I began studying Martial Arts with Grandmaster Adrian Roman, ‘Chief,’ as he is known throughout the Martial Arts world, seven years ago.  

Chief is a full-blood Choctaw. He was born in 1942 in an Indian hospital in Talihina, Oklahoma. In 1957 the Bureau of Indian affairs  relocated his family to Dallas. 

Chief was an athlete while growing up and went into martial arts as a young man, studying under masters in the field becoming a 9^th degree Kenpo instructor as well as Grandmaster of Tushka-homma, a fighting art he developed to honor his native people. He is in several halls of fame for martial artists.

For 33 years Chief’s teaching has been an embodiment of the Choctaw word ‘falammichi” a word often translated as ‘defending’ but it means far more than that.

‘Falammichi’ also means repaying, restoring, refunding, renewing.  The same word means one who practices Falammichi. Chief teaches how to take someone’s aggressive grasp or punch and take control, repaying him for his aggression but only in order to return things to their proper place.  Chief teaches his students to be honorable warriors, to make things right whether through physical defense of others or simply assisting them. Today, Chief is 64, single and resides in Garland, TX and is the father of three children and two granddaughters.  He continues to do teaching with select students and produces video training materials for the martial arts. . I thank the Choctaw people for producing Chief Roman, Falammichi.

Robert G. Rose, PhD

What is Falammichi

by Chief Adrian Roman

Falammichi is a Choctaw word and is not easily translated into English and has many meanings.

:to sing, to answer, to bring back, to give back, to defend, to replace, to return to each other, a restorer, to reinstate, to acquire much knowledge, to teach and return, a man of integrity, achukma hatak (good man) a great man. Hatak Falammichi is a man who had these qualities about him. 

The term is not easily translated into English.  It can refer to a value or a person embodying that value.

The term means giving back, best translated as defending, but also means returning, renewing, restoring, to reconciled.  It may be related to the Choctaw word for North..

'defense' is often used as a synonym for 'protection' but they are not the same. Protect means to cover, defend is an active response to a threat.  The walls protect us, the guns defend us.

Defend -- Falammichi will return an attack with the same level of violence attempted upon him or his people.  He was doing no harm and to restore things to their previous peace he must defend.  

Return -- Falammichi is interested in paying back what he owes. (E.g. giving money to the churches in Oklahoma or assisting the people who are in need).

Reconciled-- to renew or forgive debts, to make things even on the same playing field.

In 2000 I coined the phrase Hatak (man) Falammichi and began to form a philosophy  around its meaning.  

Choctaw men who possessed leadership qualities and have good visions about the future of their family, village, clan and tribe practice Falammichi. Any man could become Hatak Falammichi, but those who were born in families with Chiefs and leaders were in better positions to become Hatak Falammichi.

Some were born with these qualities. From the beginning by the way they conducted themselves in everyday affairs the people of the tribe witness the potential of these young men. They were put into position and situation to thrive and have success. To be successful one must experience failure and defeat. When one is successful all the time, you never acquire the ability to respond to failure. This is an important lesson to learn in life for we will all experience failure. Hatak Falammichi will teach you this great lesson. He is not afraid to step into darkness for he has come to know success and victory.

These men were respected as they rose to become leaders in their family and villages.  As they matured with age, having acquired wisdom and an abundance of knowledge become leader. They would become head of their clans and eventually tribal Chief. It goes without saying that they were great warriors and providers for all who needed.

To become Falammichi and to teach the essence of it is a lifelong journey. It is the underlying thread or root of what it takes to be a Tushka-homma Warrior and an achukma hatak (good man). Its principals and ideals are the core of goodliness.

Our lives are always a work in progress. Achukma Hatak will always try being a better man tomorrow than he was the day before. With this principal a young man begin his journey into life with a noble cause. During this time he will reflect back on his life and his accomplishments. He begins to realize that whatever success that he had achieved up until that time, the spiritual essence is missing in his life.

The young man will look to the east and greet the sun to ask the Great Spirit (God) for guidance. This spiritual connection represents a new birth and beginning for him. He will take charge of his destiny, reevaluate and set new priorities. This new journey will have a profound effect on him and everyone that comes in contact with him. Throughout this new journey the Achukma Hatak will acquire knowledge and wisdom so that he can enlighten men along the way. They will come to know that he is a man of honor and integrity. His heart is good and the people will sense it and they will know that they were in the presence of someone who will make a difference. He is practicing Falammichi and some day in the distant future, he would become Hatak Falammichi.

To practice of Falammichi was not exclusive to the big picture. The Choctaw people would practice the underlining principals in all phases of their lives. It was alive in there art, weapons making and how they view there body’s as a sacred temple. Thru trial and error, they knew what kinds of food to eat to nourish their bodies. They were careful not to over indulge and respected all living creatures. They were careful not to kill for the sake of killing. The taking of life is not taken lightly. The practice of Falammichi gives honor to the animal and plants that fills his belly.

These Great Choctaw Chiefs were a good example of Falammichi, Tushkalusa, Pushmataha,

My Pastor Jonathan Wilson of Grace Indian Baptist Church in Achille, Ok gave a wonderful sermon one Sunday morning. He's such a wonderful speaker and has great presence about him. When he speaks, you listen. He is a gifted ambassador for his savior Jesus Christ. As he spoke from the Bible 2 Corinthians, Chapter 5, verses 16-21. I listen to him speak about all the qualities that we should have to be ambassadors of God. He was speaking about the very same qualities in the philosophy of Falammichi. Its a formula that has been working for the ages. The Bible has great messages and gives us a wonderful roadmap about how we should conduct and live our lives. The ultimate benefit for following these messages is that one day we can experience the presence of God first hand.  Pastor Jonathan Wilson embodies the philosophies of Falammichi. I urge you to visit Pastor Wilson and the friendly people of Grace Indian Baptist Church on any Sunday for an up lifting sermon and please tell him Adrian sent you.

"He is a leader among the greatest of Warriors. He began his life journey as the young wolf, and now has become the Majestic Eagle. His spirit soars closer to the heavens. Therefore, he is in touch with the Great Spirit (God)  He is at peace with himself. When his life fades, as the fading sunset, his spirit will go the heavens. He will face The Great Spirit without shame." Chief Adrian Roman