Meditation
Japan Spiritual Retreat
Make a Donation
Volunteer
Attend an Event
The Power of Meditation Practice
With the growing popularity of meditation in the United States and around the world, the practice of meditation as a daily exercise is no longer reserved for those seeking spiritual awareness. It has now become a mainstream activity because of the many reported benefits of meditation, including, reducing stress, calming anxiety, increasing focus, amplifying self-esteem, expanding inner strength, and maximizing resiliency.
Meditation helps people make life-changing Transformations. The key to meditation is to find one that resonates with you and committing to practice to experience the full benefits. There are a variety of meditation techniques, including mindfulness, guided, silent, movement, and mantra meditation.
The meditation practices we’ll share here are the following:
If you are new to meditation, you can benefit from enrolling in one of our classes and have the support of a teacher.
join our class
Spreading kindness around the world.
Kindness Meditation Class
Kindness Meditation class trains people to cultivate inner peace, spiritual awareness, and compassion through meditation and storytelling. The classes are typically small, from 3 to 15 participants, and generally meet once a week for 90 minutes.
The class is divided into three sections. The first part consists of an introduction, followed by chanting a sacred mantra meditation on the inner light and sound current known as HU, which is discussed in more detail on the meditation page of this website.
The second part consists of reading a short story selected from the book, You Can Never Go Wrong by Being Kind—An anthology on the transformative potential of kindness & compassion, by Dr. Zeal Okogeri. This is followed by an open discussion on insights gained from the story. Participants are encouraged to share stories about their own experiences with the transformative potential of kindness, compassion, and generosity.
The final part of the class consists of thanking participants for their attendance and chanting a short closing mantra meditation on the inner light and sound—HU, to express our gratitude for the opportunity to get together and sharing ideas, meeting new friends, and cultivating compassion.
Silent Meditation
A variety of silent meditation techniques have been practiced around the world for thousands of years to help people experience a sense of calm and inner harmony. Some practices recommend focusing on the breath and observing yourself breathe in and out. Others recommend that you place your focus on the tip of your nose; and there are practices that are based solely on creative visualization. Meditation techniques are many. The method we are going to share here recommends placing your attention on The Third Eye, also known as The Seat of Soul. This is the spot between your eyebrows. This exercise helps clear mental blockages, improve mental clarity, increase inner strength, and enhance concentration and intuition. The silent meditation we’ll highlight here is known as The Seat of Soul Meditation.
“One of the greatest gifts of meditation is the realization of self-responsibility. You gradually become aware of how you participated in creating most of your own problems. With this realization, you stop blaming others for the problems you yourself created.”
—Dr. Zeal Okogeri
Mantra Meditation
Quiet the Mind and Unlock Awareness
Mantras are sacred sounds which are recited for inner harmony and awareness. There are simple mantras such as OM (AUM), MAHA, SAT-NAM, and HU; and more elaborate mantras such as, OM-MANI-PADME-HUM and many others. These sacred utterances are spiritual formulas passed down from a variety of ancient traditions, intended to help clear the mind of negativity, induce relaxation, and heighten awareness.
The mantra meditation we’ll highlight here is HU—the Light and Sound Current. HU (pronounced “hue”) has been practiced by people around the world for thousands of years and is still practiced today by thousands. HU is a sacred word that brings inner peace, guidance, protection, strength, love, and awareness. HU can be practiced by anyone regardless of their age, background, or beliefs. Like all meditation practices, consistency is key to reaping the many benefits of this mantra. It is ideal to practice the HU chant for twenty minutes, twice per day, upon arising from sleep and before going to bed at night. However, if you’re new to this exercise, you can start by chanting HU for just ten minutes, twice a day, and gradually increase the duration as you get more comfortable with the exercise.
How to Practice HU Mantra:
Fill yourself with love with the sound of HU
- Sit comfortably in a place where you won’t be disturbed, with your hands resting comfortably on your lap.
- Immerse yourself in the stream of gratitude for the relentless generosities of Spirit in your life.
- Gently close your eyes and place your attention on the spot between your eyebrows — the spiritual eye center.
- Then, in a long, drawn-out breath, simply sing or chant out loud: HU-U-U-U-U-U.” (HUE-U-U-U)
- Take a deep breath and continue chanting.
- While chanting, listen to the sound you’re producing.
- If your mind wanders, gently bring it back to the sound of HU.
- Continue chanting by yourself or with a group. You can chant from 10 minutes to 20 minutes.
- At the end of your chant, keep your eyes closed and go into a silent contemplation for about two to five minutes.
- Then open your eyes.
- Practice daily, twice per day, morning, and evening.
HU can be practiced with eyes open or closed. Closing the eyes reduces distraction and turns your attention inwardly.
You can also sing HU silently in your mind. In this way, you can practice anywhere, at any time.
Movement Meditation
Discover Moving with Awareness Meditation
Movement meditation has been around for thousands of years in a variety of forms, including Yoga, an ancient Hindu movement meditation practice that has become increasingly popular; Tai Chi, an ancient Chinese martial arts practice, sometimes described as meditation in motion because it promotes serenity through gentle movements and connects the mind, body and spirit; and there are other movement meditation practices from the Buddhist traditions. The benefits of movement meditation are many. They include concentration, self-awareness, increased intuition, stress reduction, improved balance, flexibility, and agility; improved mood, increased energy and stamina, and reduced risk of falling in older adults. Lastly, movement mediation is one of the most effective means of enhancing left and right brain synchronization. The movement meditation we’ll highlight here is known as Happiness Meditation — a mindfulness practice.
How to Practice Happiness Meditation
This exercise can be practiced sitting, standing, or lying on your back
Throughout this exercise, breathe normally. Place all your attention on your hands and feel every movement of your hands and sensations perceived during this movement meditation. When thoughts arise, stay aware of the movements of your hands. Do not follow your thoughts, instead return your awareness to your practice.
- Sit comfortably in a place where you won’t be disturbed, with your back straight, and your hands facing down on your lap.
- Gently close your eyes or leave them open and breathe normally.
- Place your attention entirely on your hands, especially the hand in motion when the exercise starts.
- Open your right hand sideways and stop.
- Raise your right hand up and stop.
- Place your right hand on your belly and stop.
- Open your left hand sideways and stop.
- Raise your left hand up and stop.
- Place your left hand on your belly, on top of your right hand, and stop.
- Slide your right hand to your chest and stop.
- Move your right hand outwards and stop.
- Place your right forearm flat on your lap, with the palm of the hand facing left, and stop.
- Turn your right-hand face down on your lap.
- Slide your left hand to your chest and stop.
- Move your left hand outwards and stop.
- Place your left forearm flat on your lap, with the palm of the hand facing right.
- Turn your left-hand face down on your lap.
- Continue repeating this process from the beginning for about 5 mins to 30 mins, as your time permits.