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  • Chi Kung For Health And Vitality

    Wow! (as is often said for almost everything Sifu has produced)

    This is my first post on this forum and, like with good chi kung, I have decided to start with a book review so as not to over train my post-ability. Perhaps most of you have already read this, but I'll go ahead and offer my specific praise for this anyway. On Saturday, I received a copy of The Complete Book of Zen and a copy of Chi Kung For Health And Vitality and, since I'm saving zen for a little while as I finish up two of Sifu's other books I have been slowly reading over the past few years in spurts, I had such a blast reading this excellent book on chi kung that I hardly was able to go about my normal day once I picked it up as it had a very pleasant and engaging resonance and presentation. I read this book in a few hours spread over yesterday and early this afternoon, quite literally dashing through it excitedly while still ensuring I absorb every last detail, and, having only just been initiated into this school in the NH courses in April (roughly 4 weeks ago), all I can say is that this is one amazingly comprehensive, valuable, applicable, and fun read! It has helped to cement a lot of the concepts and lessons from the courses I have taken and the other books I have read, especially those written by Sifu, as well as the hundreds of Q&A's on the main website and the special ones here on the forum that I have continued to read through with great voracity since. Reading the books prior to and after practicing these incredibly high level skills (compared to other chi kung I have done) are experiences that are worlds apart in comprehension and appreciation, and I;m very glad this short but profound book was my first read at my new level of appreciation and increased understanding. Going back through the others is sure to be a treat now as well, but starting with the foundation has been an amazing journey of rediscovery and furthering of development.
    The book has just about everything a beginner would need to reference, reassure, solidify, and expand the essentials of the practice. There is a ton of material accessible to everyone (just about the whole book really), but, from my personal experience, if you practice chi kung of ANY system/school, this will be an incredible book to keep on-hand for quick questions, wonderful insights, and motivating accounts and underlying philosophy that doesn't require a lengthy or distracting search online and with a very well written presentation (not to mention the straightforward exposure to an incredible school within this art).
    Comparing this to The Art Of Chi Kung, I would say that it is more practice-oriented with NUMEROUS exercises and approaches presented that one can readily apply or try out (though still with cautious judiciousness, especially if one has no prior experience), and it has a far more case/personal example centered approach which made me want to go through it from start to finish straight through before jumping around, whereas the earlier Art Of Chi Kung was a philosopher's dream in the sense that it covered the vast gamut of chi kung topics (all with a very profound level of depth and equal care) and made me want to jump around its countless wonderful sections (and they are ALL wonderful) in order to get a very good mosaic of the vast amount of information first, then take the time (once I was enticed and somewhat versed) to dive into its ocean of wisdom.
    Overall, I had a fantastic and enjoyable time reading this and the many interesting and varied perspectives and examples it provides, while it simultaneously stitches together a constant and unified thread, deepening understanding and profundity. Along with Sifu's other works, this will be a very handy go-to reference for me to add to the vast array of information out there on our practice and regarding any questions which may come up. All of the books are also extremely accessible on their own and highly complimentary when read together/compared and used to build upon one another, giving you even more reason to pick this up for even the smallest new insight or detail it offers which one may miss out on. Even if you have no interest at all in practicing these arts (i.e. you haven't tasted their indescribable joys, yet*), it is a very well put together and ENGAGINGLY written book (the zen POURS out in every sentence, making the voice seem as familiar as if a close friend, or even your own conscious mind is narrating, despite the scholarly presentation and often academic style) that I promise it will be a joy (and a hyper-functional bundle of it at that) to discover and will hopefully suck you in and dazzle you as it did me.

    Many thanks to Sifu and everyone else from the bottom of my ever-expanding (thanks to chi kung!) heart for absolutely everything, and a special thanks for this generous sharing of incredible wisdom and what were once (more than) closely guarded and veiled secrets in such an accessible and beautiful manner! READ THIS BOOK!! (And others)

  • #2
    Welcome on the forum Kristian!

    I personally also love the Chi Kung book the Art of Chi Kung by Sifu!

    Best regards,

    Roland
    "From formless to form, from form to formless"

    26.08.17-28.08.17: Qi Gong Festival with 6 courses in Bern:
    Qiflow-Triple Stretch Method-12 Sinewmetamorphisis-Bone Marrow Cleansing-Zen Mind in Qi Gong

    Website: www.enerqi.ch

    Comment


    • #3
      Hey Kristian!

      Glad you made your way to the discussion forum. And great review! Your passion and excitement for Chi Kung really shines through.

      It was really great to finally meet you in person. I feel so fortunate to be able to host Sifu and bring such high level teaching to our part of the country. I'm really glad you were able to make it for the entire weekend!

      Hope to see you again, soon.

      -Matt

      Comment


      • #4
        Thank you both very very much!!

        I also love The Art of Chi Kung and can;t seem to exhaust the immense amount of awesome stuff in there!

        The New Hampshire courses were mind blowing and truly out of this world for me! It was amazing to finally get to meet you and talk with you and hear your own experiences, insights, and stories over meals and between sessions! I'm so glad and thankful for being so blessed to have been able to attend all the courses and am especially thankful to you for organizing and getting people together from the far corners of the country to show that New England Shaolin is nothing to shake a stick at haha and also to Sifu for more than I have words to relate! There were a lot of excited, pleasant, diligent, and wonderful attendees, some new and many seasoned, including yourself and another Sifu, Gusty, and the "Handsome Bear." The weekend changed my life and continues to do so each and every day without fail since!

        I cannot wait for more high level courses to be held in the area and U.S. as a whole, and I will be the FIRST in line for the next course/s you offer and will hopefully be able to drag along whatever members of my family I can wrangle-up to introduce these incredible arts into their lives! (If not, I'll attend as many times over by myself to make up for each missed opportunity )

        Infinite thanks, and with the utmost respect and admiration,
        Kristian

        Comment


        • #5
          Welcome Kristian, I was great to meet you. I don't want to speak for Sifu, but i have heard him say many times that he makes these journeys for those hungry for these arts.

          And my sense is you fit the bill so it's not too far off to say he came all the way to the states to brings these arts to you..And all the rest of us too....Enjoy your practice and take

          it as it comes...Be steady, its a life long race, not a sprint..It is always new, and you can't know what you don't know yet...My meaning is it gets better and better without end..

          Warmly Gusty

          Comment


          • #6
            Thank you for the inspiration, help, kindness, patience, and support, at the courses and still now!!!

            Your words are an immense motivation and every time I reflect on just how incredible it is that these arts are now such a central part of my day and life I am humbled and don't even think I can understand, let alone express, the gratitude I feel and the importance their practice has. I have definitely started to, over the past two weeks or so, really appreciate and begin to understand just what the difference is (and was) for me when it comes to my thirst for intellectual knowledge of the idea/concept of the thing, and the actual, direct experience of the thing itself... Not just 'more so,' but ONLY when I let go, smile from the heart, and enjoy whatever my practice may bring, without intellectualizing or contrived expectations, etc. do I get the results, benefits (and then some) from my practice. Your wisdom of embracing it as it comes and for what it is, not studying it from the outside, and thereby separating myself from it, or rushing and missing it/losing it, is looking like exactly what I need to continue working on and finding balance through. Every day I train I can't wait to explore and discover just what exactly is around every new corner and, like you said, am very glad that it's a process I can see and experience for the rest of my life!

            Thank you, and everyone, and, of course, Sifu and the unbelievable transmission and dedication he brings and so generously shares!!!

            Forever humble and hoping to pay back the blessings I can't justify deserving,
            Kristian

            Comment


            • #7
              Welcome to the forum Kristian and enjoy your practice!
              Sigung's "Chi Kung for Health and Vitality" and the "Art of Chi Kung" were the books I read before I took my first course in Shaolin Wahnam. And I still like to re-read them today.

              Best regards
              Andrea
              Enjoy some Wahnam Tai Chi Chuan & Qi Gong!

              Evening Classes in Zürich
              Weekend Classes in other Swiss locations


              Website: www.taichichuan-wahnam.ch
              Facebook: www.facebook.com/Taichichuan.Wahnam.ch

              Comment


              • #8
                Welcome to the Forum.

                I found "Chikung for Health and Vitality", translated into Indonesian, back in 2003.
                i tried the exercises wrtiten in the book, and soon after, I took the Intensive Course in Sungai Petani.


                Joko
                开心 好运气
                kai xin... .......hao yunqi... - Sifu's speech, April 2005
                open heart... good chi flow... good luck ...
                ------------------------------------------------------------
                Have we not opened up thy heart ...? (The Reading, 94:1)
                ------------------------------------------------------------
                Be joyful, ..and share your joy with others -(Anand Krishna)

                Comment


                • #9
                  Wow! Thank you all! It is unbelievable just how much such precious jewels, as these books undoubtedly are, have the power to awaken and motivate the desire to experience these treasures and also how they can continue to nourish both that desire and the numerous benefits and wonders that come with it once actualized! Your stories are a great inspiration and a reminder of how just the (supposedly) smallest introduction to or experience with even the knowledge of these arts can lead to such a profoundly successful and wonderfully beneficial future!

                  My own personal discovery of "The Art of Chi Kung" was in itself (or should've been, had I the wisdom to get it then) an undeniable call to get myself into the practice as soon as the opportunity arose and, though it is some years later, I am now thankfully able to no longer hope or attempt to work out a way to realize this call, I am actively living it, and every moment is a reminder of just how fortunate I was to have any introduction at all to Chi Kung!

                  Comment


                  • #10
                    Hello all,

                    When I first read Sifu´s "Chikung for Health and Vitality" back in 98, it was like a revelation, to this day, it´s my favourite Chikung book.

                    I think is practical and covers all the necessary nnformation a person needs to discover Chikung.
                    Daniel Pérez
                    http://www.shaolinbcn.es

                    Comment

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