Retreats at Florence House
You’ll be staying in this lovely villa set in the wide open spaces of its private grounds, on the edge of Seaford, a small seaside town in West Sussex, UK. It is only five minutes’ walk from the beach. Most of the bedrooms are double or twin-bedded with shared bathrooms and have lovely views. There will be a mainly vegetarian menu and delicious home cooking with locally sourced produce and a seafood option. Each day there will be chigung classes, talks and sessions sitting in silence. You do not have to have previous chigung experience. There are secluded gardens for outdoor practice, a large marquee for sessions sheltered from the onshore wind, and a Mongolian Yurt for group meditation. There is a particularly clear marine light in the grounds of Florence House, above the white cliffs of the English Channel. From the whole experience you will gain clarity, take in fresh air and new energy, and become committed to a life with more purpose.
You’ll be staying in this lovely villa set in the wide open spaces of its private grounds, on the edge of Seaford, a small seaside town in West Sussex, UK. It is only five minutes’ walk from the beach. Most of the bedrooms are double or twin-bedded with shared bathrooms and have lovely views. There will be a mainly vegetarian menu and delicious home cooking with locally sourced produce and a seafood option. Each day there will be chigung classes, talks and sessions sitting in silence. You do not have to have previous chigung experience. There are secluded gardens for outdoor practice, a large marquee for sessions sheltered from the onshore wind, and a Mongolian Yurt for group meditation. There is a particularly clear marine light in the grounds of Florence House, above the white cliffs of the English Channel. From the whole experience you will gain clarity, take in fresh air and new energy, and become committed to a life with more purpose.
Pure Presence
There are two retreats at Florence House with the focus on ‘pure presence’. When we have sucessfully reduced our psychological life, such that we may live easily with uncertainty – without self-doubt, confusion or anxiety – only then can we say that we ‘live in the present’. Only then do we develop the pure presence that attracts what we need to fulfil our purpose in life.
Spring Retreat: Pure Presence II
24-28 April 2023
‘It’s normally only in fleeting moments that people experience their own presence. It could happen when they’re in love, passionate, exhilarated, full of joy, perhaps enthralled by beauty, in nature, under a blue sky with not a problem in the world. But it doesn’t last, does it? The world won’t go away. Problems aren’t easily pushed aside. And nowadays such moments of presence mostly pass by unnoticed. Or they’re quickly dismissed, because there’s so much to think about, isn’t there? The art of living more consciously is the practice of returning to ‘pure presence’ in a sustainable way, so that we don’t lose our direction in the world or forget our purpose. So we don’t forget that we live for love. But the way the world is, and because of the hold it has over us, we have to resist being preoccupied with it – not thinking about problems, quitting the running commentary in our heads, not getting ahead of ourselves, not trying to anxiously control an uncertain future, ceasing to believe things should be different. And we have to realise it’s not intelligent to want more than we can have. None of this can happen without a radical change in the brain. Is that even possible? If it’s not, this world of ours is unsustainable. And isn’t that what we’re being told, and is increasingly shown in world events? It’s surely time for change. It depends on you, the individual, to resist the repetition of past errors – and that’s done by genuinely living in the present. What makes it genuine? Pure presence.’
Autumn Retreat: Pure Presence I
17-21 October 2022
‘Join us at Florence House in Sussex for a week of energising relaxation and discover your ‘pure presence’. When we come towards the end of our psychological life – at least as the driver of what goes on in the head – we’re able to live a more conscious life in the body, accepting everything as it is, free of anxiety and knowing our purpose. What a radical change! The realisation of what life is can then be sustained moment-by-moment. People talk about ‘living in the now’, or ‘being present’, as if that’s an experience that just happens by grace. And that’s true. But to sustain a conscious life we have to know what presence is. ‘Being present’ or ‘living in the now’ are meaningless terms unless ‘the present’ and ‘presence’ are one and the same. Because when they are, love is present. I will be speaking about this in depth. We will of course also be doing chigung. Why? Because the perception of chi is our means of knowing our real presence. And why do I need to talk about it? Because our presence is polluted by the psychological lives we lead in this increasingly uncertain world, where stress and anxiety habitually get the better of us. We must purify our presence of psychological pollution – all those thoughts, opinions, comments that do us no good. If you’re able to hear me, you may crack through the karma of your past life and give up believing in what you think is true but is not the truth. Then you can dwell in pure presence. And that means you will bring more love into being.’
Life with Purpose
There have been three week-long retreats at Florence House developing the theme of life with purpose.
Life with Purpose I:
14-18 October 2019
‘This is your opportunity to get away from the stress and tension of everyday life and discover a space of more love and freedom. You’ll be doing chi gung exercises, nei gung meditations and you’ll be introduced to the practice of living more consciously. That’s to say you’ll reduce the psychological pressure that perpetuates problems in your life and replace it with the promise of new purpose.’
Life with Purpose II:
18-22 October 2021
‘Whenever you know your purpose you’re free of anxiety – because your purpose is about what’s happening now and anxiety is always about what’s not. In these days of increasing social and psychological pressure we need ways of living with uncertainty and withstanding the stress. Knowing our purpose at any time is one way. To get to that, first we have to put the brake on a busy life, stall the momentum of stress and relax. Wellbeing is not just being well. It is being – just being – with nothing else going on. In this retreat you’ll discover that whatever your goals in life your real purpose is being your being. And that is not only the way of conscious living but the way to a life with more love.’
Life with Purpose III
25-29 April 2022
‘At this Retreat we develop the continuing theme ‘A Life with Purpose’, which is essentially a three-part programme to overcome anxiety, stress and unhappiness. In the first stage, we realise what true purpose is and discover that we can reduce anxiety by knowing our purpose in any moment. The second stage is to practise a way of being that helps us manage stressful situations. The last part is about the root cause of all unhappiness and how to use a simple tactic to live a more contented life. The theme is being developed at three Retreats held at Florence House over three years; each stage has to be lived to some degree by a number of individuals before the next stage can be implemented. But to the extent that it has ‘gone in’ psychically, others can catch the wave and take it forward. So if this is for you, you’re very welcome to join us.’