The Light Inside: Empowering Incarcerated People Through Meditation
Vedic Worldview
Introduction
This chapter features a panel discussion on incarceration and compassion, featuring Tom Knolls, Reverend Michelle Simmons, and the host, Robert Hammond. The discussion starts with a video by the Compassion Prison Project, showcasing the challenges faced by incarcerated individuals.
Thom's annual Australian tour is now underway and we'd love to invite you to participate.. We have a range of tour events scheduled, including free introductory talks and a learn to meditate course for those who are new to Vedic Meditation.
If you've completed a qualified Vedic Meditation course, we invite you to join Tom for knowledge sessions, group meditations and a one-day retreat he has scheduled in Sydney.
Thom is also offering a five-day four-night retreat in Gerringong, south of Sydney, as well as private mentoring sessions throughout the month.
You can find out more about all of these offerings at thomknoles.com/sydney. That's thomknoles.com/sydney.
In October 2023, Thom Knoles participated in a panel discussion at a fundraiser event for The Light Inside, an organization providing Vedic Meditation courses for inmates in prisons in the United States, with plans to operate internationally.
Other panelists included: Joh Jarvis, a Vedic Meditation Initiator and the founder of The Light Inside; Rev. Dr. Michelle Anne Simmons, founder of Why Not Prosper, an organization that provides support for women after they exit the prison system, and a board member of The Light Inside; and Robert Hammond, also a Vedic Meditation Initiator and a board member of The Light Inside, facilitated the discussion.
This episode is a slightly truncated recording of that event, with a short introduction from Joh Jarvis. As well as reflections on Thom’s own experiences working in prisons, we hear about the impact The Light Inside is having on prisoners and everyone else whose lives they touch.
The Light Inside website: www.the-lightinside.org
Why Not Prosper website: https://www.why-not-prosper.org/
The Compassion Prison Project website: https://compassionprisonproject.org/
Episode Highlights
[00:45] Setting the Context
[03:25] Step Inside the Circle
[04:52] Introductions
[06:12] Collective Responsibility for Change
[08:09] Unlocking Baseline Happiness for World Peace
[09:26] From Incarceration to Inner Peace
[11:06] Starting The Light Inside
[12:35] Teaching in Rikers Island
[13:57] Purpose and Vision of The Light Inside
[14:59] Meditation in Rikers Island
[16:29] Spiritual Alignment of Reverend Michelle to The Light Inside
[17:41] Transformative Experience in Jail
[18:50] From Resentment to Revelation
[19:53] Meditation as a Tool for Recovery and Personal Growth
[21:09] Beyond Therapies: The Impact of Self-Forgiveness and Meditation
[22:14] Teaching Tools for a New Path
[23:58] Teaching Meditation in the Toughest Jails
[25:47] Passing the Test
[28:52] Freedom Behind Bars
[30:26] Transforming Lives in San Quentin
[32:06] Meditation's Impact on Rival Gangs
[33:25] Changes in Inmates Doing Meditation
[34:41] Challenges and Transformations in Rikers Island
[35:45] "I Sound Less Angry."
[37:11] Power of Leadership in Culture Change
[39:27] Culture Change in the Prison
[40:50] Strategic Teaching: Engaging Prison Guards to Impact Inmates
[43:15] Mental Health in Prisons
[45:02] Meditation as a Coping Mechanism
[46:06] Supporting The Light Inside
[47:24] Spreading the Light
[48:36] A Different Workplace
[50:19] Tenderness Amongst Violence and Chaos
Useful Links
info@thomknoles.com
https://www.instagram.com/thethomknoles
https://www.facebook.com/thethomknoles
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