Taijiquan: Through the Western Gate
by Rick Barrett
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Book Summary Information
Author: Rick BarrettEdition: Paperback
Audio: English (Original Language); English (Unknown); English (Published)
Published: 2006-01-26
ISBN: 1583941398
Number of pages: 280
Publisher: Blue Snake Books
Book Reviews of Taijiquan: Through the Western Gate
Book Review: One of the best of its kind
Summary: 5 Stars
I've read a lot of books about tai chi and other martial arts in my quest for more information. Usually, I am looking to be entertained, perhaps inspired and at best pick up a few valuable tips to ponder and perhaps put into practice.
Therefore, it is a truly extraordinary book that completely changes one's viewpoint. This is such a book.
Right off the bat, Mr. Barrett tackles some of the most subtle and important concepts in the internal martial arts pantheon, the substantial and the insubstantial, the paradoxes of such arts, and the nature of qi, among many others.
Along the way, he introduces ideas and terms to lucidly describe his method of thinking and instruction.
The concept of being relaxed, centered, focused (mentally and energetically), aware and present, is summed up in a particularly apt phrase, "energetic coherence," which should certainly begin to make its way into tai chi classes and other martial arts dojo in the English speaking world.
The ideas of "tensegrity," (being strong by the unison of tensioned and compressed ligaments, tissues, etc.) and the "living matrix" (inter-communication of the body/mind in networks other than the neural pathways) are also candidates for popularization, I think.
Throughout the ages, brilliant minds have had to come up with new words, or at least popularize obscure terms, to better express what our ordinary language can only hint at. Mr. Barrett makes his own very fine effort at this with these three very useful terms, deep and pregnant with meaning.
But this book in not merely a theoretical examination. It is a very practical book, filled with exercises and examples that one can put to use in his own practice.
For anyone who practices tai chi or any other martial art, I highly recommend this book. It is one of the best of it's kind.
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