(on the last day of #M6D, teaching Mindfulness in Mar del Plata)

I apologize for being so late to post updates. I was coordinating the second # M6D, a meditative marathon that was quite global: people from Alaska to Japan participated, with a lot of people from the Middle East and Europe (it is amazing to me that so many people from India, the country that formalized the meditation and where the Buddha arose look for an Argentinian proposal to meditate … but well, nobody is a prophet in his own land, I think).

The truth is that it was a fantastic experience: everyone was very nice and very open. I learned a lot: the participants shared with me from apps to music. I answered a thousand questions: I received a thousand pieces of advice and constructive criticism. Although it was a super-exhausting week, it was a very satisfying experience for me.

But what I remember the most from the week is the willingness of the participants to put their body into the practice: almost nobody left, once it started. And this led me to think: Why are there so many people who would like to meditate but in practice, cannot do it? I think it’s partly because they think it’s difficult or expensive.

Meditating is as difficult or easy as we want … as long as we understand what we want.

Are we looking for a simple and effective relaxation after an overwhelming working day? Well, one can quickly learn a relaxation technique or follow it in an app.
Do we want to be patient and peaceful in the face of a tense situation? It probably takes more time and requires the guidance of someone who has already gone through this.
Do we want to use meditation to enter into lucid dreams? This takes a lot more practice

Therefore, it can not be said in brief that meditation is easy. It depends a lot on what we want to achieve. But … but, but, but … to begin to meditate and see its minor benefits (creativity, greater relaxation and less stress) does not require so much effort and has no cost.

That’s why, as a way to encourage meditation, I have a proposal for you: from here to the end of the year (that is, in 12 days) I would love to propose that you take as first action when getting up or last before going to bed (choose depending of habits and possibilities) taking 12 minutes per day to meditate. How do we meditate? The way you want. We can recite mantras, do Shamatha or Shikitanza, Meditate in Karuna or just sit still. Each one of us can choose the meditation, each one can change day by day. The important thing is to choose to finish the year as a meditator.

If you do choose it, write to fedeandino@ganapati.com.ar and tell them how are you doing!

F