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The Wu-Tang Manual
The first book, the definitive book from HIP-HOP'S ORIGINAL DYNASTY
Since the release of the revolutionary Enter the Wu-Tang (36 Chambers), the Wu-Tang Clan has been hip-hop's leading creative force. Over the course of four seminal group albums and a multitude of ambitious side projects, they have constantly redefined the outer edge of what hip-hop can do and where hip-hop can go. Now, after a decade of dark beats and mysterious lyrics hinting at a larger whole, the legendary Staten Island hip-hop collective fully reveals, for the first time, the complex, multi-layered Wu-Tang Universe.
Spearheaded by the RZA, the "Abbot" of the Clan, The Wu-Tang Manual unravels the intricate web of personalities (and alter egos), warrior codes, numerological systems, and Eastern spiritual ethics that define the Wu-Tang dynasty. Here you'll find the key to Shaolin, to the Nine Rings and to the 36 Chambers, to the eight-point sun and to the rest of the enduring mysteries of Wu-Tang. The Wu-Tang Manual also contains the first official and comprehensive lyrical encyclopedia of the Wu-Tang, complete with musical, technical, and anecdotal analysis and annotation by the Clan.
For the hardcore Wu-Tang disciple and the recent initiate alike, The Wu-Tang Manual is the definitive guide to the essence of Wu.
243 pages, Paperback
First published October 1, 2004
98 people are currently reading
2450 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 97 reviews
August 23, 2016
There's no reason for any home to be without a copy.
October 6, 2009
Raw I'm gonna give it to you, with no trivia
like cocaine straight from Bolivia
My hip-hop will rock and shock the nation
like the Emancipation Proclamation
Weak MC's approach with slang that's dead
you might as well run into the wall and bang your head
I'm pushin' force, my force your doubtin'
I'm makin' devils cower to the Caucus Mountains
like cocaine straight from Bolivia
My hip-hop will rock and shock the nation
like the Emancipation Proclamation
Weak MC's approach with slang that's dead
you might as well run into the wall and bang your head
I'm pushin' force, my force your doubtin'
I'm makin' devils cower to the Caucus Mountains
July 21, 2025
Written in a style that is at once personal and philosophical, The Wu-Tang Manual unravels the intricate web of personalities (and alter egos), warrior codes, numerological systems, and Eastern spiritual ethics that define the Wu-Tang dynasty. Packed with information that reflects the breadth and depth of the RZA’s — and rest of the Clan’s — intellectual interests and passions, The Wu-Tang Manual is divided into four books of nine chambers each, for a total of 36 chambers. All together, the book provides the breakdown of essential Wu-Tang components, from basic information about each of the nine core members of Wu-Tang Clan to deeper explorations of the key themes of the Wu-Tang universe, a dictionary-like Wu-Slang lexicon, and an entire section of Wu-Tang lyrics with densely annotated explanations of what they mean
May 9, 2009
The story of the RZA's 'five year plan' for Wu Tang taking over hip hop in the 1990's is incredible, and it is always a pleasure to read about someone's love of Chess. The numerology and religious shit, however, is embarrassing.
Warning: this book does not make the Bobby Digital records more listenable.
Warning: this book does not make the Bobby Digital records more listenable.
May 26, 2012
The Wu-Tang Manualis a must have guide for any Wu-Tang Clan fan. Written by Wu-Tang’s mastermind, the lyrically sharp and raw, the RZA, the manual dives into the philosophy and ideals behind the group that redefined Hip-Hop. The manual is divided into 4 books, each containing 9 chambers, totally up to 36 chambers. Each book breaks down the essence behind the clan, from martial arts, their Islamic influence, chess, comic books, and more. With great pictures and diagrams, the manual is informative without losing substance and the wit behind the RZA’s words.
The manual breaks down the history and story behind each of the clan’s nine members. The legendary status of the crew is easy to see as each member is an essential component, adding a unique facet to the Wu-Tang. Perhaps the most interesting part of the manual is how the upbringing of the RZA alone, contrasted the way the youth is brought up today. Coming up in Staten Island, the RZA found great influence from Islam. On the streets, he would be raised with the outlines and belief of Islam. For instance, at any point on the street, an older figure may stop him and quiz him on his understanding of Islam, where he would have to provide a perfectly memorized answer to Islam’s teachings. The RZA’s name also has strong meaning. The “z” in his name comes from the Islam alphabet meaning, “Zig-Zag-Zig,” which means wisdom, knowledge, and understanding because the letter comes at the end of the alphabet, symbolizing the final step of consciousness. The “r” and “a” in his name stands for “Ruler” and “Allah.” The name of the RZA alone is a small example of how deep the philosophy of the clan goes.
The manual continues into stories and other background of how the clan developed its deep philosophy. Their famous track, “Da Mystery of Chessboxin’”, reflects the influence of chess on the clan’s attitudes towards life. They believed that one had to always think ahead of their “opponent” and be ready, cautious, and alert when facing opposing forces. The clan also has a phrase that is strongly attached to their name which reflects this ideal, “Protect ya neck.” This phrase sums up how one should act: keeping one’s head down low with their eyes, ears, and mind open and sharp, respecting and reexamining one’s vulnerability and that of other people, understanding that one is not as great tough as one may think, and asking, “Is this conflict worth the risk of death/significant damage, or is there a better, safer, and more human way to solve this problem?” Once again, the contrast between the youth in poverty areas in New York in the clan’s times and the culture of the majority of American youth today is greatly seen. In order to survive, you really had to protect your neck.
The manual dives into other areas of the clan’s influence such as comic books, talking about Marvel stories like “The Silver Surfer,” and how the characters gave strength and power to the clan members when they were young. The RZA also talks about how, as a kid, he strongly read Greek stories like the Iliad and the Odyssey where he learned great morals. The manual speaks of other spheres and themes in their belief and music, such as Buddhism, Christianity, martial arts, capitalism, chemistry, and crime. These “chambers” of the book was especially enjoyable to read since it really shows how multi-layered their music was. Ending this set of chambers with a glossary of vocabulary/slang, it made an opening to the next book which analyzed the lyrics of several of the clan’s famous songs like, “Bring Da Ruckus,” “Triumph,” and “C.R.E.A.M.” Heavily annotated with references and meanings, the songs appear like Shakespearean poetry, layered in multiple dimensions.
After decades, the RZA finally provides the world with a glimpse behind the mysterious lyrics and dark beats of the clan. The Wu-Tang Manual should be something that a true admirer of the clan’s genius should carry when listening to their eloquent and raw words. The book provides deep insight into what the clan has been all about the past three decades. This is something that anybody, fan or not, can pick up and learn from. The RZA follows this manual with an autobiography, The Tao of the Wu, which should also be picked up. The genius of the RZA may even win a Pulitzer for the first ever Hip-Hop figurehead
The manual breaks down the history and story behind each of the clan’s nine members. The legendary status of the crew is easy to see as each member is an essential component, adding a unique facet to the Wu-Tang. Perhaps the most interesting part of the manual is how the upbringing of the RZA alone, contrasted the way the youth is brought up today. Coming up in Staten Island, the RZA found great influence from Islam. On the streets, he would be raised with the outlines and belief of Islam. For instance, at any point on the street, an older figure may stop him and quiz him on his understanding of Islam, where he would have to provide a perfectly memorized answer to Islam’s teachings. The RZA’s name also has strong meaning. The “z” in his name comes from the Islam alphabet meaning, “Zig-Zag-Zig,” which means wisdom, knowledge, and understanding because the letter comes at the end of the alphabet, symbolizing the final step of consciousness. The “r” and “a” in his name stands for “Ruler” and “Allah.” The name of the RZA alone is a small example of how deep the philosophy of the clan goes.
The manual continues into stories and other background of how the clan developed its deep philosophy. Their famous track, “Da Mystery of Chessboxin’”, reflects the influence of chess on the clan’s attitudes towards life. They believed that one had to always think ahead of their “opponent” and be ready, cautious, and alert when facing opposing forces. The clan also has a phrase that is strongly attached to their name which reflects this ideal, “Protect ya neck.” This phrase sums up how one should act: keeping one’s head down low with their eyes, ears, and mind open and sharp, respecting and reexamining one’s vulnerability and that of other people, understanding that one is not as great tough as one may think, and asking, “Is this conflict worth the risk of death/significant damage, or is there a better, safer, and more human way to solve this problem?” Once again, the contrast between the youth in poverty areas in New York in the clan’s times and the culture of the majority of American youth today is greatly seen. In order to survive, you really had to protect your neck.
The manual dives into other areas of the clan’s influence such as comic books, talking about Marvel stories like “The Silver Surfer,” and how the characters gave strength and power to the clan members when they were young. The RZA also talks about how, as a kid, he strongly read Greek stories like the Iliad and the Odyssey where he learned great morals. The manual speaks of other spheres and themes in their belief and music, such as Buddhism, Christianity, martial arts, capitalism, chemistry, and crime. These “chambers” of the book was especially enjoyable to read since it really shows how multi-layered their music was. Ending this set of chambers with a glossary of vocabulary/slang, it made an opening to the next book which analyzed the lyrics of several of the clan’s famous songs like, “Bring Da Ruckus,” “Triumph,” and “C.R.E.A.M.” Heavily annotated with references and meanings, the songs appear like Shakespearean poetry, layered in multiple dimensions.
After decades, the RZA finally provides the world with a glimpse behind the mysterious lyrics and dark beats of the clan. The Wu-Tang Manual should be something that a true admirer of the clan’s genius should carry when listening to their eloquent and raw words. The book provides deep insight into what the clan has been all about the past three decades. This is something that anybody, fan or not, can pick up and learn from. The RZA follows this manual with an autobiography, The Tao of the Wu, which should also be picked up. The genius of the RZA may even win a Pulitzer for the first ever Hip-Hop figurehead
Read
January 8, 2024Could only manage to 80%.
March 2, 2015
I saw an interview that The Rza had done with John Stewart and I figured I'd read this book. Learning the behind-the-scenes Wu-Tang trivia was cool. I feel like I can appreciate their music more that I know where they all came from and the business side of things. The Rza is basically a mastermind that had their rise to fame completely calculated when he was gathering the group together. What I didn't like was all the misogyny that was happening. There were a few times were I literally had to stop reading and put the book down because I was a bit pissed at what he was talking about and how women were being degraded.
October 30, 2024
Great book on the Wu-Tang Clan written from the perspective of RZA. Gives you a good history of how the group was formed and the philosophy behind the shaolin. Section on a few songs with meaning behind the lyrics. Easy read and recommend to any Wu-Tang fan.
“So finally, I just thought of the name as letters, not a word. R Z A. It stands for Ruler-Knowledge-Wisdom-and Understanding-Allah.”
“GZA – Cousin of RZA and ODB, founding member of the Wu-Tang Clan.”
“A main thing I remember about Meth from back in the day: This motherfucker smoked some weed. That is why I named him Method Man and Method, or Methical – the slang we had for weed-because I had never seen anybody smoke as much weed as this nigga.”
“You have the thirty-six chambers, there is none members of the Wu-Tang Clan. Each member of Wu0Tang has four chambers of the heart. And what is none times four? Thirty-0six. There are thirty-six fatal points on the body, and that times ten degrees of separation between each point equals 360 degrees. Therefore, the Wu-Tang Clan is a perfect circle, a cipher.”
“The Tao means, basically, the Way. It refers to the flow of life, the way nature expresses itself. Taoism teaches you to unite your actions with the flow of the universe. You want to be spontaneous and free from outside influence like social institutions.”
“So in our case, it breaks down like this: From the Thirty-Six Chamber you get discipline and struggle. From Shaolin and Wu-Tang, you get the virtuosity, the invincible style and technique – plus, the idea that sometimes the bad guys are the ilest. And from Eight Diagrams Pole Fighter, you get the brotherhood and sole.”
“I realized that shaolin was the foundation of Wu-Tang. Shaolin is your mind and Wu-Tang is your body.”
“After we recorded Protect Ya Neck and it started blowing up, I know that we had to form one big crew officially. There were eight of us at this point, everyone except for Masta Killa. Although
everyone agreed to join up, most didn’t want to sign contracts. So I told them about my vision.”
“In 1997, after the release of Wu-Tang Forever, niggas split up from being the single unit we had been. This makes sense. The number 9-7 is a very important, pivotal one in Mathematics.”
“So I decided, fuck this, I am going to become a superhero for real. Bobby Digital is the character I came up with for myself, my alter ego.”
“Chess is a very important element of Wu-Tang. It is an important element of life. It teaches you how to exist in the world. It teaches you to think multiple moves ahead, to strategize. It teaches you how to attack, how to defend.”
“I think week has been involved is at least 85 percent of all our music. I didn’t know it at the time, but cocaine influenced a lot of the best rapping in 36 chambers. Maybe you can hear it? One of the most hectic times in the Wu-Tang history was when motherfuckers was getting stained. You know they rap the line, we getting stained with the hardware. Stained – that is taking angle dust.”
“C.R.E.A.M. – In one verse Deck takes you through the whole cycle of street life: from scrambling on the street, to hustling, to trying to teach the youth a better way and them not hearing you – and showing how there is no answer. Decks impressions her are some of the most vivid and real you will ever hear.”
“Over time, though, I got to know which MC would shine of what kind of track. Method and Dirty, they could ride the best like a cowboy on a wild bull. Whereas U-God, he loved his music to be marching like omm-pah. Ghost, he is real emotional, so a lot of Ghost beasts have a cord change or two in them. They are not a one-bar thing, there are a two- or four-bar phrase-they develop inside the beat, like a little story. And they are more soul-orientated, like in a Stax-Volt kind of vein. Rae, he was a slang master and all he had to have was those drums. If he has a hot pair of drums, he is going to rip it. But it is funny with Rae. Because he also has the best voice to go over R&B. Inspectah Deck – he is my first bullet in the chamber. If I am about to attack, I am sending Inspectah Deck in first. Because you are not going to get past his wit, lyrics, approach, style and aggression. Deck is the unsung hero of the Clan in that any beat you put on, he can attack and rip it up. Method Man and ODB are the most melodic MCs. ODB, you can’t tell where his rapping stops and his signing begins. And Method Man to me is the father of the Nelly-style rapping-singing street thing.”
“I wanted the voices to pull you in as a listener. But I was also producing for MCs, so first and fore I wanted you to feel our aggression and the texture of the lyrics. If you take a piece like Chessboxin, its spare and basic. In a way, its nothing but rapping. All you can do is jump and go crazy to it. Other producers may have thought about club hits, radio, selling records. The only thing I thought about was MCs sounding aggressive. Forget about the dancing or partying. All you can do is either rap that shit, or fight to it.”
“One classic example of straight out the box devastation is Deck’s first verse in Triumph. After I heard that, I didn’t even want to get on that song.”
“I have been asked a lot what the wildest gig we ever did was and that’s too hard for me to say. But one strong contender is a New Year’s show at the Culture Club. That, or the Beacon Theater – the one Ghost describes in a rap. That show was Wu-Tang and Biggie Smalls, the first show we did together. Ghost and Rae had a problem with a Source coming out with Biggie on the cover being called “King of New York.” They thought they were kings of New York. Luckily, they never got a chance to cross paths at night. But I still say it doesn’t get any wilder than the Culture Club. Wild for everybody there – the show, the club, the artists, the fans. Fights breaking out in the middle of the club, guns drawn, two feet away from you see one nigga pointing a gun at another nigga, then getting crashed with a chair. And this is all before we even hit the stage. I remember one kid was disrespecting one of us and I think this was one of my nights. I think I was the one that was amped up that night about this kid showing no kind of respect. Then even after the fight was over, niggas tore the whole place up out of spite. Broke all the windows, busted the whole bar down. Then we went to the stage and rocked the mic. We went through the crowd – split the crowd like Moses splitting the Red Sea. Ripped it. Then this nigga pulls out onstage, and starts shotting onstage – and by “this Nigga”, I mean ODB. ODB pulled out a gun and started firing, hitting the ceiling. Then we jumped into the crowd and broke out. That was a show.”
“The crucial turning point for Wu-Tang was in the making of the album Wu-Tang Forever. It was 1997 – 97 being a very serious number in Mathematics – and the term limit of my five-year plan was up. I was open to converting Wu-Tang from the dictatorship it had been to a democracy. What we get was a double album and, around that time, a lot of chaos. After that, it didn’t go back to being a dictatorship, but I slowly tried to resume more control. It wasn’t a dictatorship exactly, but some different kind of monarchy. When it was time to do The W and Iron Flag. I took a lot more control. It was subtle at first, but I think all the Wu-Tang members were with it. It was more balanced: it wasn’t a total dictatorship, it wasn’t a total democracy.”
“As they teach in Mathematics, all men should seek the twelve jewels of life; Knowledge, wisdom, understanding, freedom, justice, equality, food, clothing, shelter, love, peace, and happiness.”
“So finally, I just thought of the name as letters, not a word. R Z A. It stands for Ruler-Knowledge-Wisdom-and Understanding-Allah.”
“GZA – Cousin of RZA and ODB, founding member of the Wu-Tang Clan.”
“A main thing I remember about Meth from back in the day: This motherfucker smoked some weed. That is why I named him Method Man and Method, or Methical – the slang we had for weed-because I had never seen anybody smoke as much weed as this nigga.”
“You have the thirty-six chambers, there is none members of the Wu-Tang Clan. Each member of Wu0Tang has four chambers of the heart. And what is none times four? Thirty-0six. There are thirty-six fatal points on the body, and that times ten degrees of separation between each point equals 360 degrees. Therefore, the Wu-Tang Clan is a perfect circle, a cipher.”
“The Tao means, basically, the Way. It refers to the flow of life, the way nature expresses itself. Taoism teaches you to unite your actions with the flow of the universe. You want to be spontaneous and free from outside influence like social institutions.”
“So in our case, it breaks down like this: From the Thirty-Six Chamber you get discipline and struggle. From Shaolin and Wu-Tang, you get the virtuosity, the invincible style and technique – plus, the idea that sometimes the bad guys are the ilest. And from Eight Diagrams Pole Fighter, you get the brotherhood and sole.”
“I realized that shaolin was the foundation of Wu-Tang. Shaolin is your mind and Wu-Tang is your body.”
“After we recorded Protect Ya Neck and it started blowing up, I know that we had to form one big crew officially. There were eight of us at this point, everyone except for Masta Killa. Although
everyone agreed to join up, most didn’t want to sign contracts. So I told them about my vision.”
“In 1997, after the release of Wu-Tang Forever, niggas split up from being the single unit we had been. This makes sense. The number 9-7 is a very important, pivotal one in Mathematics.”
“So I decided, fuck this, I am going to become a superhero for real. Bobby Digital is the character I came up with for myself, my alter ego.”
“Chess is a very important element of Wu-Tang. It is an important element of life. It teaches you how to exist in the world. It teaches you to think multiple moves ahead, to strategize. It teaches you how to attack, how to defend.”
“I think week has been involved is at least 85 percent of all our music. I didn’t know it at the time, but cocaine influenced a lot of the best rapping in 36 chambers. Maybe you can hear it? One of the most hectic times in the Wu-Tang history was when motherfuckers was getting stained. You know they rap the line, we getting stained with the hardware. Stained – that is taking angle dust.”
“C.R.E.A.M. – In one verse Deck takes you through the whole cycle of street life: from scrambling on the street, to hustling, to trying to teach the youth a better way and them not hearing you – and showing how there is no answer. Decks impressions her are some of the most vivid and real you will ever hear.”
“Over time, though, I got to know which MC would shine of what kind of track. Method and Dirty, they could ride the best like a cowboy on a wild bull. Whereas U-God, he loved his music to be marching like omm-pah. Ghost, he is real emotional, so a lot of Ghost beasts have a cord change or two in them. They are not a one-bar thing, there are a two- or four-bar phrase-they develop inside the beat, like a little story. And they are more soul-orientated, like in a Stax-Volt kind of vein. Rae, he was a slang master and all he had to have was those drums. If he has a hot pair of drums, he is going to rip it. But it is funny with Rae. Because he also has the best voice to go over R&B. Inspectah Deck – he is my first bullet in the chamber. If I am about to attack, I am sending Inspectah Deck in first. Because you are not going to get past his wit, lyrics, approach, style and aggression. Deck is the unsung hero of the Clan in that any beat you put on, he can attack and rip it up. Method Man and ODB are the most melodic MCs. ODB, you can’t tell where his rapping stops and his signing begins. And Method Man to me is the father of the Nelly-style rapping-singing street thing.”
“I wanted the voices to pull you in as a listener. But I was also producing for MCs, so first and fore I wanted you to feel our aggression and the texture of the lyrics. If you take a piece like Chessboxin, its spare and basic. In a way, its nothing but rapping. All you can do is jump and go crazy to it. Other producers may have thought about club hits, radio, selling records. The only thing I thought about was MCs sounding aggressive. Forget about the dancing or partying. All you can do is either rap that shit, or fight to it.”
“One classic example of straight out the box devastation is Deck’s first verse in Triumph. After I heard that, I didn’t even want to get on that song.”
“I have been asked a lot what the wildest gig we ever did was and that’s too hard for me to say. But one strong contender is a New Year’s show at the Culture Club. That, or the Beacon Theater – the one Ghost describes in a rap. That show was Wu-Tang and Biggie Smalls, the first show we did together. Ghost and Rae had a problem with a Source coming out with Biggie on the cover being called “King of New York.” They thought they were kings of New York. Luckily, they never got a chance to cross paths at night. But I still say it doesn’t get any wilder than the Culture Club. Wild for everybody there – the show, the club, the artists, the fans. Fights breaking out in the middle of the club, guns drawn, two feet away from you see one nigga pointing a gun at another nigga, then getting crashed with a chair. And this is all before we even hit the stage. I remember one kid was disrespecting one of us and I think this was one of my nights. I think I was the one that was amped up that night about this kid showing no kind of respect. Then even after the fight was over, niggas tore the whole place up out of spite. Broke all the windows, busted the whole bar down. Then we went to the stage and rocked the mic. We went through the crowd – split the crowd like Moses splitting the Red Sea. Ripped it. Then this nigga pulls out onstage, and starts shotting onstage – and by “this Nigga”, I mean ODB. ODB pulled out a gun and started firing, hitting the ceiling. Then we jumped into the crowd and broke out. That was a show.”
“The crucial turning point for Wu-Tang was in the making of the album Wu-Tang Forever. It was 1997 – 97 being a very serious number in Mathematics – and the term limit of my five-year plan was up. I was open to converting Wu-Tang from the dictatorship it had been to a democracy. What we get was a double album and, around that time, a lot of chaos. After that, it didn’t go back to being a dictatorship, but I slowly tried to resume more control. It wasn’t a dictatorship exactly, but some different kind of monarchy. When it was time to do The W and Iron Flag. I took a lot more control. It was subtle at first, but I think all the Wu-Tang members were with it. It was more balanced: it wasn’t a total dictatorship, it wasn’t a total democracy.”
“As they teach in Mathematics, all men should seek the twelve jewels of life; Knowledge, wisdom, understanding, freedom, justice, equality, food, clothing, shelter, love, peace, and happiness.”
June 29, 2012
Insightful & mega-Illuminating. Read it in about 10 hours. & I'm a slow reader. Didn't even use a bookmark. It is rare for me to tear thru a book like this. It is not really that textually dense & the chapters are short w/ lots of sidebar info. But it is super-detalied & clarifies/expands on a lot of what you hear in the albums and the overall Wu-Tang ethos.
I thought the production chapters were insightfully detailed & Great and to be honest i wish there was a book solely about Wu-Tang production. the RZA really seemed to like Ensoniq gear in the 90's at a time when obviously most people were using Akai & Emu samplers. & obviously there is that sound that he crafted & mastered. it would have been nice to hear from some of the other Wu-Tang producers and the overall beat-digging.
Can't wait to read "the Tao of Wu." Shame there are not more hip-hop related books like this.
I thought the production chapters were insightfully detailed & Great and to be honest i wish there was a book solely about Wu-Tang production. the RZA really seemed to like Ensoniq gear in the 90's at a time when obviously most people were using Akai & Emu samplers. & obviously there is that sound that he crafted & mastered. it would have been nice to hear from some of the other Wu-Tang producers and the overall beat-digging.
Can't wait to read "the Tao of Wu." Shame there are not more hip-hop related books like this.
April 7, 2009
The whole package (text, images, content, photos, comics, organization) of the Wu-Tang Manual is designed to present The RZA's world view. This reminds me of my architectural training where I was taught that in good architecture everything down to the smallest detail relates to the project as a whole.
The Wu-Tang spirituality is a combination of Islam, Kung Fu, Christian, and street spirituality. It has drawn from both pop culture and New York culture to create a spirituality that is uniquely formulated for its context.
It a fun and interesting book that portrays a the kind of world view that as my prof said, "rarely gets to print".
The Wu-Tang spirituality is a combination of Islam, Kung Fu, Christian, and street spirituality. It has drawn from both pop culture and New York culture to create a spirituality that is uniquely formulated for its context.
It a fun and interesting book that portrays a the kind of world view that as my prof said, "rarely gets to print".
September 11, 2020
The Tao of Wu is better.
September 23, 2020
Just had to give this a five-star review as it occupied my entire Christmas day as a teenager. The Wu-Tang Manual was the second present I opened and I was blown away at my mum's observational skills. She hated rap music but had to wisdom to find this absolute beauty of a book. At the time, I was completely unaware of its existence. This gift was better than anything Santa ever gave me. I was already a keen lover of the Tang and my buddies used to compare me to Inspectah Deck. I refused to open any other presents that Christmas and didn't get involved in family conversations. I simply read this book and felt like I knew the Rza personally by boxing day. My review is somewhat biased, albeit this book is well written.
September 3, 2018
Such an awesome book - being first generation and money always being tight around the house with two working parents, it was really cool to see how RZA was able to bring the clan together and how they all learned from each other. This book is not only about their music, but about the EXPERIENCES: people, places, things, philosophies, religions that make the Wu-Tang Clan what they are. A must read for any Wu-Tang fans.
Side note: I set out to read more books by minorities and learn more about my culture. This book pointed me to so many resources in terms of Chinese/Chinese-American books and directors. So that was a major and unexpected pleasant surprise! :)
Side note: I set out to read more books by minorities and learn more about my culture. This book pointed me to so many resources in terms of Chinese/Chinese-American books and directors. So that was a major and unexpected pleasant surprise! :)
August 6, 2021
Very good read from one of hip hop's most creative brilliant minds and hilarious at some points too. It's been a min since I last read it but there was one part that really stood out. Throughout the book RZA would list verses from various Wu songs with explanations afterwards. There was one song in particular where he explained all the verses of members but when it got to Ghost's verse, there was no explanation afterwards and that was the one I wanted an explanation most of, lol. I was like why even list the verse? Smh
January 28, 2022
I needed to hear about Wu-Tang history from the source after seeing the TV show. This book didn't really focus a lot on the group's history as much as it decodes their style.
There are a few really great chapters that discuss sampling gears and keyboards, and another that dissects songs line by line including Protect Ya Neck and Triumph.
Other parts of the book focus on things like divine mathematics and inspirational chemistry (THC to PCP).
Recommended for anyone wanting to sink deeper in the Wu-Universe.
There are a few really great chapters that discuss sampling gears and keyboards, and another that dissects songs line by line including Protect Ya Neck and Triumph.
Other parts of the book focus on things like divine mathematics and inspirational chemistry (THC to PCP).
Recommended for anyone wanting to sink deeper in the Wu-Universe.
September 5, 2024
Learn the ways of one of the most influential groups in music history straight from The Abbot of Shaolin himself. The Wu Tang Manual is thought provoking, inspiring, funny, lyrical, and mathematical. Known by many names, the RZA walks you through just as many topics, ranging from a Wu Tang Style Guide (pant start at size 38 and only go up) to numerology and spirituality, to close readings of Wu Tang lyrics. So if you already know or just copping the myth - this book'll explain how the Wu Tang Clan ain't nothin to f**k wit. -Phil
June 19, 2020
I had wanted to read this book for years but I had never had a chance to buy it. When U-God published his biography in 2018 I read it and I decided that I had to read RZA's book as well. Even though, the book was enjoyable and it consists a lot of information for every Wu-Tang fan, it was not as good as I had expected.
July 9, 2018
A nice, light mix of a lot of cool things together: comic books, hip hop, kung fu, Islam, Eastern philosophies, music production, film production, New York and more. Of course there is some ego there too and ridiculous Numerology but I was never bored!
November 4, 2017
One of the coolest books I ever read in my life
RZA is a genius, so wise
Great writing voice
RZA is a genius, so wise
Great writing voice
November 3, 2018
I just love Wu-Tang. Any fan should own a copy of this book. Nuff said!
June 7, 2019
Some great insight from RZA about the beginnings of the group and on art and life in general.
November 10, 2021
Before you do the wisdom, do the knowledge.
July 11, 2022
GHOSTFACE KILLAAAAAAAAAHHHHH no one could get illaaaahhh
November 10, 2024
Amazing Read for all Hip Hop Fans out there!
Read
October 24, 2025While I'd recommend the more succinct Tao of Wu over this Manual to begin with, there still a lot to discover and enjoy in here. Particularly for Wu Tang fans.
November 12, 2023
christmas is coming DREW
November 2, 2010
The RZA, hip-hop super group The Wu-Tang Clan's founding member and charismatic frontman, has clearly written "The Wu-Tang Manual" for the legions of ever-loyal fans, but anyone not readily familiar with Wu-Tang's music will still find much to enjoy here. The RZA is a music industry mogul, brilliant, obsessive tech geek, and wildly successful entrepreneur, but the one thing that comes across more clearly than anything about him is his gleeful, almost childlike enthusiasm in discussing his many hobbies and interests. Indeed, chapters are practically divided into categories according to them - there are respective chapters on comic books, martial arts, chemistry, cinema, chess, organized crime, music technology, and more. Though at first glance this would be seem to be irrelevant given the book's focus, any Wu-Tang fan can tell you that every single one of The RZA's hobbies and interests has been heavily represented in their music and has factored into many aspects of its creation and level of popularity.
Loving detail is given to each of these, covering the topics in general at each chapter's outset, then delving into them on a deeper level as relevant to their music. Of particular interest, also, are the many margin comments offering commentary on behalf of the other Wu members. U-God steps in to talk about chemistry and the relations between popular drugs and music, for instance, while The GZA, naturally, offers his opinions on witty lyricism, as well as chess and the mental acuity one can gain from playing regularly. Raekwon the Chef is given his own mini-chapter entirely, covering the Wu-Tang slang lexicon and giving personal anecdotes and annotations for many of the more commonly-heard words and idioms. Beyond this, though, there's just such a wealth of seemingly random information packed into these pages, from the margins to the accompanying artwork and diagrams, that it would simply be too much to cover in this short review.
To give prospective readers an idea of what they'll find beyond simply the music and its members, though, I'll list the following, taken from a quick, random flip-thru of the book: Taosim, Buddhism, Confucianism, Jim Jarmusch, John Woo & Quentin Tarantino, a comprehensive list of kung-fu styles and their identifying techniques, numerology, the 36 stratagems from Chinese classic "Secret Art of War," proper clothing line guidelines, a comprehensive list of comic book supervillains, the spiritual mathematics of chess, Carlo Gambino, a filmography of all Wu members' cinematic appearances, Epicurus, the chemical makeup and effects of MDMA, and so on.
So, obviously, fans of the Wu-Tang are going to be satisfied with this. The RZA has given an in-depth account of the group's inception and formative years, as well as a comprehensive look at how each group member functions within the unit and what it is that they uniquely contribute. Beyond that, music fans in general and burgeoning/aspiring solo musicians will have plenty to sink their teeth into, as well - The RZA covers in exhaustive detail the synths, sampling kits, and miking techniques used behind the scenes in making the group's music, as well as touching upon film scoring and the music industry from a business and entrepreneurial standpoint. And beyond that, still, anyone not interested in either the group itself or the inner workings of the music industry will come away with a smorgasbord of information and meticulous detail that can serve to spark up inspiration for any number of creative ideas and projects, as well as pointing him or her in a dozen new directions for new subjects to explore, from ancient history to classic kung fu flicks to Silver Age Marvel comic books.
As a writer, one can expect to glean quite a bit from this tome. Not only is The RZA's informal writer's voice clearly defined and perfectly suited to both the fluidity of the organic process of music creation and the sporadic nature of the rapid-fire topic changes, but he's also clearly well-versed in a large number of seemingly unrelated miscellany - something that every writer can stand to emulate. Reading this book not only as a long-time fan, but as a writer, too, I found myself madly scribbling names and concepts into my notepad for later reference and research. This book has been the wellspring for a great number of new creative avenues to explore and areas of passion to further develop. As such, it comes with the highest recommendation not only for the fans, but for any wider readership, as well.
Loving detail is given to each of these, covering the topics in general at each chapter's outset, then delving into them on a deeper level as relevant to their music. Of particular interest, also, are the many margin comments offering commentary on behalf of the other Wu members. U-God steps in to talk about chemistry and the relations between popular drugs and music, for instance, while The GZA, naturally, offers his opinions on witty lyricism, as well as chess and the mental acuity one can gain from playing regularly. Raekwon the Chef is given his own mini-chapter entirely, covering the Wu-Tang slang lexicon and giving personal anecdotes and annotations for many of the more commonly-heard words and idioms. Beyond this, though, there's just such a wealth of seemingly random information packed into these pages, from the margins to the accompanying artwork and diagrams, that it would simply be too much to cover in this short review.
To give prospective readers an idea of what they'll find beyond simply the music and its members, though, I'll list the following, taken from a quick, random flip-thru of the book: Taosim, Buddhism, Confucianism, Jim Jarmusch, John Woo & Quentin Tarantino, a comprehensive list of kung-fu styles and their identifying techniques, numerology, the 36 stratagems from Chinese classic "Secret Art of War," proper clothing line guidelines, a comprehensive list of comic book supervillains, the spiritual mathematics of chess, Carlo Gambino, a filmography of all Wu members' cinematic appearances, Epicurus, the chemical makeup and effects of MDMA, and so on.
So, obviously, fans of the Wu-Tang are going to be satisfied with this. The RZA has given an in-depth account of the group's inception and formative years, as well as a comprehensive look at how each group member functions within the unit and what it is that they uniquely contribute. Beyond that, music fans in general and burgeoning/aspiring solo musicians will have plenty to sink their teeth into, as well - The RZA covers in exhaustive detail the synths, sampling kits, and miking techniques used behind the scenes in making the group's music, as well as touching upon film scoring and the music industry from a business and entrepreneurial standpoint. And beyond that, still, anyone not interested in either the group itself or the inner workings of the music industry will come away with a smorgasbord of information and meticulous detail that can serve to spark up inspiration for any number of creative ideas and projects, as well as pointing him or her in a dozen new directions for new subjects to explore, from ancient history to classic kung fu flicks to Silver Age Marvel comic books.
As a writer, one can expect to glean quite a bit from this tome. Not only is The RZA's informal writer's voice clearly defined and perfectly suited to both the fluidity of the organic process of music creation and the sporadic nature of the rapid-fire topic changes, but he's also clearly well-versed in a large number of seemingly unrelated miscellany - something that every writer can stand to emulate. Reading this book not only as a long-time fan, but as a writer, too, I found myself madly scribbling names and concepts into my notepad for later reference and research. This book has been the wellspring for a great number of new creative avenues to explore and areas of passion to further develop. As such, it comes with the highest recommendation not only for the fans, but for any wider readership, as well.
May 15, 2021
Ову књигу нисам довршио, али с обзиром да је написана као водич, те се само прва два дијела односе на идеологију групе, сматрам да сам је прочитао. (Трећи дио су објашњења текстова, а четврти је опис техинке коју су користили за стварање.)
С обзиром да ово пишем годину и више дана од стварног датума завршетка, могу само укратко да се присјетим свог утиска. Сјећам се да сам се у вријеме читања доста пронашао у књизи, у тој некој идеологији којом се РЗА водио. Кључна ријеч која се прожима кроз читаво дјело је баланс, а ја такође тренутно сматрам да је баланс поента живота. Свакако бих требао поново прочитати ово дјело, као и другу Рзину књигу, "Tao of Wu".
С обзиром да ово пишем годину и више дана од стварног датума завршетка, могу само укратко да се присјетим свог утиска. Сјећам се да сам се у вријеме читања доста пронашао у књизи, у тој некој идеологији којом се РЗА водио. Кључна ријеч која се прожима кроз читаво дјело је баланс, а ја такође тренутно сматрам да је баланс поента живота. Свакако бих требао поново прочитати ово дјело, као и другу Рзину књигу, "Tao of Wu".
August 2, 2017
Finally finished The Wu-Tang Manual, after putting it down for a few years. Pretty awesome read to get into RZA's mind a bit, and see how Wu-Tang came together. There is a definite respect between all the players. It's pretty wild how such amazing artists all got together as a family and took over the rap world. This book makes me know I was right to have my second ever tattoo be a W.
December 27, 2011
A surprisingly interesting read, and the organization was perfect. The first two "books" basically introduce the people, lifestyle and concepts that they were into around the time that they created their first two albums.
And then they get into the lyrics (book three)! RZA breaks down the more complicated raps and gives you background on what was the intention behind the words... I was and still am AMAZED how most of their lyrics have double, even triple meaning behind them, and they're all still so fresh (they've aged well!). Some of them are local, New York references, some of them are a play on the Supreme Mathematics and Alphabet.
One of my favorites in the whole book is a section called "GZA on The Weapons of Metaphor". Dude mentions one of his raps where he said that he had a "pyroclastic flow" (I'd never noticed it before!) and talks about being "accompanied by deadly rain and wind."
He's like, "You're coming with two hundred people? Well I'm coming with actual rain and wind."
I have a new appreciation for the clan. I mean I always liked Wu before, but I think I finally *get* it. I went back and listened to some of their songs, armed with some of the intent and philosophy, and I'll tell you one thing... I'll never listen to a Wu-Tang Clan record again without a dictionary.
Suuuuuuuuue! Represent.
And then they get into the lyrics (book three)! RZA breaks down the more complicated raps and gives you background on what was the intention behind the words... I was and still am AMAZED how most of their lyrics have double, even triple meaning behind them, and they're all still so fresh (they've aged well!). Some of them are local, New York references, some of them are a play on the Supreme Mathematics and Alphabet.
One of my favorites in the whole book is a section called "GZA on The Weapons of Metaphor". Dude mentions one of his raps where he said that he had a "pyroclastic flow" (I'd never noticed it before!) and talks about being "accompanied by deadly rain and wind."
He's like, "You're coming with two hundred people? Well I'm coming with actual rain and wind."
I have a new appreciation for the clan. I mean I always liked Wu before, but I think I finally *get* it. I went back and listened to some of their songs, armed with some of the intent and philosophy, and I'll tell you one thing... I'll never listen to a Wu-Tang Clan record again without a dictionary.
It's about being genuine with it and being yourself - just bringing out the creativeness, not doing the same thing everybody else is doing, regardless of whether it don't break through or pop off immediately. It's not just how many people are feelin' you, it's who is feeling you. -GZA
Suuuuuuuuue! Represent.
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