Sam Mueller

RETHINKING OUR RELATIONSHIP WITH FOOD: An introduction to Energetic Nutrition

‍
Traditional food ways are repositories of ancestral wisdom regarding how best to nourish our
bodies and minds, and how to converse fluently with the ecology in which we are embedded. For
thousands of years our food sources, dietary principles and foraging activities have provided us
with a means of regulating our physiology through living reciprocal connection to time, place and
other organisms. In modern times these food traditions have been systematically eroded, resulting
in the loss of one of the primary means which sustains our integration with the natural world and
binds us together as resilient communities. We have lost direct intuitive connection to our food, its
nature and its sources. As a result the depth and quality of our nourishment, health and
connection to life has suffered greatly.

‍
The roots of this crisis lie in our separation from spirit but one of its primary expressions is a
disturbance to the physical and energetic connection to nature and other life through the
interruption of an integral relationship with our food and nourishment. Healing the food chain and
our alienation from the production and preparation of our food is an important link between
planetary healing and individual health.

‍
WORKSHOP CONTENT
In this workshop we will explore these threads and introduce the principles and practice of
Energetic Nutrition as a practical framework for reawakening a vibrant, living relationship with our
food and nourishment as an ecological process. “In Chinese medicine and philosophy, the body
and mind are not seen as a mechanism, but as a vortex of qi in its various manifestations
interacting with each other to form an organism” - Maciocia. Food, landscapes and climates have
their own qi which heavily impact human qi and vice versa. Energetic nutrition places food and
nourishment in a relational rather than extractive context. It is the science and art of skilfully
harmonising the qi of the human body-mind with the qi of the surrounding environment through
the use of food and herbs.

‍
ABOUT ME:
I have a lifelong fascination with food and its place in traditional medicine with a special interest in
the healing and spiritual traditions of East Asia.
My personal path is rooted in the Buddhist and Daoist traditions and I am a qualified qigong
instructor with the Lotus Nei Gong International school of Internal arts.
Before becoming immersed in the Daoist arts I studied homeopathy and naturopathic nutrition,
alongside biomedical sciences and neuroscience.

‍
I believe the ancient Chinese health arts offer a unique, cross culturally relevant and unparalleled
system of preventative healthcare. I am passionate about sharing these amazing practices and
teachings with others and helping to empower people to take charge of their own health and
wellbeing.

‍