T'ai Chi: The "Supreme Ultimate" Exercise for Health, Sport, and Self-Defense

by Cheng Man-ch'ing, Robert W. Smith

Master the Chinese martial art of T'ai Chi with this accessible, illustrated guide.

T'ai-chi (Tai Chi) is an effortless and rhythmical art that stresses slow breathing, balanced and relaxed postures, and absolute calmness of mind. It requires no special equipment or place to practice and takes no more than ten minutes a day.

This book, from renowned Tai Chi master, Cheng Man-Ch'ing, introduces T'ai-chi as a means to a healthier life, as a sport and as a method of self-defense. It is a complete step-by-step manual for the beginner. With conscientious practice, readers will master the sequence of thirty-seven postures that will make up the T'ai-chi solo exercise. Students will learn how to progress from exercise to sport to self-defense with maximum efficiency. The instructions are clear and easy to follow, and more than 275 photographs and 122 foot-weighting diagrams guarantee an understanding of the correct form.

A history of T'ai-chi, including thumbnail sketches of famous masters, and the first English translation of the basic T'ai-chi document, known as the T'ai-chi Ch'uan Classics, are also included.

Genres: Nonfiction, Martial Arts, Health

128 pages, Paperback

First published February 1, 1967

Reviews

[Philip · Rating 4 out of 5]

First started doing t'ai chi in Taiwan back in the late 70's, but as life got complicated — career, marriage, fatherhood, etc. — I had less and less time, (and it frankly just got harder to get to the park at 6am!).

However, the past few months — and particularly since the arrival of COVID-19 — I've tried to get back into it, and this classic book on Cheng Man-ch'ing's Yang style has been a great help. Anyone who's ever studied martial arts knows how easy it is to forget complicated forms unless they're regularly practiced, and I hadn't gone through the whole set in nearly two decades. But thanks to this book — and extensive use of YouTube — I've been able to recreate the entire sequence. Now all I need is repetition, repetition, repetition until it once again becomes muscle memory — at which point I can start focusing more on breathing, proper technique, and the ever-elusive "chi."

Meanwhile...while Cheng is rightfully famous in t'ai chi circles, Robert W. Smith is also an interesting character. He originally went to Taiwan with the CIA in 1959 (and so probably worked under my buddy, Ray Cline), where he immersed himself in the "inner" martial arts of t'ai chi, bagua and xingyi, writing a number of books and remaining active as a teacher and practitioner until his death in 2011.

You can see one of the few videos of Cheng doing the full 37-step form here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iL8SF...

[William Chase · Rating 4 out of 5]

Cheng Man-Ching

Got a lot out of the photographed postures and accompanying foot placement and weight diagrams. Would have been nice to have directional arrows. The knowledge and mastery of the Cheng shines through, though the translation is a bit spotty.

[Kieron Niven · Rating 5 out of 5]

An excellent book on the Yang short form. While the bulk of the text is devoted to documenting Cheng's short form (albeit in a slightly confusing mirror-image format) the short sections before and after the form section will be of value to both the newcomer and experienced taiji practitioner.

[Dori Ban · Rating 5 out of 5]

Good book to read through to perfect your daily practice.

[Grady Ormsby · Rating 4 out of 5]

I have been a student of the Yang style of T'ai Chi Ch'uan for several years. I am still very much a beginner. I bought T'ai Chi: The "Supreme Ultimate" Exercise for Health, Sport, and Self-Defense by Cheng Man-ch'ing and Robert Smith when I first began to play T'ai Chi. I tried to use the book to help me learn the solo form, but I found it to be confusing. I set the book aside and focused on practicing the movements as I learned them in a weekly class. After becoming familiar with the 37 postures, I recently returned to the book and have found it to be very helpful. Because I have a basic understanding of the postures, the descriptions of the movements make much more sense and have helped me to refine the subtleties of the form. The dozens of photographs are especially helpful. The negatives have been reversed so that one sees a mirror image and does not have to stop and translate left is right and right is left. I recommend the book to any one interested in T'ai Chi but I would not think one should try to learn the form from the book. I would be best to find a competent teacher and use the book as a reference and reinforcement. By the way, Cheng Man-ch'ing was the teacher of my teacher's teacher.

[Elaine · Rating 3 out of 5]

I love T'ai-Chi, and I bought this book because of its being written by the master, Cheng Man-Ch'ing. I found th4e photos confusing even though I am most used to this form taught by Cheng. As a refresher, it helped a little bit, but I could not rely on it alone. The subject matter, however, will always fascinate me.

[Irene B. · Rating 4 out of 5]

Nice compact book. Photos of the moves with extremely detailed written descriptions. Each move is shown in mirror-image with the feet (and pressure) below. Fold out pages showing the whole sequence of moves. A useful book for reference.

[Elaine · Rating 3 out of 5]

I love T'ai-Chi, and I bought this book because of its being authored by the master, Cheng Man-ch'ing. I found the photos of the form to be a little confusing, and I read it only because I am a student of Cheng's form. I read it as a review, but I am not sure how a novice would understand it.

[Chris Biggs · Rating 4 out of 5]

Excellent sport

This is an excellent reference and supplement. Suggest that a teacher is a requirement to teach feel. Just watching or reading may not be sufficient to master this ancient sport.

[Echo]

I think all the reviews are from my T'ai Chi classmates. Re-read, practice, practice