How do you say “Hello” in Kathmandu?

So happy to be in Nepal. Leaving behind the frenetic London mindset, I’m instantly immersed in the timeless atmosphere of invisible wisdom, total unpredictability, gentle kindness, and chaotic clash as ancient, modern, Buddhist, Hindu, and Western cultures stretch to coexist. “Hello” is a pretty good way to start a conversation. Nepal is a crossroads of many cultures. There are 123 different languages spoken as a mother tongue, with Nepali being the official language. Like Hindi and Sanskrit, Nepali is of the Indo-Aryan language family using the Devangari script. Tibetan and Dzongkha are of the Sino or Chinese language family, and…

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Arrivederci Santa Fe, Qigong & Food Sleuthing in London

Welcome to my travel log. Friday 3 August, 2018 – Saying good-bye to my temporary home in Santa Fe. Last month I moved out of my house and put everything in storage. Please, no comments on my luggage. It’s only 2 suitcases, a backpack, and a “purse”. Ha Ha! Sadly, I had to leave behind some of my of my favorite toiletries and supplements. Looks like I may be gone for several months… Took Norwegian Air from Chicago to London on the amazing new Boeing 787. Called the “Dreamliner”, it’s the healthiest way to fly, cuz there’s no toxic “bleed…

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Guidelines for Your Daily Qigong Practice

When you do a little Qigong every day, your body can stay in tune quickly and maintain its healthy meridian balance. Here are my guielines to create your daily practice no matter if you have 5 minutes or a whole hour. Of the many types of Qigong available, ours is the MOST detoxifying. We really need detoxifying of organs, muscles, and thoughts in these chaotic times. Five Seasons Medical Qigong vitalizes the meridians in a minimum amount of time, compared to other types of Qigong or a fitness workout. So if you do 5-15 minutes on your own each day,…

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How’s Your Drinking Water Quality?

In my Qigong classes here at Five Seasons Medicine, we’ve been testing various levels of drinking water. You’re invited to come practice Qigong, AND sample our amazing water! My Qigong classes are MW at 5:30 pm, Friday Taichi at 9:30am, and Saturday Qigong at 9:30am. Click here for details.  I believe that water quality, fluid clarity, and lymphatic drainage in the body are synonomous to health. If that is true, it would follow that the quantity and quality of the water we drink is VERY important. I do not need to discuss the problems with tap water, as this has…

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Benefits of Taichi and Qigong

Taichi and Qigong are often described as “meditation in motion.” But they might as well be called “medication in motion.”  These ancient mind-body practices can help treat or prevent many chronic health problems, says Harvard Women’s Health Watch. And it just might be the perfect activity for the rest of your life. This gentle form of exercise is slow and graceful. It doesn’t leave you breathless, yet it addresses all the key markers of good health: muscle strength, body awareness, flexibility, balance, bone health, cardiovascular function, inflammation, quality of life, stress reduction, breathing, oxygenation, mental health, and aerobic conditioning. What…

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How Many Types of Qigong? Which is Best?

Did you know that over 3,000 types of Qigong exist in the world? Which Qigong lineage is best? What practice is most beneficial to overall health? Which teacher is the most authentic? Which one is right for you? An enormous variety of ancient Qigong forms survive, and contemporary forms are continually being invented to address particular interests. During the Chinese cultural revolution of 1966 – 1976 and other periods of history, Qigong was suppressed, it’s practitioners and masters imprisoned or killed. Yet the sacred lineages survive, handed down in a continuous chain from master to student, going back thousands of…

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Transform Your Inner World to HEALTH and JOY with Qigong

Are you taking time to energize your inner life? Are you integrating your body, mind, and spirit? Five Seasons Medical Qigong represents the most authentic, efficient and detoxifying Qigong we know. It builds strength, flexibility and helps connect to inner joy. With this system you can vitalize your immune system, increase oxygenation, and stimulate meridian flow in just a few minutes a day. Srijana offers 4 classes each week: Mondays 5:30-7:00 pm, Qigong Wednesdays 5:30 – 7:00 pm, Qigong Fridays 9:30 – 10:45 am, Taichi Saturdays 9:30 – 10:45 am, Qigong Srijana teaches Yiquan Qigong in the lineage of Master Lam Kam Chueng…

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Srijana is Celebrating Losar in Darjeeling

Srijana is in the Himalayas for Tibetan New Year! Festivities begin on the new moon Friday February 16th 2018, and last for several weeks. This year is Tibetan Year 2145, the year of the Earth Dog, which represents loyalty, protection, and friendship. Losar, the Tibetan New Year celebration, can be traced back to pre-Buddhist times when Tibetans practiced Bön. The Tibetan word Lo means Year, and Sar means Fresh or New. It was an annual spiritual ceremony in which people offered incense to local spirits, deities and protectors. Traditional Tibetan Losar celebrations are observed for for fifteen days with incense, mantras, offerings to monasteries, monks, and lamas, prayers…

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What is Five Seasons Medical Qigong?

Five Seasons Medical Qigong is a total approach to health in body, mind, and spirit. You could call it a kind of meditation that penetrates, clears, and enlightens first the body tissues, then the mind, and finally the spirit. These three are ultimately inseparable. This lineage goes by several names including Zhan Zhuang Chi Kung, Yiquan, Xingyiquan, Taikiken, etc. Since its primary emphasis is the five element system for health, I am using the name Five Seasons Medical Qigong. Master Wang Xiangzhai, Master Yu Yong Nian, and Master Lam Kam Chuen Why I chose this lineage: I studied intensively with Master Lam…

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What is Taichi?

What is Taichi? To answer that question, we need to go back to the roots of Chinese culture – 6,000 years ago – to the story of Fuxi and NüWa. Chinese legend tells that the land was swept by a great flood in which civilization was lost and all people perished. Only Fuxi and his sister Nüwa survived. They lived on Mount Kunlun in Northern Tibet, and asked for a sign from the Emperor of Heaven to be man and wife. Their union was approved and they began to create a new human race. Fuxi is said to have showed…

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