Books in my library (Kevin Else)
The picture below shows books which I feel contributed to my understanding of the martial arts… especially Tai Chi Chuan.
New book on Tai Chi by Master Li and Kevin Else
Exciting news! After years of work, Master Li and Kevin Else have finished translating a 1978 Chinese textbook on the fundamentals of Tai Chi Chuan (see the cover photo below). On February 1, 2025, the launch/publication date, the book will be available on Amazon.com as an eBook (Kindle version), paperback, or hardcover. Until then, you
Standard Manuals for Taijiquan
The two books shown below contain the standards for forms created by the Chinese authorities. The first book by Li Deyin contains instructions for: The book is available on Amazon: CLICK HERE The second book translated by Xie Shoude contains instructions for four (4) competition forms for the following styles of Taijiquan: Unfortunately, I understand
Push Hands Class – Absorbing
In our push hands class last week we discussed how to absorb someone’s attack. This video on youtube (https://youtu.be/mCUtJ6x82cg?si=8OBElL4eBb3e7dZS) shows a teacher describing what we discussed. Check it out. Kevin
Master Zhang demonstrates Sun Style push hands.
Here is an example of Master Zhang Xin Ming (student of Sun Lutang’s daughter Sun Jianyu) performing push hands with his student. Click on this link to see the video on Youtube.
Kevin’s Library of Internal Martial Arts
I’ve been asked to recommend a few books to study Tai Ji and the Chinese Internal Healing Arts. Here is a selection of books from my library. In addition, one should familiarize oneself with the Ten Essentials of Yang Style Tai Ji as set out by Yang Chengfu. The list is provided below and was
Chen Style 56 Demonstration
The link below will take you to a video of Master Ding Jia performing the Chen Style 56 Movement Competition Form. Master Ding Jia had just won the all China national championship for Chen Style Tai Chi when this was recorded. One interesting note is that the room in which this video was taken was
The Thirteen Postures of Tai Chi Chuan
All Tai Chi Chuan practitioners should be knowledgeable of the thirteen postures or movements of the system. All Tai Chi movements are composed of these postures or movements. An excellent book for researching this Tai Chi “technology” is “The Essence and Applications of Taijiquan” by Yang Chengfu (translated by Louis Swain), an excellent online discussion