Customer Reviews

Bagua Linked Palms

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I've been practicing Internal Martial Arts for twenty years now, & been teaching for 15, including taiji (Yang), bagua (Fu Chen-Sung), & hsing-i (mishmash). I've had this Manual in the original Chinese for nearly all that time-- & have found it absolutely Essential, even when I couldn't read a word. How is that? b/c with Wang, you can learn quite a bit just by studying his pictures(!!)

For example: [esp in the 'Palm Change' pictures, Chapter 8]:

Wang's energy is very whole-&-total, or what Sun Lu-Tang called the "I-Ch'i": there isn't a single picture where Wang's lacking energy in any limb. Further, his root is extraordinary; you can see how his legs extend at least 3' or more into the ground; esp. in the later palm-change postures, it's like looking at an iceberg: most of Wang is below the ground. Even better, he is physically demonstrating the internal principle Fu Zhongwen translates as "an intangible and lively energy lifts the crown of the head" (or in other words, his shen energy is located in his upper dan-tien, while his ch'i energy is coalesced in his lower dan-tien). And yes his eyes are very bright, but his energetic balance is sublime: he never 'emits' from his eyes more than he extends downwards, thru his root. That is very rare to see demonstrated in my experience from training with several different (famous) Teachers, & even more rare to see it published in photos like these. This is the kind of thing that was once very carefully guarded as an 'Inner Door Secret'; top practitioners showed that level of skill behind closed doors only, & definitely didn't let (just) anyone photograph them doing it...

But for me? My favorite part are his 'big hands'... many practitioners, esp those doing Iron Palm, are able to generate lots of energy in their palms... but that comes at the expense of other parts of their bodies, often their legs, etc. So you see 'big hands on a small body', or 'lollipop arms' if you will. But not Wang-- he has Big Hands connected to a Big Full body, with a Huge Root. Wow.

So you get ALL of that with the pictures... & now you get to read the actual text as well!!

Plus don't overlook the 'Basic Principles' section; similar ideas &/or 'Secrets' have been written in several other manuals, but this version has some very subtle distinctions which are crucial. For instance, the '6-Combinations' description is very elegant, and the 'pull-up anus' (ie 'ding') emphasizes "lightly contracting" (rather than forcibly exerting-- a very important distinction, helping you avoid lots of maladies...).

Incredible book, & now an incredible translation. We owe a massive debt to Kent Howard and Chen Hsiao-Yen. THANK-YOU, SO MUCH!!!!

This small volume is really one of my new favorite works on Baguazhang. It has the qualities of being both brief and enjoyable. I think the best way I can express my enjoyment of the book is like this: it is short enough that I read the entire thing in Barnes and Noble, but interesting enough that I still bought a copy anyway.

All students and fans of the Chinese Internal Martial Arts will appreciate this fine book. Kent Howard has given us a great gift by sharing this work with all aficionados of the Internal Arts.

Anyone that may have come across Robert Smith's wonderful books on Chinese Boxing and its "Internal Arts" will know this man. Furthermore, those who already know of Baguazhang and special publications like Dan Miller's "Pa Kua Chang Journal" will enjoy this book. Check the blurbs by Dan Miller and Bruce "Kumar" Frantzis - you will not be disappointed - this is a scholarly work.

Thank you Kent for translating one of the great Bagua master's text. My teacher T.T. Tchoung was a friend and student of the Great Master Wang. This books clears up many questions. In addition a great part of this book is Kent's clarification on the documented history of Bagua.

Super

I belong to the Bujinkan Martial art School, and I teach Ninjutsu and Tai-chi. I have interest in Bagua, and try to read everything I can about it. I also practice it a little bit, but since my main focus is Ninjutsu and Tai-chi I am just really being inspired by this beautiful and deep martial art.

This book is important because it is written by a real master of Bagua. It is relatively short and give the basic of the art, but the gist of the book to my mind are the pictures of the author, Master Shujin Wang, performing postures of the Single and Double Palm.

Publishing this book is a fine initiative, I hope that more translations of the deep aspects of the art will be done, and released in the near future.

I agree with the other reviewers that this is an excellent book. I've collected a lot of material on Bagua Zhang over the years, but unfortunately many of the forms described in these books are quite beautiful, but far too complex to practice without a teacher. Wang Shujin's first form, the one described in this book, is elegant and classical without being so difficult that a dedicated student couldn't benefit from working through the moves. Kent Howard, the translator, also has uploaded eight or ten videos on YouTube.com which can help a student see the form in motion. Well done! I hope to see more material about Bagua Zhang from this translator. Students interested in this subject should also consider books by Robert W. Smith, Yang Jwing-Ming, John P. Painter, and Bruce K. Frantzis, which contain valuable material beyond the form.

This is a great addition to the all-too-few English language translations of classic Chinese martial Arts texts. It's extremely valuable for practitioners to be able to read the actual writings of the great masters and to see original photos of them demonstrating their arts. Well done!

Up until now this masterful training manual of the Bagua form has been reserved for the Chinese only. Now Kent Howard has brought it to the English-speaking world as only he can. Anyone who is interested in the martial arts will consider this book a must for their collection. The book is packed with photos that bring the form to life. Thanks Kent for the gift of this great martial arts masterpiece.

Kent Howard's careful translation and thoughtful presentation make this explication of Wang's Ba Kua an invaluable contribution to the area of Chinese Martial Arts and Culture. While living in Taiwan to study the internal styles from 1975 - 1977 and having participated in translations of Sun Lu-tang and Sun Hsi-kun's texts on the subject I know first hand the challenges of first rate translation of this complex subject. With advanced degress in Asian Studies and Clinical Psychology and over 30 years of practice in the arts of Tai Chi, Pa Kua, Wing Chun and William Paul's system of Non-Violent Self Defense and Restraint I am also quite aware of the dedication and discipline required to produce this kind of high quality work.

Kent combines all the above and has given us the fullest and clearest presentation of Wang's Pa Kua available. I cannot recommend it highly enough.