Cheng Tzu's Thirteen Treatises on t'Ai Chi Ch'uan

After 10 years of Tai Chi Chuan practice advanced books like this are becoming a valuable resource. Until you understand chi flow, rooting, adhering, following, and the myriad of other terms that describe the fundamental elements of the art, much of the book may come across as esoteric. A respected elder in the art once told me that the 'classics' will not lead you astray. The trick is to find good translations without too much personal commentary. This book has the wisdom from the classics with a bit of practical explanation. For those on the path this is a great resource.

This book is my constant companion. I've carried my original 1985 copy with me everywhere since it was first published. I should declare my bias: I was a student at Professor Cheng's school in New York starting in 1974, the year before he passed, and studied and eventually taught there until 1986. All of his senior students considered this the Bible of Professor Cheng's form long before it was ever published in English. We had classes in which Ed Young, one of the Professor's senior students, translated it for us chapter by chapter, his forehead breaking out in a fine sweat with the effort of attempting to adequately convey the Professor's meaning. ( I still have my notes from those sessions, and Ben Lo's translation compares very favorably with Ed's.) I often quote or read from the Thirteen Treatises to my students, and always recommend it as an indispensable work. In short, if there is one single most essential volume on Professor Cheng's Tai Chi Chuan, this is it--and I believe it can prove equally valuable to students of other styles and forms. I especially recommend it in combination with "Master Cheng's New Method of Taichi Chuan Self-Cultivation," translated by Mark Hennessy (Frog Ltd., 1999).

This is a beautiful edition of Cheng Man Ch?ing?s text on Chi Tai Ch?uan. There are other translations of this text available, but this is by far the best for several reasons. First, it is hardcover, and the layout is beautiful. The cover has a color print of one of Cheng?s paintings, and there is an example of his calligraphy on the inside. The book is also larger than other editions I have seen, and the prints and pictures are printed larger and more clearly as well. The larger pictures of Cheng performing the Tai Chi form are especially useful. And, while this may not matter everyone, this edition of Cheng?s book is also the only one authorized by his estate, and contains a preface by Cheng?s wife. I highly recommend this book.

Like most of the Tai chi Classics, a lot of the language is ambiguous, but I found it to be an excellent supplement to my tai chi chuan practice. There are some great photos of the author practicing the form with explanations (albeit a little hard to wade through) of martial arts applications. One particularly useful section tells about the 9 levels of Tai Chi practice - essentially a benchmarking system of what specific areas you ought to be working on, and in what order, in fairly clear language. Probably not a good 'first exposure' to Tai Chi Chuan, but definitely something that a serious student would want to take a look at.