How to Move Towards Tai Chi Mastery: 7 Practical Steps to Improve Your Tai Chi Forms and Access Your Internal Power (The 7 Steps Towards Mastery Series)

By Gaynel Hamilton, Colin Hamilton, Colin Hamilton

At every level, Tai Chi (Taiji) can be an enjoyable form of exercise with considerable benefits to health and wellbeing. For many practitioners, however, the main objective is to copy and, eventually, remember the movements of a sequence or form. While this is a stage that all newcomers to the art must pass through, it is possible to get 'stuck' at this point and continue to practice the form simply as a relaxing series of postures, without ever realising that there are further depths of experience waiting to be discovered and enjoyed.Moving with the controlled power and fluid grace of a panther, a Tai Chi master embodies qualities that are difficult to describe, including a kind of springy resilience and whole body connectedness that flows like a great river, with vast reservoirs of energy that can be withheld or released at will.In this book, the authors invite you not to take their word for it but to experience the seemingly mysterious qualities of this 'internal' martial art for yourself. By reflecting on a series of powerful metaphors and working through a host of simple, practical exercises, any one of which may provide a spark to ignite a quantum leap in your progress, it is possible to tap into your own internal power, transform 'doing' into 'feeling' and take your Tai Chi forms to a higher level. While the authors recognise and respect that many practitioners will wish to focus exclusively on developing their forms, they have included a very brief introduction to partner work and the concept of 'jin' or 'jing' as a means of enriching forms practice through a proper understanding of the concepts upon which the forms are based. For those requiring a more thorough exploration of the martial aspects of Tai Chi Chuan (Taijiquan), as offered in a further volume in this series, this current work provides a secure foundation.This book is not suitable for beginners and it is not a substitute for training with a teacher. It does not provide instructions of how to perform a specific sequence from any particular style but deals with principles common to all of them. Sometimes controversial, yet always down to earth, this practical guide is designed to inspire you to penetrate the mysteries of Tai Chi and move forward on your journey towards mastery, whatever style you practice.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 1980688923
• ISBN13: 9781980688921
• Release Date: April 2018
• Publisher: Independently published
• Length: 109 Pages
• Weight: 0.49 lbs.
• Dimensions: 9.0" x 0.3" x 6.0"