Blessed self, welcome home!

Welcome to the official online home of Marlena Lambert (also spelled as Marlene) and Compassionate Wisdom, LLC. Since 2002, Marlena has been a professional body worker (Licensed Massage Therapist in the state of Utah, and NCBTMB Board Certified) as well as a long-time teacher of yoga & insight meditation (Yoga Alliance E-RYT500). Her passion is the continuing study of anatomy and physiology as it relates to wellness. She specializes in visceral techniques and lymphatic work.

But that's not all.

Marlena is also an accomplished singer-songwriter, as well as an ordained minister! Although the practices of yoga and meditation have taught Marlena not to take herself too seriously, she takes her work very seriously. At the Haha Yoga Spa in Salt Lake City, her mission is to help you lighten up through manual and movement therapies. She wants you to learn to love your guts!

Slip off your shoes, have a drink of pure distilled water, and allow yourself to relax and renew for an hour or two. We feature organic cotton linens and organic massage cream. We also use environmentally friendly cleaning products here! Please look around and contact Marlena with any questions.  

 

Best Practices for Times of Stress

 Below are some of my favorite meditation tools. We are in the midst of an historic series of events. It is very disorienting for all of us!  Try one or more of these:

1. One of my favorite personal practices is gratitude. It helps me calm down when I am anxious, helps me get back to sleep when thoughts start going crazy. It is a way to train our brains. You can just start making a list. I suggest starting small, like 5 or 10 things you are grateful  for. Another one I like is using the alphabet. That’s 26 things, and you try to come up with something (or someone) for each letter.

2. Let your bathroom become your meditation room! Whenever you are in the bathroom, whether it is your shower, hand-washing, toileting, etc., be very present with whatever you are feeling. Hot water? Cold toilet seat? Fuzzy towel? Suds? Hairbrush? Minty flavor on your teeth? Let all of your attention be filled with the physical sensations.

You are doing what you are doing anyway, and most of the time doing it mindlessly. The physical senses are an important “portal” for mindful practice. Notice all of the sensations that arise, AND notice also how they go away. They are impermanent.

The world situation is bringing us a very BIG lesson in impermanence. You can make it work for you by appreciating the present moment in every thing you do, every moment.

Bonus 1: Those of you who do not live alone, the bathroom is ALWAYS a great practice room, away from other distractions!

Bonus 2: When hand-washing, instead of singing “Happy birthday” to yourself, say a little prayer, such as “May I and all beings be safe. May we all be happy and healthy. May we all have ease of support. May we all be at peace.” If you say it fast, repeat it so that it equals 20 seconds of hand wash!

 

3. Another simple practice is “just this.”  As you inhale say to yourself, “just;” on the exhale, say to yourself, “this.” Just this. It is a very powerful practice! Even one breath is calming, but if you breathe like that for 5 - 10 minutes, I promise you will feel calmer.

 

4. Here is another simple practice suggestion.  READING. Reading something mindful, and reading it mindfully. Reading for a few minutes a couple of times a day can be very meditative, depending on what and how you read.

Here is what I suggest:  Choose a book, such as “When Things Fall Apart” by Pema Chodron. Or “A Gradual Awakening” by Stephen Levine. Something inspiring. If you have a particular favorite by some other author that fits the bill (Thich Naht Hahn? Joseph Goldstein?), go with it. Maybe some Sufi poetry.

The trick is to read slowly, not so much for content, as for contour.  That is to say, Let yourself soak in the felt sense as you read, not just the literary sense.
And in mindful reading, it is common (and encouraged) to read the same passage several times, perhaps for several days in a row. Let it really sink in.

Maybe it’s just a favorite poem that inspires you right now, or a simple prayer you learned as a child that resonates for you.  You feel a connection to it.

Give it a try! I’d love to hear what you are reading, and how it feels to practice reading this way.

 

 

 

 

ONGOING EVENTS

 

First Sunday Sangha

7 - 8:30 p.m. at Mindful Yoga Collective, 223 South 700 east, Suite 4

On the first Sunday of each month, I co-host a mindful listening meditation practice with my friend, mentor, and collaborator, Charlotte Bell. Please consider supporting the  Mindful Yoga Collective.  There are lots of great classes and teachers there! 

I am also pleased to be part of the teams of Yoga Teacher Training instructors at several area yoga studios! Most of these are open only to enrolled students. Whenever they are open to the public, workshops will be posted here.  

 

Visceral Manipulation Study Group

Tuesday March 17, 6 - 8 pm: Cadaver lab for VM3 students

Postponed! Would you like to be on the waiting list? Message me. This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

 

WORKSHOPS AND RETREATS  

Silent Sunday One-day Retreat: Springtime Reflection

Postponed to June 21, 2020

Sunday March 29, 2020  9:30 am – 4:30 pm  

Skillful silence is powerfully healing. While daily meditation is an important maintenance step, occasional extended practices are also essential to deepening the benefits of a regular meditation practice. (Kind of like daily brushing, along with 6-month checkups to the dentist!)

If you have ever wondered about those week-long meditation retreats but felt you weren’t ready, this is a great introduction. Or, if you LOVE those longer retreats but just don’t have time, this is a great way to get a smaller dose of the revitalization that comes from longer deep insight meditation practice (vipassana) -- Marlena just returned from a 7-day silent practice with her teachers at The Last Resort, Pujari and Abhilasha Keays.

In this day-long retreat, we will practice sitting in silence, walking in silence, gentle movements (such as yoga and taichi) with guidance, listening to inspirational talks (dharma discourses), and some guided meditation.

Light snacks and beverages will be provided. Weather permitting, we will do some of these practices outdoors.  

Early bird (prior to March 1st) $175

After March 1st $200

All levels welcome. All instruction provided.  

Contact Marlena to purchase a ticket: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

Exact details will be provided with registration confirmation. Retreat will take place in the Salt Lake City area.  

WORKSHOP PAYMENT POLICY Space is reserved for workshops/retreats only with payment. Prepayment is like purchasing a ticket to a concert or other event. There are no refunds unless the event is canceled. Please plan accordingly. You may send someone else in your place if you are unable to attend, the same way you might give someone your ticket to a show you cannot attend for whatever reason.