“I want to share the fact that
Dhammakaya meditation offers a quick
and non-complicated vehicle to pursue
inner happiness and peace and a change
of outlook on life and mankind, an
outlook of hope and peace.”
We are a composite of our experiences. My life
was shaped as the youngest child of Latin American
immigrants from Colombia, South America. As
I follow life’s path, I have grown and developed
and I have had many spiritual awakenings. When
I am ready, things start to “click” and make
sense. This is what happened when I arrived at
the Dhammakaya International Meditation
Center (DIMC) in Fanwood, New Jersey in 2005.
Though I had chanted and practiced
meditation at different times since 1974, its deep
meaning did not crystallize for me until I attended
the DIMC. I began to study a “process and system”
that was fully accessible and comprehensible, and
this developed as I experienced life.
Prior to 2005, my religious and spiritual
experiences provided only pieces of a puzzle to my
understanding of life’s spirituality. I had begun my
religious studies as a six year old, and later chanted. I
was exposed to many different forms of meditation,
prayers, many religions, sects and many languages
Hinduism, Buddhism, Quakerism, Roman
Catholicism, Protestantism, mysticism, Brazilian
Candomble Hindu, Chinese, Japanese, Korean
and Spanish. Now, here I am, in 2005, learning
Pali, in yet another quest for the Divine, through the Dhammakaya.
When I attended my first session at the DIMC,
my husband had recently passed away.
We had been married for 38 years and I never
imagined that I would survive without him
because I was so dependent on him
I have been an educator since 1968, and have
taught, supervised, and administered programs
from elementary to Ph.D. levels. I am currently
an Assistant Principal at the same school where I
once served as a Spanish teacher, but now it is a
multi-school campus, an “oasis” in a high crime,
depressed area, where ‘crack’ was invented.
DIMC for me has represented an encounter
with love, beginning with the abbot, and
permeating every aspect of the Center: the
attending monks, staffs, the educator, other
assistants and teachers, an impeccable setting,
providing a haven for surrounding communities
through classes, chanting, meditation, retreats,
courses, and other social events. We are all made
to feel like pure and innocent children on a quest,
through the guidance of each and every staff member.
The degree of patience for where we are in
our spiritual journey is quite remarkable. I have
learned that we can work miracles by realizing the
miracle within ourselves. To transform the world
we must first transform ourselves and realize that
we belong to one great spiritual family, the world.
Everything we do, whether good or evil, affects
the world cosmically. In the level of spirit, we are all one.
Among the concepts I have internalized
from the DIMC are the followings:
1) Approach meditation with a positive
heart, otherwise, your meditation will
be adversely affected. I remember being
frightened and crying during meditation
because I had not fully centered my
mind. I was distracted, causing an
adverse effect on my meditation. I
have since overcomed this problem
through greater awareness of the mind
and the need to “empty the mind of all worries”.
2) Forgive our shortcomings. We cannot
love others if we do not love ourselves.
Since 1999, I have not been able to sit in
the Lotus position. Indeed, I will never
be able to again do this, since I had a
hip replacement, and to do so would be
counter-productive in my case. Instead,
I have to accept my physical limitations
and love myself with what and where I
am today.
3) Practice meditation systematically and
regularly. Meditation enables us to attain
nirvana, Dhammakaya, so it is to our
advantage that we develop this practice as
a habit and ritual. I am working on this
area. I have the advantage of working an
hour away from home. I listen to chants at
least six times a day and am making great
progress although I have never formally
studied Pali. I get great comfort from
chanting, especially the part that addresses
Karma: yam kammam karissanti.
4) Seek the divine light within, beginning
with the crystal starting from within us
and extending this light throughout the
world: the light of loving kindness that
we hope will touch all, even if others
have hurt us; when we have done this we
become one with the Divine and we gain
a merit for ourselves and for our loved ones.
5) Take this light with you everywhere.
We can replicate the meditative bliss we
achieved at the DIMC in every waking
moment, and in our every location in a
“moving, waking meditation”.
6) Transform the world by first
transforming ourselves and realize that
we belong to one great spiritual family
- the world; and know that everything
we do, whether good or evil, affects our
karma. Life is a dynamic process. In the
level of spirit, we are all one.
7) Meditate without resistance .
Acknowledge fleeting thoughts, look at
them but without expending judgment,
resistance or interest. Revert to chanting
‘Samma Arahang’ when becoming
distracted and losing focus and radiate
love as if through the “brightness of the
sun” and the “serenity of the moon”.
8) Cherish the sense of peace and love
as you spread this love throughout
the world.
In the past, I have had some
frightening meditations, but now I
realize it is only because I approached
the meditation process with negativity. I
realize that I get from meditation what
I bring to it, so that it is very important
to empty the mind of any thoughts and worries.
I am interested in meditation because it is a
vehicle to pursue our inner divinity and connection
to humanity. When I practice meditation, I focus
the mind by first preparing myself to be positive
and empty myself of any negative feelings, whether
physical, psychological or emotional in nature
so that my meditation experience will not be
adversely affected.
First, I adjust my posture, breathe deeply
and follow the prescribed path, emptying my
thoughts by chanting ‘Samma Arahang’, then
patiently sit and wait until I experience the
magic of meditation – inner peace, accepting
wherever I am and letting everything go past,
without resistance or struggle. After experiencing
an initial darkness, the focus on a crystal sphere
helps restore and rekindle a splendid light, first
small and narrow, and then spreading throughout
every cell, my entire surroundings, and ultimately
the world.
After being guided throughout this process,
I sent my loving kindness throughout the world
through my inner light, a light of goodness and
love that is radiated into the brightness of the sun
and the serenity of the moon. The result is one of
greater spirituality and connection with my world
and a great sense of peace and love for myself and
the world.
I think of a clear crystal ball as the object
at the center of the body. I use the mantra to
keep me centered whenever I feel distracted.
Each time the meditation experience is
different, depending on what I bring into
the meditation.
After meditation, I feel spiritually purified,
happy, calm and renewed in hope. I know that
change is a question of habit. If we feel such bliss,
we should repeat the process often and regularly.
Meditation requires discipline, repetition and
willpower, so that we do not regress or lose what
we have gained. Others know that I meditate. My
principal from another faculty and students say,
“Why are you always happy? Why don’t you get
angry? Why don’t you curse? How come you love
everyone? How come you are so cool and never let
anything bother you, no matter what?” I want to
share the fact that Dhammakaya meditation offers
a quick and non-complicated vehicle to pursue
inner happiness and peace. You will also experience
a change of outlook on life and mankind and an
outlook of hope and peace. I often talk to the
toughest students and tell them that I am praying
for them. One of them replied, “I am praying for
you.” And I have responded, “This is the greatest
gift you could give me, because prayers from a
child are even more sacred and regarded.”
These are youths who are instilled with hope despite
being pressed by wounds of society.
I think the fact that my mind is open to
considering new ideas is a positive asset to my
work. By pointing out to students how to balance
thoughts, relations with truth, that through my
enriched background, I will be better able to help
students turn their lives around. There is always
the hope that they will change negative actions
toward society to positive interactions and create
a more loving world.
People make decisions based on the way I
act, my attitude and my acceptance of them as
rational beings. If we want to change society, we
must start early by instilling the right values in
elementary school. Thus, when children become
adults, they will be more caring, more loving,
and more aware that the world is really one large
family that is connected, so that whatever we do
on a personal level affects the grand level. This
is the first time that I have grasped the concept
of replicating the energies in meditation in everyday life.
"We Are One With Meditation"
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