The combat techniques of Tai Ji, Ba Gua, and Xing Yi were forbidden during China's Cultural Revolution, but the teachings of grandmaster Wang Pei Shing have survived. This comprehensive guide, written by one of his students, selects core movements from each practice and gives the student powerful tools to recognize the unique strategies and skills, and to develop a deeper understanding, of each style. It contains complete instructions for a 16-posture form to gain mastery of combat techniques. The book helps practitioners achieve a new level of practice, where deeply ingrained skills are brought forth in a more fluid, intuitive, and fast-paced fashion.

This is the book Ken Gullette wishes he had been able to read when he first began studying Tai Chi, Bagua and Xingyi in 1987. It gets to the point, stripping the mystical mumbo jumbo away, leaving detailed, real-world explanations of the six fundamental body mechanics that everyone should know when they study Tai Chi (Taiji), Bagua and Xingyi. For the first time, these body mechanics are organized and discussed clearly, with more than 250 images and highly-detailed but simple language. If you are a student or even a teacher of these arts, you should be able to learn something here that will deepen your own insight into the arts. Ken has studied with some top internal arts masters, and during the first ten years he was teaching, he boiled down the body mechanics he learned into six key concepts. In this book, he explains them in the same step-by-step detail that he uses in teaching his students, building on each of the concepts until you have a clear roadmap of what you need to practice for high-quality internal structure and movement. As Ken explains it, "The true intent of the internal arts is self-defense. The body mechanics in this book are the starting point you need to develop the structure and internal strength that is required for the relaxed power, the iron wrapped in cotton, that the internal arts are known for. This is the starting point upon which all other skill is built." Ken has studied these arts since 1987, is a tournament champion, winning in empty-hand and weapons forms, no-contact, light-contact and full-contact matches, and he has students worldwide who have studied his DVDs and his website, www.internalfightingarts.com. Concepts covered in these pages include: the ground path, peng jin, whole-body movement, silk-reeling energy, Dantien rotation, and opening/closing the kua. From the explosiveness of Xingyi to the relaxed power of Tai Chi and Bagua, the road to internal skill is long and difficult, but very satisfying. There is nothing "soft" about these arts. They are powerful arts of self-defense. And it all starts here.

The art of Bagua Zhang is best known for its circular forms, yet linear fighting techniques have been incorporated into Bagua practice by many renowned masters. Liu Dekuan, a student of Dong Haichuan (the founder of Bagua Zhang), was one such master, devising a set of 64 techniques performed in straight lines. These techniques were collected and preserved by Master Liu’s disciple Gao Wencheng and his family, passed down from generation to generation. In The 64 Hands of Bagua Zhang, author Gao Jiwu—the grandson of Gao Wencheng—brings these techniques to the English-speaking world. Well known for his expertise in the 64 Hands form, Master Gao explains the history of the art, his family’s place in it, and the key principles for practice. The heart of the book is the complete set of Liu Dekuan’s 64 techniques; the solo forms are each explained in detail and then elaborated on to demonstrate their practical applications. Clear photographs fully illustrate the movements of the complete form and practice drills. Translated by Nigel Sutton, who has studied with the Gao family since the early 1980s, The 64 Hands of Bagua Zhang helps readers fully understand this form of Bagua Zhang.

In its first English-language edition, this detailed training manual is a complete guide to Gao baguazhang, as preserved through the lineage of Liu Fengcai. The youngest of the major bagua lineages, Gao bagua shows the influence of taiji quan, xingyi quan, and shuai jiao. It incorporates traditional bagua weapons, pre-heaven palms, and animal forms in addition to sixty-four individual post-heaven palms and their accompanying two-person forms. A unique synthesis of health-building techniques, Daoist theory, and practical fighting applications, Gao-style bagua is an example of the finest internal-arts traditions. The original manuscript for The Cheng School Gao Style Baguazhang Manual was completed by the art's founder, Gao Yisheng, in 1936. It was not published at the time, but handed down to his student Liu Fengcai, who edited and published the first Chinese edition in 1991 with the help of his own student Liu Shuhang. In 2005, Liu Shuhang published a revised and expanded version, and this was again expanded and reissued in a third edition in 2010. Now, the manual has been translated and fully updated for its first English-language edition. Including over 400 photos showing step-by-step techniques and forms, the manual documents the fundamentals of the art as well as detailed descriptions of techniques and empty-hand forms, laying the groundwork for advanced training. This edition includes rare photos of important masters in the Gao lineage, lineage charts, biographies, and other updates, making it the essential companion for anyone studying Gao style and a useful guide for any practitioner of baguazhang or other Chinese martial arts.

This book presents Li Dongfeng, the founder of Liuhebafa, and his original treatise knows as The Five Character Secrets.

From the author of "Opening the Energy Gates of Your Body" comes a book that introduces martial arts practitioners to three "internal" arts and their subtle powers. Inner martial arts rely on internal energy for power rather than on muscles or tension. 15 photos.

Here is the original, rarely seen Tai Ji Quan developed by Yang Lu Chan's best Imperial Palace Guard student, Quan You, over 150 years ago. While other styles branched off into sport, health, and meditation, Quan You's disciples preserved the traditional ways. This book covers the principles, characteristics, and essentials of the Wu method, along with its famous masters. The entire classical form is illustrated step-by-step, and includes weapons skills.

The beautiful, complex movements of Bagua require a lifetime to master fully, but can be practised with significant physical and mental health benefit at any level. In this highly illustrated guide, Master He, a fifth generation practitioner, introduces the ancient Daoist principles on which Bagua is based, its place within the Chinese martial arts, and the approach to life it nurtures. Many pages of photographs illustrate a programme of sequences, showing the beauty of the movements, and the positions and transitions the practitioner is aiming for. Bagua Daoyin supports and trains the body and the mind to promote balance and harmony. The external movements are echoed in the internal body, which promotes the flow of energy that leads to greatly improved health, a tranquil and focused mind, and increased longevity. Practitioners quickly report reduced stress levels and increased enjoyment of life. This fully illustrated introduction to Bagua Daoyin will be essential reading for Bagua, Xingyi and Taiji practitioners at all levels, dancers, and indeed anyone interested in improving their physical and mental wellbeing.

The critically acclaimed true story about the human cost of hero worship in martial arts. Featured on numerous shows and podcasts, The True Believers struck a chord with both traditional and modern martial artists across the world when it was first published in 2017. Now, in this special second edition, readers can go further down the rabbit hole in this true story about rampant fanaticism taking over a worldwide martial arts organization, and the chaos that it sowed in the lives of its True Believers. True Believers is the story of how a small, California marital arts school grew into a new age religion. Promoting black belts in mere months to maintain an army of fanatical young converts, while creating a business of endless monetization, trapping the most dedicated students in a spiral of financial ruin. Follow the rise and fall through the eyes of a young student on a seven year journey, attaining one of the highest ranks in the system, while secretly doubting his own abilities and fearing that his dojo has become a cult. Along the way, he discovers the truth about the business of selling fantasy and creating a codependent community that is fearful of the outside world and increasingly reliant on their master for direction. The True Believers is about the darker side of martial arts that robs real people of years of training and tens of thousands of dollars. But it's ultimately a story of triumph, as a group of senior students take a stand against wrongdoing and cripple an organization, their senior students resigning in protest.

The ancient Chinese martial art of Xingyi Quan is known for its explosive internal power. Closely related to both Taiji Quan and Bagua Quan, Xingyi is regarded as the most esoteric, and the most dangerous of the fighting arts, though the purposes of consistent practice include health and spiritual development. This in-depth guide is the first to cover the history and traditions of the art in such a comprehensive way, describing the essential Xingyi Quan movements, and their effects, in fully illustrated form, and including the author's research with the Song Xingyi Quan clan in China. The book contains a comprehensive teaching guide to the practice of Santi Shr and the Five Element Fists, the core exercises of this potent fighting system, as well as explanations of the underlying principles which give Xingyi Masters their great depth of skill and refined understanding of combat strategy. The reader will also find clearly illustrated teachings of all the Twelve Animal Forms, linking forms, two person sets, basic skills, and the weapons training. This authoritative book will be an illuminating and complete guide for anyone interested in the internal martial arts, especially those practicing or teaching Xingyi Quan or wanting to learn more about it.