Meditation & Tai Chi 2026

« Keeping your body healthy is an expression of gratitude to the entire cosmos – the trees, the clouds, everything

Zen Master Thich Nhat Hanh

General Information

• Arrival day: Thursday, July 24, 2026 (check-in from 3:00 PM)
• Departure Day: Wednesday, July 30, 2026 (after breakfast)
• Language: French
• Location: Healing Spring Monastery (map)
• Dharma Teacher: Collaboration between the monastic Dharma Teacher of the Healing Spring Monastery and Mr. Minh, Tai Chi teacher and meditation practitioner

What is a meditation and Tai Chi retreat?

Tai Chi offers holistic benefits by improving physical health through increased flexibility, strength, and balance. Its meditative nature reduces stress, fosters a mind-body connection, and cultivates a sense of calm. Practice contributes to improved posture, cognitive function, and social relationships, promoting overall well-being and vitality.

Mindfulness cultivates awareness, transforms tension in the body and mind, and cultivates well-being. By anchoring attention in the present moment, it enhances understanding and compassion, emotional management, and an understanding of interconnectedness. Regular practice improves overall resilience, fosters compassionate decision-making, and contributes to a sense of courage, enriching both body and mind.

We invite you to enjoy our living bodies in motion and to center our minds in the present moment. Tai Chi is a gentle Chinese martial art that has evolved into a slow and flowing exercise. It improves physical health, flexibility, and balance while promoting mindfulness and relaxation.

Who can participate?

This retreat is for anyone 18 years of age or older, from all backgrounds, with an interest in mindfulness and Tai Chi, whether experienced practitioners or beginners.

You must be in good physical and mental condition, as there will be hikes almost every day, and you must be able to walk for more than an hour. We generally divide groups according to your walking pace.

This retreat at the monastery welcomes everyone (all gender identities).

Meal

Our diet will be vegan with lunch as the main meal, breakfast and dinner will be simplified and light (nuts and fresh fruit for breakfast, soup and salad for dinner).

The program’s activities

During this week-long retreat, we will collectively cultivate breath energy and mindfulness energy through Tai Chi practice and meditation sessions: seated meditation, walking meditation in nature, silent mealtime meditation, and group sharing.

*This is not a full-day silent retreat.

(Note: All our programs embrace the impermanent nature of the retreat. If conditions are not suitable, elements of the retreat may be adjusted, postponed, or canceled.)

Contribution

The contribution for the retreat is a donation and depends on your financial situation. Your reservation will be confirmed after payment. If you are able, we encourage you to choose a higher rate, as this contribution supports our mission of peace, the upkeep of the monastery, and helps monastic communities. It also allows us to offer support to participants experiencing financial difficulties. While there is no 100% discount, adjustments are possible depending on your needs. If you are truly in need, please contact us after booking, even if the scholarship rate is no longer available.

Thank you very much for your generosity.

Register now

^{only if you have participated a retreat in the last 5 years in Plum Village retreat in Upper Hamlet, New Hamlet, Lower Hamlet or Healing Spring Monastery}

Contribution Rate: After answering the questions using the yellow buttons, select your preferred rate type. Then, go to the bottom of the page and click "See Availability". Read the rate details.

Registration will open on April 5, 2026 at 12:00 AM.

Once registered, you will be guided through the entire process step by step.

Important information:

• How to get to the monastery
• General term and condition
• Cancelation & refund policy
• What to bring

_{Contacter Nous}

Who is Mr. Cao Minh DINH (68 years old)?

Certified sports instructor with a BPJEPS (Brevet Professionnel de la Jeunesse, de l’Éducation Populaire et du Sport), specializing in APT (Activities for All, 2017), Trans-Faire, Paris.

Certified in CQP ALS (Certificat de Qualification Professionnelle Adapté des Loisirs), specializing in AGEE (2012) and JS/JO (Junior Sports/Olympic Games, 2013), EPMM-Sports pour Tous, Paris.

Certified in Professional Qi Gong Training (July 2013), Les Temps du Corps, Paris.

Certified in Integral Tai Chi (2012), Master CE Hang Truong, California (USA).

Teached Taekwondo from 1996 to 2000 in Garches (92).

Practiced Taekwondo from 1967 to 1973 (Vietnam) and then from 1994 to 2000 (Bourg-la-Reine, France).

Has taught Yang style Tai Chi Chuan since 2006.

Continuing education in Tai Chi Chuan. Tai Chi Chuan and Qigong draw upon complementary technical foundations: movement, breathing, and attention to precise and appropriate gestures. These are moderate-intensity practices characterized by slow, gentle, and harmonious movements. Tai Chi Chuan is an “internal” martial art whose main characteristic is slow, conscious movement, alternating between relaxation and tension, concentration and stillness, inhalation and exhalation, internalization and expression—”Yin and Yang.” It develops balance, flexibility, coordination, the optimal and measured use of psychomotor skills in the aesthetics and precision of movement, the ability to concentrate and let go, and creativity. Based on bodily intelligence and martial arts techniques, it develops awareness of movement in relation to oneself and space, and to Tui Shou (Pushing Hands).

with Pascal Plée from 2001 to 2020,

with Yang Jwing Ming from 2001 to 2007,

with Jean Michel Chomet since 2020