SELECTION OF QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS
APRIL 2013 PART 1

Sifu Roland and Grandmaster Wong

We place more importance on attaining good health, vitality and longevity, and experiencing mental freshness and spiritual joys

Question 1

I was an assistant professor at the Vienna University of Economics and Business and later a manager in a company. In 1999 I lost my right eye due to retinal detachment, in 2001 the deterioration of the left eye started. I had 13 operations (vitreous bodies removed, artificial lenses implanted, etc) with the result that the left eye is now nearly completely blind.

I can only see a little light. and with the right eye I can see 20% with glasses. The doctors had told me in 2003 that I would soon be totally blind on both eyes.

In 2003 I had to give up my good job. I had to retire at the age of 37 and my spiritual quest started and led me to a Brazil healer, who stopped the progress of the illness and I had a little improvement.

— Professor Ullrich

Answer

I am sorry to hear of your situation, but the wonderful news is that you have a chance to regain your eye-sight, attain good health and experience spiritual joys if you practice genuine, high-level chi kung. Please note the adjectives, "genuine" and "high-level".

Even in the unlikelihood that you do not regain your eye-sight, all is not lost. You still can lead a happy, rewarding life.

I recall a character in a kungfu story whom I admire very much. His name was Fa Moon Lau, which literally means "Flowers All Over the Pavilion". He appeared in a kungfu series entitled Luk Siew Foong, which was the name of the main character who was a kungfu knight. The story was written by a famous author called Ku Loong, which literally means "Ancient Dragon".

Fa Moon Lau was totally blind, but he lived a very happy, exemplary life. His kungfu was superb. By listening he could tell the characteristics of persons who came within ten feet of him. By sensing their movements, he could spar and defeat many kungfu masters. He was kind to all, even to his enemies who intended to kill him, and loved life. Although Fa Moon Lau is a fictitious character, he is an inspiration for all of us.

Question 2

Since then I tried several systems (energy healing and meditation), studied hundreds of books (I actually can read with a magnifier) with the only result that my condition did not get worse. Now I come to the conclusion that qigong is the best for me, but what system?

Answer

If you ask me, of course my answer is that the best qigong system is the one taught in our school, Shaolin Wahnam. It is not because I practice and teach it that I say it is the best. It is the other way round. Because it is the best that is why I practice and teach it. If there were a better system, I would have practiced that other system.

But it is not what qigong system you practice that is important. It is more important from whom you practice it. You will get better result practicing an inferior art from a superior teacher than a superior art from an inferior teacher.

If you ask me whom you should practice qigong from, logically I would say from a certified instructor from our school.

Shaolin Wahnam chi kung

Students enjoying their training at an Intensive Chi Kung Course

Question 3

To be honest I have to confess that due to the fact that I had to retire and spent much money for my journeys to Brazil and for books, it is currently not possible for me to come to Penang and to pay 1000 Euro for a course.

Answer

Many students who had similar or worse problems than you borrowed money to attend my Intensive Chi Kung Course. Not only they overcame their problems, some have become outstanding instructors in our school.

When I later knew of their predicament, my first thought was that I could have let them attend my course with my compliments. On second thought, I was glad that I didn't because if I had done so they would not have derived as much benefit from the course as they actually did. It was not that they wanted to get back what they had paid, but that they had full confidence in me in the first place.

I have no doubt that what you said was true. It is also true that if you believe you can overcome your problem by attending my course, you would find the money to do so, even if the course were to cost ten times more.

If you do attend my Intensive Chi Kung Course, identify yourself to me and remind me of your health problems. I shall open some energy points for you to speed up your recovery. You need not pay extra for this.

But I cannot promise you that you will surely recover your sight. I can only say you have a good chance. But I can guarantee that you will be satisfied with the course. If you are unsatisfied, you can ask for a full refund an hour before the course ends.

Anyone not satisfied with our teaching can ask for a full refund of the fee paid, and we shall promptly return it without question. But he or she will not be accepted by us in future. We do not want any student who is not happy to learn from us.

Question 4

Actually I have 3 books by you: "The Complete Book of Zen", "Chi Kung for Health and Vitality", and "The Art of Chi Kung". I have to mention that I am not only interested in bodily healing but also in complete spiritual enlightenment. Apart from the condition of my eyes I am completely healthy. I never smoked, made much sports (fitness, running) and I do not drink (sometimes a glass of champagne).

Answer

In our school, overcoming pain and illness is only a stepping stone. We place more importance on attaining good health, vitality and longevity, and experiencing mental freshness and spiritual joys.

You probably have a different meaning of complete spiritual Enlightenment than we have. To us complete spiritual Enlightenment is the supreme spiritual attainment any being can ever achieve. It is completely merging into transcendental Cosmic Reality, or returning to God the Holy Spirit.

While many of us have had a glimpse of this transcendental Cosmic Reality in our spiritual awakening, we are not ready for a perfect merging into it. We prefer to have a long, happy and rewarding life here and now.

The Art of Chi Kung

The Art of Chi Kung

Question 5

Please, which exercises from your books do you recommend most? I find "Lifting the Sky" and "Carrying the Moon" great. I also found the Shaolin exercises for the eyes on your website.

Answer

I would most recommend the exercises you already know, i.e. "Lifting the Sky", "Carrying the Moon" and the Shaolin Eye Exercises.

Obviously you have not obtained good results even if you have been practicing them diligently. This is no surprise because what is important is not what exercises you practice but how you practice them.

In other words, it is the skills rather than the techniques that are important – a fact not many people realize. This is why you have to learn from one of our certified instructors or attend my Intensive Chi Kung Course.


Editorial Note : Professor Ullrich's questions will be continued at April 2013 Part 2 issue of the Question-Answer Series.

Question 6

I remember that once you asked us to focus our chi at the ming men after performing "Nourishing Kidneys". What is the difference between focusing at the ming men and focusing at the dan tian?

— Sifu Roland Mastel

Answer

After performing the exercise, "Nourishing Kidneys", we may focus our chi at the ming men, i.e. the energy point known as the gate of life located at our back at our waist.

The ming men is also a dan tian, or energy field. But when we say dan tian, we usually mean the energy field located about two or three inches below our naval around the energy point call qi hai, or sea of energy.

Because the ming men is near the kidneys, when we focus chi at the ming men it is easier for chi to flow to the kidneys. The qi hai is more centrally located. So when we focus at the qi hai, we keep our energy at the centre of our body.

Carrying the Moon

Carrying the Moon

Question 7

I am new to chi kung. I have a back problem. Can I bend back when performing "Carrying the Moon"?

— Victoria, Switzerland

Answer

Yes, you can. In fact, you should. "Carrying the Moon" is an excellent chi kung exercise to overcome back problem.

Some doctors may advise their patients against bending their back when they have back problem. This is to prevent them from getting worse. The doctors are right according to their medical paradigm.

Chi kung works differently. It uses a different paradigm. According to the chi kung paradigm, your back problem or any pain or illness is due to energy blockage. Bending backward while performing "Carrying the Moon" will generate an energy flow that can clear your energy blockage, thus overcoming your back pain and back problems.

But will bending back makes your back problem worse, as suggested in the Western medical paradigm. No, it won't if you practice chi kung correctly. Many of our students who had back problems have benefited from this exercise.

Question 8

You told us not to tense our arms when performing "Separating Water". But I felt a lot of tension in my arms.

— Eveline, Austria

Answer

This is not tension, but internal force. Those who are not used to internal force, like beginners in chi kung training, many mistake it for tension.

You did not tense your muscles when you performed "Separating Water". But because of the position of your palms in relation to your arms, energy is consolidated giving you internal force which you have mistakenly called tension.

A good way to check whether it is muscular tension or internal force is to speak when you feel the force. If it is muscular tension, you would have difficulty speaking. If you can speak comfortably while maintaining the force, it is internal force.

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