Refuge from the madding crowd
By Jerry Steward August 1, 2008 San Miguel de Allende

Meditation
Mon–Fri, 8 & 8:50am, 5:30pm
Sat, 10am, with instruction
Films
Eckhart Tolle in India
Thu, 5:30pm
Informal coffee hour
First & Third Friday, 9:30am
Meditation Center
Callejón Blanco 4

All things are impermanent, observed the Buddha, so clinging to them only leads to suffering. Sage advice, especially for members of a Buddhist-oriented meditation center, but after well over a decade, with as many changes as the Buddha promised, the Meditation Center of San Miguel de Allende is still here and very much alive.

The Meditation Center was founded in 1995 to offer a nondenominational meeting place for those who wished to practice silent, still meditation. For many years it made its home at the top of Hotel Vista Hermosa Taboada on Cuna de Allende. Those who arrived—often panting—found themselves in an expansive, sunny room with an eagle’s nest view. Meditations were punctuated by church bells, firecrackers, a resident canyon wren’s cascade of notes. Courtesy of a neighbor’s radio, a soulful version of Las Mañanitas gave notice that the second sitting would be over soon.

In its current incarnation, the Meditation Center occupies a modest house at callejón Blanco 4. From the street, one enters the meditation hall (converted from a garage), looking out upon a lush and tranquil garden.

To the left are shelves for shoes and personal belongings, while to the right, the carpeted space for meditation is furnished with cushions, chairs and meditation benches. As in the former location, sounds of the city provide points of recollection for any wandering of the mind.

Beyond the meditation hall, the house proper holds a well-stocked library of spiritual books, tapes and videos, available to anyone who attends sittings or events, a meeting room and kitchen and bedrooms for visiting teachers or practitioners, or for solitary practice.

During the week, sittings begin at 8am and 8:50am, with a 10-minute walking period in between, and at 5:30pm. The Saturday sit at 10am includes an opportunity to receive basic meditation instruction in English or Spanish. Those wishing to meditate are welcome to come and go during these times at their convenience, as long as they respect the silence, stillness and tranquility of the other meditators. Members and visitors come from Tibetan, Zen and Theravada Buddhist traditions, not to mention Hindu, Christian, Jewish, New Age and none of the above—all with a desire to sit together and share in the sometimes frustrating but always fascinating path of opening.

Not surprisingly, given the center’s name, the core shared activity is the practice of meditation, which the Buddha often said was “good in the beginning, good in the middle and good at the end.” In the beginning it can help to quiet the mind and relieve some of the stress of modern life. In the middle it can lead deeply into the tangled web of “the story” with all its emotional baggage and firmly held beliefs. In the end, there is the opportunity to go beyond, to that which is beyond form, concept and identity. Within this natural silence, it is possible to discover the peace and happiness that were always present behind or beneath the mind’s constant chatter. This radiant place of refuge is the birthright of every human being.

The Meditation Center is unusual in that there is no resident teacher or affiliation with any particular form or practice. Instead, over the years the center has hosted visits and teachings by venerable Tibetan lamas, Zen priests and Vipassana teachers, as well as offerings from non-Buddhist paths and traditions.

From time to time members have shared some of the methods, principles and insights learned in their own spiritual journeys. There have been day retreats on site and longer retreats at the Benedictine Monastery outside Atotonilco and in other parts of Mexico.

Whenever appropriate films can be found, the community at large is invited to hear and see some of the great contemporary teachers of Dharma. The house is usually packed for these programs with people hungry to receive teachings from such teachers as Pema Chödron, Jack Kornfield, Charlotte Joko Beck, Thich Nhat Hahn and Adyashanti. After the current series featuring Eckhart Tolle on retreat in India, showing Thursdays at 5:30pm, the non-dual theme will continue with talks and dialogues from Gangaji. All of the center’s programs are on a donation basis, in keeping with the 2,500-year-old Buddhist tradition of offering teachings free of charge, or at a minimal charge to cover expenses.

For those seeking a deeper level of involvement at the Meditation Center, there is an informal coffee hour at 9:30am on the first and third Fridays of every month to visit and discuss business. Anybody who sits at the center is welcome to attend these meetings. For more information or to be put on the mailing list for upcoming events, call Frank Simons at 152-0536 or email dogiefranksimons@yahoo.com.  The center’s website is www.meditationsma.org. 

You can be sexy, beautiful and vibrantly healthy
By Renee Devereaux

Presentation
Renee Devereaux
Fri, Aug 8, 5pm
Sala Quetzal
Biblioteca Pública
Insurgentes 25
Donation

As our aging population is finding out, if left to its own devices, physical degeneration sets in whether we are ready for it or not!

What I want to share with you is that there are natural alternatives that will help you to stay vibrantly beautiful and radiantly alive. A wellness practitioner with 35 years’ experience in the field, I have seen people transform themselves as they heed my advice to take responsibility for their health and well-being.

My presentation will focus on alternative ways of healing and rejuvenation through diet, supplementation with herbs and vitamins and non-surgical modern technologies that will support the body’s regeneration by stimulating the body’s own natural healing potential.

I believe that the body, through symptoms and by our appearance, signals to us as an organ or organ system is out of alignment or is becoming dysfunctional. We need to become aware of these messages. I believe that we are not taught that information, therefore, we just want to get rid of whatever is causing the physical or mental discomfort. In order to thrive, we need to learn more about these messages. Often, as healing occurs, there is also a change in appearance, always for the better. I, understanding the human condition, feel that even small changes are cumulative and will have a bearing on your well-being. I do not insist on dramatic change, although that is always an option and your decision.

To learn more, please join me for my presentation.

Renee Devereaux has an M.S. in health science and nutrition, is a licensed esthetician, certified hypnotherapist/certified spiritual advisor and author of The Ultimate Love Affair.