Joshua van Asakinda
a biography

Joshua van Asakinda was born 22 September, 1979 near Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. He holds a master's degree from American Military University, and a bachelor's degree from the University of Pittsburgh, where he studied psychology and philosophy. During that time, he began developing a new theory of self-realization, which has inspired a number of books. For many years, he traveled the world; now he looks forward to making his vision a reality. Finally, he is a Buddhist, and First of the Zenshida’i, creator of Cimande Pencak Silat-Serak dari Zenshida'i.
"Awakening is the Way of the Deathless;
Non-awakening is the way of death;
The Awakened do not die;
The non-awake live as though already dead."

~ ​The Lord Buddha, Gautama Siddhartha ~

Zenshida'i Silat-Serak

Zenshida'i Silat-Serak (ZSS) is rooted in the Cimande Pencak Silat tradition of Willy Wetzel, which he brought to the United States in the 1950s. Willy Wetzel's system of pencak silat- often referred to quite generically as pukulan, meaning simply "to hit"- was a hybrid tradition with both Chinese and Indonesian roots, including elements not only of pencak silat but also of neijia / Wudangquan and waijia / Shaolinquan. Sadly, that system has faded over the years; many of its secrets have been lost or forgotten. However, Joshua van Asakinda, a third-generation teacher and student of that tradition, has traveled the world in order to renew and rebuild the system, and in order to rediscover its lost and forgotten secrets. This resurrected art is ZSS, known formally as Cimande Pencak Silat-Serak dari Zenshida'i.

*** Currently training in Las Vegas ***

Written Works
by
Joshua van Asakinda

Joshua van Asakinda has written a number of written works, including Slay the Maiden: Oracle: Ninety Days to a New Life; and Stranging the Beautiful Noise. His work is deeply philosophical in character, and has been influenced by a wide range of thinkers, from Friedrich Nietzsche to Joseph Campbell, from Carl Jung to Tsunetomo Yamamoto. And yet all of his work shares the same spirit: a heroic theory of being. Currently, the following books are in print, with more just beyond the horizon!

Slay the Maiden

Seven heroes awaken suddenly in a world of shadows, and find themselves charged with a great destiny, led only by the visions of a young boy. Step by step, they are led deeper into darkness; step by step, they descend further into the mysteries of virtue, love, & sacrifice- a descent that can only end in tragedy.
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Oracle: Ninety Days to a New Life

Oracle: Ninety Days to a New Life is an inspirational book of aphorisms designed to lead one, step by step, into self-mastery. Written in the spirit of Heroic Theory, it combines a deep understanding of the way of the warrior, psychology and philosophy, and various religious traditions, in order to provide a sophisticated method for discovering the meaning of it all.
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Stranging the Beautiful Noise

Stranging the Beautiful Noise is a collection of 144 poems by Joshua van Asakinda, including, for instance, Abraxas:

"A good and godly lullaby through endless eras sings
But who can know what destiny that sacred ballad brings?
The wheel of birth and death must roll; its ending none may know
It spans that barren maybe where all human spirits grow"
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Joshua van Asakinda
+1(330)314-4170
​joshua.van.asakinda@gmail.com