Teaching Vedic Meditation to 30 Young Women: My Experience with SOMA Surf

As a meditation teacher, one thing that becomes apparent is that the earlier you learn it, the better. The ripple effects of a daily Vedic Meditation practice are simply too valuable to bypass, no matter who you are or what your life looks like - and so was this project. Witnessing the young women from SOMA Surf take a deep dive into meditation made my heart explode with joy.

Before I met the 30 girls in Príncipe, the incredible team at SOMA briefed me on their life conditions, including dysfunctional family settings, poverty and gender inequality.

On my first interaction with the groups, it was clear they all had a very good perception of stress and how they felt it in their bodies. On a scale from 0 to 10 in experiencing stress, the most common response among the girls was 10. Clearly, for many of them, their upbringing is far from smooth. Third-world reality is so distant from that of growing up in a first-world country, much less when you are born a woman.

They learned to transcend thought on the very first day of their courses. They received their mantras (sounds) and an easy mental technique on how to use them. I saw them settle their minds with their eyes closed, and their necks start to drop from relaxation. In that moment, I knew they were going beyond mental activity all by themselves. The seed had been planted to nourish the spirit. It’s always fulfilling to teach anyone to transcend, but the experience was extra special with these young women.

As the only qualified Vedic Meditation teacher able to share this knowledge in Portuguese, realising that these girls could access this millennia-old tradition through me was remarkable. I was in the right place, doing exactly what I was meant to be doing - and so were they.

The girls’ reaction to me and to something this new was captivating: they all showed an immediate willingness and desire to learn. They were happy to have me there, someone who had come all the way from Portugal to teach them something special.

Each of them took up meditation so promptly and naturally. It felt safe for them to close their big curious eyes. It was a welcome moment of calm and silence. Learning to meditate can help reduce their stress and lead to the experience of being calm under pressure, making them adaptable to any demand that comes their way. Meditation is a quiet revolution. It’s not about physical excitement, but rather an opening inside, in consciousness.

They quickly grasped the technique. Many giggled the first time they heard their mantras, shy about this new sound. Post meditation, they were a little timid to share their experiences at first, but once one started to speak, they all felt like sharing.

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Subtle differences appeared in their behaviours pre- and post-meditation: they were calmer and quieter, revealing a gentle awareness in their interactions. More often than not, they shared that they almost fell asleep, their minds ceased to be busy and they felt calm. They learned it was ok to have a ‘busy meditation’ too.

On the last day of the courses, they learned a simple breathing technique (pranayama), commenting that they felt lighter and that they felt good after the breathing exercise. They wanted to know about India and were eager to learn to pronounce the ancient Sanskrit terms and sounds. I could see their enthusiasm with any positive reinforcement of how great they were doing - which they really were!

SOMA is a safe space, one where the girls can just be themselves. The work being done is valuable beyond educational standards, it supports the very core of human essence. Facilitating access to mental health is more crucial today than ever before. Sure general education is important, but who teaches the youth to be at ease with the world within?

It doesn’t get better than giving these young girls a life skill for coping with the challenges and dysfunctions in their young but nonetheless burdened lives, acting as the bridge between them and the Vedic spiritual tradition of India.

This project was a gift and I am inspired to continue contributing to a brighter future for young women in São Tomé & Príncipe, through SOMA Surf.