Author: Michael A. DeMarco, MA
Publisher: Via Media Publishing
ISBN: 1893765989
Category : Sports & Recreation
Languages : en
Pages : 145
Book Description
The themes in this book—drawn from Chinese history, culture, and martial arts experience—are entwined in a fictional narrative to animate events envisaged to have occurred during the mid-eighteenth century. From the outset, a thin veil separates fact from fiction. Our story starts with a discovery. While conducting research at the Vatican Library on the Jesuit missions in China, two scholars find a folder of papers written in Chinese among documents belonging to Giuseppe Castiglione (1688–1766), a painter at the royal court in Beijing. The papers turn out to be written by a fellow court painter, Yang Mingbin (c. 1664–1765). Yang’s handwritten essays provide revelations vital for understanding the ingenuity of Chinese martial arts. Yang’s text is organized under sixty-four subheadings. The author elucidates theory and practice methods in a fashion unlike any other writings on this subject. This is a rare early text written during a transitional period for martial arts. It is the time when the Qing Dynasty (1644 to 1912) was at its peak of cultural splendor and expanding its borders by military expeditions. Cannons and smaller firearms show the Western influence, but traditional martial arts were ubiquitous in the village, province, and national levels. Master Yang offers fascinating reading on all aspects of the Chinese fighting traditions. He places great emphasis on the importance of the “martial arts family” and the role of secrecy in lethal arts. The arts are also adapted for health and entertainment. All reflect an infusion of philosophy and practices from Buddhism, Daoism, and Confucianism. How one thinks affects how one practices martial arts. Yang describes the qualities associated with different skill levels, from beginner to most advanced. As he does this, we learn secrets that set forth key ways for improving defensive and offensive applications. These topics include body alignment, coordination, spontaneity, naturalness, balance, distancing, relaxation, and power. The same principles apply to bare-hand and weapons practice, as well as martial arts for health. Yang’s learning methodology for studying martial arts can be useful in other areas, as in his work as a master painter at court.
Martial Art Essays from Beijing, 1760
Author: Michael A. DeMarco, MA
Publisher: Via Media Publishing
ISBN: 1893765989
Category : Sports & Recreation
Languages : en
Pages : 145
Book Description
The themes in this book—drawn from Chinese history, culture, and martial arts experience—are entwined in a fictional narrative to animate events envisaged to have occurred during the mid-eighteenth century. From the outset, a thin veil separates fact from fiction. Our story starts with a discovery. While conducting research at the Vatican Library on the Jesuit missions in China, two scholars find a folder of papers written in Chinese among documents belonging to Giuseppe Castiglione (1688–1766), a painter at the royal court in Beijing. The papers turn out to be written by a fellow court painter, Yang Mingbin (c. 1664–1765). Yang’s handwritten essays provide revelations vital for understanding the ingenuity of Chinese martial arts. Yang’s text is organized under sixty-four subheadings. The author elucidates theory and practice methods in a fashion unlike any other writings on this subject. This is a rare early text written during a transitional period for martial arts. It is the time when the Qing Dynasty (1644 to 1912) was at its peak of cultural splendor and expanding its borders by military expeditions. Cannons and smaller firearms show the Western influence, but traditional martial arts were ubiquitous in the village, province, and national levels. Master Yang offers fascinating reading on all aspects of the Chinese fighting traditions. He places great emphasis on the importance of the “martial arts family” and the role of secrecy in lethal arts. The arts are also adapted for health and entertainment. All reflect an infusion of philosophy and practices from Buddhism, Daoism, and Confucianism. How one thinks affects how one practices martial arts. Yang describes the qualities associated with different skill levels, from beginner to most advanced. As he does this, we learn secrets that set forth key ways for improving defensive and offensive applications. These topics include body alignment, coordination, spontaneity, naturalness, balance, distancing, relaxation, and power. The same principles apply to bare-hand and weapons practice, as well as martial arts for health. Yang’s learning methodology for studying martial arts can be useful in other areas, as in his work as a master painter at court.
Publisher: Via Media Publishing
ISBN: 1893765989
Category : Sports & Recreation
Languages : en
Pages : 145
Book Description
The themes in this book—drawn from Chinese history, culture, and martial arts experience—are entwined in a fictional narrative to animate events envisaged to have occurred during the mid-eighteenth century. From the outset, a thin veil separates fact from fiction. Our story starts with a discovery. While conducting research at the Vatican Library on the Jesuit missions in China, two scholars find a folder of papers written in Chinese among documents belonging to Giuseppe Castiglione (1688–1766), a painter at the royal court in Beijing. The papers turn out to be written by a fellow court painter, Yang Mingbin (c. 1664–1765). Yang’s handwritten essays provide revelations vital for understanding the ingenuity of Chinese martial arts. Yang’s text is organized under sixty-four subheadings. The author elucidates theory and practice methods in a fashion unlike any other writings on this subject. This is a rare early text written during a transitional period for martial arts. It is the time when the Qing Dynasty (1644 to 1912) was at its peak of cultural splendor and expanding its borders by military expeditions. Cannons and smaller firearms show the Western influence, but traditional martial arts were ubiquitous in the village, province, and national levels. Master Yang offers fascinating reading on all aspects of the Chinese fighting traditions. He places great emphasis on the importance of the “martial arts family” and the role of secrecy in lethal arts. The arts are also adapted for health and entertainment. All reflect an infusion of philosophy and practices from Buddhism, Daoism, and Confucianism. How one thinks affects how one practices martial arts. Yang describes the qualities associated with different skill levels, from beginner to most advanced. As he does this, we learn secrets that set forth key ways for improving defensive and offensive applications. These topics include body alignment, coordination, spontaneity, naturalness, balance, distancing, relaxation, and power. The same principles apply to bare-hand and weapons practice, as well as martial arts for health. Yang’s learning methodology for studying martial arts can be useful in other areas, as in his work as a master painter at court.
The Best Fight: A Memoir of a Martial Art Practitioner, Publisher, and Author
Author: Michael DeMarco
Publisher: Via Media Publishing
ISBN: 1893765520
Category : Sports & Recreation
Languages : en
Pages : 202
Book Description
A needle may draw a thread through printed pages to bind a book. In this little memoir, I feel like a needle that drew a common thread though a segment of martial art history. This book details three interrelated activities: (1) martial art studies, (2) involvement as founder of Via Media Publishing, producing a quarterly journal and books, and (3) teaching martial arts. Publishers, writers, researchers and serious martial art practitioners will benefit with the detailed overview of Via Media and its publications. Via Media produced the Journal of Asian Martial Arts, known for its high academic and aesthetic standards. Its contents reflect the history of two decades and provides rich information for practitioners and scholars, making The Best Fighta valuable reference work. In addition to reading, the primary way to learn a martial art is through instruction. In reading about my studies and teaching experience, readers can relate to their own involvement in martial arts. What is important here is the portrayal of my instructors, their teaching methods, and reasons for being involved in martial arts. Their accounts should offer insights and inspiration for others who study and practice any martial art.
Publisher: Via Media Publishing
ISBN: 1893765520
Category : Sports & Recreation
Languages : en
Pages : 202
Book Description
A needle may draw a thread through printed pages to bind a book. In this little memoir, I feel like a needle that drew a common thread though a segment of martial art history. This book details three interrelated activities: (1) martial art studies, (2) involvement as founder of Via Media Publishing, producing a quarterly journal and books, and (3) teaching martial arts. Publishers, writers, researchers and serious martial art practitioners will benefit with the detailed overview of Via Media and its publications. Via Media produced the Journal of Asian Martial Arts, known for its high academic and aesthetic standards. Its contents reflect the history of two decades and provides rich information for practitioners and scholars, making The Best Fighta valuable reference work. In addition to reading, the primary way to learn a martial art is through instruction. In reading about my studies and teaching experience, readers can relate to their own involvement in martial arts. What is important here is the portrayal of my instructors, their teaching methods, and reasons for being involved in martial arts. Their accounts should offer insights and inspiration for others who study and practice any martial art.
Wuxia America: The Timely Emergence of a Chinese American Hero
Author: Michael DeMarco
Publisher: Via Media Publishing
ISBN: 1893765490
Category : Fiction
Languages : en
Pages : 133
Book Description
Dr. Jason Lou represents a medical tradition transmitted over centuries through his family lineage. In 1857, his ancestor brought the art to San Francisco from China to serve the growing Chinese population who arrived during the gold rush and railroad building period. The Sacramento Bee publishes an in depth feature about Dr. Lou. Afterwords, a series of break ins occur. A few discover that Dr. Lou is a master of another art practiced in strict privacy: a martial arts system transmitted in tandem with the medical tradition. Was there something in the feature article that induced the criminal activities? Investigators soon learn that they are dealing with an international crime ring. An interdepartmental governmental team is formed and formulates theories regarding those responsible for the crime. Dr. Lou proves vital to the investigation. Ten years later, Dr. Lou and others realize the profound significance of what they’ve learned from their fateful brush with organized crime. This book should be of particular interest to Chinese Americans who can take pride in their history and be inspired by the main character as a role model — a hero in the broadest sense.
Publisher: Via Media Publishing
ISBN: 1893765490
Category : Fiction
Languages : en
Pages : 133
Book Description
Dr. Jason Lou represents a medical tradition transmitted over centuries through his family lineage. In 1857, his ancestor brought the art to San Francisco from China to serve the growing Chinese population who arrived during the gold rush and railroad building period. The Sacramento Bee publishes an in depth feature about Dr. Lou. Afterwords, a series of break ins occur. A few discover that Dr. Lou is a master of another art practiced in strict privacy: a martial arts system transmitted in tandem with the medical tradition. Was there something in the feature article that induced the criminal activities? Investigators soon learn that they are dealing with an international crime ring. An interdepartmental governmental team is formed and formulates theories regarding those responsible for the crime. Dr. Lou proves vital to the investigation. Ten years later, Dr. Lou and others realize the profound significance of what they’ve learned from their fateful brush with organized crime. This book should be of particular interest to Chinese Americans who can take pride in their history and be inspired by the main character as a role model — a hero in the broadest sense.
Mundunur: A Mountain Village Under the Spell of South Italy
Author: Michele Antonio DiMarco M. a.
Publisher: Via Media Publishing Company
ISBN: 9781893765603
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 338
Book Description
Montenero Val Cocchiara is usually referred to simply as Montenero, or Mundunur in the local dialect. It is a typical mountain village on the border of Italy's Abruzzo and Molise regions, but Montenero is more than that. Certainly the village and its people retain unique traditions and character traits because of its relative seclusion. At the same time-as fully revealed in this book-its history was tinted by contacts with numerous powerful groups over many centuries. Since Naples was the political and cultural heartbeat of south Italy, it sewed threads that tie Montenero to a heritage common to all living in the sunny south. Anyone with roots in south Italy will certainly benefit from reading this book. However, the author's greater aspiration is that others will equally enjoy the story of Montenero as a metaphor for their own ancestral village or town, regardless of country-or even see the village as a microcosm of the world, where the forces of history and culture forge the character of people.
Publisher: Via Media Publishing Company
ISBN: 9781893765603
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 338
Book Description
Montenero Val Cocchiara is usually referred to simply as Montenero, or Mundunur in the local dialect. It is a typical mountain village on the border of Italy's Abruzzo and Molise regions, but Montenero is more than that. Certainly the village and its people retain unique traditions and character traits because of its relative seclusion. At the same time-as fully revealed in this book-its history was tinted by contacts with numerous powerful groups over many centuries. Since Naples was the political and cultural heartbeat of south Italy, it sewed threads that tie Montenero to a heritage common to all living in the sunny south. Anyone with roots in south Italy will certainly benefit from reading this book. However, the author's greater aspiration is that others will equally enjoy the story of Montenero as a metaphor for their own ancestral village or town, regardless of country-or even see the village as a microcosm of the world, where the forces of history and culture forge the character of people.
Authentic Shaolin Heritage
Author: Jin Jing Zhong
Publisher: Lulu.com
ISBN: 184728406X
Category : Sports & Recreation
Languages : en
Pages : 282
Book Description
Devoted to the most enigmatic and little-known aspect of training of Shaolin monks. Training methods allow supernatural abilites to develop, far beyond abilities of an ordinary man. The book was writen with the blessing and direct participation of the Head of the Shaolin Monastery Reverend Miao Xing, nicknamed "The Golden Arhat," one of the best Shaolin fighters of all times. These secret practices traditionally called "72 arts of Shaolin" or the essence of the Shaolin Combat Training.
Publisher: Lulu.com
ISBN: 184728406X
Category : Sports & Recreation
Languages : en
Pages : 282
Book Description
Devoted to the most enigmatic and little-known aspect of training of Shaolin monks. Training methods allow supernatural abilites to develop, far beyond abilities of an ordinary man. The book was writen with the blessing and direct participation of the Head of the Shaolin Monastery Reverend Miao Xing, nicknamed "The Golden Arhat," one of the best Shaolin fighters of all times. These secret practices traditionally called "72 arts of Shaolin" or the essence of the Shaolin Combat Training.
Possible Origins
Author: Scott Park Phillips
Publisher:
ISBN: 9780692749012
Category : Martial arts
Languages : en
Pages : 218
Book Description
Possible Origins presents for the first time an in depth cultural history of Chinese martial arts. It offers fresh perspectives and the latest research to show how martial arts have preserved religious and theatrical traditions hidden inside martial skills. It connects previously unexamined elements of Chinese cultural history directly to the arts people practice today. Everyone wants to know where their martial art came from and how it was created-here, for the first time, is the authentic story. Find answers to questions like: What is a sworn brotherhood? How do talismans work? Why does Tai Chi have so much mime in it? Why does Baguazhang look like a guy riding around on roller skates? Was the Shaolin Monastery a performing arts center? How can you tell if a martial art is Daoist or Buddhist? And what is so important about emptiness? Master practitioners, beginning students, and serious scholars will discover parts of their practice they didn't know were there.
Publisher:
ISBN: 9780692749012
Category : Martial arts
Languages : en
Pages : 218
Book Description
Possible Origins presents for the first time an in depth cultural history of Chinese martial arts. It offers fresh perspectives and the latest research to show how martial arts have preserved religious and theatrical traditions hidden inside martial skills. It connects previously unexamined elements of Chinese cultural history directly to the arts people practice today. Everyone wants to know where their martial art came from and how it was created-here, for the first time, is the authentic story. Find answers to questions like: What is a sworn brotherhood? How do talismans work? Why does Tai Chi have so much mime in it? Why does Baguazhang look like a guy riding around on roller skates? Was the Shaolin Monastery a performing arts center? How can you tell if a martial art is Daoist or Buddhist? And what is so important about emptiness? Master practitioners, beginning students, and serious scholars will discover parts of their practice they didn't know were there.
The Culture of War in China
Author: Joanna Waley-Cohen
Publisher: I.B. Tauris
ISBN: 9781780766683
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 176
Book Description
Was the primary focus of the Qing dynasty really civil rather than military matters? In this ground-breaking book, Joanna Waley-Cohen overturns conventional wisdom to put warfare at the heart of seventeenth and eighteenth century China. She argues that the civil and the military were understood as mutually complementary forces. Emperors underpinned military expansion with a wide-ranging cultural campaign intended to bring military success, and the martial values associated with it, into the mainstream of cultural life. The Culture of War in China is a striking revisionist history that brings new insight into the roots of Chinese nationalism and the modern militarized state.
Publisher: I.B. Tauris
ISBN: 9781780766683
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 176
Book Description
Was the primary focus of the Qing dynasty really civil rather than military matters? In this ground-breaking book, Joanna Waley-Cohen overturns conventional wisdom to put warfare at the heart of seventeenth and eighteenth century China. She argues that the civil and the military were understood as mutually complementary forces. Emperors underpinned military expansion with a wide-ranging cultural campaign intended to bring military success, and the martial values associated with it, into the mainstream of cultural life. The Culture of War in China is a striking revisionist history that brings new insight into the roots of Chinese nationalism and the modern militarized state.
Martial Arts Studies
Author: Paul Bowman
Publisher: Rowman & Littlefield
ISBN: 1783481293
Category : Sports & Recreation
Languages : en
Pages : 205
Book Description
The phrase “martial arts studies” is increasingly circulating as a term to describe a new field of interest. But many academic fields including history, philosophy, anthropology, and Area studies already engage with martial arts in their own particular way. Therefore, is there really such a thing as a unique field of martial arts studies? Martial Arts Studies is the first book to engage directly with these questions. It assesses the multiplicity and heterogeneity of possible approaches to martial arts studies, exploring orientations and limitations of existing approaches. It makes a case for constructing the field of martial arts studies in terms of key coordinates from post-structuralism, cultural studies, media studies, and post-colonialism. By using these anti-disciplinary approaches to disrupt the approaches of other disciplines, Martial Arts Studies proposes a field that both emerges out of and differs from its many disciplinary locations.
Publisher: Rowman & Littlefield
ISBN: 1783481293
Category : Sports & Recreation
Languages : en
Pages : 205
Book Description
The phrase “martial arts studies” is increasingly circulating as a term to describe a new field of interest. But many academic fields including history, philosophy, anthropology, and Area studies already engage with martial arts in their own particular way. Therefore, is there really such a thing as a unique field of martial arts studies? Martial Arts Studies is the first book to engage directly with these questions. It assesses the multiplicity and heterogeneity of possible approaches to martial arts studies, exploring orientations and limitations of existing approaches. It makes a case for constructing the field of martial arts studies in terms of key coordinates from post-structuralism, cultural studies, media studies, and post-colonialism. By using these anti-disciplinary approaches to disrupt the approaches of other disciplines, Martial Arts Studies proposes a field that both emerges out of and differs from its many disciplinary locations.
Chinese Martial Arts Film and the Philosophy of Action
Author: Stephen Teo
Publisher: Routledge
ISBN: 1000374556
Category : Social Science
Languages : en
Pages : 256
Book Description
This book focuses on the philosophy of Chinese martial arts film, arguing that philosophy provides a key to understanding the whole genre. It draws on Chinese philosophical ideas derived from, or based on, Confucianism, Daoism, Buddhism, and other schools of thought such as Mohism and Legalism, examines a cluster of recent Chinese martial arts films centering on the figure of the xia—the heroic protagonist, the Chinese equivalent of medieval Europe’s knight-errant—and outlines the philosophical principles and themes undergirding the actions of xia and their narratives. Overall, the author argues that the genre, apart from being an action-oriented entertainment medium, is inherently moral and ethical.
Publisher: Routledge
ISBN: 1000374556
Category : Social Science
Languages : en
Pages : 256
Book Description
This book focuses on the philosophy of Chinese martial arts film, arguing that philosophy provides a key to understanding the whole genre. It draws on Chinese philosophical ideas derived from, or based on, Confucianism, Daoism, Buddhism, and other schools of thought such as Mohism and Legalism, examines a cluster of recent Chinese martial arts films centering on the figure of the xia—the heroic protagonist, the Chinese equivalent of medieval Europe’s knight-errant—and outlines the philosophical principles and themes undergirding the actions of xia and their narratives. Overall, the author argues that the genre, apart from being an action-oriented entertainment medium, is inherently moral and ethical.
Ba Gua
Author: Hsing-han Liu
Publisher: Blue Snake Books
ISBN: 9781556432767
Category : Health & Fitness
Languages : en
Pages : 138
Book Description
The Taoist yogic discipline of Ba Gua is an internal form of the ancient art of kung fu--as are the much older t'ai chi and Xing I. Ba Gua is the most arcane and yogic of three sister arts--t'ai chi and Xing I are the others--and is distinguished by serpentine turning and circling momvements and its own internal energy exercises, Ba Gua Qi Gong.
Publisher: Blue Snake Books
ISBN: 9781556432767
Category : Health & Fitness
Languages : en
Pages : 138
Book Description
The Taoist yogic discipline of Ba Gua is an internal form of the ancient art of kung fu--as are the much older t'ai chi and Xing I. Ba Gua is the most arcane and yogic of three sister arts--t'ai chi and Xing I are the others--and is distinguished by serpentine turning and circling momvements and its own internal energy exercises, Ba Gua Qi Gong.