Tai Chi Seasons of Energy

An immersive weekend Tai Chi retreat in the hills of Vermont's Northeast Kingdom exploring the classic Tai Chi form Crane Spreads Its Wings.

Summer is a season of heat, activity, and expansion. While its energy can be invigorating, it can also leave us feeling scattered, depleted, and disconnected from the deeper rhythms that sustain us. In our Tai Chi practice, balance is restored not by adding more heat, but by working with its complement. During the height of summer, we cultivate Water Chi—cooling, nourishing, and restorative energy that helps us remain grounded, resilient, and in harmony with the season.

Held at Karmê Chöling, this retreat combines Tai Chi, meditation, and energy cultivation in a supportive environment surrounded by forests, meadows, and mountain views. Participants will explore how movement can become a bridge between body, mind, and the natural world.

This retreat may be a good fit if you:

• Are curious about Tai Chi and moving meditation.

• Want practical tools for stress reduction, balance, and well-being.

• Feel drawn to seasonal living and a deeper connection with nature.

• Are interested in Taoist approaches to energy cultivation.

• Wish to deepen an existing Tai Chi or contemplative practice.

• Enjoy learning through direct experience rather than theory alone.

At the center of the retreat is Crane Spreads Its Wings, a traditional Tai Chi form inspired by the image of a crane standing in water before lifting effortlessly into flight.

In our Tai Chi practice, Water Chi is associated with cooling, renewal, adaptability, and depth. By cultivating these qualities during the heat of summer, we develop greater balance and resilience. Participants will learn how this form expresses these principles through posture, alignment, intention, and movement.

Rather than approaching energy as an abstract concept, we will investigate it through embodied practice and direct experience.

Throughout the weekend, participants will practice:

• Foundational Tai Chi principles and body mechanics.
• Standing Like A Tree postures to develop structure and internal awareness.

• Silk Reeling exercises to cultivate whole-body integration.

• Push Hands practices that develop balance, sensitivity, and coordination.

• The form Crane Spreads Its Wings.

• Energy awareness and moving meditation.

• Traditional correspondences linking season, direction, color, the senses, and the body's energetic pathways.

Together these practices create a unified flow between body and mind while illuminating the relationship between human beings and the larger patterns of nature.

The retreat includes a blend of:

• Tai Chi instruction and guided practice.

• Partner exercises and movement exploration.

• Teachings on seasonal energy and Taoist principles.

• Personal reflection and informal practice.

• Time to enjoy the natural beauty of Karmê Chöling's land.

The atmosphere is relaxed, supportive, and experiential, allowing participants to learn through practice rather than performance.

Participants will have:

• A deeper understanding of Crane Spreads Its Wings.

• Foundational Tai Chi skills that can be continued at home.
• Greater balance, coordination, and body awareness.

• Practical methods for cultivating calm, resilience, and vitality.

• A richer appreciation of the relationship between seasonal rhythms, the body, and the natural world.

Joseph Pascutazz is a long-time Tai Chi practitioner and teacher with more than twenty years of daily practice. His teaching emphasizes direct experience, proper body mechanics, energetic awareness, and the living relationship between Tai Chi and the natural world.

This retreat is part of an ongoing seasonal series exploring the five elemental energies and their correspondences within both nature and the human body.

Do I need previous Tai Chi experience?
No. The retreat is open to both beginners and experienced practitioners.

Is Tai Chi physically demanding?
Tai Chi is a gentle practice that can be adapted to a wide range of ages, abilities, and fitness levels.

What is Water Chi?
Water Chi is associated with qualities such as cooling, nourishment, adaptability, and renewal. In this seasonal series, it is cultivated during summer as a balancing principle that complements the season's natural heat and activity.

What should I bring?
Comfortable clothing for movement, walking shoes, a water bottle, and layers for Vermont's changing weather.

Will I be able to continue practicing after the retreat?
Yes. Participants will leave with practical exercises, principles, and movement practices that can be integrated into daily life.

Whether you are discovering Tai Chi for the first time or deepening an established practice, this retreat offers an opportunity to slow down, reconnect with the wisdom of the body, and explore how balance can arise naturally when we learn to move with the rhythms of nature.

Joseph's workshop was extremely insightful, inclusive, and well-run. Having no previous experience with Tai Chi, I found this program to be a great introduction to the power of moving meditation. After two days, I feel a real sense of Tai Chi's ability to work with the energy in both nature and myself.

This is a wonderful introduction to Tai Chi and connecting to the elements and seasons both internally and externally. Engaging and thorough, Joseph is an excellent teacher!

Joseph is an amazingly skilled, gentle and engaging teacher. This workshop helped me invoke my potential to engage with my inner energy and interact with the external, joining them together.

A great introduction to Tai Chi for me, a senior citizen with good health but limited physical meditation experience... looking forward to more.

Friday, please arrive 3:00 - 6:00pm for registration.
Dinner will be served at 6:30pm.
The program will officially begin at 7:30pm.

On Sunday, the program will finish by 5:00pm.

Approximately two weeks before the start date of a program we confirm that we have sufficient numbers to hold the event. On the rare occasion when enrollment is too low, we may need to cancel a program. If this happens, we will notify all registered participants as soon as possible and provide a full refund of the program and accommodation fees paid to us. The center is not responsible for airfare or other travel expenses incurred. For this reason we recommend purchasing refundable travel tickets or travel insurance whenever possible.

Visit our Directions and Transportation page to see different options for traveling to Karmê Chöling including our Rideshare board.