Nope! This is a completely secular practice meaning that it pairs well with any religious or philosophical tradition. We are not training to become anything other than what we are right in this moment.

Meditation has largely been an oral tradition in which a teacher guides the student through an evolutionary unfolding of lessons that are uniquely curated for that student. Apps are great but there is no feedback, no support, and no encouragement to continue the practice. Mentorship ensures that you will not get stuck, not lose motivation, and actually continue deepening your conceptual and experiential understanding of the practice.

An hour long meditation class includes opportunity for a one on one conversation regarding your practice; how well you’re doing, what your hang-ups are, and how to fit this into YOUR unique life. Each meeting comes with a lesson that charts out the topography on the world of meditation. You will learn how to practice, what exactly you are cultivating, what the common blockages are, how to overcome them, and how to integrate this into your life off the cushion. We also practice together and ensure you have the support needed to make this a part of your daily life.You will also have direct access to me for questions between sessions.

With other techniques this may be encouraged but for this specific practice, it is best to limit external stimulus to better connect with your mind and body in an unadulterated fashion.

An element of creating room for a disciplined practice such as this requires a little bit of tinkering, especially when it comes to finding the best time of day to sit. I suggest prioritizing this in the morning when you wake up to ensure that you have the most optimal energy.

There are a ton of different ways to sit and there is certainly one that fits your unique body. This is going to be a case by case basis and as your instructor I can work with you to find the optimal positioning for you to experience ease and comfort in your practice.

While there are many techniques that create the conditions for a blissful trancelike experience, this is not one of them. Our priority is to create wakefulness, a sense of precision, and gentleness with ourselves so that we can then carry that awareness into our daily lives off the cushion.

This is a common occurrence when we begin sitting with ourselves in this fashion. When we’re not constantly reacting to external stimuli, we begin to see the contents of our minds more clearly. It’s not that you have more thoughts, it’s that you’re beginning to recognize them more fully. To work with our minds, we have to see them first . Keep going!

This practice is about generating wakefulness and presence. When we sit with our eyes closed, we also close out the world. By keeping our eyes open, we create a bridge between our practice and the rest of our life. It’s a little weird at first but everyone gets used to it after a couple of weeks.