Hsing-I – Chinese Mind-body Boxing

Frist edition, first printing.  112pp, with many monochrome photographic illustrations.  Orange cloth boards with red and brown lettering on the spine.  Brown endpapers.  8vo.  Cloth is a little tired, gently rubbed and rounded at corners and spine ends, with a few small, scattered marks.  Text block edges dull.  Internally neat, clean, bright and tight.

Hsing-i (also known as Xingyiguan) is a Chinese martial art, often included in the umbrella term of Kung Fu, often considered an internal martial art alongsideT’ai-Chi and Pa-kua.  Said to have originated with Yueh Fei, a 10th century General of the Northern Sung Dynasty, there is little evidence to substantiate this.  It is essentially a form of moving mediation, the term boxing being somewhat of a misnomer.  As well as an insightful section on the history of Hsing-i, this volume sets out the basic steps and techniques for the beginner – it was one of the first books to appear in the west on the practice.