Tonight I looked into the eyes of a stranger and exposed myself. During the "diad" portion of social meditation at the Shambala temple, I sat across from a woman under the age of 30 atop a soft mat and box shaped firm cushion. We were told by the facilitator to simply look at the other person for the first portion of the meditation. No expression, no smile, no societally established norms to fall back on. We were warned that the experience could cause us to laugh out of nervousness or feel fear from the energy created between each of us. Both were true.
Before this vulnerable moment, I began the evening of Shambala's 30 and Under Meditation as a beginner in the side temple room. We were provided instruction on the Shambala method of meditation. Having already done some meditation with Pandit, the Chaplain of Union Theological Seminary, I anticipated deep breathing and resisting the urge to fall asleep with closed eyes over the scent of incense. I was only correct in anticipating the incense. Interestingly, Shambala is a practice of meditation done with eyes open--as our normal reality is lived--and with normal breath. The stance of the body was to have our knees below our hips and our hands palm down on our knees. Our chin was to be slightly tucked in and our lips slightly open to allow our jaws to relax.
The lasting impression of the practice was how grounded it seemed to me. The intention behind each aspect was centered around how we live in everyday life. In fact, the facilitator repeated that we should be gentle to ourselves. There was no right and wrong and that personal kindness can (and will) be applied to the rest of our lives.
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