The state of Tamil Nadu is considered to be the cradle of modern and scientific staff fencing, popularly known in Tamil as Silambam. The Pandya kings ruling in Tamil Nadu promoted Silambam fencing, as did their Chola and Chera counterparts. Silapathiharam Tamil literature, dating back to 2nd century A.D., refers to the sale of silamabam staves, swords, pearls and armour to foreign traders. The ancient trading centre at Madurai city, renowned globally, was said to be thronged by Romans, Greeks, Egyptians among others who had regular sea trade with the ancient Dravidian kings. The silambam staff was one of the martial art weapons, that was in great demand with the visitors.

The use of the long staff for self - defence or mock - fighting was a highly organised game in the state as early as the 1st and 2nd centuries A.D. In the Vedic age, young men were imparted training to defend themselves with staves, both as a ritual and an emergency. The staves wielded by ace fencers were given distinctive names, and treated with reverence. Some records trace the origin of this art to a divine source - Lord Muruga, and within the Tamil mythological framework, sage Agasthya is also credited with the genesis of Silambam. Silambam is believed to have travelled from Tamil Nadu to Malaysia, where it is now a popular recreational sport and also a mode of self - defence.

The most ancient text on Silambam - Agasthyar Kampu Soothram, is believed to be composed by Sage Agasthya. In this text, Sage Agasthya describes the incident that led him to learn the art of Silambam. While he was searching for the Velvi hill, he met a wise old man, who treated him kindly. The old man - many believe that he was Lord Siva himself, was at that time conducting many religious discussions/discourses on various aspects of Indian philosophy. While Sage Agasthya was with the great master, the master taught him the secrets of the martial arts and the how and why of the prana (the life energy or vital force that courses through the body) and the marma or vital points in the human body. He then taught Sage Agasthya the secrets of AUM and asked him to go to the mount Pothikai. Sage Agasthya tells about his learning experiences in mount Pothikai and how he came across various wise and learned Gurus and enriched his knowledge in various arts. Then he describes about how he got himself involved in meditation and the Kundalini - the divine force that lies dormant in every human being. He then describes that he composed many works on many different fields like astrology, marma or vital points, Siddha system of medicine etc. Again he went to every mountain, valley and cave in search of Gurus to complement his already enormous knowledge. Finally he went back to mount Pothikai and stayed there for his Thapa or deep meditation.

Various ways and methods to use a long staff for fighting and for self defense are given in the Agasthyar Kampu Soothram. The different length of stick for different people like forest/village dweller, city dweller etc are given. This great manuscript was lying in oblivion and the Silambam master Sri. A.Arunachalam should be given the full credit for getting this manuscript from the Asans and interpreting the same.

The art of Silambam was a part of the life of the people of the land of Tamilnadu from time immemorial. Its roots are entrenched in the culture of the Dravidian people. These people are supposed to be the original inhabitants of the South India. The art of Silambam, like all other arts and science of ancient India suffered a lot under the colonialist rule of the British. The British, seeing the danger of Silambam as a martial art, captured and hanged many of the local chieftains and warriors often by way conceit and treason. This loss of great masters was a serious blow to the art and along with this the confiscation of the arms from the various parts of the present day Tirunelveli district in Tamilnadu resulted in an almost sure extinction of Silambam. But the great warriors of Tamilnadu, the Maravar community had some other ideas. Many of the masters went into hiding and they taught the secrets of the art of fighting to the village folks. A sad outcome of this situation was that Silambam disappeared from the elite class and reached the hands of capable but illiterate village folks. Many of the techniques and training principles were taught by the masters to disciples and none of them were documented. Many different styles came into existence. No coordinated efforts were made to propagate Silambam in its original way.