Ascending to a new mindset through meditation

Since she started meditating three years ago, Stratford resident Laila Viani has gained a new outlook on life. In fact, she’s been so impacted by the methods of Ishaya Ascension, she’s inviting the public into her home for a special weekend meditation course July 17-19. The First Sphere Course will be taught by Ishaya monks from London and will teach participants the simple, mechanical techniques of Ascension to allow them to rise above the chaos and clutter of the mind. 

These techniques – the Ascension Attitudes of praise, gratitude, love and compassion – require no religious belief and followers say can be practised by anyone at any time. “Basically the student applies the technique in the meditation and people share their experience,” Viani said of the upcoming course.  Participation in the course lends students support for more than just the weekend. After completing the course, students can call and receive telephone support from the monks, 24 hours a day, seven days a week. 

“Some people may get stuck on particular thoughts so when they call the centre, the teacher can guide them through it,” she said. Students are also eligible to retake the same course anywhere it is offered in the world, for free, as many times as they wish. Viani meditates for up to two hours a day and travels to London once a week for group meditation. She’s not only noticed changes within herself since she’s started practising Ascension, but others have too. 

“The first thing I noticed when I started was that I wanted to watch less television,” she said. “Other people noticed changes in me too, I didn’t notice them because they were subtle changes at first. I was more open.” One of the biggest changes in her life has been her self image. 

For 20 years, Viani said she exercised frequently, sometimes obsessively. “I had an addiction to exercise, basically you call it a slave to the body. I just stopped exercising, it wasn’t really something I had to think about. I just stopped going to the gym. I cancelled my membership. Basically, I think I’m starting to let go of my body issues.”

It was during a 10-day retreat she discovered what she calls her “still, silent place.” Once an Ascender discovers this, it becomes easier to live your life in the mind space. “Once you discover that place and you practice and engage in it, it becomes easier and easier to go to that place,” she said. “In the past month, I’ve been engaged as much as I can and I’ve noticed such a shift, it’s incredible. I’ve been experiencing heightened intuition I never thought was possible, moments are becoming richer, sights, sounds, tastes are becoming more intense. “I’m becoming more empowered as a woman, I’m not afraid to speak up or if I’m angry I show it ... you stop repressing your emotions. There is definitely freedom from fear.” 

This isn’t the first time the course has been offered in the city – one took place in 2007 and Viani said there are three others in Stratford who practice Ascension. However, her goal is to see the local community grow and is willing to open her home to others who wish to meditate. She is also considering becoming an Ishaya monk.