The Whirling Circles of Ba Gua Zhang The Art and Legends of the Eight Trigram Palm

Whirling Circles of Ba Gua Zhang features a unique collection of historical accounts and legends of all the most famous Ba Gua masters from the mid 19th century onward. These inspirational tales are quite extensive, probably the most complete of any book published yet. The instructional sections are comprehensive, giving the reader a systematic programme for study that results in learning the essentials of Ba Gua Zhang. The theory of combat and practical fighting techniques are then explored, detailing twisting, coiling, circling and spiraling methods of overcoming an opponent. This exhaustive section is finished by a full description of the unusual weapons forms of the Ba Gua Zhang system. The Cheng Style Deer Horn Knife set of Grandmaster Liu Jing Ru is shown in complete detail. The training sections give a complete warm-up, followed by a step-by-step programme for learning the essentials of the practice. The classical Cheng Style Basic Eight Palm changes are presented in their entirety. The final section explains how to use mindfulness, breathing techniques, and meditation to recognize and combine the essential eight trigrams of the Yi Jing, the "Book of the Change". The Ba Gua Zhang Classics have only been published in English a few times, and the authors' understanding and explanation of these texts is useful to the serious practitioner. The moving I Ching practices of Ba Gua are unique in the martial arts world, and have never before been clearly explained and taught in English.

Frank Allen was an early student of BP Chan and the first person ever certified to teach the Beijing Lineage Ba Gua of B. K. Frantzis. Tina Chunna Zhang is an award-winning instructor of tai ji quan and ba gua zhang. They both train with Grandmaster Liu Jing Ru in Beijing every year. Frank and Tina teach weekly classes and monthly workshops and retreats around the USA and Europe. They live in the Lower East Side of New York City.