Michael Rinaldini

shifu Michael Rinaldini (Lichangdao) is a high level qigong teacher and 22nd generation Longmont Daoist priest. He is founder of American Dragon Gate Lineage and has been training and ordaining new priests and lay members since 2006. shifu Michael teaches qigong locally in Sebastopol, CA and offers a 350-hour Qigong Certification course, available for local and distance students worldwide.

shifu Michael began writing his journal books in 2013. The first three books were combined into one 600-page book which includes a 4th book. His aim is to share his experiences as a modern-day Western Daoist priest. The topics include themes like qigong, extraordinary vessels, qigong circle walking, the value of retreats, silence and solitude, dialogue between Daoism and Christianity from the mystical-apophatic view and extensive sections on the Daoist meditation method called zuowang-sitting and forgetting.

One of Shifu Michael's in 2022, includes an in-depth exploration of the commonalities between Daoism and the Catholic mystical traditions. This book will help bridge the gap between East and West when it comes to world religions. A Second Edition was published in November 2023 to reflect some new additional material and deletion of some material. Shifu Michael's book won a Finalist award from AmericanBookFest in 2023.

Shifu Michael continues to write about his qigong and Daoist practices and as of November 2025, he is working on an expanded version of his Qigong book to focus on the core winter practices of nourishing the power of the Kidney energy and the practice of "Deep squats." This book, Qigong & Daoist Deep Squats, published February 2026.