Harmony Tai Chi Qigong 
Harmony was founded in Autumn 2002 by Sikung (meaning teacher of teachers) Alan Box with the aim of encouraging and enhancing the training of T’ai Chi Qigong in North Derbyshire and the surrounding area.
New students and anyone with previous experience of T’ai Chi and Qigong are encouraged to join Harmony after they have spent some time learning the basics in one of the several beginners’ classes held throughout the local area. New members will receive an embroidered Harmony badge and a folder to build up, in which they can store class handouts and other information.
There are weekly Harmony classes on Thursday afternoons in Matlock led by Val Box and Thursday evenings in Ilkeston led by Sikung Alan Box and Susan. Classes supervised by qualified instructors are available on other weekdays. Occasionally there are some workshops on Sundays, led by Sikung Alan Box.
Grading takes place in March and October. A new monthly class for Harmony members only starts in January 2008 at Wingerworth Church Centre, Chesterfield. There are summer schools every year in both Chesterfield and Ilkeston, for students to continue their practice.
Students are also welcome to attend classes with the Vale of York Tai Chi Qigong group (clicking this link will open up the Vale of York T’ai Chi Qigong Association website in a window)
Further details on our classes, membership benefits and grading can be found in the respective sections on our website. Simply follow the links on the left.
Sikung Alan Box studied under Grand Master Lowe for nine years and was taught LAMAS–style T’ai Chi Qigong. LAMAS T’ai Chi was a very secretive order. One reason for this was that this fine animal style had a soft and hard core. The practitioners would not let anyone join or even see their training techniques. In fact, not many people had heard of its existence, but in the reign of Emperor Wu of the Western Han Dynasty (about 200 B.C.) its devotees only had one secret Temple and to this day, no others have been operative.
In 2000 Grand Master Lowe instructed Sikung Box to create his own organisation. Since then he has provided instruction, gradings and workshops for both Harmony T’ai Chi Qigong and the Vale of York T’ai Chi Qigong Association.
Sikung Alan Box has worked as a counsellor at Nottingham counselling centre, and also has his own practice. He is a Reiki Master and has been practising Qigong for 17 years. He teaches classes to a wide range of students, including people with learning needs and a group with Parkinson’s disease. For the past seven years, he has been working as a registered tutor for Derbyshire County Council Adult Community Education Department. He gained a City and Guilds Further Education teaching qualification in 2001. Four years ago, he started working for North-East Derbyshire Social Services, teaching people of all ages and abilities.
He has reached the level of Sikung grade in Tai Chi Qigong. The CMA (Complimentary Medicine Association) recognises him as a Tai Chi Qigong consultant – register number 0882.
He became a registered instructor for the Dr Paul Lam T’ai Chi for Arthritis programme in 2005.
In 2003, he started a course to train students of the Vale of York T’ai Chi Qigong organisation to become instructors. This was a three year course. Since it finished, four of the instructor trainees have themselves begun to teach classes in their area. In 2006, he started his second instructor training course. Five of the trainee instructors are already teaching classes under supervision. A third instructor course will start in January 2008.
Alan teaches more than a dozen Qigong classes each week. He also organises workshops, seminars and demonstrations throughout the year. He has demonstrated and taken classes in Poland, Spain and Crete. He and his wife Valerie can offer corporate, individual, group tuition, demonstrations, tasters and fast track courses.
Tai Chi Qigong is suitable for all age groups, abilities and levels of fitness.
