"I met Constantine Darling and Chien-Lung in 1987 and consider myself one of those privileged to have internalized the animal archetypes of Chien-Lung. By relating a system of the body to an aspect of consciousness, the Chien-lung animals promote a mindfulness of body and behavior that as a PhD in cognitive psychology I marvel at more each day. I highly recommend if you have the opportunity to study with Constantine, that you seize it.

It is with great enthusiasm that I recommend classes with Constantine Darling. I have known Constantine Darling since 1987 at a workshop which, very much like himself, was multidisciplinary, heart-felt, dynamic, and foresightful. I had found in Constantine a mentor in the art of embodying ones values through physical practice. I went on to study under him for ten years in Chien-lung, dance, including Feldenkrais and Pilates, as well as partaking in spiritual journeys, Vision Quests in the Grand Canyon, developing relationships with the Havasupai tribe there.  Constantine has always been one around whom the talented gather, presenting spectacles, classes and workshops offered by other world-renown experts, from the Alvin Ailey Dance Company, the Bolshoi Ballet to Udo Erasmus, Dr. Michael Colgan, and Cory Holly; from the Western approach in nutritional science and weight-training to the Eastern devotions of Yoga and Tibetan Buddhist Meditation. The result of this vast exposure to physical training means that now as I near the age of 40, people still stop and express what an inspiration it is to see my performances of the Chien-lung animal forms. Constantine’s sincere quest is to facilitate compassion amongst the people of the Earth; to promote physical health and awareness; to teach people that both an astute mind and empathy complement one another; to help people unlock the mysteries within their own bodies and minds, so that we may live up to our creative potential, bringing wholeness to the Earth.

Following my time with Constantine, I returned to the University of British Columbia and earned a B.A. in Psychology, and pursued a Master’s and Ph.D. in Cognitive Psychology at the University of California in Santa Cruz, followed by a postdoctoral fellowship at NASA Ames in Mountain View through the San Jose State University Foundation. The Chien-lung animals were responsible for peaking my curiosity in neuroscience and cognitive psychology and Constantine Darling’s ideas still to this day inform my approach to science"

-Steven Macramalla, Ph.D.