Articles | YMAA

Tai Chi for Relaxation: Dealing with Stress
December 10, 2012
We are faced with many kinds of stress every single day. Modern life is fast-paced. The images we see in advertising and on TV are flashy and rapid-fire. The media and Internet blast millions of images before our eyes and minds every day. Prime-time television is cynical and obsessed with action, murder, and mayhem.
Excerpt from DUKKHA—The Suffering, A Sam Reeves Martial Arts Thriller
November 26, 2012
Dukkha: a Pali term that corresponds to such English words as pain, discontent, unhappiness, sorrow, affliction, anxiety, discomfort, anguish, stress, misery, and frustration.
Traditional Tai Chi Ball Training
September 11, 2012
The tai chi ball is a traditional training tool used to strengthen the muscles, joints, and bones. It is also a method used to open and strengthen the circulation in the belt vessel. You may use any kind or size ball or any object that will fit between your hands for this exercise.
Hamstring Stretches
July 30, 2012
Because the hamstrings are the most stubborn muscles in our body, we need to constantly stretch them. If you think about it, the hamstrings are one of the muscles that do not have any strengthening exercises.
Taekwondo-A Powerful Tool for Self-Defense
May 14, 2012
The martial art of Taekwondo, literally meaning "art of hand and foot fighting," is more than two thousand years old. Yet its physical and spiritual content have never been so vigorously sought after and practiced as it is now.
The Third Eye or Spiritual Breathing - May 7, 2012
The third eye is located behind the forehead, between the skull and the brain, in front of what is also called the spiritual valley or the crack between the two hemispheres of the brain.
Yang Tai Chi for Beginners - January 29, 2012
Yang-style Tai Chi is the most popular form in the world, with millions of practitioners. Since the Yang family popularized Tai Chi during the 1800s, the form has been passed down from teacher to student in an oral tradition, resulting in a wide variety in the way the form is practiced.
On Writing Dukkha - The Suffering - January 16, 2012
As a Portland, Oregon police officer, my partner and I once responded to the 12th floor of a high rise where a deranged man had just fired seven rounds from a shotgun into the face and chest of his psychiatrist.