The Essence of Taiji Qigong, Second Edition: The Internal Foundation of Taijiquan

I have been involved in martial arts for nearly 30 years, starting in Karate and eventually working my way through the spectrum of arts before settling in Aikido. I also teach a "senior taichi" class at my local parks department. As a teacher of Yoshinkan Aikido I became interested in Taijiquan after realizing how similar it is to Aikido. I read this book not only to learn more about taijiquan, but to learn more about the Chinese idea of chi (ki in Japanese). The book begins by defining chi and there is some history on qigong and taijiquan. It then goes on to explain more detail on theories behind chi and how it relates to health, the mind and body, and taiji training. When I finished reading the book, I felt that I had a much better understanding of chi as well as the foundation and purpose of taijiquan. I can take what I learned from reading this book and apply it to my own martial arts training as well as to other exercises that I do to maintain general health. This book is not something to be read just once and put aside. I will go on to practice more, incorporating what I learned from my first reading. I'll likely read other books from Dr. Yang Jwing Ming and then re-read this one. Although the first reading was quite educational, it will take several readings over time to be able to absorb all of this information. This book will be added to my reference shelf and consulted often.

This book gets to the core of everything you can learn about the ancient martial arts of Tai Chi and Chi Gung. Thorough explanations of history, techniques, purpose of motion, chi energy movement, chi/body/mind interconnectivity, proper breathing, postures, etc. Well illustrated with plenty of exercise "sets" including a nice warm-up. This book will be a great help with your training and an important reference in your library.

As with all of the books by Dr. Yang, this is a stand alone book which you can learn easily from. He first provides his theoretical foundation of both Qigong and Taiji, and then moves deeper into the subject matter, going to a point well beyond most, if not all authors on this subject.An incredible amount of information is transmitted in each of Dr. Yang's books, and though the first few chapters are there go get any reader at any level up to speed on his basic theory, when he gets into the main subject matter it is really very amazing.

As a stundent of Tai Chi for many years I am constantly in search of knowledge to perfect my art. This book relays the special meaning and purpose of the movements. I rate it in a class with those of the great Chen Man-Ching, and my teacher, Marshall Ho'o. It is "the essence of Tai Chi Chi Kung".