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Please join us for our second annual Meditation Marathon, a 24-hour global spiritual celebration and fundraising event. This marathon is a key opportunity to support EnlightenNext’s mission to catalyze a new spiritually evolving culture at the leading edge. It is also a unique occasion for awakening more deeply to the power of Spirit to transform ourselves and the culture we share.
Like any marathon, the Meditation Marathon is designed to push your limits, and by committing to participate for a full 12 or 24 hours, you will find reservoirs of strength and depth that you didn’t know you had. (Who knows, you may even become enlightened.☺) At whatever level you participate, for any period of time, we’ll be giving you lots of support, including inspiring audio clips, short contemplations about meditation, and two live Q&A sessions with spiritual teacher Andrew Cohen, the founder of EnlightenNext.
What’s more, by collecting sponsorship dollars from your friends and family, you can provide vital support to EnlightenNext, the 501c3 nonprofit organization that publishes EnlightenNext magazine. Last year over 100 people raised $50,000 through this event, and this year we are inviting hundreds more to participate to help us reach our goal of $115,000! So please join us!
Why a meditation marathon?
Normally, when we think about changing culture, we tend to think about agitating, not meditating. Meditation is about peace and stillness—the discovery of an infinite depth beyond the mind and beyond the world. That doesn’t seem like the stuff that cultural revolutions are made of. But it can be. How? In Andrew Cohen’s teaching of Evolutionary Enlightenment, meditation opens up a perspective on our thoughts and feelings that is not only personally liberating but also creates the dynamic space in which we can evolve, transform, and develop new capacities, individually and together. In this unique orientation, meditation is not simply a path to peace but the foundation for a truly creative engagement with the life process. So whether you are new to meditation or have been a serious practitioner for many years, this event will give you the unique opportunity to learn about meditation in the context of evolution.
Can I participate even if I have never meditated?
Yes! This is an opportunity to learn about meditation—and the best way to learn how to meditate is to do it. We will give you meditation instruction, resources, and everything you need to make this a powerful, meaningful, and rewarding experience.
Where is it happening?
Anywhere you want—this is a virtual, global event. People will be participating all over the world, and you can meditate alone in your own home, or with friends. If you would like to host other meditation marathon participants in your home for the event, please let us know. And if you want to find out about gatherings you can join in your area, please email Kim Blozie at Kblozie@enlightennext.org.
What will I be doing, exactly?
Everyone will follow the same schedule, which we will send to you. Each hour of the marathon begins with a short reading or audio clip about meditation by Andrew Cohen, followed by 45 minutes of meditation, and 15 minutes of rest. You will also have breaks for meals. And at two times during the marathon, Andrew Cohen will be engaging live via conference call with you and the other participants about meditation.
How long is it?
As with any marathon, the idea is to push your limits. We have created several options for you to choose from:
- 24 hours. This is the FULL MARATHON and begins Saturday night, December 11, at midnight. The full marathon ends at midnight the following day, Sunday, December 12.
- 12 hours. This is a HALF MARATHON and begins at 6:00 am on Sunday, December 12, and runs through 6:00 pm the same day.
- Your choice. If you are new to meditation, or these times don’t fit your schedule, you can set a personal goal that matches your experience and your availability (we encourage you to push the edge just a bit past what you think you can do!).
Can I take breaks during the day or do I have to sit still for 24 hours?
Yes! You can take breaks. There will be a 15-minute break each hour to walk around, eat, drink, etc., and longer breaks for meals.
Can I talk?
Andrew Cohen encourages everyone to maintain silence as much as possible throughout the marathon, and to set aside this special time to focus on your meditation practice without distraction. This type of one-pointedness will deepen your experience. If your circumstances do not allow you to keep silence, then simply keep the spirit of a silent-meditation day as best as you can.
How do I sign up?
- Sign up for the event at www.Firstgiving.org/meditationmarathon.
- When you sign up you will be asked for a $30 registration fee. We hope this is not prohibitive! This small fee is to help cover the credit card fees we incur for donations made through the FirstGiving website in addition to other administrative costs.
- Use the personalized web page created for you by FirstGiving to help you begin raising sponsorship dollars.
- We will send you everything you need for the marathon: A schedule for you to follow on December 12th, instructions for meditation, and readings and audio recordings to inspire and guide you.
Why is it a fundraiser?
EnlightenNext is a 501c3 nonprofit organization. We rely on donations to help achieve our mission to catalyze evolution in consciousness and culture. If you and 600 or more people each ask 3–5 friends or family members to sponsor your efforts in this meditation marathon, we can collectively raise $115,000. This is 10% of EnlightenNext’s total fundraising need this year.
We are using FirstGiving.org to support your fundraising efforts. At FirstGiving.org you can easily create a personalized fundraising page where you can ask friends, colleagues, and family to make a donation to sponsor you for the number of hours you’ve committed to complete in the marathon. They can make a donation directly on the website with a credit card.
Has EnlightenNext ever done this before?
Yes. Last year 100 people around the world participated, many for the full 24 hours, and raised $50,000. This year we hope as many as 600 people will participate worldwide—so join us, and please invite your friends!
Contact Us
Please email us with any questions at marathon@enlightennext.org or call 413-637-6037.
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