Never have I read a more detailed description of Yang style tai chi chuan movements than Louis Swarm’s translation of Fu Zhongwen’s book on the art, Mastering Yang Style Taijiquan
Over the course of about 140 pages and 85 postures, Zhongwen details the specific actions he says are the correct way to do the form. Things like:
- How to sink your elbows
- Knowing when to “fill” one leg and “empty” another
- How to rotate your hands and arms
As if his step-by-step, turn-by-turn, movement-by-movement description wasn’t enough, he also describes the important points of each posture. This is where I found the meat of the book to be – things to think about when performing the move instead of the callout of the move itself.
I prefer to learn something through doing it and not reading about it. I also tend to read at night, tucked into bed, so I’m hardly ever up actually doing the moves as written in the book. That would be hard, too, unless I had somebody reading it for me.
Overall, if you’re interested in fine-turning your Yang-style tai chi chuan or learning more tidbits about the art, get this book. If you’re starting tai chi chuan for the first time, I’d suggest finding a competent instructor. Though, you might have better luck than I did getting through the technical descriptions.
Unlike many of the books I receive, this was a gift from my karate teacher. Thanks, Mr. Hawkey.
