Product Description

A fundamental Taoist practice for enhancing and utilizing chi

• Includes breathing and movement exercises to promote vitality and healing through the cultivation of chi in the tan tien and perineum areas

• Presents the foundational exercises that are essential for more advanced practices such as Iron Shirt Chi Kung and Cosmic Healing

Tan Tien Chi Kung is the art of cultivating and condensing chi in the lower abdomen--the tan tien--the fundamental power storehouse of the body. Known as the Ocean of Chi to the ancient Taoists, this lower abdominal area holds the key to opening the body and the mind for the free and continuous movement of chi. Tan Tien Chi Kung contains specific breathing and movement exercises that develop the power of the chi stored in the body to increase vitality, strengthen organs, and promote self-healing. Mantak Chia explains how these exercises also provide a safe and effective method for receiving earth energy, which allows the practitioner to achieve balance physically, mentally, and spiritually--all of which are essential for the more advanced practices of Iron Shirt Chi Kung and Cosmic Healing.

It is our mind that directs and guides our chi, but if the mind and body are out of balance or under stress, the mind cannot perform this function. The tan tien actually contains a large quantity of neurotransmitters, making it a key source of body intelligence. It is for this reason the Taoists also referred to Tan Tien Chi Kung as Second Brain Chi Kung and created exercises that would allow practitioners to gain awareness of the tan tien’s function to restore the mind-body balance that is essential for spiritual growth and optimal well-being.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #353913 in Books
• Published on: 2004-09-01
• Released on: 2004-09-01
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Paperback
• 192 pages

Review
"...a joy to look at as well as read."
(The Empty Vessel, Winter, 2005 )

From the Back Cover
MARTIAL ARTS / TAOISM

Tan Tien Chi Kung is the art of cultivating and condensing chi in the lower abdomen--the tan tien--the fundamental power storehouse of the body. Known as the Ocean of Chi to the ancient Taoists, this lower abdominal area holds the key to opening the body and the mind for the free and continuous movement of chi.

Tan Tien Chi Kung contains specific breathing and movement exercises that develop the power of the chi stored in the body to increase vitality, strengthen organs, and promote self-healing. Mantak Chia explains how these exercises also provide a safe and effective method for receiving earth energy, which allows the practitioner to achieve balance physically, mentally, and spiritually--all of which are essential for the more advanced practices of Iron Shirt Chi Kung and Cosmic Healing.

It is our mind that directs and guides our chi, but if the mind and body are out of balance or under stress, the mind cannot perform this function. The tan tien actually contains a large quantity of neurotransmitters, making it a key source of body intelligence. It is for this reason the Taoists also referred to Tan Tien Chi Kung as Second Brain Chi Kung and created exercises that would allow practitioners to gain awareness of the tan tien’s function to restore the mind-body balance that is essential for spiritual growth and optimal well-being.

A student of several Taoist masters, Mantak Chia developed the Universal Tao System in 1979 and has taught tens of thousands of students from all over the world. He tours the United States annually, giving workshops and lectures. He is the director of the Universal Tao Center in northern Thailand and is the author of twenty-five books, including the bestselling The Multi-Orgasmic Man.

About the Author
A student of several Taoist masters, Mantak Chia developed the Universal Tao System in 1979 and has taught tens of thousands of students from all over the world. He tours the United States annually, giving workshops and lectures. He is the director of the Universal Tao Center in northern Thailand and is the author of 25 books, including the bestselling The Multi-Orgasmic Man.

Customer Reviews

New material that's been hard to find
Complaints that the info here is prefaced with the caveat that it's best learned one-on-one are understandable. If you don't have a good teacher and you hope to learn from a book, the disclaimer could be frustrating. That said, it's almost impossible to deeply grasp the subtleties of a physical discipline like tai chi or nei kung just from reading. But this book can deepen one's practice and understanding or offer a good foundation until one finds a teacher.

Disregard the "empty force" in the subtitle. This book is a collection of nei kung exercises that I have seen before only from one-on-one training. Most of the exercises have been needlessly cloaked in secrecy by teachers who deemed them suitable only for advanced students or those who had spent enough time (and money) to be considered worthy. Chia presents his version of them, and his sequence. They are designed to cultivate chi and corral it into the dan tien in a more vigorous way than softer chi kung sets. As such the exercises here are generally thought of by tai chi practitioners as belonging more to "martial" nei kung exercises--exercises designed to cultivate a body capable of withstanding blows and capable of generating powerful strikes. Whether you believe they work is an open question.

If you are new to tai chi/chi kung/nei kung and are interested chiefly in learning it for health and relaxation, this book isn't necessary. If you have a keen interest in the topics and enjoy reading about them, by all means, it's worthwhile. And if you're interested in the more vigorous, possibly "martial" aspects of it, this book is a valuable addition.

P.S.: I took a workshop with the author once and, unlike another reviewer, found it useful. Chia's material always strikes me as authentic, though there's such an abundance of it you have to take what's useful and leave the rest. Some of his books are among the most valuable works on the subject one can find, and he was the first to offer much previously "secret" info in English.

It's about selling more books, not passing on knowledge!
As a 35-yr. Tai-Chi pratitioner/instructor (alumni of Robert W. Smith and Sifu Willy Lin's schools) and martial artist competitor/instructor (Jiu-Jitsu & Krav-Maga), I found Mr. Chia's, "The Inner Structure of Tai Chi: Mastering the Classic Forms of Tai Chi Chi Kung", very detailed and profound. However, since acquiring fame and fortune from his Iron Shirt Chi Kung book and tapes, Mr. Chia seems to crank out one or two books a year, which only scratch on the surface of what could be valuable knowledge. His now ever-present disclaimer that, "in order to benefit from the teaching in his publications, one should be training with a Mantak Chia certified instructor and/or buy more of his books" should raise a cautionary flag to the serious inner essential energy seeker. Having attended one of his weekend workshops last year in Teresopolis, Brazil, I can attest to the fact that, while his multi-media slide show presentation was interesting (albeit, a bit long and winded!), the Tai-Chi portion of his clinic was so sad, it was laughable... to put it mildly! This book is a re-hash of familiar concepts packaged within a new cover and not worth the money. If the reader would like to get more technical about the nurturing and expansion of his chi force, I would recomend checking out "The Healing Promise of Qi: Creating Extraordinary Wellness Through Qigong and Tai Chi" by Roger Jahnke!

Misleading
I bought this book and one other by the same author expecting to get some useful information. Both books however begin with an introduction that none of the material in the books should be used unless you are already being trained by a qualified Tan Tien Chi Kung teacher. If I was already under instruction, I wouldn't need the books, yes? The introduction further states you must buy more of the books as these two books build on exercises in these other books. None of this was mentioned in the book reviews on Amazon.