Personal Cultivation Retreat according to clan Daoism [Da Xuan] / 18th – 22nd October

Led by: Yuri Maezumi

Dates: 12-16 July 2023

Practitioners of all levels welcome, including complete beginners.

About the retreat:

During the workshop at the Les Gavatxes retreat center, participants will have the
opportunity to experience various practices of an ancient clan Daoism tradition, Da
Xuan, which dates back to 510 a.d. In Kunlun.

Daoism is a practice of self-cultivation and spiritual evolution that asks us to
explore the way we function and our relationship with ourselves and the world around
us. There are many different types of Daoism, and while the Da Xuan tradition shares
similar origins to other Chinese traditions of religious or temple Daoism, the tradition is
specifically non-cultural and non-religious. We are concerned with the development of
human qualities, and as such our practices are open to anyone of any culture or belief.

In Da Xuan we are primarily interested in engaging in a personal daily practice
that will progressively reveal more details about how we function, while simultaneously
building an excess of personal resources and energy that will keep us full of vitality
while we undergo our search.

The Da Xuan tradition follows a very specific principle that is also found in other
alchemical traditions: If you want to perfect and unite the whole, you must first separate
the different aspects that make up this whole. Refining them individually is the only way
to develop true qualities uninhibited by distraction. Only once each aspect is sufficiently
refined can you recombine it into a unified practice.

Chapter 1 of the Dao De Jing (Classic of the Dao and its Manifestations) tells us
that “the Way that can be talked about is not the true Way”. Knowing the theory of
practice is not enough, if we want true understanding then we must do the practices
ourselves.

We have a saying in our lineage :

“If you do it, it works. If you don’t do it, it doesn’t.”

About the practice: 

The sessions at Les Gavatxes retreat center will cover the practices ranging from
the most Yin aspect of the human being, with the body or Wai Gong (external work) to
the most Yang aspect with the mind exercises, or Shen Gong (mind work). The work on
breathing, linked to our vitality and emotions, is viewed as an intermediary between the
Yin and the Yang.

It is through the breath, the exchange between these two polarities,
that an external practice can become internal, which is traditionally referred to as Nei
Gong (internal work). Qi Gong is in reality a vulgarization of this term that was adopted
during the mid-20th century to adapt to the mindset of foreigners). Tui Shou, or
push-hands, is a term used for partner work aimed at honing our qualities in an organic
exchange conducted in a secure environment.

These three aspects of mind, body and breath, are referred to as the three
treasures (San Bao) in Daoist cosmology. They are considered interdependent and of
equivalent importance. The Fire Regime refers to the practice of each of these
components with equal emphasis in one’s daily practice.

The goal of the retreat is to impart practices representing each of the San Bao to
participants, so you may embark on your own journey of balanced personal cultivation.

 

Schedule: 

Day 1

Time Session Details
12:00 – 14:00 Guest arrival
15:30 – 16:30 Discovering personal cultivation

● Why is personal cultivation important and what are we aiming for?
● The San Bao balance in personal practice
● Importance of regularity
● Qualities vs. formes
● Yang training (intention on correction) vs Yin practice (letting go)

16:30 – 16:55 Tea break
17:00 – 18:30 Finding Alignment (interactive teaching session)

● 18 points of Nei Gong
● Basic Hands introduction; lines of movement
● Q & A

19:30 – 20:20 Dinner
20:30 – 21:00 Getting to know our mind

● Introducing Shen Gong
● The three types of attention

21:00 – 21:30 Group meditation

● Indoor or outdoor seated meditation

21:30 – 22:00 Group meditation

● Indoor or outdoor seated meditation, 2nd period (optional)

22:30 Lights out

Day 2

Time Session Details

6:00 – 7:25 Individual / partner practice (optional) with corrections

● Free time to review practices (Indoor or outdoor)

7:30 – 8:30 Breakfast
9:00 – 10:00 Basic Hands: continued Outdoor Interactive Session

● Basic Hands: coordination
● 18 points of Nei Gong continued

10:00 – 10:25 Tea break
10:30 – 11:30 Stability through rooting (Outdoor interactive session)

● Rooting the structure is rooting the mind
● Push-pull partner exercise: introduction to rooting

11:00 – 11:45 Introduction to the Walk of the Adept

● Seated teaching
● Q & A

12:15 – 13:30 Lunch
13:30 – 14:55 Individual / partner practice (optional) / Walk of the Adept in nature

● Free time to review practices

● Possibility for 2 acupuncture sessions

15:00 – 16:30 Basic Hands: continued

● What is uniting? The underlying qualities associated with unification
● Various exercises to develop structural union

16:30 – 16:55 Tea Break
17:00 – 18:30 Introduction to Conscious Breathing

● Feeling the breath
● Abdominal breathing
● Q&A

19:30 – 20:20 Dinner

21:00 – 21:30 Group breathing session

21:30 – 22:00 Group breathing session (2nd period – optional)

22:30 Lights out

Day 3

6:00 – 7:25 Individual / partner practice (optional) with corrections

● Free time to review practices
● Indoor or outdoor

7:30 – 8:30 Breakfast
9:00 – 10:00 Basic Hands: continued

● Basic Hands, emphasis on Feeling
● 18 points of Nei Gong continued

10:00 – 10:25 Tea break
10:30 – 11:30 Partner Work

Outdoor interactive session

● Tui Shou; Push-Pull + Drills: developing trust in hand movement

12:15 – 13:30 Lunch
13:30 – 14:55 Individual / partner practice (optional) / adept walking in nature

● Free time to review practices
● Indoor or outdoor

● Possibility for 2 acupuncture sessions

15:00 – 16:30  6 harmonies introduction

● Peng; the fundamental principle of Taiji Quan
● Dissociating the union into segments

16:30 – 16:55 Tea Break
17:00 – 18:30 Introduction to Emotional Work

● Seated teaching
● Q & A

19:30 – 20:20 Dinner
21:00 – 21:30 Group meditation

21:30 – 22:00 Group meditation (2nd period, optional)

22:30 Lights out

Day 4

Time Session Details
6:00 – 7:25 Individual / partner practice (optional) with corrections

● Free time to review practices
● Indoor or outdoor

7:30 – 8:30 Breakfast
9:00 – 10:00 Basic Hands : the Foundation Outdoor Interactive Session

● Basic Hands, 1st series continued; emphasis on Feeling
● Feeling : the fundamental of Nei Gong

○ The Yin and the Yang with the Dan Tien

10:00 – 10:25 Tea break
10:30 – 11:30 Internal Work

Outdoor interactive session

● Nei Gong: feeling the Yin & Yang

12:15 – 13:30 Lunch
13:30 – 14:55 Individual / partner practice (optional) / Walk of the Adept in nature

● Free time to review practices
● Indoor or outdoor

● Possibility for 2 acupuncture sessions

15:30 – 16:30 Introduction to Push Hands (Outdoor interactive training)

● Partner drills
● Introduction to Push Hands

16:30 – 16:55 Tea Break
17:00 – 17:30 Shen Gong (mind work) continued

● Open awareness practice
● Q & A

19:30 – 20:20 Dinner
20:30 – 21:00 Group meditation: Open awareness
21:00 – 22:00 Council Circle: Outdoor seated council circle around a fire

● Sharing of thoughts, impressions or feelings in a safe environment

22:30 Lights out

Day 5

Time Session Details
6:00 – 7:25 Individual / partner practice (optional) with corrections

● Free time to review practices
● Indoor or outdoor

7:30 – 8:30 Breakfast
9:00 – 10:00 Conclusion Indoor seated discussion

● Q & A
● Reviewing the qualities and essential points
of personal practice

10:00 – 13:00 Guest departure
12:00 – 13:00 Lunch (optional)

 

About the teacher: 

YURI MAEZUMI

Yuri started his career as a chef in restaurants across the United States and France.
Sublimating products of the Earth and transforming them into nourishing creations was
his calling for over 15 years.
After years of the culinary profession, he decided to continue enjoying those talents by
comforting and delighting family and friends, as well as focusing on the nutritional
aspect of food. His path then turned to another art, which he has been cultivating since
2009.
Teachings of the Da Xuan Daoist Tradition, transmitted by Master Serge Augier, started
infusing Yuri’s life with greater wisdom, energy, and grounding. Every day since 2009,
he practices Qi Gong, Martial Arts, Neidan, and Meditation, as taught by the Da Xuan
Tradition. He was appointed instructor of the main school in Paris in 2015. He teaches
internal arts, and is specializes in Dao Yin, an ancient form of Daoist Yoga based on
standing, sitting and lying postures, to develop an alignment of the spine in order to
receive the Yuan Chi – the energy of the World – through our Central Axis – the Chong
Mai.
Moreover, from 2010 to 2016, Yuri studied Traditional Chinese Medicine under the Ba
Men Da Xuan tradition and holds a B.Sc. in TCM and acupuncture. He has been
treating patients with acupuncture, tuina and applying the methods of Traditional
Chinese Medicine in a clinical practice in Paris and Montreuil (France) for 7 years. Yuri
is now a clinical supervisor of TCM and acupuncture for the Paris branch of the Whitten
University of Chinese Medicine (WUCM). He is currently completing his M.Sc. Thesis in
Daoist Medicine, to further develop his practice and to harness the incredible potential
of energetic and spiritual healing. His studies of the Daoist disciplines have expanded to
Chinese Astrology (Bazi), the Book of Changes (Yi Jing), and esoteric practices within
the Da Xuan Tradition.
Yuri finds inspiration in the exchanges with students and patients, guiding them in their
journey of continual self-improvement toward their best potential.

 

Price: 

535 € total in shared rooms

420 € total in your own tent/caravan

Includes teaching, 4-night stay 3 meals a day