Warriors of Stillness: Meditative Traditions in the Chinese Martial Arts (Warriors of Stillness-Meditative Traditions in the Chinese Martial Arts)

Rating:
Summary: 120 Over 74
Review: At the age of thirty-one I was told I had borderline high blood pressure of 140/90. I was also told this was not a good omen, to be thirty-one with that b.p. I tried yoga, meditation, eating fruits and vegetables, supplements like Carnitine and Co-Q10. Bupkus. A friend who studies tai chi told me about this book. I've done some tai chi and was open to reading the material which, though not tai chi, concerns exercises for cultivating and regulating internal energy. Particularly since tai chi is supposed to lower blood pressure, it made sense to check it out. After two months of doing no other form of exercise but the standing exercise in this book--but doing it daily for up to thirty minutes at a time--my blood pressure dropped to 120/74. My stress test rated the medical equivalent of an A+. That was four years ago. When I stop exercising from laziness, the b.p. creeps up. When I go back to the book, it goes down and stays down, my energy goes up and stays up. The cardiologist said "I don't know what you're doing but keep doing it." In short, I strongly recommend this book.

Rating:
Summary: 120 Over 74
Review: Dipersloot has been practicing various forms of the 'soft' martial arts for quite a long time. This volume covers his discovery of the importance of Qigong standing meditation from three masters. He then discusses some finer points of Taiqi's 'Grasp Bird Tail' which is the only moving form now practiced by the senior master he trained under.

Dipersloot has quite a lot of good tips for standing meditation which is great since too many authors seem to imply there is nothing to it. It is true that, like sitting, you just need to stand _but_ it does help to have some pointers. That is, if you start standing meditation then eventually your body will find the correct Qi position but this could take a long long time for many.

His points about the correct posture and breathing from the Dantien are communicated quite clearly. So are the guidelines from Master Cai about the energy points and general alignment. There is a great section, taken from one of Master Cai's discussions, that very succinctly covers the important aspects of meditation in general and standing meditation in particular.

The real weakness here are the very crude computer-modified "photos". Diepersloot apologizes at the beginning about the quality of the photos (he was busy writing down everything the masters said) but that is not an excuse for what is used in the book. Spending some extra time with some volunteers to get quality photos would help the give the book the image of quality it requires; they would also help make some points much more clearly.

A good reference for anyone with some questions about standing meditation. Should go up on the shelf with Mantak Chia, "Qigong Empowerment" and "The Roots of Qigong". better yet, find out when WISH is holding a class near you and go meet a real master for proper instruction.

Rating:
Summary: Some good tips in here...
Review: Dipersloot has been practicing various forms of the 'soft' martial arts for quite a long time. This volume covers his discovery of the importance of Qigong standing meditation from three masters. He then discusses some finer points of Taiqi's 'Grasp Bird Tail' which is the only moving form now practiced by the senior master he trained under.

Dipersloot has quite a lot of good tips for standing meditation which is great since too many authors seem to imply there is nothing to it. It is true that, like sitting, you just need to stand _but_ it does help to have some pointers. That is, if you start standing meditation then eventually your body will find the correct Qi position but this could take a long long time for many.

His points about the correct posture and breathing from the Dantien are communicated quite clearly. So are the guidelines from Master Cai about the energy points and general alignment. There is a great section, taken from one of Master Cai's discussions, that very succinctly covers the important aspects of meditation in general and standing meditation in particular.

The real weakness here are the very crude computer-modified "photos". Diepersloot apologizes at the beginning about the quality of the photos (he was busy writing down everything the masters said) but that is not an excuse for what is used in the book. Spending some extra time with some volunteers to get quality photos would help the give the book the image of quality it requires; they would also help make some points much more clearly.

A good reference for anyone with some questions about standing meditation. Should go up on the shelf with Mantak Chia, "Qigong Empowerment" and "The Roots of Qigong". better yet, find out when WISH is holding a class near you and go meet a real master for proper instruction.

Rating:
Summary: Top book in the field
Review: I've reviewed most of the books written on Chi Gung and have taken classes with many fine instructors in New York and California. This is one of the very best books available on the subject. It's particularly well suited to people who want a simple, sensible and effective routine to follow without having to take a lot of esoteric and expensive classes

Rating:
Summary: The One Becomes Many
Review: Mr. Diepersloot has written a book which has immediate impact on the training of anyone applying it. A potentially esoteric discussion of the Wuji meditation principles is nicely leavened with historical anecdotes, theory and very practical suggestions. An instructor is certainly necessary for achieving depth in this art but I found that I was able to immediately incorporate his description of how to find the Wuji point, developing that to the central pole through the body, into my Taiji practise and gain marked improvements. His explanations of the Taiji sphere and cylinder, while similar to descriptions in other publications, were nicely placed within the text to enhance understanding.

A central tenet of his book is that insufficient attention is paid to the Wuji point. He makes the point that in Taiji theory, the Wuji is the starting point, the one, from which all else, the many, springs. Student reflection on this agrees with him, as the starting position in the Taiji form is the simple standing posture, with both hands by the side. Mr. Diepersloot posits that insufficient attention is paid to this idea and argues his case well, based on the ideas of his master in this art.

My understanding of what I was trying to do with Quiet Standing Meditation stepped up a notch on the first day I trained with these ideas in mind. I also gained far greater awareness of internal body mechanics and, I believe, immediately improved both my balance and my control of my central point. These were reflected in improvements in my form.

All of this from the application of one profoundly simple mental exercise and a little theory. More advanced exercises are also included but I have a lot of work to do before then. Mr. Diepersloot has provided what I believe to be a fundamental text on internal martial arts, one which I recommend to any neigung exponent. I will use it for years to come.

Rating:
Summary: The One Becomes Many
Review: Mr. Diepersloot has written a book which has immediate impact on the training of anyone applying it. A potentially esoteric discussion of the Wuji meditation principles is nicely leavened with historical anecdotes, theory and very practical suggestions. An instructor is certainly necessary for achieving depth in this art but I found that I was able to immediately incorporate his description of how to find the Wuji point, developing that to the central pole through the body, into my Taiji practise and gain marked improvements. His explanations of the Taiji sphere and cylinder, while similar to descriptions in other publications, were nicely placed within the text to enhance understanding.

A central tenet of his book is that insufficient attention is paid to the Wuji point. He makes the point that in Taiji theory, the Wuji is the starting point, the one, from which all else, the many, springs. Student reflection on this agrees with him, as the starting position in the Taiji form is the simple standing posture, with both hands by the side. Mr. Diepersloot posits that insufficient attention is paid to this idea and argues his case well, based on the ideas of his master in this art.

My understanding of what I was trying to do with Quiet Standing Meditation stepped up a notch on the first day I trained with these ideas in mind. I also gained far greater awareness of internal body mechanics and, I believe, immediately improved both my balance and my control of my central point. These were reflected in improvements in my form.

All of this from the application of one profoundly simple mental exercise and a little theory. More advanced exercises are also included but I have a lot of work to do before then. Mr. Diepersloot has provided what I believe to be a fundamental text on internal martial arts, one which I recommend to any neigung exponent. I will use it for years to come.

Rating:
Summary: A book that makes you to work as well as to think
Review: That's really a good book.
Good for absolutely beginner as well as for experts. It explains theory (without any mystics) and how to develop skills. Very deep, simple and consistently step-by-step approach. It tells you how a joint (just to give an example) should be used and how to work to consistently achieve that skill. The best think I appreciate of this book is about "how to do" and "how to develop" sensitivity (with clear examples and the work to do) on both your body, the external environment, rooting, push hands .......
You can use this book as beginner to just start your journey on Internal Martial Arts as well as to get insight from it on improving your study and to help your pupils advancement with the exposed exercises.
I read this book some years ago and I have to admit it greatly influenced my practice, knowledge and skills.
I highly recommend this book (as well as the other Diepersloot's book) it absolutely will not a waste of money.
I really have to thanks Jan for writing these books and to apologize for waiting so much to review them.

Rating:
Summary: tremendous book on standing qigong
Review: This book very effectively describes the way of qi cultivation using an apparently simple qigong technique: simply standing. It would seem easy to do, but it isn't. For some reason I have a strong feeling that the simplest things practiced deeply and consistently have the most profound effect. This book was carefully put together by the author, after much practice and being present with the master. I sincerely hope a video is forthcoming, as is mentioned in the introduction. This is a book I keep going back to for further refinements and learning of this powerful way.