Many of you will remember hearing about or attending this summer’s Chi Healing Spiral. This was North America’s first ever spiral. This event was led by Master Mingtong Gu of Ashland’s Chi Healing Center.
I spent an evening with Master Gu in reflective discussion. Here is an account of some of our conversation. I think you’ll find this story interesting, and in the next issue, I promise to include more illustrations and notes of our discussion.
Mingtong Gu was born to a family of farmers in a small village in China, a village so small that its only significant reference point is a nearby historic landmark.
Mingtong Gu grew up in this rural location with a great exposure to the natural world and its beauty. As the cultural revolution occurred, educated teachers ventured into more rural areas of China, spreading education and ideas of a larger world. Mingtong was thus given the opportunity to attend high school and was eventually able to go to college. He was the first person in his family to do either. He entered college studying mathematics. While there, he was given another opportunity to travel with his professor to the United States to continue his studies.
When he arrived, Mingtong relates, despite the vast cultural differences he automatically felt at home. With an appetite to explore, Mingtong began his journey of healing and self-exploration that led him from UCSD to Harvard to Ohio State. His studies in mathematics eventually shifted into the fine arts. He was also introduced to the practice of Qigong, a practice which would complete the circle for Mingtong, taking him into a level of mastery and connection to his cultural past while rooted in the Western World.
Now located in Ashland, Master Gu has founded the Chi Healing Center. Why Ashland? Mingtong says Ashland has a good energy. That energy naturally pours out of the ground and is contained by the mountains. Ashland is a natural “Chi Pot.” We both laughed at that concept, so I thought I would create this illustration.
