It’s easy to feel centered when nothing is testing you. The deeper practice is learning to remain clear, steady, and present when life demands more of you. In this immersive retreat with author, Zen practitioner, and martial artist Damien Echols, traditional Korean sword training becomes a path of self-cultivation rather than combat. Drawing from Zen, Bushidō, and internal alchemy, you’ll use disciplined movement to sharpen attention, recognize habitual patterns, and bring mind and body into greater alignment. No previous martial arts or meditation experience is necessary, only a willingness to engage the practice and discover what becomes possible when you learn to govern yourself more consciously.
Starting at $435 (Tuition) + $963 (Lodging + Meals) plus tax
SAVE! Add a day or two and save 20% off our R&R rates. Select your added day(s) on the Registration page.
Embodied Presence
Strengthen your ability to stay fully engaged in the moment by bringing attention, movement, and awareness into closer relationship.
Mental Clarity
Develop sharper concentration while becoming less governed by the repetitive thoughts and automatic patterns that can cloud perception.
Emotional Resilience
Cultivate greater steadiness under pressure and increase your capacity to meet discomfort, uncertainty, and challenge without immediately losing your center.
Mind-Body Harmony
Improve balance, coordination, and physical awareness as you train the body and mind to function with greater unity and precision.
Inner Discipline
Build perseverance, confidence, and self-command through a practice that asks for attention, consistency, patience, and deliberate action.
Pattern Awareness
Recognize habitual ways of thinking and reacting more readily, giving you greater opportunity to interrupt them before they dictate your response.
Cut through What Holds you Back
Over the course of the retreat, you’ll begin to experience how disciplined physical training can reveal much more than technique. Moments of hesitation, distraction, tension, and resistance become opportunities to observe yourself more clearly and develop a steadier way of responding. Damien’s approach invites you to explore the relationship between attention, movement, philosophy, and self-cultivation, helping you bring greater coherence to the way you think, move, and meet challenge. You’ll leave with more than an introduction to swordsmanship: you’ll carry home a practical framework for continuing to cultivate clarity, resilience, discipline, and conscious living long after the retreat ends.
Learn foundational stances, cuts, movements, and forms while developing greater coordination, concentration, and embodied awareness.
Practice stillness and focused attention to quiet mental distraction and strengthen your capacity for sustained presence.
Explore meditative awareness through deliberate physical movement, bringing attention, breath, and action into greater alignment.
Explore principles drawn from Zen, Bushidō, and internal alchemy and consider how they apply to self-cultivation and everyday life.
Notice habitual reactions that emerge through practice and use them as opportunities to develop greater awareness, stability, and choice.
Translate the retreat’s teachings into methods you can continue using to support clarity, discipline, and conscious living at home.
SAVE! Add a day or two and save 20% off our R&R rates. Select your added day(s) on the Registration page.
Check-in Begins 4:00 pm
Dinner 6:00–7:00 pm
Property Orientation 7:00–7:20 pm
Session 1 7:30–9:00 pm
Breakfast 7:30–9:00 am
Session 2 9:30 am–12:30 pm
Lunch 12:30–1:30 pm
Session 3 2:00–4:00 pm
Free Time 4:00–6:00 pm
Dinner 6:00–7:30 pm
Breakfast 7:30–9:00 am
Session 4 9:30 am–12:30 pm
Lunch 12:30–1:30 pm
Session 5 2:00–4:00 pm
Free Time 4:00–6:00 pm
Dinner 6:00–7:30 pm
Breakfast 7:30–9:00 am
Session 6 9:30–11:30 am
Room Checkout 11:00 am Luggage may be held at Reception.
Lunch 12:00–1:30 pm
Breakfast 7:30–9:30 am • Lunch: 12:00–1:30 pm • Dinner: 6:00–7:30 pm
Optional activities include
Yoga • Meditation • Kirtan • Bonfire • Labyrinth • Nature Trails
Damien Echols is an author, teacher, and martial artist whose work draws from Zen Buddhism, Western alchemy, and traditional Korean martial arts. After spending nearly 18 years on death row for a crime he did not commit, Damien devoted his life to practices that cultivate mental clarity, resilience, discipline, and inner transformation.
Prices include daily vegetarian meals from dinner on the night of check-in through lunch on the day of checkout. (Rates below are per person.)
Ideal for individuals, couples, or friends seeking hotel-style comfort and amenities.
Ideal for friends seeking hotel-style comfort and amenities.
Ideal for individuals, couples, or friends seeking simple surroundings for peace and clarity.
Note Room may contain extra single beds.
Fully furnished 665 sq.-ft. apartment (max: 2 persons)
Note Furniture may vary; each apartment is different.
Fully furnished 995 sq.-ft. apartment (max: 4 persons)
Note Furniture may vary; each apartment is different.
Free activities include
Interactive Nature Hikes
Cooking Demos
Meditation & Movement Classes
Wellness Workshops
Paid activities include
Pottery Classes
Ayurvedic Wellness & Healing Arts Treatments
Take your rejuvenation to another level. Our spa offers treatments and therapies that integrate ancient Ayurveda with contemporary wellness.
Call to check availability during Shankara Ayurveda Spa business hours; seven days a week, 9:00 am–6:00 pm.
For room reservations, Ayurveda Wellness Retreats, and Art of Living Retreat Center (AOLRC) signature retreats, we have the following cancellation policy:
AOLRC reserves the right to cancel a program at any time. If AOLRC cancels a program, you will receive a full refund. Some programs may have special cancellation policies; see individual workshop descriptions. For all other retreats, please be sure to check the registration page specific to that retreat.
Unless otherwise indicated, our programs are open to participants 18 years of age and older.
To encourage a healthy environment, we ask that guests not consume alcohol or meat in our public spaces. However, guests may enjoy these items in their rooms.
Our property is always smoke-free.
Yes, we ask that guests with food allergies simply inform us so we can communicate those needs to our chef. Typically, we label potential allergens such as gluten, dairy, and nuts. You may email us at info@theartoflivingretreatcenter.kinsta.cloud.
Thanks to the cool climate of the Blue Ridge Mountains, air conditioning is rarely needed. For the occasional warm day, there is a fan in each room to help keep you comfortable.
We do have lodging and event venues that are ADA-compliant. Due to the topography of our mountain campus, some are easier to access than others, so please speak to Guest Services (800.392.6870) prior to registering to ensure we can best accommodate your needs. We also have shuttles that run frequently throughout the campus.
We are committed to the safety of our guests and staff. Our mountaintop location and the surrounding areas are spacious, remote, safe, and secure.
You can help!
Transportation Options Between Charlotte and the Center
Hickory Hop Shuttle Service Book online hickoryhop.com The Hickory Hop shuttle goes from Charlotte airport to Boone five times daily. Reservations are required, so book ahead online and be sure to confirm shuttle times coordinate with your travel plans.
High Country Limo 828.898.9595 highcountrylimo.com
Oscar’s Car Service 704.965.5800
Edwardo’s Car Service 704.949.6775
Blue Bird Transportation 828.989.7286 Blue Bird of Boone
Abby Cab 828.475.2988 abbycab.com
Uber or Lyft Book in app on arrival.
Other airports within driving distance from the Art of Living Retreat Center include
Tri-Cities Regional Airport (TRI) in Johnson City, TN (80 miles)
Piedmont Triad International Airport (GSO) in Greensboro, NC (110 miles)
Visit our directions page for more information.
Step into a world where mindfulness meets beauty. Our gallery captures the essence of the Art of Living—from serene moments of reflection to vibrant celebrations of life, wellness, and connection.
SAVE! Add a day or two and save 20% off our R&R rates. Select your added day(s) on the Registration page.
