Shao-lin Chuan

Book excerpt: This practical guidebook by master artist Simmone Kuo outlines the practice of Tan-Tui, a rigorous set of tai-chi fundamentals from China’s legendary Shao-Lin Temple. The author explains the basics of Shao-Lin Chuan, describes the benefits of the practice and difficulties the practitioner may encounter, and provides a section on preparatory exercises. Clear, detailed instructions keyed to step-by-step photographs explain and illustrate each movement sequence of the basic warm-up exercises, supplementary exercises, and the ten Tan-Tui lines. Shao-Lin Chuan also includes fascinating information on the history, religion, and philosophy underlying traditional Chinese martial arts and how these techniques are integrated into various cultural forms such as acrobatics, theater, and Chinese opera.