Food For Thought…

“Real change in the world will only come from a change of heart. Self-centredness is harmful; we must think instead in global terms. We can change people’s ways of thinking through education and scientists can contribute to this by providing detailed information. Ultimately we have to change attitudes, not by law but by education.”

Vipassana Meditation Challenge. Day 8!

[…] The mental-physical phenomenon is like a coin with two sides. On one side are the thoughts and emotions arising in the mind, on the other side are the respiration and sensations in the body. Any thoughts or emotions, any mental impurities that arise manifest themselves in the breath and the sensations of that moment. Thus, by observing the respiration or the sensations, we are in fact observing mental patterns. Instead of running away from the problem, we are facing reality as it is. As a result, we discover that these impurities lose their strength; they no longer overpower us as they did in the past. If we persist, they eventually disappear altogether and we begin to live a peaceful and happy life, a life increasingly free of negativities.

In this way, the technique of self-observation shows us reality in its two aspects, inner and outer. Previously we only looked outward, missing the inner truth. We always looked outside for the cause of our unhappiness; we always blamed and tried to change the reality outside. Being ignorant of the inner reality, we never understood that the cause of suffering lies within, in our own blind reactions toward pleasant and unpleasant sensations.

Now, with training, we can see the other side of the coin. We can be aware of our breathing and also of what is happening inside. Whatever it is, breath or sensation, we learn just to observe it without losing our mental balance. We stop reacting and multiplying our misery. Instead, we allow the defilements to manifest and pass away.

The more one practices this technique, the more quickly negativities will dissolve. Gradually the mind becomes free of defilements, becomes pure. A pure mind is always full of love—selfless love for all others, full of compassion for the failings and sufferings of others, full of joy at their success and happiness, full of equanimity in the face of any situation. […]

 

The following excerpt is based upon a talk given by Mr. S.N. Goenka in Berne, Switzerland.

Yoga!

Contemplative practice is the way human beings of different cultures throughout times have tried to deepen and widen their self-awareness with the intention of realizing their own potential and live more meaningful lives.
Helping our kids to develop their self-awareness is our way to guide them through the discovery of their moral identity.

21 Days Vipassana Meditation Challenge. Day 1!

Dear Families and Friends,

Welcome back to our House Blog!

We are very proud to announce that this evening we started with our boys a “21 days Vipassana Meditation Challenge”. It will last until the Winter Holiday. 15 minutes every day. Bedtime.

Since the beginning of the school year, we exposed our kids to a meditation practice, which in the last years has become an essential part of our daily routine. The boys decide to join the two meditation sessions (morning, bedtime) voluntarily and since August they have practiced some very basic breathing techniques for few minutes every day. We gradually increased the meditation time, and by the end of marking period 1, we reached a 15 minutes bedtime practice.

So, what is the need to start a 21 days meditation challenge then? What is Vipassana meditation and why out of many different meditation techniques we chose Vipassana?

Those are legitimate questions that will certainly get an answer in our next blog post on this topic. The option to get a swifter response? Ask our kids! Challenge them with your curiosity! Your interest will certainly boost their determination to learn a vital life skill… and, by the way, why don’t you join our challenge?