Warriors of Stillness Vol. I: Meditative Traditions in the Chinese Martial Arts (Warriors of Stillness-Meditative Traditions in the Chinese Martial Arts) [Paperback]

Jan Diepersloot (Author)

Book Description

Series: Warriors of Stillness-Meditative Traditions in the Chinese Martial Arts | Publication Date: March 1, 1997

An examination of the mental and physical aspects of Chinese martial arts.

Editorial Reviews

About the Author

Jan Diepersloot has studied martial arts for nearly 25 years and is the author of The Tao of Yiquan. He is the founder of the Contra Costa Center for Healing and the Arts, where he teaches. He lives in Walnut Creek, California.

Product Details

• Paperback: 280 pages
• Publisher: Qi Works (March 1, 1997)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0964997606
• ISBN-13: 978-0964997608
• Product Dimensions: 9.9 x 7 x 0.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.3 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.9 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (9 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #717,448 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

40 of 41 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars The One Becomes Many, June 14, 2001

By 

Erich A. Ball (Khartoum) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Warriors of Stillness Vol. I: Meditative Traditions in the Chinese Martial Arts (Warriors of Stillness-Meditative Traditions in the Chinese Martial Arts) (Paperback)

Mr. Diepersloot has written a book which has immediate impact on the training of anyone applying it. A potentially esoteric discussion of the Wuji meditation principles is nicely leavened with historical anecdotes, theory and very practical suggestions. An instructor is certainly necessary for achieving depth in this art but I found that I was able to immediately incorporate his description of how to find the Wuji point, developing that to the central pole through the body, into my Taiji practise and gain marked improvements. His explanations of the Taiji sphere and cylinder, while similar to descriptions in other publications, were nicely placed within the text to enhance understanding.

A central tenet of his book is that insufficient attention is paid to the Wuji point. He makes the point that in Taiji theory, the Wuji is the starting point, the one, from which all else, the many, springs. Student reflection on this agrees with him, as the starting position in the Taiji form is the simple standing posture, with both hands by the side. Mr. Diepersloot posits that insufficient attention is paid to this idea and argues his case well, based on the ideas of his master in this art.

My understanding of what I was trying to do with Quiet Standing Meditation stepped up a notch on the first day I trained with these ideas in mind. I also gained far greater awareness of internal body mechanics and, I believe, immediately improved both my balance and my control of my central point. These were reflected in improvements in my form.

All of this from the application of one profoundly simple mental exercise and a little theory. More advanced exercises are also included but I have a lot of work to do before then. Mr. Diepersloot has provided what I believe to be a fundamental text on internal martial arts, one which I recommend to any neigung exponent. I will use it for years to come.

34 of 36 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars 120 Over 74, November 26, 2002

By A Customer

This review is from: Warriors of Stillness Vol. I: Meditative Traditions in the Chinese Martial Arts (Warriors of Stillness-Meditative Traditions in the Chinese Martial Arts) (Paperback)

At the age of thirty-one I was told I had borderline high blood pressure of 140/90. I was also told this was not a good omen, to be thirty-one with that b.p. I tried yoga, meditation, eating fruits and vegetables, supplements like Carnitine and Co-Q10. Bupkus. A friend who studies tai chi told me about this book. I've done some tai chi and was open to reading the material which, though not tai chi, concerns exercises for cultivating and regulating internal energy. Particularly since tai chi is supposed to lower blood pressure, it made sense to check it out. After two months of doing no other form of exercise but the standing exercise in this book--but doing it daily for up to thirty minutes at a time--my blood pressure dropped to 120/74. My stress test rated the medical equivalent of an A+. That was four years ago. When I stop exercising from laziness, the b.p. creeps up. When I go back to the book, it goes down and stays down, my energy goes up and stays up. The cardiologist said "I don't know what you're doing but keep doing it." In short, I strongly recommend this book.

21 of 22 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Some good tips in here..., June 4, 2002

By 

Yuri Kuzyk (Toronto, Ontario Canada) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Warriors of Stillness Vol. I: Meditative Traditions in the Chinese Martial Arts (Warriors of Stillness-Meditative Traditions in the Chinese Martial Arts) (Paperback)

Dipersloot has been practicing various forms of the 'soft' martial arts for quite a long time. This volume covers his discovery of the importance of Qigong standing meditation from three masters. He then discusses some finer points of Taiqi's 'Grasp Bird Tail' which is the only moving form now practiced by the senior master he trained under.

Dipersloot has quite a lot of good tips for standing meditation which is great since too many authors seem to imply there is nothing to it. It is true that, like sitting, you just need to stand _but_ it does help to have some pointers. That is, if you start standing meditation then eventually your body will find the correct Qi position but this could take a long long time for many.

His points about the correct posture and breathing from the Dantien are communicated quite clearly. So are the guidelines from Master Cai about the energy points and general alignment. There is a great section, taken from one of Master Cai's discussions, that very succinctly covers the important aspects of meditation in general and standing meditation in particular.

The real weakness here are the very crude computer-modified "photos". Diepersloot apologizes at the beginning about the quality of the photos (he was busy writing down everything the masters said) but that is not an excuse for what is used in the book. Spending some extra time with some volunteers to get quality photos would help the give the book the image of quality it requires; they would also help make some points much more clearly.

A good reference for anyone with some questions about standing meditation. Should go up on the shelf with Mantak Chia, "Qigong Empowerment" and "The Roots of Qigong". better yet, find out when WISH is holding a class near you and go meet a real master for proper instruction.