In this conversation, Alexis Santos, a former medical student turned Buddhist monk and meditation teacher, shares his transformative journey from disillusionment to mindfulness. He discusses the interplay between meditation and sleep, encouraging a relaxed approach that reframes how we perceive these moments. Alexis emphasizes cultivating awareness in daily life and the importance of self-compassion in habit formation. He also inspires listeners to integrate mindfulness seamlessly into their routines, proving that meditation can thrive even amid daily distractions.
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volunteer_activism ADVICE
Working with Sleepiness During Meditation
Explore sleepiness in meditation with curiosity, not judgment.
Ask yourself: "What are my beliefs about sleep that make me resist this experience?"
volunteer_activism ADVICE
Cultivating a Receptive Awareness
Approach meditation with a gentle, receptive awareness (sati).
Avoid striving or trying to "win" at meditation.
insights INSIGHT
The Power of Remembering
Regularly remembering to be present is key to building mindfulness.
This "remembering" (sati) becomes easier over time.
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While in medical school in the mid-90's, Alexis Santos found himself in the midst of a spiritual crisis. At one of the top medical schools in the country, he felt unfulfilled and disillusioned by the stress and unhappiness around him and in his fellow students. After two years, he changed course and travelled to India, where he was first introduced to insight meditation on a 10-day retreat in the S.N. Goenka tradition. Interested to deepen his meditation practice, he happened across Sayadaw U Tejaniya, an unknown meditation teacher in Burma at the time. Recognizing his good fortune, Alexis decided to stay on, where he ordained as a Buddhist monk for two years. At the encouragement of Sayadaw U Tejaniya, Alexis began teaching and in 2016 he completed the Spirit Rock/Insight Meditation Society teacher training program with Joseph Goldstein, Jack Kornfield and others. He now teaches meditation retreats at centers throughout North America, Europe and Australia. In this episode, the conversation gets an interesting start with Alexis sharing his views on sleepiness and meditation, and then moving on to his time in Burma with Sayadaw U Tejaniya, the masculine and feminine approach to meditation and habit formation and how to use all our waking hours to practice meditation in daily life. Website: https://www.alexissantos.io/about Alexis courses in the app: https://10percenthappier.app.link/Alexis-Santos Alexis Santos on Dharma Seed: https://dharmaseed.org/teacher/525/ Podcast Insiders Feedback Group: https://10percenthappier.typeform.com/to/vHz4q4 Ten Percent Happier Discount: www.tenpercent.com/2020 Have a question for Dan? Leave us a voicemail: 646-883-8326
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