COURSE WORKBOOK CONTENTS:

Course Introduction
Where Should I Meditate?
How Often Should I Meditate?
Why Journaling & Keeping a Calendar Can be
Beneficial
Glossary of Terms Used in this Course

Meditation Calendar
Meditation Journal
Notes & Drawing Section

We suggest printing this PDF workbook to use for

the course, enabling you to write in the journal and
mark on the calendar/take notes if you wish.
 When a man knows his true self for the first time, something else
arises from the depths of his being and takes possession of him. That
something is behind the mind: it is infinite, divine, and eternal. You
may give it what name you wish. What exists in truth is the self alone.
The world, the individual soul and God are all appearances in it. Like
silver in Mother of Pearl, these three appear at the same time and
disappear at the same time.

Sri Ramana Maharshi

Welcome to Your Autumn

Mindfulness and Meditation Course

We're so delighted that you are joining us to begin or return

to your daily practice. We hope that through this course you
are able to cultivate a solid foundation that will enable you to
find a deeper balance in your life.

To make things easier, we've compiled some course guidelines

that you may find useful whether you are beginning a practice
for the first time or simply rediscovering the joy of stillness
and introspection.

These guidelines serve as gentle suggestions, but only you

know what works best for you, so feel free to adjust them
accordingly. Meditation is becoming familiar with ourselves.
Through meditation we are able to find courage to persevere
when encountering obstacles and difficulties in our lives.
 Where Should I Meditate?

Find a quiet space in your house where you are comfortable

returning to on a daily basis. Make sure you have a chair or
cushion (zafu) where you are able to sit in a comfortable,
relaxed and upright position.

To create an alter/puja table you can add a picture of your

favorite deity or your Guru, a stick of incense as an offering,
and any personal items that evoke a sense of devotion and
love. This will help you to feel connected to your sacred
space.

Set your intention by picking a specific morning or evening

time when you can devote several minutes to sitting without
any distractions.

Silence all of your digital devices.

The daily repetition of the practice is what you are working

toward, so eventually there will be no need to convince
yourself to sit you will just naturally follow your developed
routine. Gradually as you get into your meditation habit you
can increase the allotted time for your practice.
How Often Should I Meditate?

In this course we recommend trying the daily meditations

and mantras provided each week, practiced once per day.
Your calendar outlines which meditation and mantras to
practice each day of the course. If you miss a day or two,
that's ok! Try to focus on finding a time of day that works
best for your schedule, whether it's early in the morning or
before bed.

We also recommend that you do a very short reflection

before you go to sleep. It can be in the sacred space that you
have set up or lying in your bed before drifting to sleep.
In that moment connect with that warm place in the center
of your chest that is your Spiritual Heart - and repeat I am
Loving Awareness several times until your attention moves
from your ego/mind to your spiritual heart/soul.

This is Ram Dass penultimate teaching which is found in

week four of this course - which is to bring ourselves into a
compassionate and loving heart space first towards
ourselves and then spreading that love and compassion
through loving kindness to all beings.

By doing this, even for just a moment or two we may find

ourselves sleeping more deeply and waking more refreshed.
Why Journaling and Keeping a
Calendar can be Beneficial

We recommend that each day after meditating you take a

few minutes to reflect in your journal (which you will find in
this workbook). Here are a few suggestions on what to reflect
on - you can also find weekly prompts in the course
dashboard:

What phenomena appeared during meditation that

disrupted your balance?
What thoughts or emotions got the better of you?
What body sensations did you experience?
What was the voice-track in your mind?
What was the underlying emotion you experienced?

Charting your daily practice can be a good way to appreciate

the growth that happens when you become more aware,
through meditation. You can simply record the type of
meditation and its duration - along with your reflections and
contemplations that came up during your practice.

You will find that once you have developed strong

meditative and mindful habits your life will change. The old
self-defeating habits and patterns will slowly dissolve and
true balance will gradually awaken in your life. Through daily
small changes of routine, your whole life can shift over time
to a new perspective.
 Glossary of Terms Used
in this Course
Anapanasati (Pali): A form of meditation that focuses solely on
the breath.

Bhakti Yoga Tradition: The Sanskrit word bhakti comes from

the root bhaj, which means to adore or worship God. Bhakti
yoga has been called love for love's sake and union through
love and devotion. Bhakti yoga, like any other form of yoga, is
a path to self-realization, to having an experience of oneness
with everything.

Ego: The pattern of conditioned habits that we mistake for a

sense of self.

Guru: The Guru Gita aptly describes the guru as dispeller of

darkness (from gu, darkness and ru, that which dispels). A
true, God-illumined guru is one who, in his attainment of self-
mastery, has realized his identity with the omnipresent Spirit.
Such a one is uniquely qualified to lead the seeker on his or
her inward journey toward perfection.

Karma/Kamma (Sanskrit/Pali): Action, deed; the law of cause

and effect; intentional action, either wholesome or
unwholesome that brings either pleasant or unpleasant results
respectively.
Mantra: The word mantra can be broken down into two parts:
man, which means mind, and tra, which means transport or
vehicle. In other words, a mantra is an instrument of the
minda powerful sound or vibration that you can use to
enter a deep state of meditation. Like a seed planted with the
intention of blossoming into a beautiful perennial, a mantra
can be thought of as a seed for energizing an intention.

Nirvana: A transcendent state in which there is neither

suffering, desire, nor sense of self, and the subject is released
from the effects of karma and the cycle of death and rebirth.
It represents the final goal of Buddhism.

Puja table: A low surface or table where you can create a

sacred space for meditation or prayer, you can add figures of
deities who inspire you (murtis), sacred stones, incense &
candles, texts, prayer beads or any other objects you hold
sacred.

Vipassana Meditation: Vipassana, or insight meditation, is the

practice of continued close attention to sensation, through
which one ultimately sees the true nature of existence.

Zafu: A traditional meditation cushion that is usually round

and firm.
Your Meditation & Mantra Calendar
Below you'll easily find which mantra/meditation to practice each
day of the course.
 Day 1 - Friday, September 22nd
Start Time: End Time:
Notes:

Day2-Saturday, September 23rd

Start Time: End Time:
Notes:
 Day3- Sunday, September 24th
Start Time: End Time:
Notes:

Day4-Monday, September 25th

Start Time: End Time:
Notes:
 Day5-Tuesday, September 26th
Start Time: End Time:
Notes:

Day6-Wednesday, September 27th

Start Time: End Time:
Notes:
 Day7-Thursday, September 28th
Start Time: End Time:
Notes:

Day8-Friday, September 29th

Start Time: End Time:
Notes:
 Day9- Saturday, September 30th
Start Time: End Time:
Notes:

Day10-Sunday, October 1st

Start Time: End Time:
Notes:
 Day11-Monday,October 2nd
Start Time: End Time:
Notes:

Day12-Tuesday, October3rd
Start Time: End Time:
Notes:
 Day13-Wednesday,October 4th
Start Time: End Time:
Notes:

Day14-Thursday, October 5th

Start Time: End Time:
Notes:
 Day15-Friday, October 6th
Start Time: End Time:
Notes:

Day16-Saturday, October 7th

Start Time: End Time:
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 Day17-Sunday, October 8th
Start Time: End Time:
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Day18-Monday, October 9th

Start Time: End Time:
Notes:
 Day19-Tuesday, October 10th
Start Time: End Time:
Notes:

Day20-Wednesday, October 11th

Start Time: End Time:
Notes:
 Day21-Thursday, October 12th
Start Time: End Time:
Notes:

Day22-Friday, October 13th

Start Time: End Time:
Notes:
 Day23-Saturday, October 14th
Start Time: End Time:
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Day24-Sunday, October 15th

Start Time: End Time:
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 Day25-Monday, October 16th
Start Time: End Time:
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Day26-Tuesday, October 17th

Start Time: End Time:
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 Day27-Wednesday, October 18th
Start Time: End Time:
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Day28-Thursday, October 19th

Start Time: End Time:
Notes:
Notes & Drawing