..and this one has just landed. Our co-publishing venture with CS Tang has emerged, as Dragon Stretches Its Claws returns to our pages and the world stage, after a wait of more than 4 years (Today, searching for this book online, yielded prices of over $220! ). CS Tang and Plum Publications brings back this [...]
Jan
31
2012
31
2012
Jan
28
2012
28
2012
Gao Style’s Subtle Skills
A couple of weeks ago we announced the happy return of Luo De Xiu’s excellent 4-part (newly remastered) DVD series on Gao Style Bagua Zhang. The first 2 DVDs, Clever Hands volumes 1 and 2, became available in mid-January, and now the final two, Subtle Skills Volumes 1 and 2, are here. For those of [...]
Jan
27
2012
27
2012
George Xu’s Master Workout
Geroge is good enough to be a creative marial artist and is an idea machine for multiple approaches to the subtlties of practice…
Jan
26
2012
26
2012
Dragon Cards, of course
We rarely sell anything but martial arts videos and book but we were so charmed by Diana’s cards..
Jan
25
2012
25
2012
S147 Shaolin Green Dragon: Book & DVD
Another item for this year’s Dragon Collection! S147 SHAOLIN GREEN DRAGON FORM Green Dragon is said to be created around the time of the development of PiGua Palm. You can see the connection to Split/Deflect style in Wang ZhiHai’s presentation; wide open wing actions with whipping arms, high kicks and fluid transitions. The only reason [...]
Jan
24
2012
24
2012
Xin Nian Kuai Le! Gong Hay Fat Choy! Happy New Year!
Monday was the first of the ten day celebration of Asian New Year. With all the firecrackers, special dumplings, parades in the streets, tributes to the Kitchen Gods, visiting of the neighbors and family…it is too much to stuff into one day, so we get ten to enter in this year’s animal, The Water Dragon. [...]
Jan
24
2012
24
2012
Sonoluminescence: The Light at the End of the Tumble
We are filled with light, never forget that. But the metaphor of light used by so many is a weak substitute for the true light inside us. Some practices encourage this recognition. But too many half-heartedly pursued, improperly understood, lackadaisically researched impressions and clichés only dim the inner experience to weakly glowing embers.
Jan
23
2012
23
2012
Qi Droppings: All the Film That’s Fit to View #1
Plum’s intrepid correspondent, Gary Shapiro, scours the web, finding gems and treasures for our mutual entertainment. After receiving numerous links to these fine films, we finally decided we needed to share these with you, and offered to give him his own occasional column. These may not ever make it to a theatre near you, but [...]
Jan
21
2012
21
2012
A Black Belt Story
I start teaching the next class but I’m really bothered; on the one hand, Dan might just be claiming what never happened; on the other hand, I guess I could have forgotten I attended a ceremony, or something like that.
Jan
19
2012
19
2012
An Old and a New Xing Yi Book
This book is in the Li Cun Yi lineage and it combines (both in traditional Chinese) an old Xing Yi form text along with a newly photographed sword and 13 power fist set. Nice photos and, of course, neat old drawings of the 36 movement Xing Yi sword.
Jan
18
2012
18
2012
Key Concepts from the Tao Te Ching, Part 1
The Tao Te Ching, by Lao Tzu (circa 500 BCE), is not only a foundational text of both Taoism and Chinese culture, but also key to the theories and ideas behind many Chinese martial arts. Unfortunately the text is very inscrutable, regardless as to whether one knows Chinese. This inscrutability is due to its antiquity [...]
Jan
17
2012
17
2012
The Speed of Thought
The point is not that they should try to hurry up their moves, but that they should abandon speed as something they can “control” or “will” into happening.
Jan
15
2012
15
2012
The Dragon (finally) Stretches Its Claws
The Year of the Dragon brings great gifts upon the back of the Qing Long (the Dragon’s Chinese name), and one we know that you’ll like is the long out-of-print book, Dragon Stretches Its Claws: An illustrated Training Manual of BaGua Zhang by Liu JingRu & C.S.Tang. This is one of the modern classics on [...]
Jan
14
2012
14
2012
Enter the Year of the Dragon
The Chinese Year of the Water Dragon, which arrives on January 23, 2012, promises transformation and good fortune. Of the 12 animals of the Chinese zodiac, the Dragon is the only one that is not encountered in “real” life. It is a mythical creature, considered to be the ruler of Heaven, mists, and rain, and [...]
Jan
13
2012
13
2012
My Gripes About Push Hands
I remember Adam Hsu telling me that there had recently been a big Push Hands championship in China. Then, shaking his head, he said, “…and all the students beat the instructors.” This was hardly a surprise to me. I have officiated at Push Hands competitions and can see all the problems.
Jan
11
2012
11
2012
Jan
10
2012
10
2012
Baji and Pigua Books, Back for a Limited Engagement
Yes, we know: there is not enough material on the cousin arts of Baji Quan and Pigua Zhang, especially in written form. Our VCDs on these two arts still remain among our most popular, and the Baji and Pigua DVDs we carry (from Adam Hsu and Tony Yang ) are quite fine. So we’re happy [...]
Jan
9
2012
9
2012
Explosive Punching and You
This DVD offering is from our “other” site, the one attached to our school in Santa Cruz, California. Our school, the Academy of Martial and Internal Arts, offers self defense training. The teacher for this is John Ottenberg, the instructor on the Beyond Technique series. We like to offer his series at Plum because it [...]
Jan
6
2012
6
2012
Chi Kung and Qigong Books for the New Year
The New Year brings the return to Plum of a couple of old friends—Mr. Qigong, a Taoist fellow, and Mr. Chi Kung, a Buddhist Monk. They shake hands and meet on the same page, joined by other friends of similar persuasion. Confused? Don’t be! Just visit them and their cousins, by clicking the images… [...]
Jan
5
2012
5
2012
The Knights of Kung Fu
Many of the latter came from the Wu Xia, but now they were absorbed into the “system” and lost their reputations as lone wolves.
Jan
1
2012
1
2012
Bio: Chen Wei Ming
He stayed in Shaghai during the pre-revolutionary days of the 30’s and 40’s but took some time away to travel to Canton and introduce Tai Chi to Southern China.
