try "ultimate tai chi" , my copy is painted gold and was printed in the 70's...
No book on it comes close to a class/teacher.
i dont know and didnt know there were any tapes.
I agree with rodentmouse, forget the books/tapes and find a teacher.
Agree totally with Nagual and Rodentmouse.
There are many forms of Tai Chi - Round Form, Square Form, with & without weapons, etc. It is not something that can be learned from a book. You really do need an instructor or master that will know how to help you gain the most out of it. Once you find an instructor, they will probably be able to recommend a good book so that you can train outside of lessons.
Like Yoga and most martial arts, there's always some mob putting out a DIY series of tapes or books, but without the guidance of someone experienced in the art, there is so much that can be misinterpreted, and you just won't get te benefit, or worse, possibly injure yourself.
Regards,
James.
I concur with all of the above. I do not know the direct translation of "Tai Chi," but I know that chi energy can be dangerous if you experiment with it outside of certain parameters. You can make yourself very sick or do some damage to your internal organs. Each organ has a yin and yang aspect of qi (chi) energy, and if you mess around, you might develop problems with that organ. It has happened to me once, but I did not throw my energies off with experimentation. My kung fu instructor was able to rebalance them and I have not had a problem since.
Do any of you have recommendations on good tai chi books or tapes?
Thanks,
Mark