COLLEGE OF TAO

OCTOBER 2025

NEWSLETTER

Being and Doing: A Taoist Path to Wholeness

By Dr. Mao Shing Ni

This past September, we gathered in the breathtaking Swiss Alps for another Taoist retreat—a place where snow-kissed peaks, meandering streams and waterfalls, and the crisp autumn air reminded us of the quiet majesty of nature. Surrounded by mountains that have stood for millions of years, we reflected on one of the central challenges of our modern lives: balancing being and doing.

In Taoist teaching, life flows best when yin (being, receptivity, stillness) and yang (doing, action, expression) are in harmony. Yet in today’s world, the pendulum often swings too far toward doing—constant striving, achieving, producing. This imbalance leaves many of us exhausted, anxious, and disconnected from our deeper nature.

The Alps offered us a living metaphor: the peaks reaching upward represent our doing, while the deep valleys and still lakes embody our being. Both are essential. Without the valleys, the mountains would have no form. Without stillness, action loses its clarity and purpose.

Taoist Principles of Being and Doing

North Star—the Still Point 

Just as the North Star anchors the night sky while the constellations revolve around it, our still point anchors the heart and spirit, allowing us to engage in the busyness of doing without losing touch with the essence of being. 

At the retreat, we practiced Dao-In and Qi Gong in a cave—an enormous studio built into the mountain! We practiced stillness and moving not with force but with flow.

By regularly returning to this inner stillness through breath, meditation, or a moment of silence, we cultivate clarity, direction, and resilience in a world that often pulls us off course.



Next time you feel rushed, pause and step back. Let the situation unfold before acting.

Balance of Yin and Yang

Taoism teaches that yin (stillness, reflection, being) must nourish yang (movement, productivity, doing). At the retreat, we alternated lectures, interactive dyad sessions and movement practices—a balance of yin and yang. Participants noted that they found themselves more in their bodies and less in their heads. When you can bring balance into your life you will find your creative insights flow effortlessly because stillness fertilized action.

Try to create daily rituals of yin to balance your yang—five minutes of morning breath work, an afternoon tea break without screens, or a quiet walk after dinner.

Returning to Nature

The Tao is often called the “Way of Nature.” The Alps reminded us that we, too, are part of this great living system. When we allow ourselves simply to be—listening to birdsong, watching the clouds, or gazing at the stars—we remember that we don’t need to earn our place in the universe. Being itself is enough.



Try to schedule “unproductive” time in your week. Sit under a tree, lie on the grass, or listen to the sound of water. Let nature recalibrate your nervous system. 

Integrating Being and Doing

In our everyday lives, the key is not to abandon doing but to root it in being. From this space, action becomes more sustainable, relationships more authentic, and health more resilient.



A Gentle Invitation

As you return to your own routines, I suggest that you ask yourself:

• Where can I allow more stillness to root my actions?
• How can I create space for being amidst my busyness?
• What daily practice will help me embody both yin and yang.

The mountains have returned to silence, but their lesson endures: When we honor both being and doing, we live in harmony with the Tao—and with ourselves. 

 (If you are interested in attending next year’s retreat in the Swiss Alps from October 8-11, 2026 organized annually by Claire and Peter Cunneen of Chi Rivers of Geneva, please sign up here Now. Limited space. This past retreat was sold out.)

COME VISIT

THE COLLEGE OF TAO

College of Tao Retreat 2026

North Carolina

Walking the Way

Living Tao in a Changing World

Where Spirit & Health Meet Happiness

 Set amidst 380+ breathtaking acres of pristine forest high up in the Blue Ridge Mountains of Boone, North Carolina, the Art of Living Retreat Center is a renowned sanctuary of peace that eases the mind and inspires the soul.

Please join Dr. Mao and the College of Tao in person for a nurturing experience of gathering Qi and Ancient Wisdom from the Integral Way. All participants will receive Recordings of entire event.

REGISTER HERE TODAY

Space is Limited

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Discover your inner balance and awaken your Qi.

Don’t miss this incredible experience. 

The Annual College of Tao Retreat Awaits You



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• + Other FAQs

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When the Universal Mother speaks to me,

she speaks through the sky, sun, moon, stars.

She speaks thought the Earth,oceans,rivers,lakes,streams.

And she speaks through the mountains, trees and meadows

Love of Mother Universe by Hua-Ching Ni & Dr. MaoShing Ni

Sunday Renewal

On Sundays at 7:00 am PT, you are invited to join us via Zoom in a Spiritual Renewal Ceremony facilitated by the Ministers of the Integral Way. James Tuggle, Arnold Tayam and Edward Sullivan along with others will guide us in how to apply the wisdom of the Integral Way. There is no fee for the College of Tao community, friends and family.

Join Zoom Meeting Here

Meeting ID: 136 428 813

Passcode: 006090

Find your local number:  Click Here

The Three Purities

Learn more: Read about the Three Purities

Chapters 62 and 63 of the Hua Hu Ching

Commentaries to Hexagrams 17 & 56

I Ching The Book of Changes and the Unchanging Truth

Chapters 4 & 5 Eternal Light

all written by Hua-Ching Ni

A Time of Balance and Renewal

Renew your Chi Health Certification Today

Consider Becoming Certified in a Chi Health Movement, ITMI, Nutrition or Feng Shui Course

The College of Tao and Traditional Chinese Healing offers instruction for both academic and spiritual growth. Being certified helps you embody these valuable ancient practices. Whether you are sharing with one person or an online presence that touches hundreds of people, you are helping to bring balance and help heal the world.

For More Information Enter Here

Please Renew your Chi Health Certification for 2026

Renew your Certification Here

Our Next Support Gathering for Certified Teachers is on November 23, 2025

Save the Date

Tao of Life Tele-Study Group

Thursday October 16, 2025

5:30 pm - 6:30 pm PT

Click Here to Join



Meeting ID 839 6061 8537

Use Passcode 2825

The Five Healths 

for a New Humanity

by Hua-Ching Ni & Mao Shing Ni Ph.D

This month’s selection is from Robert Bruce.

Chapter 1 The Spiritual Heritage of the Yellow Emperor pp. 1-12

This Chapter grabbed my attention with the expansive explanation of Teh. Up until that point, I had simply equated Teh and virtue.  

The elucidation here adds depth and complexity to the concept of Teh, including its relationship to Tao and our conception of God. 

There seems to be important implications to be drawn from this in the way we cultivate ourselves spiritually. I feel like I need a deeper, or perhaps just a clearer understanding of these implications, and would appreciate the insights of the group into this material.

Thank you!

Dr. Daoshing Ni, a 38th generation doctor of the Ni family lineage, facilitates this monthly Tele-Study group.

If you have any questions, please contact:

vladimiriliev@sbcglobal.net



CLICK HERE to purchase book

Please contact Su Wong,

ITMI Teaching Association Coordinator

itmiteachingassociation@gmail.com

Questions? Contact facilitator Amira Kusala

amira.cultivating.harmony@gmail.com

This Qi Gong was designed by Dr. Mao Shing Ni specifically for a Weight Wellness program with his patients that also included a Nutritional Diet Plan. Ongoing classes reveal that metabolism is benefited and Weight Wellness includes everyone regardless of their weight. If you are underweight it will support balanced healthy weight also. This practice has elements from Dao-In, Breathwork, Self-massage and Acupressure. We always harmonize our Inner Family - our Organ Systems.

More on the Yellow Emperor

Work to Serve and Teach

photo by Alannah Fitzgerald

Breath Serving as a Master Key

 by Alannah Fitzgerald

Life is quite a school, quite possibly the best there is, teaching us many things. As we journey through life, sometimes stumbling as we go, at other times soaring like an eagle or just simply walking along, we learn that “the low forms the foundation for the high”. I once heard someone say that “it’s what we do when we’re up that brings us down and it’s what we do when we’re down that brings us up”. Life has certainly given me uncountable occasions to study and apply this person’s words, to experience their meaning. 

I feel sure that many, if not all of us have come to the realization that the deeply enriching process of serving others in various capacities including teaching, provides a great opportunity to exercise our personal cultivation through practical action. It affords us a chance to observe and further examine our inner life more deeply. 

We may wonder how our breath figures into the equation as a “master key”. And what relationship might this have with service? It seems it serves a profound role. Do you perhaps remember times when you stopped and took a few deep breaths to restore calm and centeredness? To just let go and allow yourself to simply be? Moments when you’ve breathed a sigh of relief, an indication of releasing unease, stress and tension? I mention all this with the humble intent of suggesting that as our willingness to take the time to consciously focus our inner attention on our breathing, with intention, we give ourselves this moment now, to choose a state of conscious awareness, to simply observe, as we breathe into our inner stillness, to be dynamically present within this silence, to see clearly from within this sacred spaciousness. Here, our conscious energy can see without judging, can listen without interruption, and can accept without trying to control. Living with this awareness, we are relaxed, centered and grounded. We hold space without filling it. 

Presence is the most profound form of love. 

Respecting and holding our inner space as sacred and precious, because it is, while remaining conscious of breathing with focused awareness, connects and grounds us in body, mind and spirit —  actively listening within the inner silence, within inner stillness. It is quite simply to hold space without filling it. In any form of service, as we give of ourselves to another or others, is it not wisest rendered with profound Presence?

Brothers of the Heavenly Way

September 15, 2025

BROTHERS MEETING

In his books, Master Ni has chosen to elucidate all of spiritual truth, both at the beginner level and the advanced. In Chapter 5 of Eternal Light, his advice is simple, practical, yet quite advanced.

According to OmNi (Master Ni), in your lifelong spiritual cultivation it is important to have mental and psychological breakthroughs from time to time. These breakthroughs allow you to go deeper into spiritual awareness. Here, he instructs us to place our mental focus on our Middle Tan Tien. This advice is not just for meditation. Focusing your mental energy in the Middle Tan Tien is not hard for short periods of time – but what about longer periods? What about during daily life? For most people, doing this practice in daily life is going to be a challenge.

The intellectual mind never stops moving. It is always talking to itself about everything it encounters. But avoiding such mental scatteredness is important and it is something every spiritual practitioner can understand. To quiet your mind, put it in the Middle Tan Tien. Doing so will channel your mental energy properly. This spot is known as the “Sea of Tranquility” and you can feel it when you put your mind there.

Eternal Light, page 60.

You are welcome to join us for our next meeting 

on Sunday October 5, 2025 at 10:00 am PT 

Please email Rob Bruce: 

RBTBRC@yahoo.com

Sisters of the Heavenly Way

 Lao Tzu said:

“I am a good human being already. There is nothing I need to 

add to the healthy benign nature of my life.”

Knowing ourselves this way—as good enough already—requires a shift in attention.

An attention that moves inwards and softly rests, calms, more and more deeply, into and as its unformed Self. Folding inwards and resting involves willingness, humility and trust. Here, we can receive the True Reality of Life and respond cooperatively with Her, rather than be swept away by mental divisions and societies “false urgencies”.

Moving inwards, resting and being humble, corresponds to the nature of the feminine, whose ways allow Life's True Nature to shine.

Our next Sisters gathering is on:

Sunday November 8th at 7:00 am for West Australians, and 

Saturday November 9th at 4:00 pm for Californians.

Contact Barbara Wolff to join:

Sistersofuhw@gmail.com

39 GEN PODCAST

This podcast is a gateway into all things Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM), offering insights to the wisdom and healing at Yo San University. Whether you a...

Amira & John Kusala so appreciate all your kind help. Thank you for your continued support.

Sue Sullivan is organizing this fundraiser.

Your amazing donations so far have helped them stay positive and vigilant in their search for work and housing. We thank you as your generous hearts; you are making a difference, but there is still more help that is needed.

Any amount of help would continue to be a huge blessing for them, and bridge the time to relocate & find a new position.

Both Amira and John have spent their whole lives giving to others and helping those in need. After many years of selfless service they have suddenly lost everything - their Home and Income - due to unfortunate circumstances beyond their control.

If you know of anyone looking for experienced, kind and responsible property caretaking, please get in touch with me at the College of Tao -college.tao@gmail.com. I can share their caretaking experience resumé if you need it.

Your Benevolent Donation is so greatly appreciated.

Thank you so much for your kind help.

With Endless Gratitude,

Sue S. Sullivan

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