Qi For Life and Pahka Dave Cowan, RN, CNMT, CHN

David Cowan, aka Pahka Dave, had a vision for spreading the practice of Chilel Qi Gong®.

He also had a vision to help others become skilled in Radical Self-Care. As a Hospice and Home Care Nurse he became a true healer. Meaning, he wanted his patients to have the tools to become their own healers.

David, the Nurse, did not think that people should not engage with Western Medicine. Rather, he believed that Holistic Practices offered additional options for improving and maintaining health of the Body, the Mind and the Spirit.

He trained in other techniques such as Healing Touch, NeuroMuscular Therapy, Hawaiian Lomi Lomi, and more, and went on to study with Luke and Frank Chan to learn the Medical Qi Gong method of Zhineng or Chilel Qi Gong, becoming certified to teach the method.

Upon leaving the traditional medical field, David treated people from his home on the Southern Shore of Lake Michigan in Indiana. Having additionally been trained in Traditional Swedish Massage, Lymphatic Drainage, Kinesiology Taping, he was always evolving his methods, and treated countless people with everything from stress to chronic pain and was often the ‘Miracle Worker’ that other therapists would refer to for issues that traditional techniques did not help. Doctors also sent patients his way.

AND….he taught Qi Gong.

He was tireless in his own self-care routines and felt the benefits. So…he wanted to share that with others.

Pahka wanted Radical Self-Care for ALL.

He had a heart full of Aloha*.

And, he had a heart full of his own griefs.

Sometimes, our grief breaks our heart beyond repair.

On May 22nd, 2019 Pahka Dave died of a heart attack and for me, his wife, and for family and friends and those he cared for, it has been a profound loss. I still occasionally receive requests for appointments, from people who had heard about him but had not known that he was gone.

HOWEVER!

Continuing to share his wit, wisdom and humor, as well as his original mission is important.

Pahka lives on here as well as in the hearts and minds of all he touched and influenced.

May you find the path of Qi Gong and Pahka’s Offerings lead you to Tranquility.

Please Explore!

~ Reverend Patti Shaffner*

*Aloha, in the Hawaiian Language goes far beyond what we think it means. It is not merely ‘Hello, Goodbye, I love you”. It is a way of recognizing wholeness in others. That we all share the “Ha”, the Breath of Life. “Alo” is what comes first, be it the door to your home, the future before you or the person standing in front of you. So to say that you have Aloha is to say that you recognize that the person you are with is full of the Divine Breath of Life. Compassion, in the dictionary, defines as ‘sympathetic pity and concern for the sufferings or misfortunes of others.’ Pahka believed that Aloha expressed more fully what he wanted to share and how he wanted to act in integrity with the people he cared for.

 

  • For More About Rev. Patti Shaffner go to her site: