A Tribute to Stuart Olson

My Taoism teacher Stuart Olson recently passed away. The Sanctuary of Tao wrote a tribute to him. I wanted to write my own.

I first encountered Stuart during the 2019 Qigong Global Summit. The Shift Network used to do them. Stuart gave a talk about Taoism. In it, he described it as an inherently antisocial philosophy. I perked up and thought:

“What? An inherently antisocial philosophy? I have to sign up to this guy’s newsletter!”

I did during the break. When I moved into the city, I thought that I would really do it! I would try to make myself get out and socialize. I even referred to it as social yoga. Even though I had some valuable encounters and good times, ultimately it burned me out. This led me to acupuncture, which led me to Qigong, which led me to the Qigong Global Summit where I heard this talk. I knew that Taoism served as the base for Qigong, and now I understood it as the opposite of the thing I tried which failed. I knew I had found my path and my teacher.

A few weeks later, the Sanctuary of Tao offered a course in a seated form of Qigong called the Eight Seated Brocades. Many have heard of the Eight Standing Brocades, but the seated form doesn’t get as much attention. It actually came first, from around 2000 years ago and has more to do with cultivating what we call the three Treasures.

The body has three types of energy: Jing (the fluids of the body, like water), Qi (the life force of the body accessed with the breath, like fire). Combining water and fire results in Shen (the spirit or consciousness). The Seated Brocades especially cultivated the Jing and Qi, which will naturally generate Shen. Just as Taoism serves as the foundation for Qigong, the Seated Brocades serve as the foundation for doing further internal work.

I loved the course. Stuart and his assistant Patrick did a great job teaching the course, and answered all my questions.

Shortly after the course ended, the Sanctuary of Tao sent out another email. They offered the opportunity to become what they traditionally call a Closed Door Student. This means a teacher and student having a one-on-one relationship for intense spiritual work. In modern times it meant regular group lectures, and meetings every two weeks on Zoom. I took it!

We began, and I learned so much. Eventually we each had to select a text which we would go over in detail during our private classes. I chose the Secret of the Golden Flower. This book talks about cultivating in the third eye, and I felt drawn to it immediately.

Taoists remind me a lot of Unix users. They write obfuscated manuals for other initiates with a lot of assumed knowledge. The Secret of the Golden Flower definitely has this quality. I would never have understood it without Stuart’s guidance and commentary. Even then I considered it a privilege. We would say that this happened because of our past actions, or karma.

Meanwhile, I realized that I had to move out of the city. I found a perfect house and they accepted my offer. Three days before settlement I had my regular meeting with Stuart. I came with a lot of random questions, and moving on my mind. He said, “I will answer your random questions, but next time I really want to get into the Secret of the Golden Flower.” I said, “That sounds good! Golden Flower! Next time.” Next time never came.

I packed with a lot of help from my family and friends. Right before I shut down my computer I checked email for the last time for real. I got a message from the Sanctuary of Tao that Stuart had cancer, and had to stop teaching. That did it for the city!

I made the move, then finally had time to contemplate the message. Previusly, they announced that Stuart had an infected kidney and had to take a break from teaching. Now the diagnosis shifted to cancer. I felt shocked and sad. I had a lot going on after the move, and just kept practicing. I held the vision of him recovering and of us talking again.

Sadly that did not happen. In early August, they sent out an email announcing that Stuart had entered hospice care. He passed away on the fourteenth. We had a memorial for him on the thirty-first. The Sanctuary of Tao wrote an article exploring why someone who practices longevity would die at age 75. Chapter 33 of the Dao De Jing says:

“Those who die without losing their power have longevity.”

Stuart did that. Now we have to continue. He wanted his students to understand things well enough to become teachers. I will let you know when I start offering classes. Even though we can’t have our regular chats on Zoom, I know that he still exists, and can still answer my endless questions.