Meditation tips from Lama Tenzin

During Friends Academy's week-long annual Peace Week, guest lecturer and ordained Buddhist monk Lama Tenzin Yignyen offered a special meditation session to parents and caregivers.

Imparting various reflections on compassion, Lama Tenzin advised participants to keep that state of being very close to their hearts. "Compassion is the single-most best medicine for any disease," he shared. It is not just about feelings, he said, adding, "If you see someone who needs help, it is our responsibility to help that person. That is compassion."

For those interested in beginning the art of meditation, Lama Tenzin instructed participants to remember the what, why, and where. "You must always have something to meditate upon. Something that can make you a better person. It is not about clearing your mind," he said. Begin meditations in the morning when you are most awake and not at the end of the day, he said, at the same time and place, urging that consistency is key. "And only meditate for five to ten minutes. Do not try two to three hours... you must build up to that. If after five or six years, five to ten minutes feels short... then you go to a half hour," he recommended with a laugh.

Photography by Alvin Caal/Friends Academy