Opleiding The Art of Living

Tao and qigong, for a deeper connection to life

Training with Carsten Dohnke

New training The Art of Living

After the successful first training in The Netherlands and meanwhile Carsten’s 14th Tao training Europe-wide -a new training in the tradition of Tao has it’s introduction in September 2023 and realy starts of in January 2024, under the title: “The art of living”. The training consists of 5 modules each 4 days from January 2024 until April 2025.

An introductory workshop in September 2023 is open for anyone who is interested and who wants to have an impression of the training. During this module, Carsten Dohnke and our team are happy to answer all your questions.

What is this training about?

Carsten offers a unique combination where taoist practices, meditation, mantra practices, TCM and eastern tradition meet our western approach in our personal inner process, in our daily life, in contact with others, and during our exploration of our own creativity.

Carsten Dohnke’s mission is to make the Tao alive, tangible…As we will dive deeper into the Mystical part of the Tao, we learn practices such as communication and field work which enable us to open up to this creative ‚knowing’ field, and to be touched by life, by the Tao itself.

This training has been created for people who are open for a deep transformation and wish to make their own experiences. Participants will receive tools and learn practices that will help to deepen their own spiritual practice, and will also learn to support and heal other people.

Beginners or advanced practitioners of the Tao, those working as a teacher, coach, therapist, meditation teacher, those who are teaching or want to teach in the tradition of the mystical way of the Tao…all are welcome to deepen their practice in this unique training.

8 fundamental ingredients

Every module is build out of 8 basic ingredients:

Qigong forms
Qigong of the Five Elements, Crane Qigong, Cell Respiration Qigong, Shaolin Tendon Qigong, Rejuvenating Qi Gong, Qigong Warm-up Program and Water

Qigong Movement
Structure and energy work
Improvement of body structure, centering of life energy, development of inner strength, rejuvenation of the body, opening of individual joint spaces, Taoist breathing school, Taoist healing, opening of various meridians, training of presence, intuition and inner perception

Visualization practices
“Nei Guan” (the inner vision, to strengthen the glands and organs), opening the small energy cycle, meridian meditation etc., opening the inner channels, Taoist sexual practices to transform the libido into healing power and creativity

Meditation
The “emptying of the mind”, heart meditation, silent meditation, Dantien meditation, meditation while lying,

Healing sounds and mantras
Various sounds and sounds to strengthen the organs, to calm and relieve pain, famous mantras such. the tare mantra and amithaba mantra

Philosophy and theory
The essence of Taoism, various currents in Taoism, principles of Qigong, core ideas of Buddhism, ego, Tao and everyday life, principles of mysticism and alchemy, working with trauma, avoiding burnout etc., dealing with crises etc.

Medical aspects
Effects on the metabolism, the internal organs, the immune and nervous systems; the essence of TCM: yin-yang and five-element teaching, introduction to the meridian system, taoist acupuncture points, taoist self-massage for hands, feet, knees and head. Important Chinese herbs for everyday life, nutrition in TCM to strengthen the middle, balance of Yin and Yang and support of individual organs.

Didactics
Lesson building and methods, motivation, teaching for different target groups, structuring lectures, from the heart the participants feel, speak from the heart.

The training in detail

This is a training in the Taoist traditions of healing, philosophy, eating, moving, meditating, enlightenment and (self)-development. Carsten Dohnke will share his knowledge in the tradition of inner alchemy combined with the mystical way he is studying for the last 10 years.

You ‘ll learn a wide range of effective qigong forms as well as practices of the inner qigong. The training also includes meditation techniques, Taoist sexual practices to transform libido into healing power and creativity, Mantras and Healing Lutes, movements from water Qigong, the Tao of Communication, Foundations of Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM), and Taoist and Buddhist philosophy.

You will receive a comprehensive set of tools which can be combined in a suitable exercise program for different target groups. In addition, the training also provides space for a profound process of self-awareness and growth.

Taoism

Experiencing the essence of Taoism – a deep connection with Life, an inner arriving or even oneness with the Tao – that is what you can expect from the TAO-training with Carsten Dohnke. The fundamentals of the training are self-healing, strengthening one’s vitality, inner harmony and spiritual growth.
Taoism is one of the big wisdom traditions in the world, combining healing arts, meditation, knowledge of natural forces and philosophy into a practical path of inner cultivation, which starts with the strengthening and healing of the body. Important Taoist practices, such as movements, development of inner power and meditation, are all often taught under the umbrella term Qigong nowadays. Their common ground is the philosophy of Taoism, which has self-healing, vitality, inner harmony and spiritual growth as its fundamental goals.
One of the main goals of the training, is to not only learn about the vitality of the Tao in a theoretical way, but to actually experience it in a tangible way. You will experience a broader view of Reality, which may be fundamentally life-changing, and you will gain a deeper trust in Life.
And traditionally for the classes with Carsten a part of this class will be:

The natural Taoist movements are a combination of simple, flowing movements from Inner Kung Fu and Qigong. They refresh, rejuvenate and vitalise the whole body and create lightness and zest for life. From the whole package of movements, you can put together a customised program for yourself or your students.
In the training you will use your life force (Qi), your body and the power of your heart; those are the three doors to the Tao.

Qigong

Every qigong has its own focus and thus has different effects. As the Sun Qigong builds up our Yang and fills the cells with inner warmth, the Shaolin Tendon Qigong strengthens bones, tendons, and physical strength. Crane Qigong helps to return to a state of “lightness of being,” while the Floating Dragon Qigong rejuvenates by supporting cell renewal and strengthening libido. In the Qigong of the Five Transformation Phases, you will learn how to enter into a deep inner peace through the combination of movement and sound. By practicing different styles and forms, the essence of Qi Gong becomes more accessible to you in the context of Taoism.

The movements of the water Qigong are a combination of simple, flowing movements of the inner Kungfu and Qigong as well as various breathingexercises. They refresh, rejuvenate and revitalize the whole body, creating lightness and vitality. The movements connect us directly with our inner liveliness. From the different movements, you can create your own program for yourself or your students.

Healing sounds and mantra

Life in its essence is vibration and sound. Healing sounds and sounds therefore have a long tradition in Taoism. They have an uplifting or analgesic, calming effect or cause Qi to flow or internal blockages to melt. You will also learn important mantras from the Buddhist tradition. Through the direct path to your heart, they have a profound effect on your entire existence. Thus, the mantra Amithaba not only helps to fill the body with light and dissolve old patterns. It also supports the healing process or accompanies people in the dying process. Many awakened Masters have come closer to awakening with the help of a mantra.

Tao of communication & Field Work

Other important elements are the Tao of communication and field work to feel new potential. Here you will learn about finding deeper energy layers & resources to find solutions to important issues in everyday life.
During training, you will learn how to build up your life energy Qi, strengthen your body and make it supple while at the same time immersing yourself deeper in your heart.

Themes

1. The Essence of Tao (Essence of Taoism)
Basic practice: water qigong and meditation.
Theory: Taoism, principles of qigong, introduction to TCM and psychomotricity.

2. Melting with the Universe
Basic practice: Five Element Qigong and Water Qigong II.
Theory: Yin and Yang, Introduction to the Five Elements, Inner Peace Experience.

3. Introduction to principles of Taoist alchemy, breathing school, back school
Basic practice: iron-shirt qigong, and Taoist sexual practices, deepened learning.
Theory: beyond the ego, Buddhism, mysticism.

4. Enter the Tao Field (Enter the Tao-Field)
Basic practice: Qigong for rejuvenation and Taoist healing work.
Theory: different principles of healing, dealing with trauma, revision, etc. Principles of spiritual currents.

5. Change Your State
Basic practice: Crane and Shaolin Qigong, opening the inner channels.
Theory: Five Elements, Tao and Ego Part I. Fieldwork and Communication. Future meditation and field work to solve old entanglements

6. Beyond Life and Death
Basic practice: The Mantra Amithaba, Life and Death, Water Qigong, Dying, Dissolving Old Patterns.

7. High energy Qigong and the liveliness of the Tao-Qigong for cellular breathing and the opening of the inner Dantiens, the perception of energy fields, Tao fields, etc., experiencing the simplicity of being, coming in contact with the primal qualities of the organs.
Theory: intuition, communication from the heart, understanding fields.

Note: This overviewgives you the most essential information at the moment. Carsten will be traveling to Asia and stay in monasteries for his own training and development until March, so more details on the training topics will follow soon.

For whom is this training

This training is designed for:

Personal support beside the modules

This is a complete training, including personal support in between:

Extensive questions or a need for personal coaching in between, will be charged extra by Carsten with € 80,- an hour.

About Carsten Dohnke

His way of teaching comes from the mystical path of the Tao. He hast he ability to bring people closer to their heart anto who they really are. Out of this connection, he provides tools for our daily life, happiness, health and inner growth.

Carsten is able to create a safe and inspiring energy field, where everybody can develop at
their own pace. His teaching embodies growth on different level – physically, emotionally and spiritually. Horizontally changing our view towards ourselves, our problems, the outer world, and vertically towards heaven and earth and eventually infinity.

Carsten has more than 40 years of experience in taoist practice, meditation, Qigong and martial arts. He studied for 4 years with Shaolin-Maters China, has a master degree in Chinese studies and spent many years with world famous Qigong- and Tao- Masters. To get a clearer and broader view, he also studied western science , anatomy and philosophy. Assistence: Dewi de Waele.

Dates and times

The dates of the different modules and workshops:
Module I: 14-17 September 2023 (open module as an introduction. You will get to know Carsten and his way of teaching. Afterwards you can still decide to also do the whole training)

Four modules in a row: no new students will come in and in general no students will leave:

Module II: 11-14 Januari 2024
Module III: 11-14 April 2024
Module IV: 3-6 October 2024
Module V: 9-12 January 2025

After the training 2 further modules with special topics will be offered for every one that’s interested:
Module VI: dates still open
Module VII: dates still open
The times are always Thursday 10:00 until Sunday 17:00 (changes are possible).

Difficult to decide for the whole training?

We can imagine it is difficult to decide for a whole training covering more than a year if you have never experienced the training of Carsten before. So we offer you the possibility to join the open module in September. Just sign in for this open module and decide afterwards if you want to participate in the whole training.

Investment

These numbers exclude food and sleeping.

Training consisting of 5 modules starting 9 January.
Full price € 2627,-

Early bird price (before 19th of July 2023) € 2497,-
For fulltime students we have a special price: € 1497,-

For all prices is an extra 10% discount possible if you bring a paying friend to the training. This friend must be new to the training of Carsten.

For people that did the training before in the Netherlands and want to repeat, there is a special price: € 1875,- .

Payment information

By subscribing to this training, you agree to the payment terms:

• If you want to use the earlybird discount, your complete payment has to be on our bankaccount before the deadline of the early bird discount (19th of July 2023).
• Any payments can be done after receiving an invoice.
• It is possible to pay in segments for every seperate module. In this case you will pay €550,-/ module. And if you subscribed as an early bird €525,- /module

Participation and cancellation fees.

• The number of participants is limited.
• Registrations will be considered in the order of receipt of payment. Therefore, you are only definitively enrolled after payment.
• The cancellation fee for cancellations up to four weeks in advance is €40, up to 14 days in advance 50% of the course fee, unless you can find a substitute participant.
• After that, the full course fee is due if there is no substitute participant. Participation is at your own risk.

Language

All classes will be in English.

Location

We are very happy with our location: Landgoed Venwoude, Vuurse Steeg 1, 3749 AN Lage Vuursche
www.venwoude.nl

The costs for sleeping and eating in Venwoude are:

• One person room €124,35 voor 3 nights excl VAT/BTW.
• Double room €94,40,- euro 3 nights excl VAT/BTW.
• There is also the possibility to sleep in the classroom. You’ll have to bring your own sleeping gear. The costs are €55,- 3 nights including VAT/BTW.
• Bring your own camper or tent: €30,- 3 nights.
• Catering €150,- excl VAT/BTW for 4 days and 3 nights.