Creating Navigation Tools
At the Mindful Boston meditation studio we are finding, and developing, useful tools for a specific type of navigation. Navigating towards compassionate awareness. Navigating how to keep one’s sanity intact during these times.
Studying with local mindfulness teachers
At Mindful Boston, we take our time. We grow strong roots. We cultivate homegrown mindfulness with local meditation teachers through our training pathway. Every month you get access to our recorded 101 Series. As you are ready, sign up for additional mentoring and other learning tools.
We hope that you will stay a while and learn deeply about mindfulness practice and living mindfully.
‘Practicing mindfulness’ means:
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The definition of “mindfulness” is getting muddied these days. Some people think it means escaping somehow, or just being nice. And that’s not quite right.
So, for clarity, we sometimes use the longer phrase “compassionate present moment awareness.”
And then, meditation is a kind of exercise that you can do for strengthening it.
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Meditation is an exercise that grows muscles that are already inside you.
You don’t need meditation in order to possess qualities of heart like the ability for compassion and the ability to be present (mindfulness).
It’s similar to doing exercises to get bigger biceps. You naturally have biceps in your arm already, but if they are smaller than you would prefer, you have the option to exercise.
In a similar fashion, if you notice that your qualities of heart (like mindfulness or compassion) are weaker than you would prefer, you can do meditation to strengthen them, if you choose to.
What We Do Here At The Mindful Boston Studio:
Tier 1
The free Tier 1 forums provide a monthly structure for you to follow so that you can build your own sustainable meditation practice. How do you build a stronger capacity for compassionate present moment awareness? Let’s find out!
Tiers 2+ 3, 4, 5
Our Level 2 + Forums offer deepened support for continued practice toward advancing your goals.
Tier 6+
Higher level forums are for partnering with other organizations. Also teachers, volunteers, interns and staff.
Video:
Mindful Boston is hosting a specific type of conversation.
Inquiry point: Do your goals include a form of mindfulness practice beyond just meditation?
You don’t need meditation in order to possess qualities of heart like the ability for compassion and the ability to be present (mindfulness).
Meditation is an exercise that grows muscles that are already inside you. If you notice that your qualities of heart are weaker than you would prefer, you can do meditation to strengthen them, if you choose to.
This is our topic of conversation from 1pm to about 1:30 on every first Sunday of the month at our Forum 1 Discussion Group.
Even if you have not been meditating, you can still check in about how compassionate present-moment awareness is showing up in your life. (or not…)
That’s why we’re talking about more than just the act of meditation itself. Meditation can even be beside the point, really.
As an exercise, meditation is a secondary support to the truer goal, which is living a full life.
The words can sound easy, but the direct experience of it can include a lot of nuance, poignancy, and even painful moments. So you need to know if your truer goal is to live fully, or if your truer goals are more about escaping painful experiences. Since our truer goals at Mindful Boston are oriented around living a full human life, we follow a pathway of compassionate present-moment awareness that usually includes doing some meditations together.
When we try to discuss what we do at Mindful Boston, what we talk about is bigger than a set of actions. What we do usually includes meditation, yes, yet meditation is just one of a number of smaller components within the bigger picture of what we do at our studio.
The external world might or might not change, but let’s see if we can meet it in new ways.
Join us at Office Hours.