in the United Kingdom, preserving a direct connection to Tarikolot, Bapak Firdaus and the traditional culture of Cimande. His work offers students the opportunity to encounter Silat not as performance, sport or generic martial arts branding, but as a living tradition: practical in application, rooted in lineage, guided by moral discipline and carried with respect for its Indonesian origins.
Through Silat Asli, this teaching is now offered through regular training, national seminars and international seminars. These seminars provide an opportunity for students, martial artists, instructors and organisations to experience authentic Cimande practice directly, whether as an introduction to the art or as deeper study for those already on the path.