We’re excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful Minie Ramasamy. We hope you’ll enjoy our conversation with Minie below.
Minie, appreciate you joining us today. If you had a defining moment that you feel really changed the trajectory of your career, we’d love to hear the story and details.
I still remember that day. The day that led me into a gradual life transformation which still continues today.
THE FIRST DEFINING MOMENT
The memory is as clear as daylight 20 years ago in Northern Norway. I was a newbie in qigong and tai chi still wet behind my ears. So to learn more, I organized a qigong health workshop for the first time in my town with a guest qigong Master. It was a great turnout, we had a great locality and a successful workshop. Then, on the final day, just before we ended the session, the Master thanked everyone for attending, turned towards me and announced that I will be their instructor with weekly sessions . I was stunned!
STUMBLING ALONG THE WAY
And so, there I was, with no little training, knowledge and skills, facing 15 delighted students, ready for their next weekly qigong class! The next few days were imperative to get my act together. My qigong master, gave me his full support by teaching and training me a few times a month in Oslo. Friends in town helped in finding me a locality and within two weeks I was ready to take the first step in a career that was beyond anything I know. The first month of instructing was awkward. I was nervous and a little self conscious in doing things correctly. Nevertheless, as time went, my confidence as an instructor grew. I become more relaxed, aware and conscious of the exercises and the positive response from my class.
A TEST OF FAITH
Looking back today, I believe the Universe gave me a unique opportunity for success, abundance and happiness for the next 100 years if I had faith and trust in myself. Was I willing to give up my comfort zone and jump in the unknowingness?
I did jump though! I knew deep inside this was a golden opportunity despite the challenges, hard work and sacrifices and heck, I could also find something else if I failed.
So what really made me jump into the fray? Deep within it was my love for the ancient health and spiritual art Qigong. That was my motivation and today my success.
RIDING THE WAVZ…and falling
My journey as Golden Pearl qigong instructor and mentor began 20 years ago in Northern Norway. For the next 10 years, I gave numerous workshops and classes in the region to private groups, companies, schools, health personelle and organizations. In addition, I created, together with my qigong groups a heart-community where group members have a place to share, support, help the community as well as have a good time together.
From 2005-2010 I began receiving invitations to give workshops in parts of Europe which then lead to me organizing holistic/spiritual in collaboration with international speakers.
This was an amazing time for me and I was “riding the wave”, meeting interesting people, networking, empowering others, learning new skills and earning. At the same time I was teaching part-time at a local college, caring for my two teenage sons and travelling. What I didn’t know was that I was “burning the candle at both ends”, which soon lead to a burn-out. I was exhausted physically and mentally, unable to work for nearly a year.
…and then, the second defining moment appeared out of nowhere!
My personal life took a 360 degree turn when a wonderful man came into my life, swept me off to Korea to live for four years, far away from the life I had before. I had time to recover and recharge and after a year, restarted the qigong and began to develop my latent artistic talent.
Today I am back in Norway living by the Oslo fjord, have established Qigong classes and groups and having art exhibitions in the local areas.
WHEN THE STUDENT IS READY, THE MASTER APPEARS – My second Defining Moment
In October 2023, my qigong Master (the same one), founder of the Golden Pearl Method made me the custodian and owner of his life’s work to continue teaching and training in Norway and internationally. I knew deep inside that I was being prepared for something big, but had no idea what it was until the announcement was made. This is a big undertaking, but I know I was being prepared spiritually and mentally for this moment, this defining moment that will catapult the sum of all my work from my first nervous start an instructor to a mentor, leader and teacher in the Golden Pearl Qigong for higher consciousness.
LESSON LEARNT :
Listen to your heart, trust your gut-feeling when it comes to choices we have to make along the path.
Great opportunities are seldom, so be aware and ready when they come.
Fear is a show stopper!
Ask yourself, what is the worst than can happen if you are faced with a major decision.
Be creative, work hard and enjoy the process. Believe that you are the master of your ship.
Take every challenge as a lesson learnt to strive and be better.
Lastly, listen to your heart and body. Know when to take a break, have enough rest and prioritize your task and be aware not to overload, especially if the demands begin to put a toll off on you.
As always, we appreciate you sharing your insights and we’ve got a few more questions for you, but before we get to all of that can you take a minute to introduce yourself and give our readers some of your back background and context?
As a child, growing up in a Hindu family in Malaysia, spirituality was part of our daily life with God always in the center in our home. My mother and grandmother engrained in us to be kind, helpful and compassionate towards those that have less or were suffering, a wisdom that I now pass to my children. Thanks to my family, those formative years of my life engrained a wisdom that became my calling and mission in my life.
After 25 years of experience in various aspects of holistic health, I have today honed down my career as an instructor/ mentor in Golden Pearl Qigong and life & spiritual coaching. It’s hard for me to explain the exact details of my work as it is also subjective, just like art. I’ll try.
Firstly, about my personality and self: From young I have always had a positive yet a sensitive nature which today can be termed an empath, but a balanced one, thank goodness ( a lot qigong helps). I am athletic, love the outdoors and nature, adventurous, spiritual, knowledge seeker, creative and artistic. I have a big heart – I feel people’s inner pain and joy, I see their soul. I attract people that want to be heard, healed, loved. I have to thank qigong, for developing the awareness of my innate talents and embracing them completely. It has taken almost 10 years, before I dared to show my true self and who I truly am to the public, unafraid of ridicule. I have to say, this is truly liberating for both my soul, mind and heart.
My vision
To equip and help others liberate themselves from the conditioned-self, awaken their latent talents or gifts, become creative and share it to the world. At the same time, equip and help others awaken, create a ripple effect in each community and more, creating a better and positive world for the future generations.
My contribution to the vision
In the previous page, I wrote about my 2 defining moments which have changed both my personal and work life. In a way, my personal and work life sometimes navigate into each other, they influence my personal growth and creativity. To put it short, they are not separate, but a part of who I am. The product, is the Golden Pearl Qigong.
What is the Golden Pearl Qigong and why is it unique?
Founded and developed by qigong and tai chi master, Master Pierre Marleau in 1995, the GPQ is a unique method that will help you develop and externalize the power of chi or life energy within yourself for maximum health and longevity. With practice, you will also experience a form of higher consciousness or frequency, enabling you to connect to your higher/intelligent Self and heart. This is when magic happens. This is where your latent talents, gifts, creativity and who knows what other amazing stuff you have will awaken and manifest, when you consciously will it with your heart. To come to this point requires training and dedication and this is where the Golden Pearl Method is unique and stands out from other qigong training methods.
The core of the GPO method is heart based. Our mantra is still, gentle, soft… still gentle, soft…..
Here is a little peek into how I prep the class:
We sit comfortably, with the spine straight, feet flat on the floor and hands open, gently placed on our laps. As you sit, still and relaxed, you begin to still the mind with guided meditation and soft music. You start to flow, thoughts become passing clouds and soon relaxed and still. Chi begins to flow, your breathing slows down and you fall into a theta state. Once this is established, we then begin the training.
In the course of my career as a Qigong instructor and mentor, I have held classes and workshops for individuals, health personnel, schools and companies. Most of my clients were interested to learn how to reduce stress and find balance in their personal life and work place. Others, for example high school students, wanted to manage pre-exam stress and anxiety with easy qigong techniques. Some clients, namely women were interested to use qigong to develop their spiritual faculties while the majority focused on maintaining their physiological and mental health for their future.
The Golden Pearl qigong has changed my life beyond what I ever dreamt of. From that defining moment in 1998 when I was chosen to teach by Master Pierre Marleau and recently to be given the ownership of the Golden Pearl Qigong, is such a great honor. The torch is passed, and I have the responsibility to develop and expand the business to the next level in 2024. The plan is to start a school to train instructors in the GPQ method, which we are very excited about. More later.
Other than training/knowledge, what do you think is most helpful for succeeding in your field?
In my field as a professional qigong instructor and mentor, training and knowledge is very important, but it’s not the driving force for success. What I have learnt ( sometimes the hard way) is to be aware what your INTENTION and GOAL is to make this your career. The other most important factor for me is LOVE for what I do. Loving every bit of it, in both good and bad times. Thirdly, never give up! Strive strive strive and believe in your success.
How’d you build such a strong reputation within your market?
Networking! Being out there, meeting people in various platforms both professionally and socially. Let people know who I am , my unique personality and what you stand for. With networking, I become the “familiar face” or the one with the “big smile” or the “qigong master”. It also helps with my ethnic background, which is an advantage as people remember me, plus working with qigong, something beyond the norm. Yes definitely, it’s networking and word of mouth.
Contact Info:
- Website: www.golden-pearl.org
- Instagram: goldenpearlqigong
Image Credits
Cato Aurtun