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Mindfulness for Movement Teachers: An Immersion Training
With Mimi Kuo-Deemer Stay tuned -- next dates TBD... This four-day immersion is aimed at enabling those who practice or teach movement the space to deepen, broaden and enrich their understanding of how mindfulness can inform their approach to embodiment. It is equally aimed at providing practical tools from the mindfulness tradition that can be shared in classes with students, enabling them to engage with movement in skilful, compassionate and insightful ways. While mindfulness has become a catch-word in today’s culture, the roots of mindfulness stem from ancient and powerful ideas originally set forth by the Buddha. This immersion will explore the modern-day value of the Buddha’s teachings on mindfulness, and how they may support practice within the contemporary world of movement. Drawing on the Satipatthana Suttas, or Foundations of Mindfulness, each day of the immersion will explore one of the four foundations as it relates to sharing and teaching: Mindfulness of Body, Mindfulness of Vedana (sensations or feeling tones that are pleasant, unpleasant or neutral), Mindfulness of Thoughts and Mindfulness of Dhamma (the path, truth, and all phenomena). Through a highly experiential approach, we will consider the ways our practice and teaching can be supported and guided by the benefits of mindfulness as an embodied practice. We will also develop skills to authentically weave in themes from mindfulness such as compassion, generosity, kindness, and inquiry into classes, and cultivate techniques such as letting go of reactivity, clinging and judgement that can be learned and passed on to others. Underlying all the practices will be an understanding that mindfulness is guided by metta (lovingkindness) and leads to compassion, insight and greater wisdom. In addition to meditation practice, each day will include active practice of qigong (a Chinese energy art form). Emphasis will be placed on understanding how to approach and teach movement-based practices within a mindfulness framework. Structural and practical methodologies such as using language, introducing and developing themes and weaving narratives into class will be covered. Participants will be given techniques for presenting and sharing mindfulness in accessible, informative and enlivening ways. Topics will include:
Course structure and times: Day one Mindfulness of Body: Awakening the Wisdom and Intelligence of the Body Day two Mindfulness of Vedana (feeling tone): The Gap Between Stimulus and Response Day three Mindfulness of Thoughts: The Inclinations of Mind and Our Emotional Signatures Day four Mindfulness of Dhamma: Living in the Light of Our Own Understanding Prerequisites: Experience in qigong is suggested but not required. An interest in mindfulness and how it relates to movement is essential. Open to teachers, teachers in training, or those interested and keen to one day teach movement. |
What other past participants have kindly shared about a previous, similar immersion I taught, called Mindfulness for Yoga Teachers:
'If you want to deliver mindfulness to students in a skilled and authentic way, take this training. I cannot recommend it enough! In a world where life is fast-paced, mindfulness is the antidote, providing healing and sanctuary. Mimi's training gets to the heart of these sacred practices of mindfulness, skilfully teaching us strategies to ground our teaching, while weaving mindfulness more confidently into our yoga classes. The training also helped me deal with my inner critic; taught me to hold space for myself, and others - which has been deeply cathartic and affirming. This training is a must!! ‘ – Julia Thompson ‘Mimi‘s immersion was a deeply grounding and nurturing experience for the soul. Mentally I feel lighter, with space to grow and create. Mimi’s use of language and her ability to integrate and impart the teachings of the Buddha was inspiring. This workshop left me full of enquiry and eagerness to learn more. It reignited my love for studying and I am already integrating it into my teaching and my everyday life’. – Serena Davis ‘The balance of the course between learning, mediation, practice and group work was excellent. Mimi is hugely inspiring in such a calm and understated way! The course has had an immediate impact on my life – bringing me back to my practice and giving me tools to help deal with what life throws up. It's also given me new confidence in passing it on to the classes I teach, and helped slowed me down which is no mean feat! Her passion for mindfulness and passing it on is truly inspiring, and I thank her for a heartfelt course’. – Rachel Palin ‘Mimi's course was immersed in thought-provoking materials. It is not often you see a course from the heart and this was it. I think most of us came back with a new inner being, fresh with compassion for ourselves and towards others. I had one person come to me and express their changed view of me, which was kinder and softer. It is wonderful how a short course can change the inner dialogue to kinder and softer soul'. – Nahid Nolan |