Reference Materials

This page collects practices, arts, and traditions that have shaped Michael’s path
over more than 30 years of study and teaching. These materials are not part of the
formal Trust & Transform or Taoist Magnetic Body curriculum — they are offered
here for reference, exploration, and personal enrichment.

Michael has taught classes in these disciplines across the United States and Europe
for three decades. The videos and documents here draw from that teaching archive.

Bagua Zhang is a Taoist internal martial art built around continuous circular walking
and constant directional change. It trains the body to move as a unified energetic
field — developing sensitivity, structural power, and the capacity to redirect force
without meeting it directly.

Michael began his Bagua Zhang training in the United States under traditional lineage
teachers and has taught the art for over 30 years in the US and across Europe. Its
principles of circular movement and yin-yang alternation run through much of the
Taoist Magnetic Body curriculum.

I Chuan (Yi Quan) is a Chinese internal martial art and health practice built entirely
around standing meditation postures. The practitioner holds a series of positions —
sometimes for extended periods — developing structural alignment, internal pressure,
and whole-body unity through stillness alone.

Michael has practised and taught I Chuan standing work for over 30 years in the US
and Europe. The stillness and internal pressure cultivated in I Chuan directly
supports the energy circulation work in the Taoist Magnetic Body curriculum.

Rope Flow is a modern movement practice using a weighted rope to develop full-body
coordination, spinal articulation, and rhythmic flow states. It bridges martial arts,
dance, and athletic conditioning in a single accessible practice.

Michael uses Rope Flow as a warm-up and coordination tool. Its wave patterns through
the spine complement the energy circulation work in the Taoist Magnetic Body curriculum.

Reiki is a Japanese energy healing system developed by Mikao Usui in the early
20th century. It works through the laying on of hands to channel healing energy
through the practitioner’s field into the recipient’s body.

Michael is trained in Reiki and has integrated its principles of channelled intention
into his broader energy work across 30 years of practice and teaching in the US and
Europe. It is presented here as a foundational reference for students exploring the
healing arts context of the curriculum.

A collection of meditation practices from various traditions that Michael has worked
with over more than 30 years — Taoist, Shingon Buddhist, Hawaiian, and somatic.
These are offered as standalone resources for personal practice alongside the
formal curriculum.