Chinese Martial Arts Training Manuals: A Historical Survey - Softcover

Kennedy, Brian; Guo, Elizabeth

Softcover

ISBN 10: 1556435576 ISBN 13: 9781556435577

Publisher: North Atlantic Books, 2005

Synopsis

Chinese martial arts masters of the past created special training manuals with text and images—sometimes appearing in the illustrations themselves—and these manuals now provide an invaluable glimpse back in time that allow readers to see how various martial arts were practiced. Covering the Ming Dynasty, the Qing Dynasty, and the Republican Period, this in-depth survey presents 30 masters and their books, placing them in the context of Chinese culture and history. Along with biographical portraits of these masters, the book covers the history of the manuals, Chinese martial arts historians, the history of Taiwanese martial arts, how Chinese martial artists made their livings, the Imperial military exams, the place of the Shaolin Temple in Chinese martial arts history, and much more. Illustrated with hundreds of photographs and drawings from the manuals themselves, the book offers a multifaceted portrait of Chinese martial arts and their place in Chinese culture.

About this title

About the Author:

Brian Kennedy, an attorney, has practiced Chinese martial arts since 1976. His previous books, published in Chinese, include Witness Examination Skills and American Legal Ethics. This is his first martial arts book.

Elizabeth Nai-Jia Guo is a professional translator and practitioner of qi gong and hatha yoga. She has translated a wide range of books into Chinese. Together, Guo and Kennedy write a regular column for the magazine Classical Fighting Arts.

Review:

"This book provides considerable information on Chinese martial arts history, particularly of the Republican era, its personages, and manuals not previously available in English. It also covers topics, including those related to Shaolin Monastery and Taoism, in a down to earth, common sense manner.... Overall, Chinese Martial Arts Training Manuals successfully achieves the author’s purpose, expressed in the epilogue: '[To serve] as an informative and interesting introduction to this rich facet of Chinese martial art culture.'"—Stanley E. Henning, China Review International

About this edition

• Publisher: North Atlantic Books
• Publication date: 2005
• ISBN 10: 1556435576
• ISBN 13: 9781556435577
• Binding: Paperback
• Edition number: 1
• Number of pages: 225