Kado - Ikebana

What is Kado Ikebana? Kado’s origin is Taoist China. All Chinese arts that end with the syllable “Do” were originally meant to bring people to awareness of their own world in which everything is guided with the laws of universe wisdom. These Do-arts were literally intended to work on the transformation of this world by waking up both the artist and viewer to reality through opening their mind into their own intimate relationship to universe wisdom. Therefore a “successful” work of Do-art was considered to embodied and point directly to the Tao. The Taoist view challenges all western concepts of “art”. The view does not uphold art as individual expressions worthy of high accolades or requiring special talent. Rather, “art" expressions originate from the deeper level of human consciousness, that of pre-thought or no thought. Taoists do not separate art as something special and isolated from everyday life but addresses the “art of living” and how everything is in relationship with everything else continuously. It acknowledges the whole of nature and the human place within it, absent of cultural conditioning that keeps the separation of self and other blindly alive. Kado developed in China over 3000 years ago using living flower and branch materials to show the way of life. “Kado” means “ The Way of Flowers” but is a metaphor for the journey of all life. A single flower represents the entire manifestation from beginning to end and beyond in all innate beings including thoughts and action. The ancient Taoists recognized that all sentient beings embody innate wisdom. [Image: re-link pending] Humans and nature are not separate from each other. We’ve lost touch with the most important part of our being and have created suffering for self and other since probably the very beginning of our existence as a species. By rediscovering and reuniting with innate universal wisdom within each one of us, it’s possible to experience life with less confusion, stress, anxiety, conflict and destruction. And stop or reduce the suffering we make for self and other. Life’s constant challenges can be met with accurate solutions as they arise in the never ending change of existence. Prerequisites There are no prerequisites. The class is open to anyone with or without experience in Ikebana. Arrival & Departure 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. Flower Fee: A $30 non-refundable flower fee is included in the tuition amount. Three Options FREE Friday Night Public Talk & Demonstration: Join us as Marcia gives a taste of what Kado is about and what the rest of the weekend will be like. No registration necessary to attend just the talk. Friday, Oct. 30, 7:30pm. October 30 - November 1: This weekend portion of the program is a good place to start if you are new to the practice , curious about it, or have studied with a different school of Kado Ikebana . You can register on this page for just the weekend. October 27 - November 1 : The full 5-day retreat offers an opportunity to deepen your practice. For those who have previously worked with Kado Ikebana, the program will be customized to meet your individual level and needs. You can register for the entire 5-day retreat by clicking on this link. Cancellation Policy 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. Getting Here Visit our Directions and Transportation page to see different options for traveling to Karmê Chöling including our Rideshare board.