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Not too hard, Not too Soft

Ill freely admit that Ive not finished reading the whole of this book yet. However, I feel fully qualified to tell you just how good it is from the hundred or so pages Ive read so far. This book is everything I hoped it to be- nothing more, nothing less. So, let me state for the record that I had high hopes for this book and am extremely pleased with the depth of work contained within. The information is all there to take the complete beginner up and through all the basics. The theory given to the reader is also sufficient enough to allow you to work things out for yourself and keep furthering your skill. The even writer informs you of areas he wont be telling you, since you dont need to know it yet and I find it very reassuring to be given the outlines of the full picture at least. I believe the majority of these things are covered in the second volume. This is my first martial arts related book and I dont think I could have chosen a better one. I find the theory of this art to be astounding and definately for the more intellectual fighters/philosophers out there. It seems to me to be the best internal style on the planet (ive researched quite a few from the internet). As soon as I can Im moving to a city with a good intructor. Im very serious about this and I have this book to thank for it.

An excellent introduction to a fascianting style

I bought this book knowing nothing about Pa Kua Chang, pretty much on the strength of the first review; I have to say that I agree with everything said - this book is a clear, informative and well presented book, that makes all of the techniques easy to understand, both in execution and in the underlying concept behind them. Great care has been taken to keep this book in line with Parks own training methods, and this has made for a great introduction to Pa Kua Chang. The movements are explained in words, diagrams and pictures, that make training from the book so much easier than many others. If you have any interest in Pa Kua, or just about any internal martial arts, I fully recommend this book.

A wonderful follow up to the first volume

After reading the first volume, I sought out the student group under Sifu Park nearest me and began training. Sifu Park is a wonderful teacher and holds nothing back in imparting the system which he has inherited. Volume II of Sifu Parks book contains yet another wealth of information while emphasizing the basic and fundamental concepts laid out in the first. It is meant to read and used as a written reference for those who have already learned the content of the first volume. I write "learned" rather than "mastered" because it takes years of practice to truly master the contents of the first volume. In the second volume, Sifu Park begins to build up the students repertoire of techniques, fundamental exercises, and theoretical concepts. Generally speaking, in Sifus school and study groups, it takes about a year to two years (depending on your background and willingness to practice) to get a handle on all of the teachings from the first voume. The second volume could easily take six to seven years of practice before one learns everything. Sifu also begins to show some fighting applications and the "variations on a theme" concepts that are Pa Kua trademarks. If one wishes to learn the exercises within these books, the videos are essential if a student group is not readily available. However, without the videos, the books give excellent insights into not only what is known as the most effective internal martial art created but also into general martial arts practice, applications, and the building of good fundamentals.