The Practice of Wonderment and Interfusion 5 Day Retreat
with Guo Gu
In Chan Buddhism, the practice of wonderment brilliantly unravels the entanglement of selfing and othering, separateness and alienation. It incapacitates our delusions and opens us up to the possibility of transforming routinized habits that structure our lives. The Chan practice of wonderment deepens relationships, expands imagination, and unravels our fixed ideas. It frees us from the carefully constructed façades of selfing and othering. It reveals that we are interconnected and inseparable. This realization is both an emptying of fixations and a possibility connections. In this five day silent retreat, Guo Gu will teach and provide guidance on the practice of wonderment.
What is Chan?
Chan refers to our intrinsic nature of freedom, expressed in terms of wisdom and compassion. Realization of Chan is the direct personal awakening to the interconnectedness and dynamics of life, beyond the dualism of language and concepts, free from self-reference. For this reason, there is a saying, “Chan is not established on words and language.” Yet Chan masters freely uses words and language to benefit people and the world. Chan is also one of the schools within Chinese Buddhism popularly known as “Zen” in Japanese. As a school, Chan has a history dating back to 7th century CE in China, later transmitted to Japan in the 13th century.
The teaching starts with facing the self, accepting the self, maturing the self, and eventually letting go of the self, which is awakening of wisdom and compassion that leads to harmony, peace, and compassion for the world. Letting go of the self does not mean we no longer know who we are or cannot use our intellect, but means experiencing the world without the colored lens of rigid self-referential views, opinions, and experiences that give rise to vexations and distort how things actually are.
Chan teaching encompasses four key elements: confidence, understanding, practice, and awakening. Confidence is faith in oneself and practice. Understanding refers to the insights gained on the path of practice. Practice transforms our negative habits and distorted views. Awakening is the actualization of wisdom and compassion. These four elements are inseparable and mutually inclusive.
Approximate Daily Schedule
6:00 am Wake Up Bell
6:30 am Mindful Exercises
7:00 am Sitting Meditation
7:40 am Morning Chanting
8:15 am Breakfast
9:00 am Work Period
9:45 am Rest & Personal Time
10:15 am Chan Hall: Sitting, Mindful Yoga, Walking Meditation
12:15 pm Lunch
1:00 pm Rest & Personal Time
2:00 pm Sitting, Mindful Yoga, Walking Meditation
Personal Interviews will take place during this period
5:30 pm Light Medicine Meal (Supper)
7:00 pm Dharma Talk
8:30 pm Sitting, Mindful Yoga, Walking Meditation
9:30 pm Bedtime
Noble Silence
During this retreat we will be practicing in Noble Silence. When the whole group enters into Noble Silence we offer each other and ourselves the gift of being with our experience as it is. This practice supports the mind in settling. Noble Silence includes no unnecessary talking, including social courtesy like saying “good morning” or “excuse me”, no reading or writing unless a teacher specifically encourages you to do so, and no tech use.
Technology & Safety
You will be strongly encouraged to give up your phone for the week, you may choose to either hand it in to the retreat managers or keep your phone in your room turned off. Upon being accepted to this retreat, you will receive emergency phone numbers that we ask you to share with your loved ones so that you will not need to be monitoring your own messages. A retreat manager will be present throughout the entirety of the retreat to support the group. If at any point during the retreat you are feeling ill, are injured, or are in distress please speak with a retreat manager.
Who This Retreat Is For
We offer this program strictly for people ages 18–35 to create a space tailored to the questions, transitions, and community needs common in this stage of life. This retreat is open to both newer and experienced meditators who feel called to deepen their practice in silence. Participants should feel reasonably comfortable with meditation and with spending time quietly with themselves.
To register for this retreat, apply here.