CompleteMartialArts.com - Return to Stillness: Twenty Years with a Tai Chi Master
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List Price: $14.95
Our Price: $14.95
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Manufacturer: Da Capo Press
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Average Customer Rating: 
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Binding: Paperback
Dewey Decimal Number: 613.7148
EAN: 9781569244876
ISBN: 1569244871
Label: Da Capo Press
Manufacturer: Da Capo Press
Number Of Items: 1
Number Of Pages: 256
Publication Date: 2003-05
Publisher: Da Capo Press
Studio: Da Capo Press
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Editorial Reviews:
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Trevor Carolan studied Tai Chi, meditation, and traditional Chinese healing for twenty-three years under the guidance of the late Master Ng Ching-Por in Vancouver’s Chinatown. Over his many years of practice and learning, Carolan absorbed the wisdom that comes from studying so closely with a master teacher. Now, in Return to Stillness, he offers what the Japanese call "palm of the hand" tales: thirty brief chapters that explore the essential motivations that inspired him to adopt the path of Tai Chi and persevere in its practice. By connecting the spiritual aspects of Tai Chi to its technical and martial elements like breathing, dealing with frustration and competetive urges, and then ultimately to its roots in the great harmony of the Tao, Carolan gracefully conveys the insight, humor, life lessons, and wisdom inherent in the study of this ancient discipline.
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Spotlight customer reviews:
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Customer Rating:
Summary: Good chronicle of Tai Chi journey
Comment: This is not a book of Tai Chi technique(s). It does not claim to be one, however. This is a book describing the experiences of a long time practitioner of Tai Chi. It has made me want to study the art.
Customer Rating:
Summary: I benefitted from "Return to Stillness"
Comment: I loved this book! The timeless wisdom passed on from Trevor Carolan's Sifu is priceless. Wisdom so simple, sincere, applicable to our lives, our efforts to "play Tai Chi", and our efforts to be more compassionate. From this book, I took 3 pages of notes for my personal improvement. One can practice the mechanics of Tai Chi, but to embody the "spirit" of Tai Chi is more difficult. "Return to Stillness" captures the essence of pure Tai Chi.
Customer Rating:
Summary: A Marvelous, Luminous Book
Comment: This beautifully poetic book is an account of Sifu Carolan's twenty-year experience with his Tai Chi Master, leavened with many illuminating tales.
There is no direct instruction in the Tai Chi form, but for all that, it teaches in its own quiet way. Exactly as good teachers have always done, it is not just a matter of understanding how to do certain movements; it is understanding the "Why" of doing them.
This is a book that could be enjoyed by anyone starting to learn the basics of the marvelous arts of Tai Chi and Qigong, and re-read again as you begin to move beyond the basic movements.
I have read a lot of books about Tai Chi and Qigong, and have had the privilege of studying with some outstanding teachers. Years ago, while visiting Malaysia and working with two Tai Chi Masters, I was astonished to discover how many of the old secrets had been forgotten during the various Chinese diasporas. Forgotten but not lost.
This book captures an essence that you will find in very few places. For that Trevor Carolan deserves our thanks, and anybody interested in the "soft" martial arts will find much to learn in the simple stories that the book contains.
Customer Rating:
Summary: Reading about Tai Chi is like dancing about mathematics
Comment: This is not a how-to book. The author, through stories about his experience with his Tai Chi Master, does an excellent job of explaining the Why, if not the What of Tai Chi. Through reading his vivid and elloquent (almost poetic) prose one senses what the practice means to the author and gets a great appreciation for it. This is not a martial arts book. Or a self defense, philosophy, or religion book. This book, like Tai Chi itself, is best understood through the experience. It is a series of vignettes that brings the reader as close as possible to understanding the marrow of Tai Chi. A great feat, indeed.
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