22 Meditation Groups

Some of the meditation practice groups are for imprisoned inmates, and others are for released prisoners. Our volunteers facilitate regular groups that meet once a week to practice meditation and discuss the issues that come up during practice, as well as other issues that are relevant to inmates’ lives in prison and their lives following their release.

We guide inmates and practice together meditations of awareness – of the breath, the body, sounds, and so forth; open awareness meditations; mindfulness; meditations about reciprocity, impermanence, and the like; and meditations for the cultivation of beneficial states of mind – compassion, love, and gratitude. Discussions that arise from the practice focus on various issues, such as anger, automatic responses, the sensation of rage as it is felt in the body, restlessness, pain, and loneliness. Practitioners learn how thoughts and emotions that may lead to destructive actions – can, as a result of learning and practice, lead to compassionate, beneficial actions.

16 Meditation Groups in Prisons

It has been 20 years (since 2006) that we have been volunteering in prisons. 16 of our groups operate in 13 prisons, one of which is for adolescents. There are open and closed groups, which are part of the therapeutic departments: addictions, family violence and sexual transgressions. The groups practice weekly over many months.

4 Meditation Groups through the Prisoner Rehabilitation Authority

For 18 years (since 2008) we have been volunteers at the Prisoner Rehabilitation Authority. Our groups operate in hostels for male and female prisoners after release (residence in the hostel lasts several months) and in day centers that released prisoners visit once or twice a week as part of their rehabilitation program.

2 Meditation Groups at “Ma’agalim” Rehabilitation Centre

Since 2022 we have been volunteering at “Ma’agalim” Rehabilitation Centre, a therapeutic-rehabilitative framework within the community, which is supervised and financed by the Ministry of Social Services, and is intended for adult sex offenders:

• Adults convicted of a sexual offence that have been sentenced to a Probation Order or Supervision Order.
• Adults following incarceration.
• Adults prior to conviction, who either independently reach out, or are referred by a public agent or the local authority, due to concern or history of sexual offences.