Customer Reviews

Complete Idiot's Guide To T'ai Chi & Qigong

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3 star:		(7)
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1 star:		(3)

 

 

QiGong (chee kung) means "breath work." Chinese references include nearly 7,000 QiGong exercises, some of which may be done while sitting or lying down. T'ai Chi (tie chee) is a form of QiGong. All T'ai Chi exercises are done while standing or moving. Bill Douglas has studied and taught QiGong and T'ai Chi for twenty years. His latest book, The Complete Idiot's Guide to T'ai Chi and QiGong, presents his accumulated knowledge in an easy-to-understand guide. Douglas says that "whether you are stressed out, continually exhausted, treating a health problem, or just wanting to get in shape and feel young again, T'ai Chi is just what you need." Qi is also known as the "energy of life." Stress, tension, and ill health stop the flow of Qi throughout the body. T'ai Chi exercises are easy to do, incorporating breathing and relaxation techniques in slow and relaxed movements. Douglas describes each exercise thoroughly, including information not just on the physical movement, but on the mental awareness it brings as well. Photographs accompany each exercise. He includes a section of advanced movements for those who have mastered the basics. He also includes special sections for children, seniors, sports, and healing therapy. The appendix lists organizations and energy work centers for those desiring to practice with others. Douglas also includes a complete glossary. More than 2,000 years old, T'ai Chi is the most popular exercise today. People like it not only for its simplicity, but because it "simultaneously heals the physical, mental, emotional, and spiritual body." Readers wanting to learn how to obtain these benefits for themselves will find that The Complete Idiot's Guide to T'ai Chi and QiGong provides the answers to their questions as well as the "how-to" they need. -- Sandra I. Smith, Reviewer

The author tries to present the theory and the practice of tai chi and ends up doing neither effectively. In the first 13 chapters, he goes through endless psychobabble, new age stuff.

Finally, he begins presenting the form in Chapter 15 (after a chapter of the history of the form which is largely redundant of what came before). In chapter 15 he presents 12 movements. Each movement concists of 4 to 6 instructions, but only one photograph. In Chapter 16, he writes, "This chpater will give you an overview of movements 13 through 25 of the Kuang Ping form. Rather than detailing the movements, this chapter will focus on some of the benefits of each moment." What follows is one photo for each movement and a paragraph telling the reading the benefits of this previous movement. This is tedious and redundant and not at all helpful for someone who wishes to learn the form.

If the reader wants to know the theory of tai chi, an excellent book is "The Complete Illustrated Guide to Tai Chi" by Angus Clark. He presents Chinese philosophy within a Chinese setting not in New AGe babble.

If the reader wants to learn the form of tai chi, an excellent book is "Tai Chi, For Inner Harmony and Balance" by Paul Tucker. In this book, he presents a short form with amble photographs and illustrations and breaks the book into 31 very management lessons. The Tucker book is an excellent book.

Do not waste your time and money on the Douglas book.

As both a student and teacher of the Martial Arts, I understand how difficult and baffling some of these concepts can be. I understand how intimidating it can be for the beginner to seek out safe and credible instruction, especially women. And, to be honest, I know how difficult it is to find a "sense of humor" in such a traditionally austere atmosphere. As a Registered Nurse in an urban emergency department, I also know how timely and practical these practices are for our health and well being in today's heath care crisis. For these reasons and quite a few more The Idiot's Guide to Tai Chi and QI Gong is an incredible book and an important one. Mr. Douglas has achieved what I believe to be the desire of every good teacher: to simplify and convey extremely difficult information accurately. He gives the reader an excellent sense of what Tai Chi/Qi Gong is and how it works. He gives solid advice on evaluating a teacher and how to get started in a class. Many of the questions commonly asked by students are very clearly addressed and answered. And because of his methodical approach (and tons of pictures) this book is also perfect for people who have limited time or opportunity but might want to explore these practices on their own. The fact that he accomplished this with a good sense of humor is only icing on the cake. After years of reading the "traditional" texts, this book was a delightful breath of fresh air. He has achieved for Qi Gong what Apple did for the computer. He's brought it to the people. Anyone interested can now "get it" and have a good laugh too. Mr. Douglas' book is a great place to start for the beginner as well as an excellent place for "seasoned vets" to check in on simplicity. In fact, teachers may find this an excellent manual "on how to explain these concepts to the general public", and may also find that by referring students to the book as a primer, the students may be more likely to stick with their T'ai Chi classes, and be more relaxed and easier to teach. It is perfect for people who might have health problems and believe Martial Arts are only for the strong or the fit. Most importantly, it is an excellent way to help anyone develop a "Tai Chi" relationship with themselves and their world. R Poccia,Beyond Anonymous

Bill Douglas has written the best book I have seen to introduce the total novice to this wonderful art. Bill uses tradtional theories combined with modern models to clearly teach some rather complex and confusing concepts. As a Master Teacher, Tai Chi author and school owner, I think this book is a must have for all people interested in learning this art.

I bought this book out of curiousity initially, but the more I read it the more I realized "Hey, this might actually be good for me". Now, I am pretty deep into learning Tai Chi and I frequently just pick up this book and begin reading. It is easy to read and I seem to learn something new each time I read it. Yes, you can actually learn Tai Chi by using this book but most of all you get an appreciation of what Tai Chi is, what it can do for you, and why all those Chinese people do it every day. I went on to order the Video and I am really glad I did. It helps to see the speed (very slow) of the movements and it is easier to copy the author's movements on video rather than constantly refering to the book to see what to do next. I don't have the luxury of fixed hours in my job and this allows me to learn Tai Chi with out having to try to attend classes and it is really cheaper than going to classes also. Think of this book as TAI CHI instruction written in an informative and relaxed American style. Not a "dry" book at all and includes info on QiGong and other aspects of Tai Chi. Two thumbs up!

I am a new student of Tai Chi. I needed a place to go to find out the basics, and to get some cultural and historical background. I read the online reviews and have been more than satisfied with my choice in buying this book. Humorous, easy to read and understand, this book explained a lot. It was easy to follow and peaked my interest to study Tai Chi in greater depth. As a new student to this disapline (I've had 8 lessons), I can recommend this book to others new to Tai Chi with confidence.

I am a tai-chi teacher who has fibromyalgia,arthritis, and back trouble..I use tai-chi for my exercise program and to deal with stress and balance. To begin each class I use a sit down relaxation time where we focus on dan-tien breathing. At this time I open up Bill's book wherever it falls and we share the "tidbit for the day" from Bill's great collection of tai-chi sayings from "SAGE SIFU SAYS" or the neat information boxes on each page...my class enjoys this saying of the day and it adds to our knowledge of tai-chi...Bill Douglas works extremely hard to promote tai-chi and qi-gong all over the world. I am one of the lucky ones to learn Bill's tai-chi and preform it on the Nelson Atkin's Art Museum lawn with a 100 others at one time...Bill is a terrific guy who devotes his own life to helping others with tai-chi and his book is a valuable collection of good information that anyone interested in tai-chi can use...Thanks Bill. I now live in NC and am spreading Bill's tai-chi to this area. from Sharon Faucett, a fibromyalgia victim.

If you're just getting started in Tai Chi and/or Chi Kung, or thinking about starting, then this is a book you REALLY want! It's absolutely full of information on the basics of Tai Chi and Chi Kung: where they come from, what's involved in practicing them, what they can do for you. An excellent companion book for your class in Tai Chi or Chi Kung. BE WARNED, however: you WILL NOT learn either of these effectively just from a book! Find yourself a competent instructor if you're seriously wanting to learn.

As a new student of Tai Chi and QiGong, I have enjoyed reading this book. Since I only take class once a week, there were a lot of questions and gaps in my basis knowledge of Tai Chi and QiGong. This book is a wonderful supplement to my class and has exposed me to QiGong which is now a necessary part of my week. QiGong is a series of exercises which combine breathing and relaxation. I enjoy sitting on my outside porch and doing my QiGong exercises as the stresses of the week flow away. This was a bonus as I bought the book to learn about Tai Chi. If you want to learn about Tai Chi and QiGong, I would recommend this book because it is easy to understate and is fun to read. After reading this book I have recommended it to the other students in my Tai Chi class.

I have read two other books on Tai Chi; These were enjoyable to read but very difficult to follow. The plates and text presented in "The Complete Guide..." however are fantastic. There is a wealth of information contained in this book, but more importantly for me, an easily understood presentation on the 'how to' of Tai Chi and QiGong. I recommend this book for anyone who desires to learn how to take the dis-ease out of ones life. Entertaining and enlightening. I say thank you to its authors.