Eugene Trak and Andreanna Staubly want to share the practice of meditation with San Benito County residents through free public meditation offerings and guest lectures.
Trak said he first got involved in Buddhism in 1995 when a friend suggested a lecture. He said he wasn’t looking for a religion, but wanted to see if he liked the style.
“It made sense and I started a few different Buddhist centers in different cities,” he said.
Staubly said she stumbled on Buddhism and meditation when she was a student at the University of Wisconsin. She saw a poster for a free lecture and thought it might help her deal with stress.
“It was the same thing – the program clicked,” she said. “The style was nice and it didn’t feel esoteric or exotic.”
Now Trak and his wife Lara Dzioubouk, and Staubly and her boyfriend Benjamin Stolz, are hoping to start at Buddhist group in Hollister. They are part of Diamond Way, a nonprofit that supports more than 40 Buddhist centers in the U.S. So far the local group has held several free public meditation sessions at the San Benito County Free Library in the Barbara Memorial Room, with the next session set for Jan. 16 at 7:30 p.m.
The couples met when Trak and his wife were living in Minneapolis. Staubly attended a lecture there and they became fast friends. Three years ago Trak and Dzioubouk settled in San Juan, then moved to Hollister. Staubly moved to Hollister for a job as a teacher.
Trak said starting the local group has been a positive experience from the start, even when they were making arrangements for a location that would allow them to offer the meditation for free.
“In this area people seem down to earth and clear about who they are and what they want,” Staubly said. “Meditation can fit.”
Both described the practice of meditation as a way of allowing them to clear their minds so they can see things more clearly.
“It allows people to consciously make choices to do and say things that bring them happiness” and alleviate suffering, Trak said.
Trak described regular meditation as taking off dark glasses and putting on rosy glasses and gave an example of how meditation might help someone see a situation more clearly. In his example rather than snapping at a parent in frustration, which will lead to other family members getting upset and ruining a family meal, he said meditation can help someone to see how hurtful words will lead to more problems so that they make the conscious choice to say something positive instead.
“You see what your real motivation is and you can choose which way to go,” Staubly said.
In the public meditation sessions, they offer 20 minutes of guided meditation, with one of the four leading guests through the experience. They answer questions and explain the principles behind meditation.
Trak said people can spend as much time meditating in their daily lives as they want, from 15 minutes a day to three hours. Staubly said while Buddhist monks devote their entire lives to meditation, she and Trak are “lay practitioners” who have jobs and families.
“Buddha taught lay practitioners that it is applicable to every area of society,” he said. “It is important not to disappear, but instead to share it.”
On Jan. 20, at 5 p.m. the group will host a lecture by Eric Gibson on “Mind: Source of Happiness” at the county library.
Their goal is to bring a guest speaker to Hollister once a month or every other month. While the public meditations are free, guests may be asked to make a donation at the guest lectures to cover the expense of travel for the guests.
For Trak and Staubly they said they are most excited about meeting new people from Hollister as they continue to offer programs.
“You meet amazing people and just build connections,” Trak said.
