Lost T'ai-chi Classics from the Late Ch'ing Dynasty - Paperback

by Douglas Wile (Author)

Analysis of rich new material allows Wile to make a fresh survey of longstanding issues: the origins of T'ai-chi; the authorship of the classics; the differences between Wu, Yang, and Li; and the roles of such figures as Chang San-feng, Wang Tsung-yueh, Chiang Fa, and the formerly missing link, Ch'ang Nai-chou.

Back Jacket

Douglas Wiles translates and analyzes four collections of recently released nineteenth-century manuscripts on T'ai-chi ch'uan. These writings of Wu's older brothers Ch'eng-ch'ing and Ju-ch'ing, and his nephew Li I-yu, together with the transmissions of Yang Pan-hou, represent a significant addition to the seminal literature. The rich new texts allow us to make a fresh survey of longstanding issues in T'ai-chi history: the origins of the art; the authorship of the 'classics'; the differences between We, Yang, and Li; and the roles of Chang San-feng. Wang Tsung-yueh, Chiang Fa, and the formerly missing link, Ch'ang Nai-chou. The original Chinese texts of the four new sets of classics have been appended for the convenience of Chinese readers and scholars.

Author Biography

Douglas Wile is Associate Professor at Brooklyn College. He is the author of The Art of the Bedchamber: The Chinese Sexual Yoga Classics, Including Women's Solo Meditation Texts, also published by SUNY Press.