Dan Miller

Dan Miller started his exploration of Chinese internal martial arts and health maintenance practices in 1983 with the study of Tai Ji Quan and Qi Gong.  In 1987 he added the study of Ba Gua Zhang and in 1989 the study of Xing Yi Quan.  In 1990 he founded and served as the publisher and editor of the Pa Kua Chang Journal, a bi-monthly periodical dedicated to the study, practice and preservation of the art of Pa Kua Chang (also romanized Ba Gua Zhang).

Starting in 1991 he began traveling to Taiwan, Hong Kong, and mainland China to study these arts and interview the older masters. He traveled to China two times per year from 1991 through 1994, staying for roughly four to five weeks each trip.

In 1994 he opened a Chinese martial arts school in Pacific Grove, California and ran that school, teaching Tai Ji Quan, Xing Yi Quan, Ba Gua Zhang and Qi Gong through 1998.  From 1994 through 1998 he also wrote, edited or published two books on Xing Yi Quan, three books on Ba Gua Zhang, a book on Chin Na (seizing and locking techniques) and a book on combat throws.  Instructional videos accompanied many of these books.

In 1998 he closed the martial arts school, discontinued the publishing of the Pa Kua Chang Journal and moved to the Appalachian mountain region of Virginia to pursue his interest in traditional American music and continue his practice of Chinese martial arts. He took a hiatus from teaching the martial arts from 1998 through 2016, preferring to focus on his own practice.  From 1996 through 2016 he was the editor and publisher of Flatpicking Guitar Magazine.  From 2020 through the present day he is the managing editor of Bluegrass Unlimited Magazine.

Dan moved to Columbia, Missouri in 2013.  At the request of some local practitioners who were interested in the Chinese martial arts, he started teaching again in Columbia in 2016.  At first he taught privately.  In 2020 he started teaching Sun Style Tai Ji Quan to a group class.  In 2021 he added an additional class for Yang Style Tai Ji Quan.  He also continues to teach private lessons and teaches Xing Yi Quan and Ba Gua Zhang to a group class one day per week.

Additionally, Dan runs a non-profit retreat center in Harrisburg, Missouri offering weekend music and martial arts retreats.  For the martial arts events, Dan brings in talented instructors from other parts of the country for special focused classes.  Some of these instructors are people that Dan formed relationships with during his travels to Taiwan and mainland China.