Harmony Dawn Workshops


Andy James co-founder of Harmony Dawn, is a renowned author, Qigong healer and master teacher of integrated mind-body skills which include Insight Meditation, Qigong and Tai Chi Chuan.  He offers these skills through his workshops at Harmony Dawn and through the Toronto “Tai Chi and Meditation Centre” of which he is the Founder and Chief Instructor.  He is an active member of the Forge Guild, an international association of trans-traditional spiritual leaders and teachers. His books and DVDs are available on our online store.  Andy is available for workshops, lectures and presentations.

Nicola Lawrence James co-founder of Harmony Dawn, is the Chef and Manager of Harmony Dawn retreat.  Nicola brings to her cooking an intuitive sense of Yin-Yang balance as well as formal training as a Medical Qigong Practitioner (MQP) and Fengshui consultant.  Her cooking workshops at Harmony Dawn as well as her cookbooks are always in demand.

Please check our Guest Workshops page for a full listing of all offerings and workshops being held at Harmony Dawn.

Please call or e-mail us for available booking dates. 

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Andy's Retreats & Workshops 2021 & 2022

Spring 2022 - April 8 -17th

10 Day Silent Vipassana (Mindfulness) Meditation Retreat With Shifu Andy James (Please contact Nicola)

Early bird 1200.00 plus HST if paid in full Feb 8, after 1500.00 plus HST
Payment plan available.
Space is limited.

Join Shifu James for this powerful and life- transforming 10 day retreat.  Shifu James has been trained as a teacher by the Thai Meditation and Dharma Master, Dhiravamsa, and has been leading meditation classes and retreats in Canada for 34 years. Vipassana/ Mindfulness meditation is seemingly simple, but requires guidance from an experienced “spiritual friend” if we are to realise its purpose as taught by the Buddha – Freedom from Suffering and Enlightenment.

Periods of sitting meditation will alternate with other activities like qigong, nature walks, walking meditation, private interviews, dharma talks and more. 

Please contact Shifu James at andyjames@andyjames.ca if you would like to participate in this retreat.

Location: Harmony Dawn Retreat.

Please click here to read all testimonials.

Qigong & Tai Chi With Shifu Andy James

Date: August 19 - 21/22
Cost: $380.00 plus HST

If you are interested in learning (or learning more) about Qigong and Tai Chi Chuan, this unique weekend workshop is for you!

The workshop will offer detailed instruction on universally important fundamentals like standing, walking and breathing as well as more advanced mind-body-energy self-healing techniques.  Instruction will be individually adjusted to your level of experience or lack thereof.  All are welcome.

Professor Jerry Alan Johnson, founder of the International institute of Medical Qigong, wrote about Shifu James: “James’ in-depth understanding of Chinese integral mind-body training stems from his (more than) thirty-five years of personal internal martial arts experience… A master instructor internationally recognized by his peers for his mastery of the most esoteric aspects of the internal martial arts”.
The workshop will be held at the beautiful and tranquil Harmony Dawn retreat, famous for its Yin-Yang based cuisine.  Instruction, food and accommodation are all included.

For more information, please contact nic@harmonydawn.com

Location: Harmony Dawn Retreat, please contact us to register.

Please click here to read all testimonials.

10 Day Intensive Mindfulness (Vipassana) Meditation Retreat (Fall 2021) With Shifu Andy James (Wait List Only)

Date: Oct 22-31 - This retreat is scheduled for 10 days. 
Early bird 1200.00 plus HST if paid in full August 20, after 1500.00 plus HST
Payment plan available.

Insight Meditation (Vipassana) is the foundation of Buddhist meditation practice. Simple, yet profound and powerful, it helps build awareness in each moment so you can begin to understand and free yourself from restrictive patterns, whether mental, emotional or physical. Ongoing, supervised practice leads to compassion, clarity, wisdom, purpose and a sense of interconnection with others and with the environment.  Shifu James uses active self-inquiry meditations to help retreatants tackle particular conflicts and specific Qigong techniques to enhance cleansing, opening and grounding.. Qigong regulates body, energy (Qi) and mind. It has been used in China in Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM), internal martial arts and spiritual transformation.

Location: Harmony Dawn Retreat, please contact us to register or click here to purchase and reserve your space.

“Starting Vipassana in earnest with Andy, i think for about 3 or 4 years now, has made all the difference. Despite 4 decades of attempts with other meditative practices this deceptively simple practice has been taking me to unimaginable depths and recently allowed me to survive my wife's almost lethal illness, which affected me physically beyond any expectation.  So I would agree a regular Vipassana practice is foundational to our program. I am hooked. And will continue with it the rest of my life.”

Please click here to read all testimonials.

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Click Here to Purchase

2 Day Vipassana (Mindfulness) Meditation Retreat With Shifu Andy James


Date: Nov 12-14, 2021 (Wait List Only)
Date: March 25-27, 2022  |  October 14-16, 2022  |  November 4-6, 2022

Cost: 380.00 plus HST

Shifu James has been trained as a teacher by the Thai Meditation and Dharma Master, and former Thai Buddhist Abbot, Dhiravamsa, and has been leading meditation classes and retreats in Canada for 34 years. Vipassana/ Mindfulness meditation is seemingly simple, but requires guidance from an experienced “spiritual friend” if we are to realise its purpose as taught by the Buddha – Freedom from Suffering and Enlightenment. The 2 day weekend retreat is a brief but intense introduction to starting or rejuvenating a serious Vipassana- Mindfulness based meditation practice in your life. … which can be profoundly transformational.

Schedule for the weekend:

Friday
Arrival at 4pm, settle in
Dinner 630
730 Opening session with retreat instructions and guidance, Silence begins


Saturday
Morning qigong and sitting practice
Breakfast 830
1000ish first session- sitting meditations, qigong
Lunch 100pm and free time
300pm 2nd session- dharma talk, sitting meditations
Dinner 600
730, evening session

Sunday as per Saturday until departure at 300 pm.
Contact Nicola at nic@harmonydawn.com if you would like to book or would like more information.

 

 

Contact Us

Cooking Workshops - Postponed During Covid

Spring Renewal Cooking Retreat

Date: TBA

With Nicola and Andy James

Harmony Dawn’s Cooking for Health, Meditation and Qigong workshops have been designed to feed body, mind and spirit. The three aspects complement each other to give participants a deeper understanding of what the Harmony Dawn experience is all about and what goes into the food preparation for their guests. All skill levels are welcome; workshops are limited to a maximum of 10 people.

Our cooking workshops are an experiential celebration of food and cooking with the group preparing Saturday lunch and dinner and then Sunday lunch. The participants will gain a real understanding of how to put together a vegetarian menu plan for Cupcakesoptimal health, to use seasonal ingredients, and to make cooking fun, flavourful and nutritious. Workshops are tailored to participants’ diverse interests so  you may find yourself learning and preparing  gluten free foods , vegan cooking, culturally diverse cuisine, bread making, desserts, alternative ingredients, macrobiotics and more.

Shifu Andy James teaches the Insight (Vipassana) meditation and Qi gong sessions, which are an introduction to these disciplines. Qigong can be described as Chinese Yoga - very gentle flowing exercises with an emphasis on moving energy through your body to enhance health.

"I have been to several cooking workshops, but my experience at Harmony Dawn far surpasses any of them. The cooking experience was amazing - it was nothing short of an organizational masterpiece. Nicola provides individual and personal attention to the hands on experience all the while imparting nuggets of nutritional and cooking wisdom. Combined with Andy's meditation and Qi Gong classes, I feel inspired to make healthy and delicious changes in my lifestyle." Cindy Bryson- workshop attendee

Included in your weekend:

  1. Begins Friday afternoon around 4pm and finishes Sunday mid afternoon
  2. Accommodation and 6 amazing meals
  3. Tuition and guidance throughout the weekend
  4. Three hands-on cooking sessions – Saturday lunch, dinner and Sunday lunch
  5. Vipassana meditation sessions and Qi gong exercises
  6. Relaxation time is built into the schedule

Location: Harmony Dawn Retreat

For more information on this workshop please contact Nicola

Please click here to read all testimonials.

 

Coming Soon

TBA