Customer Reviews

Ba Gua: Hidden Knowledge in the Taoist Internal Martial Art

5 star:		(12)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(4)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

This book was really good, it gave a great history section, overview of theory, and general explanation of what Ba Gua is about. There are very good explanations of internal power theory, the differences between the different levels of that theory(muscular effort to internal power, and what the differences are between each level). It also includes several two-man sets which are very good, and a section on applications. Strategy and actual applied fighting theory are elucidated to good depth, which made me quite happy. This book is a great overview, but don't buy it expecting to see tons of forms and the whole style laid out before you, there are a couple of chi-gung forms( with very good explanations), the aforementioned two man sets, and several applications. This book is a steal at 12 bucks and I would suggest it to anyone interested in Ba Gua- especially if you don't know anything about the style. This book presents the best introduction I have seen to Ba Gua, it's history and basic theory; one that clearly states what is esoteric and what is concrete, and is a very straightforward treatment of this style which is many times shrouded in obstrusity when discussed.

As a teacher of Bagua Chang I have to commend Mr. Bracy for doing an excellent job in presenting some rather complex material in an easy to undesrstand manner. I enjoyed the material presented and felt the history lesson was quite good. It was very clear that Mr. Bracy has a greater knowledge and understanding of metaphysical internal arts than he choses to reveal. And based upon some of his reviews, this is probably a wise choice. It will be interesting to see what his next book will be like:-)

However, the best praise I can give is that my students found the book very informative and helpful in their practice. It added more depth to their circle walking and the definition of a Yogic internal art suited their nature. They enjoyed the pictures of Master Liu walking the circle. (That alone, is a good reason to own this book)

Bagua has produced more magical masters per capita than any other internal art. To only view this art as a martial one is a tremendous disservice and insult to its creators and first level masters. Mr. Bracy should be applauded for not creating another technical "how to do it" manual.

Books about ba gua are rare, so I snapped this up as soon as I saw it. I liked the history aspect of the book which tells how ba gua was developed, the purpose of walking in a circle, etc. But aside from that, it's clear that the author has reached a refined degree of practice and understanding about this profound art. It inspired me to resume learning ba gua, and much more seriously than before. It's a great book for anyone interested in tai chi, chi gung, and other internal martial arts.

This book is obviously not intended for the beginning Baguazhang student. Then again, there comes the argument as to whether there is anything as a beginning Baguazhang student, since it is a style generally analogized as "graduate school" for martial artists.

The authors are quite knowledgeable and clear with their content matter. While I distinctly dislike the use of the phrase "Taoist yoga/yogic," the outlining of the qigong exercises were quite clear. The two-man drills were not so clear, but for someone with experience in reading martial arts texts, they were clear enough.

There's also some esoterica and history that is nice to see. The outlining and use of the generational names of the Tung Hai-Chuan lineage was especially interesting to me, as an "historical" martial artist.

It's not the best book I've seen on Baguazhang, but it certainly beats most others. For fundamental drilling and body development work, I would suggest Sifu Park Bok Nam's "The Fundamentals of Baguazhang" vols. I and II. For more translations and mediocre form delineation, I would suggest Dr. Yang, Jwing-Ming and Liang, Shou-Yu's "Emei Baguazhang." Having all three texts, I feel that Mr. Bracy and his sifu's book is a fine complement to my Baguazhang and internal Chinese arts library.

I recomend this book simply because English books on baguazhang are rare to begin with. However, the potential reader should be aware of a few problems. First of all, the author jumps from basic circle walking directly to two-man exercises and applications. This will cause a problem for beginners who might benefit from pictures of the author's form so that they can get a "feel" for how the style moves (baguazhang doesn't move like anything else). So a beginner will have no frame of reference. However, I can't say this is a book for advanced practicioners either because the applications are very (!) simplistic. Don't look here for bagua's inherent complexity! Also, the exercises and applications are difficult to follow because they lack arrows depicting the movements of the practicioners. The first 50 pages on history and theory are pretty good although they borrow heavily from the "Pa Kua Chang Journal" which (in Bracy's defence) was a pretty comprehensive journal and a tough act to follow. I guess I was also disappointed in this book because Liu Xing Han's Chinese books are considered modern classics (and rightly so). Why not simply translate them and make them available to the baguazhang community?

I am a former student of Master John Bracy, and a T'ai Chi instructor at the Kapiolani Women's Center and 24Hour Fitness in Hawaii. I studied T'ai Chi Ch'uan at Hsing Chen School of Internal Healing Arts and had the opportunity to observe private classes with my Sifu and his Ba Gua students. I remember hearing the shared laughter between teacher and student as they challenged each other using this mysterious and beautiful art. I found this book on Ba Gua to be informative and inspiring. I now incorporate the chapter on Ba Gua Qigong in my classes and my life and have made his book "required" reading for every student. They tell me that reading "Ba Gua" helped them achieve a deeper and clearer understanding of T'ai Chi as well as stimulate interest in learning more about Ba Gua. I hope that all students of the internal arts get a chance to read this well written work. It's like getting private lessons with the Grand Masters!

Bracy and Liu's book is a great introduction to the art of ba gua. While I have studied tai chi, I have had very little experience with ba gua, and I found that this book answered many of my questions. It is not a training manual, but provides a taste of the flavor of the practices, drills, and martial techniques of the art. The text is well written and clear, and there are many pictures to illustrate the authors' points. Its discussion of the history of ba gua was especially interesting. My only complaint with the book is that the photos used to explain some of the two person techniques are hard to follow because they switch models at different points in the sequence of illustrations.

I was mixed on this book. It presented a wonderful history and philosophical background for Hsing-Han Liu's Ba Gua, but the palms shown were the simplest levels (predominately qi gung), the applications were rudimentary (perhaps even watered down), and the mechanics simplistic. For a book that started to emphasize energy, proceeded to walking qi gung palms, a more appropriate finale would have been more sophisticated energy applications and/or development. Real insights from this incredibly experienced Ba Gua master would have been nice, and invaluable.

An interesting book, well worth the cover price for the amount of information on the subject it covers. The material is well written and captivates the reader's attention. I would recommend this book to anyone interested in the internal arts.

I got a hold of this book - as I do with all internal martial art books - thinking that this is another history book. It definitely is not just another history book. Authors Liu Xing-Han and John Bracy have delved deeper into the art with the inclusion of the alchemy of taoists of old, explaining their methods and motivations, bagua training sets, different models of ch'i cultivation with special notations and diagrams from Robert Becker's "The Body Electric," Baguazhang chi gung and more.

Well written, with compassion and excellence! 5 - stars!