I practice internal martial arts (Nei Kung) and can attest to their benefits. Some books/resources you may find useful:
1. Encounters with Qi. Written by David Eisenberg when he was a student at Harvard Medical School, who went to study in China and got access to some very high-level qigong practitioners. Describes many of the strange and interesting phenomenon he observed.
2. Mysteries of the Life Force. Explores similar themes as Eisenberg's book, but this is more of a "practice log" of one student who apprenticed under a qigong master.
3. Opening the Energy Gates of the Body. This is written by Bruce Frantzis who is probably one of the most highly-attained contemporary internal martial artists. It focuses on Nei Kung (related to, but slightly different than Yiquan). Extremely practical and detailed introduction to the foundational exercises to develop internal power.
Als recommend spending time in the The Dao Bums forums. Gold mine of information if you read posts by some of the legitimate masters.
Fascinated with internal martial arts. Life-changing stuff. I could go on and on about resources, stories...but wanted to keep the comment short.
Thanks for these book recommendations. I practice Aikido and after almost 30 years I am finally starting to learn how to access and grow internal power (ie Aiki). I would love to learn more about Nei Kung
For Nei Kung, I think it's worth trying to find a teacher who can show you/correct your standing forms. Getting the alignments right is very important for the chi to flow, and the adjustments can be subtle for beginner. But once they "click" you can feel the difference.
Actually I thought of another book that does a really good job of instructing how to hold the basic forms: Inside Zhan Zhuang by Mark Cohen
Thank you for another great recommendation. And your advice about getting the alignments right rings true. As my Aikido teacher says, it’s important to get proper instruction at the beginning because if you “burn in” the wrong thing through repeated practice, it will take a lot more effort and practice to unlearn. If you have any advice on how to find a good Nei Kung teacher I am all ears (eyes?)
Finding good teachers is always a challenge. I went about it by reading through The Dao Bums forums and looking at who kept being recommended over and over. I then searched for them, or their students
For NYC, where I live, I can recommend: Sharon Smith, and Leo Bierman. I've had 1:1 sessions with both, and they have a solid grasp of the fundamental standing postures and are terrific at teaching them really methodically. I also used to go to CK Chu's Tai Chi school (taking Hyland Harris's classes, to whom CK Chu passed the torch after retiring). However, I'm told CK Chu's methods introduce slight variations to focus more on martial power development. Consequently they're a bit harder on the body. I stopped going there.
Bruce Frantzis is in Colorado, I believe, but he and several of his certified student-instructors run online sessions which you can find at energyarts.com.
I believe Lam Kam Chuen has a school in Alhambra (California), and he's one of the most well-known of the Zhan Zhuang teachers.
I’ve done a bit of standing practice in Tai Chi, where one teacher told me it’s the fastest way to build the subtle energy capacity of the body. But I’ve heard that Yiquan places a much greater emphasis on standing as opposed to the long, flowing forms that Tai Chi spends most of its time on. I’ll be curious to hear how the training goes for you in the coming months.
I saw a definition of “wisdom” the other day - don’t recall where - “wisdom is the ability to accept life on life’s terms”. Sounds a bit 12-steppy I admit, but if it really means the ability to construct an accurate (I.e. non delusional) mental map then it makes sense. At least to me.
I think your point on optionally is spot on. I practice Aikido and I am gradually coming to perceive directly that it is about being totally present in the moment and intuitively sensing the field of options as they evolve realtime without clinging to any fixed outcomes. I can imagine how Yiquan would potentially “turn up the volume” of perception in the moment through increasing sensitivity and integration between body and mind/intuition/sensation. It also sounds like the standing practice would be great in releasing the habit of rushing to resolution (of discomfort, of uncertainty etc) and instead allow us to inhabit the middle space between stimulus and reaction where we have the freedom to respond
Your point about not undervaluing your principal art and warning about indigestion from mixing practices are well founded. This is where I feel Brett’s observation about optionality is so apt. Aikido was derived from deadly fighting arts and for it to “work”—both as a martial system and a meditation practice—these deadly foundations must remain its core. But in Aikido the practitioner must sense the options to kill, and choose not to.
It seems to me that while their forms may be different, at their most advanced stages all martial systems likely converge to develop this internal skill—what the Chinese systems call “Nei Kung”, Aikido calls “Aiki”, Systema calls “internal power” etc. At these stages forms are scaffolding to develop these internal arts.
Of course my direct experience is limited to Aikido and I am only starting to learn about internal skill so I could be wrong about this but this is my hunch.
I practice internal martial arts (Nei Kung) and can attest to their benefits. Some books/resources you may find useful:
1. Encounters with Qi. Written by David Eisenberg when he was a student at Harvard Medical School, who went to study in China and got access to some very high-level qigong practitioners. Describes many of the strange and interesting phenomenon he observed.
2. Mysteries of the Life Force. Explores similar themes as Eisenberg's book, but this is more of a "practice log" of one student who apprenticed under a qigong master.
3. Opening the Energy Gates of the Body. This is written by Bruce Frantzis who is probably one of the most highly-attained contemporary internal martial artists. It focuses on Nei Kung (related to, but slightly different than Yiquan). Extremely practical and detailed introduction to the foundational exercises to develop internal power.
Als recommend spending time in the The Dao Bums forums. Gold mine of information if you read posts by some of the legitimate masters.
Fascinated with internal martial arts. Life-changing stuff. I could go on and on about resources, stories...but wanted to keep the comment short.
Thanks for these book recommendations. I practice Aikido and after almost 30 years I am finally starting to learn how to access and grow internal power (ie Aiki). I would love to learn more about Nei Kung
Amazing resources thanks guys
For Nei Kung, I think it's worth trying to find a teacher who can show you/correct your standing forms. Getting the alignments right is very important for the chi to flow, and the adjustments can be subtle for beginner. But once they "click" you can feel the difference.
Actually I thought of another book that does a really good job of instructing how to hold the basic forms: Inside Zhan Zhuang by Mark Cohen
Thank you for another great recommendation. And your advice about getting the alignments right rings true. As my Aikido teacher says, it’s important to get proper instruction at the beginning because if you “burn in” the wrong thing through repeated practice, it will take a lot more effort and practice to unlearn. If you have any advice on how to find a good Nei Kung teacher I am all ears (eyes?)
Finding good teachers is always a challenge. I went about it by reading through The Dao Bums forums and looking at who kept being recommended over and over. I then searched for them, or their students
For NYC, where I live, I can recommend: Sharon Smith, and Leo Bierman. I've had 1:1 sessions with both, and they have a solid grasp of the fundamental standing postures and are terrific at teaching them really methodically. I also used to go to CK Chu's Tai Chi school (taking Hyland Harris's classes, to whom CK Chu passed the torch after retiring). However, I'm told CK Chu's methods introduce slight variations to focus more on martial power development. Consequently they're a bit harder on the body. I stopped going there.
Bruce Frantzis is in Colorado, I believe, but he and several of his certified student-instructors run online sessions which you can find at energyarts.com.
I believe Lam Kam Chuen has a school in Alhambra (California), and he's one of the most well-known of the Zhan Zhuang teachers.
Hope this helps!
This is incredibly helpful! Thank you so much!
I’ve done a bit of standing practice in Tai Chi, where one teacher told me it’s the fastest way to build the subtle energy capacity of the body. But I’ve heard that Yiquan places a much greater emphasis on standing as opposed to the long, flowing forms that Tai Chi spends most of its time on. I’ll be curious to hear how the training goes for you in the coming months.
Yeah, I’ll keep you posted! We also might do a small trial within leading edge to see what the effects are over a decent period of time…
A group trial would be very cool!
Been reading this post for 10 minutes but haven't even made it past the first sentence yet - digging the footnotes!
The standing practice is very common in China. Even at school, we practice together in a group setting as a morning routine haha! Super good!
Maybe not so obscure there ;)
Tom your work is consistently excellent. Thank you for yet another goldmine!
Super kind of you to say Scott thanks! I’m genuinely blessed at how many people come out of nowhere to tell me fascinating things…
I saw a definition of “wisdom” the other day - don’t recall where - “wisdom is the ability to accept life on life’s terms”. Sounds a bit 12-steppy I admit, but if it really means the ability to construct an accurate (I.e. non delusional) mental map then it makes sense. At least to me.
I like that. But I also like an indication of agency; however modest.
Agreed. There’d be no point in having wisdom if it didn’t lead to agency. And optionality. Let’s not forget - Sisyphus wasn’t wise, just happy.
I think your point on optionally is spot on. I practice Aikido and I am gradually coming to perceive directly that it is about being totally present in the moment and intuitively sensing the field of options as they evolve realtime without clinging to any fixed outcomes. I can imagine how Yiquan would potentially “turn up the volume” of perception in the moment through increasing sensitivity and integration between body and mind/intuition/sensation. It also sounds like the standing practice would be great in releasing the habit of rushing to resolution (of discomfort, of uncertainty etc) and instead allow us to inhabit the middle space between stimulus and reaction where we have the freedom to respond
Your point about not undervaluing your principal art and warning about indigestion from mixing practices are well founded. This is where I feel Brett’s observation about optionality is so apt. Aikido was derived from deadly fighting arts and for it to “work”—both as a martial system and a meditation practice—these deadly foundations must remain its core. But in Aikido the practitioner must sense the options to kill, and choose not to.
It seems to me that while their forms may be different, at their most advanced stages all martial systems likely converge to develop this internal skill—what the Chinese systems call “Nei Kung”, Aikido calls “Aiki”, Systema calls “internal power” etc. At these stages forms are scaffolding to develop these internal arts.
Of course my direct experience is limited to Aikido and I am only starting to learn about internal skill so I could be wrong about this but this is my hunch.