T'Ai-Chi Ch'Uan and I Ching

by Da Liu

tai chi and i ching

Paperback

First published January 1, 1974

Reviews

[Grady Ormsby · Rating 4 out of 5]

Oh, no, Grady, not another T’ai Chi book! T’ai Chi Ch’uan and I Ching: A Choreography of Body and Mind by Da Liu begins with a typical historical overview of T’ai Chi, an explanation of the basic principles and a tutorial of the Yang school form with photographs. This T’ai Chi book differs from others in that the author discusses the evolution of T’ai Chi from the concepts of yin-yang, Taoism and the I Ching (The Book of Changes). He describes how each T’ai Chi movement is related to a particular hexagram from the I Ching. The movements and the hexagrams are described in terms of the circulation of psychic energy (chi) in the body of the player. There is a section in the book that focuses on push hands and self-defense. Finally Liu discusses some of the classics from T’ai Chi Chuan literature. Excerpts from three of the most important are presented with commentary that is philosophical as well as practical. Besides the connections to the I Ching hexagrams Da Lui also explores tai chi’s relationship with nature, (earth, sky, water, clouds, mountains, stars, fish, the sea, the moon,) animals, (sparrow, monkey, white crane, fish, horse, snake, dragon, golden cock, tiger, dragonfly) and trees (root, trunk, branches, leaves, flowers and fruit).
As with other T’ai Chi books I’ve read, this one also confirms my belief that one cannot learn T’ai chi from a book. Find yourself a class or group and learn about the music and poetry of meditative movement.