You can still get your first dose of PART 1: Meditation is Medicine with Kazi of The Spirit-Centered Life, a study group held in conjunction with Newark Center for Meditative Culture. It’s easy, just become a member with your kindred spirits at the Meditation Medicine Study Group to access recorded talks, videos, discussion forum, and consultations with Kazi.
Click here to check out the orientation video.
Join us for a free four-part lesson online in simple to apply instruction in the physical, functional and mental mechanics of meditation practice:
Recorded Meditations | Live Talks | Discussion Forum | Consultation
Tuesday Evenings Beginning April 3rd
7:00 pm EST | 4:00 pm PST
(24 hours to access LIVE sessions if you can’t join us live.)
Held in conjunction with Newark Center for Meditative Culture, this 4 part lesson is exclusive to Meditation Medicine Study Group Members and will be held on Tuesday evenings, April 3rd, April 10th, April 17th, and April 24th. The lessons will include live web talks, pre-recorded guided meditations, discussion, consultation, and some home assignments.
To Register:
Become a member of the Meditation Medicine Study Group on Facebook with Master Teacher Kazi of The Spirit-Centered Life.
IF YOU CAN’T MAKE THE LIVE SESSIONS, STUDENTS WILL HAVE 24 HOURS TO VIEW THE RECORDED SESSION.
Course Description:
As the practice of meditation becomes more mainstream with each day, the opportunity to begin a meditation practice often remains stymied by a lack of time, energy or just a lack of knowledge on how and where to begin. It is our wish that this series of teachings contributes to removing these obstacles to your meditation practice.
This series of lessons includes:
• Four live web talks on meditative practice, method, challenges, resources, etc. (recorded versions available for 24 hours, if you are unable to attend LIVE)
• Four pre-recorded guided meditations that you can download and play at your convenience.
• Question and Answer on the material covered in the course via the group forum.
• Optional twenty-minute consultation with Kazi concerning your meditation experiences, insights, challenges, etc. via email, phone, or skype.
• A group of kindred spirits to share your meditation medicine journey with.
Registration available only once you have become a member of the Meditation Medicine Study Group.
About the Teacher
Ib’nallah S. Kazi (Kazi) is a Las Vegas-based spiritual wellness coach, medicine movement, and meditation teacher. He places an emphasis on wellness and personal development through his own program, presently known as The Spirit-Centered Life. Kazi has had a committed meditation practice for over 30 years and applies many disciplines. This includes Taoist, Sufi and Ancestral Meditation Medicine. Kazi has built a diverse education and training. His adolescent rites of passage began in 1974 when he became a Five Percenter, a splinter group from the Nation of Islam. Kazi has trained in and developed his internal martial medicine skills, teaching both Tai Chi Chuan and Yara Mba. He was the co-founder of the Harriet Tubman Hiking Society established in 1988 to immerse the African-American community back into nature. He integrated fitness training and massage becoming certified as a Health-Fitness Trainer and as a Massage Therapist that included Royal Thai Medical Massage. He also became a certified Intrinisic Coach. Kazi was until 2017 based in Newark NJ for 13 years where he remains on the Board of Directors of Newark Center for Meditative Culture, serving as the Spiritual Director and Lead Teacher. See Kazi’s full bio on the NCMC Website under Leadership.
If the forecast holds out, we’ll be able to observe the Super Moon, the biggest brightest full moon of the year, on December 3 that is followed a day later by the lunar perigee —the moon’s closest point to Earth in its orbit.
There are many myths regarding the power of the full moon. Perhaps there is something to it rather than to dismiss it as superstition as it’s power is acknowledged in many ancient cultures. Modern science tends to debunk it, but what if with a sensitized, subtle mind, we explore it through meditation?
We’ve found a few online meditations for you to explore over the next four days approaching the Super Moon Sunday:
For those of you who want to approach it as a medicinal, healing meditation you might try this Healing Moon Meditation that mainly requires moon gazing and just letting it happen. It is said you can chanelize the moon energy with Moon Salutation asanas designed specifically for this. Keep it light and within your range. For all you goddesses out there, you might like to try this Wild Power: Full Moon Meditation to tap into your divine feminine power. Or perhaps Shamanic Astral Projection flute music can bring out your essence during your moon gazing.
We have a choice to neglect or nurture our minds. To nurture our minds takes a little discipline — the practice of meditation and mindfulness can help to etch good qualities and impartiality into our minds through positive reinforcement and developing intimacy with ourselves. We begin to see the connections between our brain, mind, heart, body, and spirit.
The hard fact is, that to neglect our minds means that we might also be neglecting or even harming others. How often do we see the domino effect that our negative habits and actions can have on those close to us and our community, let alone those of other cultures? This certainly doesn’t mean that we can’t also play with abandonment, but we also then can use our mind skills to get back on track!
Once we’ve established a nurturing m
ind for ourselves, we might even then extend our efforts to nurture the minds and help heal others. This is where compassion begins and becomes action. Putting ourselves in others shoes we can acknowledge and identify with their pain, unhappiness, and injustices and take good radical action.
Newark Center for Meditative Culture (NCMC) is currently offering three gems of opportunities to plant seeds of positive power and nurture our minds.
On Wednesday, October 25th, by special invitation, Bhante Buddharakkhita of Uganda will give a presentation, dhamma talk, and guided meditation, Planting Dhamma Seeds in Uganda and Nurturing Our Minds from 6:30pm to 9:00pm at City Without Walls. Concurrently, Ib’nallah S. Kazi will lead a Facebook Live meditation, Self-Healing Medicine, the last in a series of four starting at 7:00pm. Kazi’s meditation will also be broadcast at City Without Walls Gallery at 6 Crawford Street in Newark NJ for all attending there. Portions of Bhante Buddharakkhita’s program will be on Facebook Live starting at 7:30 pm.
Then on Sunday, November 12th we will be holding a full-day retreat, People of Color & Allies Full-Day Retreat: Our Return to Ancestral Meditation Medicine, taught by Kazi with assistance by J. Javier Cruz and Andrea Lee. The retreat will be held at Index Art Center at 237 Washington Street in Newark NJ and will run from 10:00am to 5pm. Participants can choose whether they attend full-day or part-day (morning or afternoon session).
These programs are donation-based so that NCMC can generously gift the teachers to support their work. Please contact us by email with any questions at info@newarkmeditation.org.
Teacher: Ib’nallah S. Kazi
Instructors: J. Javier Cruz & Andrea Lee
Presenters: Mesha Allen & Muta Morton
Sunday, November 12 | 10:00am to 5:00pm EST (Optional Part-day participation)
Index Art Center, 237 Washington St. | 2nd Floor, Stairs Only
Donation-based fee: $20 suggested/$15 student | Vegan Lunch Included
Limited seating 30 students. Register Now with Eventbrite!
TO BE FOREWARNED IS TO BE FOREARMED.
This full day (optional part day) retreat will include sessions in meditation, medicine movement, yoga, spoken word, and other disciplines. We will explore the spiritual, ethical, and practical applications of the self-knowing, self-healing, and self-transformative arts of the indigenous, enslaved, colonized and immigrant Americans. The resurgence of interest in the meditative arts in the People of Color communities in the 21st century is missing an impor
tant link. And that link connects us to the genetic continuity revealing the secrets to our “surthrival” in the face of the already mounting challenges to our safety, inheritance, and very humanity. Through immersion with People of Color at this retreat, White Allies can deepen their understanding and support. A white ally is a person of white-skin or who is white-person-identified of unearned privilege who engages in anti-racism work while practicing principles of cultural humility. Our ancestors have left us a diverse tool chest of systems, practices, and wisdom insights to meet the challenge of “this time”. Let’s reconnect the link.
This program is appropriate for non-meditators, beginners, through advanced meditators of any discipline. You must register to attend. You are welcome to attend part-day for the morning or afternoon session, but maximum benefit is gained by attending the entire retreat. Register Now with Eventbrite!
BIO-NOTES:
Ib’nallah S. Kazi (Kazi) is a Las Vegas-based spiritual wellness coach, medicine movement, and meditation teacher. He places an emphasis on wellness and personal development through his own program, presently known as The Spirit-Centered Life. Kazi has had a committed meditation practice for over 30 years and applies many disciplines. This includes Taoist, Sufi and Ancestral Meditation Medicine. Kazi has built a diverse education and training. His adolescent rites of passage began in 1974 when he became a Five Percenter, a splinter group from the Nation of Islam. Kazi has trained in and developed his internal martial medicine skills, teaching both Tai Chi Chuan and Yara Mba. He was the co-founder of the Harriet Tubman Hiking Society established in 1988 to immerse the African-American community back into nature. He integrated fitness training and massage becoming certified as a Health-Fitness Trainer and as a Massage Therapist that included Royal Thai Medical Massage. He also became a certified Intrinisic Coach. Kazi was until 2017 based in Newark NJ for 13 years where he remains on the Board of Directors of Newark Center for Meditative Culture, serving as a Spiritual Advisor and Lead Teacher. See Kazi’s full bio.
J. Javier Cruz was born and raised in Florida, Puerto Rico, but has lived in the Greater Newark NJ area for decades, hence he is bilingual, speaking his native Spanish and English. He currently resides in Harrison, NJ and works as a stationary engineer at a plant in Newark. Though Javier has had a committed meditation practice for over 10 years, he was introduced to meditation 17 years ago while in the NA 12-Step Recovery Program. He is a Buddhist practitioner with residential retreat experience and has studied with Insight Teacher Dennis Maurer who teaches at IMCNJ then under the guidance of Narayan. Javier’s main practice is loving-kindness (metta), using it in his daily life along with developing it methodically as a meditation discipline. Having seen and experienced much suffering and troubles in his family, meditation, especially metta, has been key to his well-being and stability. In his spare time he volunteers for a hospice. His priority is his family and he spends much time and attention on his children, grandchildren, and girlfriend.
Saraswati Andrea Lee is a senior disciple of Reverend Jaganath Carrera, Spiritual Head and Founder of Yoga Life Society. Under his direction she is completing seminary training to become a Yoga Life Minister in 2018. She is a certified Yoga instructor and performs Kirtan with Mirabai Catherine Moon. She is a Preschool Assistant Teacher at Montclair Cooperative School in her hometown of Montclair, NJ. Andrea serves as the Treasurer of NCMC where she presents on meditation and mindfulness and instructs yoga and chanting sessions for retreats.
Mesha Allen is a graduate of Ramapo College. She is passionate about improving the well-being of her community and aspires to open her own wellness center before she’s 30. She is the founder of Newark Integrative Enrichment Society and co-founder and trustee of New African Liberty Organization. She lives in Newark and advocates for people suffering with chronic pain and Fibromyalgia.
Muta Morton is an aspiring yogi, artist and gardener who believes everyone has a right to live a happy meaningful life. He grew up moving from foster home to foster home, struggling with depression, homelessness and being emotionally and financially deprived since age ten. Now at 26, Muta searches to find the big picture, using ancient wisdom and truths to guide him through what was meant to be a free planet for people to live together as one, but instead has become a power, money and blood hungry planet. He believes we can change and make the world a better place. He believes that the design of most on the planet right now is to use and abuse people, propagating a planet of hate that would ultimately self destruct. Muta feels that by going deep inside ourselves together we can actually sustain this planet and make it a better place for generations to come.
