Chris is the founder of Openhand. From an early age he has had a a keen interest and involvement in eastern philosophy and martial arts. Besides judo, karate and tai chi, he has practiced a number of forms of yoga including the ancient kriya yoga. He works closely with nature building on more recent experiences in shamanism...

"Around the time of my fortieth birthday I had a series of profound experiences through a sequence of traumatic incidents that at the time I found very difficult to understand. It was as though I was existing in two places at once. Somehow I had tuned into a bigger picture and was being guided to explore every aspect of not just my life but, the whole of life.

It was as if one by one, I was being challenged to surrender every aspect of my individual self that I thought to be real. With each surrender, the sense of coming home to my true self, although marked by a painful ‘initiation’, was joyous and intensely liberating. I felt that in losing myself, I had gained everything.

I have since come to understand the process as an expansion in consciousness where one begins to experience the interconnectedness of all life. From that point, I ceased to plan my life and allow quiet inner guidance to lead me to experiences.

I have a degree in chemistry from Oxford University which has provided me with a good grounding in ‘quantum energy’ which has proved invaluable to the understanding of the flow of ki - universal energy - through the body.

From this variety of experience, I began to see that that there was commonality amongst many spiritual philosophies and practises. They mostly involved techniques that would elevate one’s Ki and thereby expand consciousness. I believe this is one route to enlightenment.

From this realisation I was compelled to explore and examine these arts in more detail and to try to develop one art which would be accessible to all people and could be used for beneficial ends - to assist in the process of 'inner alchemy' to guide people to full realisation of their grandest potential. In my life right now, helping people in this way is what gives me the greatest joy, pleasure and sense of fulfillment."

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