Intro to Alchemy

@Wudang Santa Cruz

We will explore and directly explore the path of dual cultivation (xing ming shuang xiu 性命雙修) unique to the Daoist tradition. Through guided seated meditation, we’ll begin zhuji 築基, “laying the foundation,” by regulating the Three Pillars: body, mind, and breath 身心息. We’ll explore the subtle cartography of the Daoist body through foundational actualization (cunxiang 存想) and inward observation (neiguan 內觀), developing a deeper felt connection with the dantian 丹田—the “elixir field” where qi is gathered and nourished. Along the way, we’ll discuss the restlessness, resistance, and uncertainty that commonly arise in meditation, and how working with these difficulties becomes part of the alchemical process of transmutation itself. As the body settles and the breath grows quiet, we begin to listen for the subtle movement within stillness.

The workshop is open to the public. Please bring a few pillows to sit on and dress warmly, as the heat will be off for this workshop.

A few chairs will be available for anyone who has difficulty sitting in the open cross-legged posture (sanpan 散盤) we generally use.

The workshop is $149 and open to the public

Within the Daoist tradition, the body is a landscape of hidden depths, a meeting place of Heaven and Earth, and the ground from which transformation begins. In this 2.5 Introduction to Alchemy workshop, we’ll explore the foundations of neidan 內丹, the meditation tradition at the heart of our Wudang lineage. Beginning with the Daoist cosmology that informs these practices, we’ll introduce the Three Treasures—jing, qi, and shen 精氣神—and explore what it means to turn our awareness inward, gather what has become scattered, and return to the root. And maybe cultivate and immortal body along the way!