Customer Reviews

The Power of Internal Martial Arts: Combat Secrets of Ba Gua, Tai Chi, and Hsing-I

5 star:		(21)
4 star:		(10)
3 star:		(7)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(8)

 

 

It's interesting to note all the negative reviews here of this book, most of them anonymous or by "A reader," who probably wrote all of them since they all have the same style and tone. I also note that there's almost always someone from Taiwan or China or Japan who posts a negative review of any American martial arts book, I guess because they don't want to admit that there are good masters over here too who are perfectly qualified to write such a book.

Mr. Frantzis is also fluent in both Japanese and Chinese, and that opened doors for him and allowed him to communicate with various masters who didn't speak English (as many of the older instructors didn't).

If you're looking for specific techniques or applications, this book isn't for you, since the book isn't so much about specific combat techniques (despite the subtitle), as it is more of a high-level conceptual survey. If you're a knowledgeable martial artist with some previous background in the internal arts and/or kung fu and enjoy exploring the similarities and differences between the different internal styles and kung fu, and even the external styles, I think you'll enjoy this book. The descriptions of obscure arts such as the 8 Drunken Immortals was very interesting and reminded me of a similar drunken style that one of my kung fu teachers knew and that I studied briefly. But that's only one of a dozen or so different styles that Frantzis compares. The comparisons between the various internal and kung fu styles I found very accurate (based on my own 42 years of experience in various external and internal styles) and enjoyable to read.

There is so much material and detail here that it's hard to summarize, but the following will give you a pretty good idea of the book's contents:

1. Detailed descriptions of the three main internal boxing methods (Hsing I, Ba Gua, and Tai Chi), as well as many substyles.

2. In-depth comparisons and analyses of the different arts in regard to their methods of movement, principles and philosophies, use of force and energy, body mechanics, and some practical applications.

3. "Personal Odyssey" sections where Mr. Frantzis recounts many of his interesting encounters with famous martial arts masters. This feature recalls Robert W. Smith's Chinese Boxing: Masters and Methods, from a previous generation of martial arts books.

4. Several sections or chapters discussing special topics such as the use of speed and power in the different arts.

5. There are five appendices covering the different styles of tai chi (such as Yang, Chen, Wu, Tung, Hou, and Sun), a history of Ba Gua, energy anatomy of the human body, a summary of Mr. Frantzis's training and lineage, a chapter on Chinese terminology and transliteration, and an extensive glossary.

I also appreciated Frantzis's honesty and frankness. He admits that although a Tai Chi technique like rollback will enable a smaller, weaker person to overcome a larger, stronger opponent, that simply studying Tai Chi does not guarantee that capability, and that if one does develop such abilities, it will probably take 10 or more years to do that since that requires considerable skill.

Overall a very well written, enjoyable and detailed book analyzing and discussing the similarities and differences between dozens of internal and external arts.

Having been practicing Qigong for a while as well as having seen a video demo of Frantzis at a Qigong conference I don't find his claims to be too far "out there". Certainly, the video I saw had some rather amazing examples of Frantzis' power for energy transmission.

This book, as many have pointed out, is not a "how-to" book. But then again, anyone looking for a mechanics book of Qigong is either really naive or has missed the point entirely. Qigong (or whatever you want to call the internal arts) is about doing and you can't learn that without a master. This is not silly logic or math lessons but something that goes much deeper. Just as sitting and meditating like the Zen master you read about will likely give you a bad back and no "answers" to any koans if you don't do it with proper instruction, expecting to read Frantzis' book and start hitting people with some extra super-power is only going to lead to failure.

Frantzis has attempted, in my opinion, to do what many other masters have done: leave enough hints and enough stories of the potential others have realized to encourage interested readers to seek out their own master. You can't put this stuff into a book and he didn't try, but the stories sure are interesting. Frantzis had the amazing luck to meet and study with people like Morihei Ueshiba (founder of Akido)and the tales are worth the price of the book.

I enjoyed reading through this and have now loaned it to several friends who study martial arts; a couple have gone on to investigate internal arts. I think this is a good place for someone to start their own journey.

Sadly there are a lot of people who are misled but the subtitle that says: "Combat Secrets of Ba Gua, Tai Chi, and Hsing-I." And I see how it can be, I don't think this subtitle should have been used. Otherwise it's a very informative book.
People who posted negative reviews on this book do have points. The book does have structure issues. The book seems a bit chaotic when you read it. Another thing people mention is author's "self-praise." While I do find that there could have been less of it, I don't find it horrible or obstructing your reading flow.
This book is packed with information. Not much for practical knowledge, but there's a lot of info as far as theory goes. But what some don't understand I guess, is that it's an axiom. Even book on strictly technique can practically help you only so much. The book cannot develop your fast-twitch muscles, cannot give you sharp reflexes, techniques, or supply you with Chi (Ki, Hei). No matter how attractive the word "secrets" in title sounds, there's no secret or magical way to improve. What "secrets" means in this book is an explanation of energy work, the other way to view human body for martial applications and such. Also "secrets" in this book are the knowledge and wisdom of the great martial artists the author had privilege to train with. If you can see this knowledge and apply it to your training or not is up to you.
This is not a book about techniques of internal martial arts, but rather it helps you understand what are you learning: all the energy, technical or mechanical works behind internal martial arts. Kind of like explaining you how the plane works rather than teaching you to pilot it.
All in all it's a great book which is rather misunderstood (partly because of subtitle).

This can be a very good book, depending on what you're looking for. If you're looking for martial arts anecdotes for inspiration, this is a good book. If you're looking for stories about a dozen or so Chinese masters of various kung fu styles, this is a good book. If you're looking for one man's opinion about a dozen different martial arts systems, this is a good book. This is Kumar Frantzis' biography, essentially, wherein he recounts his most interesting experiences. It is difficult to validate some of the more esoteric, spiritual accountings, because this is not a technique book, not a secrets book, not a how-to book. While Frantzis is a very clear writer, some of the arrogance I hear about from several independent sources who have gone to his seminars seeps through. Especially the way he trounces on some martial arts styles that "lack" this or that. All in all, a good read. But it's more a story than anything else. If that's what you want, it's entertaining and you can choose to believe or not...

I just finished reading this book and it really indulges a keen interest in the internal arts.

The author's extensive martial arts style started of with karate and progressed to years of training in all of the major internal arts and a lot of external \ internal kung fu styles and his extensive knowledge of this very complex subject matter is very impressive.

To put it in a nutshell if you're looking at studying an internal art this gives you a good reference as to which one might suit you best. It's dry at times and sometimes too personalised but no doubt a very good book to get things underway.

Big ups to author ... his second book ... Opening the energy gates of you body is next on my list ...

I fullheartedly agree with a previous reviewer. This is essentially an autobiography. It's an easy and pleasant reading and it's a good book to have in a martial arts biblioteque. It tells about many martial arts that are not well known. Other than that, it does not deliver much knowledge and the title "Combat Secrets of Ba Gua, Tai Chi, and Hsing-I" is a sort of overstatement, in my opinion.

Many other reviewers have stated their disappointment with the lack of "step by step" instructions and "how-to" diagrams. However, I really found it fascinating! My whole goal in reading this book was to learn more about some of the principles and theories underlying the internal martial arts. I certainly gained a number of insights into how the various philosophies of taiji, xingyi, and bagua influence the ways that practitioners of these arts handle incoming forces. I could see a real improvement in my taiji and bagua training by keeping these viewpoints in mind as I practiced, and have since re-read many parts of this book and continue to learn from it. This book does not give specific examples of techniques, takedowns, pressure points, or diagrams of applications, and you will be disappointed if this is what you expect. However, if you wish to read a good overview of the general principles of these arts, and are interested in hearing about some of the masters of the internal styles, I would definitely recommend this book!

This book is a thorough discussion of the energy skills in the Chinese Internal Arts. For the serious student of Taijiquan (Tai Chi Chuan), the in-depth chapter on the Eight Energies in Taiji is a must-read. Also of interest are the author's experiences in training with a number of masters, including Morihei Ueshiba (founder of Aikido), Cheng Man-ch'ing (who briefly introduced the author to Taiji), Yang Shou-zhong (eldest grandson of the Yang style creator, Yang Lu-chan), and Liu Hung Chieh (the Taoist sage who was the author's primary teacher).

Although logic suggests it is not possible for an individual to know so much about the internal martial arts, after reading this book and then having the opportunity to briefly train with him in person, I am a believer. I state "believer" in the sense that I have full confidence as a result of interacting with Mr. Frantzis in person that he did, can do, and is everything he represents in this book. What is lost on the average reader of Mr. Frantzis' books is that he is not only a superb martial artist but an incredibly intelligent and driven human-being. I have heard that he passed up an opportunity to atttend Harvard to study in the Orient. Evidence of his intellect is obvious in his writing style and the fact that he speaks Japanese AND Chinese fluently. His drive was demonstrated by his pattern of working feverously at instructing Westerners in America in order to acquire enough money to study martial arts for several year spans in Asia. At some level it would seem Bruce is a workaholic, with attention for detail, demonstrated in his youth by daily martial practices of 6-8 hours, and a contemporary similar obsession of energy that he pours into his books. I challenge any non-believer to attend one of his weekly classes open to the public in Fairfax, California, and spar with him verbally or physically...or as he calls it: "play."

I first bought this book for wont of something to read on a long flight across the ocean, almost seven years ago, as I remember. Over the years, I returned to ponder over the information it contained as my taiji training progressed. The book was quite enjoyable, indeed. Unfortunately, I am also a professional historian in the field of History of Compared Religions and, when I recall some of the information Frantzis provides, I cannot help but to wonder wether he just made it up. Some of the dates on his "tales of martial arts masters" are all wrong (for example, how could he have trained with an "80 plus" years old Wang Shu Jin, when this teacher died at 75 is still a puzzle to me). Some of the information concerning daoist meditation practices lack consistency to the scholar's eye. In general, mr Frantzis seems to know a bit too much: he has done everything and trained with almost everyone worth noticing - but then he doesn't quote reknowned experts such as R.W. Smith (!?).
The book is a very good puzzle, where all pieces fit in perfectly - that is, until the reader starts to wonder as to the quality of the contents. And it is a bit too much on the advertising side of the fence. It makes for a good reading if you're looking for entertaiment and if you don't mind the ads thrown in here and there.