The Meditation Room—a large classroom in Larsen Hall painted a soothing, soft yellow and filled with Bulldog-burgundy yoga mats and plenty of natural light—will be open for a tour from 4-5 p.m. on Oct. 16. Information on meditative practices and refreshments will be available during a grand opening and reception in the room at 210, Larsen Hall.

Meditation classes are being held in the room throughout the school semester and the public is invited to attend.

Meditation 101
Mondays, 5:15 – 5:50 p.m.
Fran Grace, instructor and University of Redlands professor of religious studies.
An introduction to the basics of meditation that offers a way to align all of the areas of life to find a calmer, healthier and happier existence.

Introduction to Zazen:  Zen Meditation 
Tuesdays, 5:15 – 5:50 p.m.
Lorenzo Garbo, instructor and University of Redlands economics professor.
An introduction to meditation as practiced in Zen Buddhism.

Introduction to Christian Meditation
Thursdays, 5:15 – 5:50 p.m.
Fran Grace, instructor
An introduction to the practice of Christian Meditation.

The room is also open for several hours every day and evening for the campus community to have a serene place for meditation and contemplative practice.

Fran Grace, a religious studies professor who has taught courses on meditation, compassion and mysticism, collaborated with many others across the campus to create a dedicated space to meditate on campus.

According to Grace, research has shown that meditation enhances brain functioning, reduces attention disorders, and improves learning; generates healthy psychological functioning and eases trauma, depression and obsessive-compulsive disorders; helps in dealing with chronic pain and health issues; and improves work environments by decreasing absenteeism and producing more collaboration, attention to detail and job satisfaction in workers.

Meditation and contemplative practice isn’t new at the U of R—mediation and yoga classes have been taught for decades at the university, but the lack of a suitable space was an obstacle.  While some professors, such as economics professor Lorenzo Garbo, were able to take students off-campus to a monastery or retreat setting for courses that involved intensive meditative practice, there was a need for an on-campus learning and practice space. 

About 2 ½-years ago, Grace started offering a for-credit meditation class. She said she was astounded by the response and the waiting list that it generated.     

The Meditation Room and contemplative-based courses at the University of Redlands are part of a larger trend in higher education that might be called contemplative studies and Redlands brings something unique, according to Grace.  The university is trying to offer an integration of contemplative life with teaching and learning, she said.

“Only when a person’s inner and outer lives resonate can there be a truly sustainable life,” she said. “Otherwise, so much energy is wasted in anxiety, fear and wanting to be other than where you are.”

And that integration is important. Grace notes a UCLA Higher Education Research Institute’s 2005 study of 112,000 college freshmen that concluded students want a college education that addresses their inner lives.

But the new Meditation Room isn’t the only campus space to meditate; a circular labyrinth, just behind the university’s Memorial Chapel, was dedicated in early 2005. The Redlands’ labyrinth is an exact replica of the Chartres Cathedral labyrinth in France.

Grace called the labyrinth an important meditative tool and said she believes the one on campus is one of the nicest in the country.

“Like the Meditation Room/contemplative classroom in Larsen 210, having a labyrinth on campus makes Redlands a pioneer in seeking to address the desires of college students who want to cultivate compassion and peace in their inner lives,” she said. “And really it’s the desire of us all, isn’t it?  To know peace within ourselves allows us to offer peace to the world.”