The Taijiquan Classics: An Annotated Translation

This is a book I will reread over and over. It aids in understanding Tai Chi and provides insight into its many aspects.

Still reading the book, and will comment further when finished.

I have read all of the classics in this collection in other books but the history and annotations in this book have taken my understanding to another level. I would have liked to see a glossary of the numerous Chinese words used as it is awkward to have to keep looking back to find where they are defined. At first I thought the history was too long and boring but as I got into the interpretation of the main text the history was very helpful. This is a "must have" for all serious tai chi students.

While reading the book I noticed way too much of the author's take about TCC in what I would have liked to be a presentation source material.And, I have large misgivings about this take, 2 examples follow.Using such generics as 'energy' to correspond to specifics such as chi or jin is not acceptable.Not differentiating between physical structures such as the yao and the chi organ ming men is another blunder.I'll finish reading it, in time, I hope, but the original joy of reading a new book is gone for me.David L.

About fifteen centuries ago Bodhidharma, the Buddhist monk who initiated the synthesis of Buddhism and Daoism we now call Zen, also initiated the alternative to martial art we began calling Tai Ji Quan about fifteen decades ago. Much of what Davis says indicates that, but her occidental epistemology and random pedantic attention to particular terms and names and places and dates distracts from it, making gleaning it from her commentary exasperating. Yet her indicating Chinese words helps, and her translation is relatively literal, making this book useful. Except that she translates a word referring to any human as though it means “opponent.” That’s fundamentally discordant with Tai Ji Quan.

I'm a new Tai Chi Chuan student. I just started a little over a month ago. This book is a great aid to learning Tai Chi. The opening of the book is a rather lengthy history of the classics, the origin of Tai Chi Chuan, and an explanation of the translating process and what to expect from the different sections as well as some clarification on the ambiguities inherent in translating chinese and some historical context. The beginning is honestly a bit of a dry read, but I wouldn't recommend skipping it as it offers a rather in depth view of the history of the art. Then it moves onto the translated classics without annotations, which are beautiful pieces of art. Many of them are poetic, although the rhymes have naturally been lost in translation. I do rather like the translations that the author uses. I can't compare it to many other translations, but for instance in one part it describes how at all times each foot and hand should be yin while the other is yang. In this translation the author chose to call it "empty and full", and the way it read brought me to an understanding that improved my Tai Chi practice significantly and quickly. Another book I read shortly after, "The Complete Book of Tai Chi Chuan" (also an excellent book) used the terms "apparent" and "solid", which I did not strike me as "right" and I felt that it wouldn't have affected my practice as profoundly had those terms been used instead. After the translated classics it goes into the same but with annotations, which add a lot of depth and context to each line. I would recommend reading without the annotation before the annotation so you can try to interpret it and think about it yourself first.Overall, I feel this translation was well researched and went above and beyond what it needed to do. I would recommend it highly to anyone interested in Tai Chi.

I think that this book is a must-read for anyone who loves taijiquan, or who is intrigued with China. It's a wonderful exploration of the T'ai Chi Ch'uan Classics. It has a wealth of detail and new discoveries about taiji history. Chen Weiming's comments to the Taijiquan Classics are incredibly valuable and the additional notes of the author gave me a whole new perspective. Barbara Davis, the author and translator, has done a great job of making this information accessible and an enjoyable read. The serious reader will want to dig into the plentiful footnotes and references, as well as the original text in Chinese in the back. I wish I'd had this book when I started studying twenty years ago!

This is a great translation of a important foundational works of Taijiquan. Barbara does a great job of ensuring complete understanding of the underlying concepts.

This is a book suitable for all taiji practitioners. It covers the classice beautifully and in a manner which explains and clarifies them very well. I discusses the problems that translating and dating the classics hold and also breaks down the classics with notes from Chen Wei Ming and Barbara Davis. A very insightful book that helped my understanding of both the classics and the practice. Fully recommended.

For taiji players its all about the classics. Problem is that there is so much myth and counter myth surrounding the art. The introductory chapters look at this and examine why the texts from different styles are so similar and so different. Trying to find the reasoning behind some of the decisions that were made. Looking at the history and where the name 'taijiquan' came from. Incredibly interesting, and it is going to make me want to get more books to delve deeper for myself. (Need a bigger bookcase!)The book then gives the classics on their own before finally examining them with commentaries by Chen Wei Ming with explanatory notes from Barbara Davis. There is also a copy of the classics in chinese at the end.I am glad to have this in my 'library'. It has deepened my research into the more scholarly side to taiji, looking at the texts and the history. I would advise having both this book and "The Essence of T'ai Chi Ch'uan: The Literary Tradition" to really get a grip on the classics.

This book is a very helpful resource for the taijiquan classics with a very well written and documented introduction that puts the Chinese martial arts into a cultural context Westerners can understand and appreciate. I refer to it regularly and it was much appreciated as a gift.

Für alle Taiji-Enthusiasten, die auch mal was auf Englisch lesenist dieses Buch - zusammen mit den Büchern von DOUGLAS WILE - die wichtigste Darstellung historischer Zusammenhänge, was das Taijiquan betrifft. Wer DAVIS und WILE nicht gelesen hat, kann eigentlich nicht wirklich kompetent mitreden.

Entregue a tempo. Livro mto rico em ensinamentos!