{"id":2753,"date":"2023-11-22T14:55:49","date_gmt":"2023-11-22T14:55:49","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.meditationmag.com\/blog\/?p=2753"},"modified":"2023-11-23T10:42:39","modified_gmt":"2023-11-23T10:42:39","slug":"teaching-meditation-in-prison","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.meditationmag.com\/blog\/teaching-meditation-in-prison\/","title":{"rendered":"Teaching Meditation in Prison: A Transformative Journey"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Discovering My True Calling<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">If I told you that teaching meditation in the prison system has been the best thing that ever happened to me as a meditation teacher, you might think I was kidding or sit back and wonder why. Allow me to share the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.huffpost.com\/entry\/prison-yoga-serving-the-vanderburgh-county-correctional_b_5970d3dae4b04dcf308d2ab5\"><strong>extraordinary journey<\/strong><\/a> that has made me the teacher I am today.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">A Serendipitous Beginning<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img decoding=\"async\" width=\"1024\" height=\"683\" src=\"https:\/\/www.meditationmag.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/11\/pexels-caroline-martins-4317391-3-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-2764\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.meditationmag.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/11\/pexels-caroline-martins-4317391-3-1024x683.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/www.meditationmag.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/11\/pexels-caroline-martins-4317391-3-300x200.jpg 300w, https:\/\/www.meditationmag.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/11\/pexels-caroline-martins-4317391-3-768x512.jpg 768w, https:\/\/www.meditationmag.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/11\/pexels-caroline-martins-4317391-3-1536x1024.jpg 1536w, https:\/\/www.meditationmag.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/11\/pexels-caroline-martins-4317391-3-2048x1365.jpg 2048w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\" \/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">It all started during a Meditation and Yoga training program where one of the graduation requirements was to conduct a 6-week seva project, offering meditation and yoga to a group that might never have access to these transformative practices.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">As a student, it was hard for me to find a suitable group to teach; many companies and organizations I approached turned me down.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">In a final attempt, I reached out to a nearby prison, and to my surprise, they were eager for a Meditation and Yoga program. What began as a last resort in 2016 has now evolved into a 7-year journey of transformation.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">From Aspiration to Reality<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">As a freshly graduated teacher, my dream was to teach at a popular studio. The reality was quite different\u2014I had no teaching experience. Teaching Meditation and Yoga in a prison setting, something I once considered a fallback option, turned out to be the path that shaped me into the teacher and listener I am today.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">The Power of Learning Through Teaching<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">My students in prison were unafraid to ask probing questions:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">What did I mean? Why were we doing this? How should we feel, sit, breathe, and focus? Why did I come there? Had I ever been in prison? Why did I practice?<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Often, I had answers; at times, I had to be honest and admit I didn\u2019t know. This pushed me to study, seek explanations, and return the next week with newfound insights. Occasionally, I encountered students who possessed as much, if not more, knowledge about Meditation and Yoga than I did. Teaching what I knew fueled my desire to keep learning.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">A Journey of Personal Growth<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">This extra thought and study significantly improved my teaching. The feedback I received from the men was invaluable, shaping not only my teaching style but also my patience and understanding.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Strengthening Equanimity Through Diversity<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">As I reflect on this journey, I recognize how teaching in prison fortified my practice of equanimity. Growing up in a religious family, I attended an all-white school and neighborhood. Teaching in prison exposed me to every socio-economic level, ages 18-80, every race, every religion, and diverse thoughts and beliefs.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Join the Journey<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">If the idea of teaching meditation in prisons resonates with you, consider exploring our comprehensive course <a href=\"https:\/\/www.meditationmag.com\/mtt-program\"><strong>here<\/strong><\/a>. Discover the transformative power of bringing meditation to those who need it most!<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">In Conclusion<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Teaching in prison has been an unexpected, transformative, and profoundly rewarding experience.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">As a meditation teacher, you may become the only outside visitor these individuals have while incarcerated. Be prepared for them to rely on your presence.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Remember, in teaching them, you\u2019ll learn as much from the participants as you teach them, perhaps even more.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Discovering My True Calling If I told you that teaching meditation in the prison system has been the best thing that ever happened to me as a meditation teacher, you might think I was kidding or sit back and wonder why. Allow me to share the extraordinary journey that has made me the teacher I [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":305,"featured_media":2755,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[391],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-2753","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-teaching"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v27.7 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>Teaching Meditation in Prison: A Transformative Journey - Meditation Magazine<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Discovering My True Potential in Unlikely Places\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.meditationmag.com\/blog\/teaching-meditation-in-prison\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Teaching Meditation in Prison: A Transformative Journey - Meditation Magazine\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Discovering My True Potential in Unlikely Places\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/www.meditationmag.com\/blog\/teaching-meditation-in-prison\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Meditation Magazine\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:publisher\" content=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/Meditation-Magazine-565383236930078\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2023-11-22T14:55:49+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2023-11-23T10:42:39+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/www.meditationmag.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/11\/pexels-ron-lach-10472991-scaled.jpg\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"2560\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"1707\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/jpeg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Bob Tenbarge\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"Bob Tenbarge\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"3 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\\\/\\\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.meditationmag.com\\\/blog\\\/teaching-meditation-in-prison\\\/#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.meditationmag.com\\\/blog\\\/teaching-meditation-in-prison\\\/\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"Bob Tenbarge\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.meditationmag.com\\\/blog\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/42c7b287469c099bf2f9483d53bd0862\"},\"headline\":\"Teaching Meditation in Prison: A Transformative Journey\",\"datePublished\":\"2023-11-22T14:55:49+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2023-11-23T10:42:39+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.meditationmag.com\\\/blog\\\/teaching-meditation-in-prison\\\/\"},\"wordCount\":521,\"commentCount\":0,\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.meditationmag.com\\\/blog\\\/teaching-meditation-in-prison\\\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.meditationmag.com\\\/blog\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2023\\\/11\\\/pexels-ron-lach-10472991-scaled.jpg\",\"articleSection\":[\"Teaching\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"CommentAction\",\"name\":\"Comment\",\"target\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/www.meditationmag.com\\\/blog\\\/teaching-meditation-in-prison\\\/#respond\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.meditationmag.com\\\/blog\\\/teaching-meditation-in-prison\\\/\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.meditationmag.com\\\/blog\\\/teaching-meditation-in-prison\\\/\",\"name\":\"Teaching Meditation in Prison: A Transformative Journey - 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