European Zhineng Qigong Center arranged two nine-day courses in Zhineng Qigong this summer, level 1 and level 2. The courses are very popular, the number of participants have increased from about 20 during the first Summer Course in 1995 to around 300 participants in the courses during the last four years.

Like in previous years, the courses were held in the beautiful village of Hamburgsund in Bohuslän by the Swedish west coast. We live together in the Hamburgsund School, we are served nourishing food and we practise in the large gymnasium. The school is situated in the middle of the village, just by the harbour with its ferry going to the island Hamburgön with its beautiful scenery. A normal day at the course starts with Morning training before breakfast. Between breakfast and dinner, with a break for lunch, we have lectures and education as well as a lot of training. In the evening we have a group training and after that anyone can practise extra.

The courses are attended by all sorts of people; men, women, young and old. Some have good health and they wish to learn more about Qigong, others have health problems of various kinds which they hope to fix by joining the courses. What they all have in common is that they see the oppurtunity to affect their quality of life and benefit themselves through the training as well as the deep knowledge and wisdom Dongyue Su shares with us.

The atmosphere was good as usual, with fine fellowship and a definite will to help each other. The professional training gives us an increased relaxation and a greater inner calm, and the evaluation done after the course also bears this out. The nine days disappear quickly and after the course many persons feels that they have recharged their batteries and looks forward to face the daily life with renewed strength. Below some examples of what the participants wrote in their evaluations of the course:

• “All the time I take small steps forward towards an improved quality of life at all levels. I worry less, get less irritated, more happy, more positive etc.”
• “I feel much happier and more alive.”

The diagrams below shows some simple statistics from the participants’ answers to a questionnnaire.

Early in the Saturday morning we were gathered – fifty Qigong enthusiasts – at Arlanda Airport, to begin the much awaited trip to Thailand – a trip with Qigong combined with sunshine, heat, sight seeing, good food and all those other things that one can wish for on a vacation. Thirteen hours later we disembarked the air plane at the crowded Bangkok Airport. After a transfer we continued by air to Krabi and Koh Lanta, one of the relatively unspoiled islands, about one hour by air to the south-west. This time as we got out of the air plane the heat struck out against us like a wall. The minus 6°C of Stockholm had been substituted with the plus 30°C.

We were greeted by our trip organizer and we stowed ourselves and our luggage into the cars that were waiting for us. Then we were off, but the nice road near the airport soon changed into one full of holes, and we bumped our way along, sometimes on and sometimes off the road – and eventually we started to look yellowish red from all the dust that was swept up by the cars ahead of us. After two trips by ferry, we arrived at the place which was to be our permanent base for the next two weeks – Southern Lanta Resort on Koh Lanta. Oh, what a feeling – to get out of the cars, to see all the magnificent vegetation, the rolling waves of the sea, our little bungalows and, first and foremost – to get to eat real food (Thai Airways´ food in all respect, but, still…). Deep-fried fish cake with sweet sauce, Chicken soup with coconut milk, Fried fish with Tamarine sauce, Woked mixed vegetables with oyster sauce – well, how about that, eh?

The activities during the fortnight stay were well planned. The cool morning- and evening hours were very suitable for Qigong training. Accompanied by the waves upon the beach we practised Pulling Qi and Hold Qi Up under the guidance of Qigong master Dongyue Su. During the hot hours of the day we had free choices of activities with baths in the nearly 30°C water, strolls, visits to the local fair where they sell fruit, meat, fish, clothes and everything else that one might require. Many of us tried elephant riding in the jungle, a boat trip in the nearby swamp areas or rented a moped for a visit to the oldest place on the island – Lanta Town.

The excursion days offered both excitement and experiences out of the ordinary. During a boat trip we visited Bobo Island and we had a walk through a jungle with dense vegetation, termite nests and lizards. The visit to Koh Muk Island was a highlight, and also the swim we had in the narrow Emerald Cave. During a trip to the Trang province, which is located a couple of hours by car to the south-east of Krabi, we visited buddhist monks at the Sumano Cave Temple, which had been established in a number of caves. We were very kindly received and we were even invited for a short session of meditation. The canoe trip into the Le Cave Kao Kob, among lit stalactites and stalagmites was yet another great experience. During one of the last days of the holiday we had one of the ultimate highlights, an excursion to Koh Rok with wonderful opportunities for bathing and snorkel diving.

In summing it up: A lovely journey, it had it all; sunshine, bathing, joy and getting to know each other. A vacation with Qigong was a very successful combination and it is worth trying more times.