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The Tao of Tai Chi Chuan by Jou [the
best broad overview of tai chi, available in a white hardcover
under the title above, or in a more recent trade paperback titled
The Dao of Taijiquan]...Acupressure's Potent Points by Gach [the
best introduction to acupoints]...Healing With Pressure Point
Therapy: Simple, Effective Techniques for Massaging Away More
than 100 Common Ailments by Jack Forem & Steve Simer, Prentice
Hall, 1999 [extremely good]... Chinese Acupuncture &
Moxibustion by Xinnon Cheng [a huge reference work published in China, sometimes found in half price bookstores, with great illustrations] Note: This is one of several large, expensive, medical-type books in English for the serious acupuncture student. Other titles include: Acupuncture: A Comprehensive Text by the Shanghai College of Traditional Medicine [has great material on new and miscellaneous points], and An Outline of Chinese Acupuncture by the Academy of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Peking, 1975. Also in this category is The Seiren Pictorial Atlas of Acupuncture by Yu-Lin Lian, originally published in Germany and extremely helpful in terms of finding the points. Worth every penny... The Tai Chi Book by Robert Chuckrow... Mantak Chia has published a series of very strange books on qigong and taoism. Titles include:
Awaken Healing Energy Through the Tao, Bone Marrow Nei Kung, Chi
Self-Massage, Iron Shirt Chi Kung, and Taoist Secrets of Love.
[I don't know how legit or safe the material is. All I know is it's interesting and weird]...
Self Defense for Today: Escape Is the Best Form of Self Defense by Paul Crompton, Paul Crompton Ltd., 1990. [This is very unusual self defense-it's about running away using tai chi principles! Note that Compton, who is English, has published a number of other worthwhile books, including The Elements of Tai Chi, Tai Chi, Tai Chi Combat, and Tai Chi for Two: Push Hands]... Healing With Pressure Point Therapy: Simple, Effective Techniques for Massaging Away More than 100 Common Ailments by Jack Forem & Steve Shimer, Prentice Hall, 1999. [extremely good]... Acupressure's Potent Points by Gach, who also wrote Acu-Yoga... Chinese Massage and Acupressure by Dr. Kuan Hin, Bergh, NY, 1991 [worthwhile]... Energetic Tai Chi Chuan by Larry Johnson, White Elephant Monastery, San Francisco, 1989. [advanced stuff]... The Tao of Tai Chi Chuan by Jou
[the best broad overview of tai chi, available in a white hardcover under the title above, or in a more recent trade paperback titled The Dao of Taijiquan]... The Web That Has No Weaver by Kaptchuk [overview work on Chinese medicine for Westerners]... Acupressure Techniques by Julian Kenyon [good]... Chinese Fragrance Xiang Gong Qi Gong by Ted Knecht, Eastern Sun Publishing, Cleveland, 1994. [hard to find]... Meridian Qigong by Ding Li [advanced]... Chinese Fitness: A Mind/Body Approach by Qingshan Liu, YMAA Publication Center, 1997. [Wedgwood branch of the Fort Worth library has a copy]... Gateway to the Miraculous and There are No Secrets by Wolfe Lowenthal are two marvelous books based on the teaching of Cheng Man-Ching. Highly recommended... Cultivating the Ch'i: The Secrets of Energy and Vitality, Chen Kung Series, Volume One (Third Edition) by Stuart A. Olson, Dragon Door Publications, St. Paul, 1993. [has material on what we call tai chi qigong]... A Bouncer's Guide to Barroom Brawling: Dealing with the Sucker Puncher, Streetfighter, and Ambusher by Payton Quinn, Paladin Press, Boulder, 1990. [An eye-opener]... How to Grasp the Bird's Tail If You Don't Speak Chinese: A Light Hearted Look at Meaning in Taiji by Jane Schorre, Arts of China Seminars, 1997 (great fun).
The Complete Illustrated Guide to Chinese Medicine by Tom Williams, Barnes & Noble, 1996. Coffee table size, lavishly illustrated, very well written and organized, a good starter kit... The two books illustrating our sword form are Taiji Sword and Other Writings by Chen Weiming and Tai Chi Thirteen Sword by Stuart A. Olson. Note: A couple of other books out there are about another tai chi sword form... Steal My Art (a bio of T.T. Liang) also by Olson and extremely entertaining... Chinese Tonic Herbs by Ron Teaguarden. Also recommended by the same author: Radiant Health: The Ancient Wisdom of the Chinese Tonic Herbs, Warner Books, 1998... A Natural Guide to Weight Loss That Lasts by Nan Lu, Quill, 2000. The author has two other books in his Traditional Chinese Medicine series: one on surviving breast cancer and the other on the Chinese method of dealing with menopause. Go to
amazon.com and search for his name to find the titles... The Five-Element Wellness Plan: A Chinese System for Perfect Health by Barbara Temelie, Sterling, 2002. Has much material I haven't found elsewhere... A Woman's Qigong Guide by Yanling Lee Johnson, YMAA, 2001. Very good stuff especially for women... The only worthwhile magazine out there is Tai Chi magazine. The cover always has the words T'AI CHI in big colorful letters across the top and a photo of a master doing a move out of a form, usually wearing a t'ai chi uniform. It's published bi-monthly by Wayfarer Press and is available on the newstands at Barnes & Noble and Border's. The website for the mag is
www.tai-chi.com. I have a subscription and it's well worth it. In the back of each issue is the best source for books, videos, and tapes...
Miracles of Natural Healing by Luke Chan [who studied under Master Tu and Master Ho] is a fascinating account of a special hospital in China that uses Chi-Lei qigong with "hopeless cases," and includes the qigong they use. There's a tape available also... The Wisdom of Tai Chi: Ancient Secrets to Health and Harmony by Peter Fenton, Publications International, 1998 has really good stuff on the philosophy... The Healing Art of Tai Chi by Martin Lee, Sterling Publishing, 1996. This is the "feel the earth" linear particle physics guy... Understanding the I Ching
by Cyrille Javary, Shambhala, 1997, is a rationalist and quite
fascinating approach to this ancient mystery... Qi: The
Treasure and Power of Your Body by Yanling L. Johnson. Has
remarkable material on qigong. I found my copy at Lang Son
Traders in Arlington... The Tao of Healthy Eating by Bob
Flaws. A very different approach on what to eat and why.
Note: Flaws has also produced a boxed set of six audio tapes
titled Chinese Secrets of Health & Longevity which I found at
Half Price Books. Very good... Henry C. Lu has written a
number of books on food cures, e.g., Chinese System of Foods for
Health and Healing. All are very technical, very good, and
mostly available from amazon.com... Gach, probably the best guy on
points, has a new one out: Acupressure for Emotional
Healing, Bantam 2004... |