The Story So Far...

Arriving in Colorado

When Jim first arrived in Colorado in 1981, from England, Acupuncture was ‘alegal’ - neither legal or illegal, as no formal decision had been made about it - and there were only a handful of practitioners treating patients. He was the first registered Acupuncturist in the State (registering with the State Board of Medical Examiners as a Physician Extender under Dr. Robert B. McFarland). In 1983 he was the Founding President of the Acupuncture Association of Colorado, a non-profit group of practitioners - including Donn Hayes, Ron Rosen, Molly Greacen, Zev Rosenberg and others -  who worked with the State Legislature over many years to get Acupuncture and Oriental Medicine recognized and approved. Acupuncture is now fully licensed in Colorado, and Jim holds the designation ‘Lic. Ac.’... along with over 1,000 other practitioners. He is also certified by the National Certification Commission for Acupuncture and Oriental Medicine as ‘Dipl.Ac.(NCCAOM)’.

The development of Acupuncture in Colorado can be seen in the following simple numbers. In 1981 there was only one registered practitioner in Boulder - in 2008 there are 83 practitioners listed in the local phone book alone, and two Acupuncture Schools in the area. Whereas there may have been a few hundred people getting treatment then, there are somewhere in the region of 50,000-100,000 people getting treatment every year throughout the State now. The early work and effort was well worth it, for the greater benefit of society.

Teachers and Training

Having primarily studied Acupuncture in England with Prof. J.R. Worsley, John Hicks and others at The College of Traditional Chinese Acupuncture, and prior to that for a year with Dr. Dick Van Buren and Giovanni Maciocia at The International College of Oriental Medicine, Jim graduated in 1977 and ran a practice in downtown London for three years before coming to the US.

His initial Chi Kung (Qigong) teachers in the early ‘80’s were Master Mantak Chia and Gunther Weil. Since then he has attended over a dozen international conferences in USA, Europe and China and been exposed to, and studied with, a wide range of teachers and styles.

Boulder Organizations

From 1982 to 1988 he was Co-Founder and Co-Director, with Anna Wise, of ‘The Evolving Institute - A Center For Personal and Social Evolution’. This integrated Acupuncture and Chi Kung with Biofeedback Consciousness Training.

From 1989 to 2007 he co-created and co-directed ‘The Body-Energy Center’, with Damaris Jarboux. The primary focus of this oranization was on Acupuncture and Chi Kung Healing, and training Chi Kung practitioners and teachers.

He is currently between organizations, but there is a strong suspicion that the next one will be something to do with Acupuncture, Chi Kung and The Tao.

Books

In 1993 the first book ‘Chi Kung - Cultivating Personal Energy’ was published, which gave a unique overview of the whole field. This eventually went into 7 editions and was translated into 9 languages.

In 1995 ‘The International Chi Kung/Qigong Directory’ was self-published as the first publication to present a world-wide listing of teachers and organizations at the time.

In 1997 the second book ‘Chi Kung - Alive with Energy’ was published by HarperCollins. The Foreword was by Prof. Feng, Li Da, President of The World Academic Society for Medical Qigong (WASMQ).

In 2002 the third book and final book of the Trilogy, ‘Chi Kung - Energy for Life’ was published. This contained unique contributions by 22 of the leading Chi Kung/Qigong teachers and practitioners in the West.

Although these books are now out-of-print and unavailable in bookstores, they are all easily available on the internet through www.amazon.com.

China

In 1993, Jim visited Beijing, China, to attend an international Qigong conference, look at some of the research being done by engineers, scientists and Medical Doctors there, and train with Master Su Jian Wan and others. During the visit, in recognition of his work he was made a Council Member of WASMQ.

In 2004 he visited China a second time when he co-organized a trip taking 20 students to study with Master Ming Tong Gu and teachers from the reknowned Shi Neng Hospital of Dr. Pang, Heming. While in China he visited Taoist and Buddhist monasteries and temples, where he meditated and practiced, and took part in ceremonies.

The National Qigong (Chi Kung) Association USA

In 1996 Jim was the Founder of the ‘National Qigong (Chi Kung) Association USA’ which has since become the major organization of its kind in the country [visit www.nqa.org]. Over the next 10 years he was kept well-occupied serving as Chairperson of various pivotal committees, including ByLaws, Standards & Credentials, and Elections, and represented the organization at national and international meetings and conferences. In 2005 he produced and hosted the 10th Anniversary Conference at the University of Colorado, with 250 people attending, and over 50 major teachers from the US, Europe, Israel, China and Japan. At the end of this conference he ‘Retired’, from all formal positions in the organization,

Prior to this he had produced other conferences in Boulder, and has been involved, through The Body-Energy Center, in bringing many distinquished national and international teachers into town.

Articles

Having written numerous articles for professional and popular journals and magazines, a recent review of the fascinating book ‘Qigong Fever - Body, Science and Utopia in China’ by David Palmer - which tells the remarkable story of Qigong in China from the Communist Revolution to today - has been published in the current issues of The Empty Vessel magazine in the US, and Tai Chi Chuan magazine in Europe. To read this review simply click on the link below.

Review: QiGong Fever

Acupuncture And Chi Kung

Over the years Jim has combined and integrated Chi Kung into his clinical Acupuncture treatments, and, like many other practitioners before him, has developed his own personal and unique style - like a pianist may create their own particular style of playing. To reflect this he now calls his work ‘Chi Kung Acupuncture’ using his many years of experience and training to integrate and increase the effectiveness of both modalities.

His Chi Kung teaching and classes has focused on ‘The Eight Extraordinary Meridians’ - a nine-month program which he has developed and taught over the last 25 years. This is a developmental and progressive training that incorporates an understanding of the primary anatomy and physiology of the human energy system, and the use of the Master and Coupled points to activate it. This innovative work and research has been presented at national and international conferences, and has been well-received. This website makes it globally available. Public classes will begin again in Fall ’08.

The Early Years  

Before discovering Chi at 25 years old, in the ‘60’s and ‘70’s Jim followed a varied trajectory. On leaving High School he went to Liverpool and Manchester Colleges of Art and studied Painting and Drawing for 5 years. Following this he ran ‘Nova Express Light Show’ working in the Rock’n’Roll business with such bands as Pink Floyd and The Who. He then worked in Community Arts in the docklands of Liverpool, engaged in participatory theate, co-operative games, film and video, and wrote the book ‘The State of Play - Theatre Games as Social Art’ with Bill Harpe at Great George’s Community Arts Project. From 1972-73 he studied with Anna Halprin at San Francisco Dancers Workshop, and wrote ‘Exit to Enter - Dance as a Process for Personal and Artistic Growth’ with her. On returning to the UK he created The Natural Dance Worshop in London, which taught and toured throughout Europe from 1975-1981. Having been introduced to Humanistic Psychology while in America Jim became involved in the field and was one of 12 signatories who created the European Association of Humanistic Psychology (EAHP) in Geneva in 1979.

His proudest achievement is having been a father/step-father to three children - Sonnet, Hagan and John - who have each now graduated into adulthood.