You can find our schedule of upcoming in-person events on the Crawfordsville Yodel calendar.

Mindful Monday

Neil organizes a free, drop-in meditation group that meets at Wabash College in Baxter Hall (room 212), usually over the lunch hour on Mondays (dates are posted on our Yodel calendar). Meditation begins at 12:10pm, and ends at 12:40pm. Afterwards, we end with some informal discussion of meditation practice. No experience in meditation is necessary.

    If people arrive before 12:10pm, we usually begin with an informal check-in, and then invite people to take a seat around 12:10. Meditation begins with three bells, and we sit silently for 30 minutes. The end of the meditation period is marked by ringing one bell.

    Mindfulness Meditation at Quest for Balance

    Starting on June 23, 2024, Neil will lead a weekly mindfulness meditation session at Quest for Balance Wellness (located at 2886 S. US HWY 231 Crawfordsville, IN 47933) with Jai Miranda on Sundays from 4:30-5:30pm.

    We will focus on introducing mindfulness practices (sitting meditation, and body awareness). Each week, we will spend some time practicing, using guided or silent meditations, and taking some time for discussion of mindfulness practice.

    No prior experience with meditation required.

    The suggested donation for the Sunday Mindfulness Meditation sessions is $15 (more or less as you are able), and all contributions support Quest for Balance Wellness. And, we do ask that you reserve your spot through the Quest for Balance Wellness site, so that we know how many people to expect!

    Zen meditation at Wabash College

    On Tuesday mornings, we offer a drop-in Zen meditation session (7-8am) at Wabash College (dates are posted on our Yodel calendar). We typically meet in Baxter Hall (room 114), and join the Sanshin Zen Community virtually (using Zoom). Meditation begins at 7:10am with three bells, and ends at 8am with one bell.

    If you need to arrive late or need to leave early, know that you are welcome to come after the start of meditation, or to leave before the end of meditation.

    • Neil will arrive around 7am and start up Zoom to join the Sanshin group.
      • The group at Sanshin will be doing walking meditation from 7-7:10am.
    • A bell will ring three times at 7:10am. At that point, everyone doing walking meditation will bow, and then return to their cushion/chair.
    • At their cushion/chair, they will turn to face their seat, bow with their hands placed palms together (in gassho), then turn and bow together.
      • Then, they will turn back to their seat, sit down, and meditation will go silently until 8am.
    • At 8am, there will be one bell, and then the group will say the robe chant (which begins with “Great robe of liberation …” and is repeated 3 times).
    • After the chant, they will stand, turn and straighten their cushion/seat, and then turn back to the room. Once everyone is ready, they will bow as a group.
    • After this, the group at Sanshin will transition to a short morning religious service, but we will end the Zoom session at that time (a couple of minutes or so after 8am).

    Note:In the month of August, Sanshin follows a lighter schedule (in terms of ceremonies), and there is no robe chant, or morning service). After the 8am bell, meditation will end after people stand and the group bows together.

    If you are interested in more information about the morning meditation at Sanshin, a longer overview is available on the Sanshin website

    Resources: Getting Started in Meditation

    If you are new to meditation, we would recommend these articles (focused on meditation in the Zen and Vipassana traditions):

    • The Sanshin Zen Community in Bloomington, Indiana, offers a free Getting Started in Zen Practice session once a month, with both in-person and virtual options.
    • The Dharma Field Zen Center has a useful guide on meditation postures for sitting on the floor or in a chair, as well as some audio instructions for Zen meditation.
    • Introduction to Mindfulness Meditation – useful introduction to meditation published by the Insight Meditation Society.
    • Mind and Zazen – an introduction to Zen meditation practice by Shohaku Okumura, of the Sanshin Zen Community in Bloomington, Indiana.

    Join our group

    If you would like to join our group, or for more information, please contact Neil (neil@mindfulinmoco.com) or reach out using our sign-up form.

    Meditation group sign-up

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