By Yin Qianhe

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(Not formally published, written circa 1958. Brennan Translations, December 2015. 57 pages.)

 

 

 

Notes prefacing this book by translator Paul Brennan state: “There was obviously a serious initial intention to publish, since the trouble was taken to produce photos, though it is not clear that it was ever completed as a manuscript, and we have been left with only a ‘chapter fourteen.’”

 

Brennan goes on to speculate that the thirteen chapters that would precede chapter fourteen would have contained prefatory material, a section on Tai Chi history, discussions of Tai Chi principles and theory, and a section on push hands and possibly one on the Tai Chi Classics. But there is none of that. 

 

Chapter fourteen is the form instruction section, and the form depicted is rather arcane, not obviously conforming to any style I know, though some of the movements make it appear to be a variant of Northern Wu. But maybe that’s my imagination. Each posture is described with verbal iinstructions, including a simple explanation of one possible application, accompanied by photos, and that’s it.

 

End of book, end of review.

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