Hikaru Aoki ’26, a dual major in Math and Theatre, Dance, and Performance Studies, had never formally meditated until she came to Grinnell. She was drawn to the Sacred Journeys team to deepen her engagement with meditative practices, both intellectually and experientially.

Shared below are her reflections on this process, a log of her weekly practice, and a link to a video she recorded to guide others into their own practice.

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Hikaru Aoki ’26 leading the Sacred Journeys team through a meditation and yoga practice on August 1, 2025.

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Initial Entry: 

Hello, my name is Hikaru Aoki. During the course of 9 weeks, I will continue to log my experience of weekly Dru yoga and silent meditations. Here, I hope to see progress in my healing. As this is the beginning of my journey, I honestly do not know what there is to heal within myself. I aim to gradually recognize what is creating mental blocks and where I should be allocating my energy and focus on. Below is the menu I will be following every Monday and Friday for yoga and meditation respectively. 

Menu: 

  1. Meditation: 

      2.Yoga:

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Final Reflection (July 29th): 

One of the ideas that stuck with me throughout this MAP (Mentored Advanced Project) is that of Mind Weeds, from Suzuki Roshi’s Zen Mind, Beginners Mind (Weatherhill, 1970). The description of how rather than trying to eliminate unwanted thoughts we should hold a compassionate attitude towards them in order to transform them into nourishment in zazen was a concept that guided me through both yoga and meditating. 

I had practiced the 20min silent meditation prior to the MAP with the guidance of Jordan Scheibel. Initially, I had trouble settling into my body and a lot of my effort went into completely shutting off my mind waves, which ended up being counter active. However, through repetitive practice, I have gotten better at focusing on my breathing and posture and becoming one with my body. I had a similar response to yoga. Initially, I was more focused on the shapes and the screen to make sure I was doing the right motions as shown in the video. But gradually, I started to recognize the flow of Dru yoga and was able to focus on where I put my energy. Since I was a child, I had been relatively flexible and was good at adapting to movements through years of dancing. In contrast to other forms of yoga in which you hold a position and breathe, Dru yoga focused more on movement and channeling our energy onto our breath. Personally, I enjoy holding positions and breathing since it really stretches me out and shows me where I hold tension. I feel that Dru Yoga is more of an outwards practice where other forms of yoga focuses more on the internal channeling. However, my preference could be a result of comfort towards a standard type of yoga and my discomfort in trying something new, which hopefully I can unlearn soon.

One major take away that I had through this practice is realizing that I have a tendency to shove down my emotions as a form of coping. This was not a realization I had during my session but rather I’ve come to realize during my rest days. I had made an effort this summer to be more aware of my daily actions and the way that it makes me react. In doing so, when I am not doing anything (such as lying down alone), I would often get a rush of emotions. Sometimes these emotions would put me through an emotional spiral. In such cases, I try to sit in silence and focus on my breathing to calm down my mind waves and recognize what is rooted in my rush of emotions. 

Throughout the 9 weeks, I had the opportunity to practice these forms of healing with various groups of people. This showed me how alternative healing practices could also be a way to create space for a community. Biomedical care can get extremely lonely sometimes, making healing feel very isolating and a journey that one indulges in alone. However, yoga and meditation can be conducted in large groups of all ages. Even if the purpose of the practice may be different depending on the individual, the direction of healing is united. The recent spotlight on alternative medicine has also encouraged individuals to explore various types of healing and raised curiosity on the topic itself. 

I am very grateful to have continued this 9 week healing process. I hope that readers are encouraged to start their own journey and kick start a new semester with a healing mindset.

Yours Truly,

Hikaru Aoki

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Self-Healing Log:

June 6th (meditation). My room, carpeted floor, seated.

  • The stretching hurt a lot more than I thought it would 
  • 4-7-8 breathing came super helpful to calm me down 
  • My mind was wandering about what I was going to do for the rest of the summer
  • Noticeable tension in my neck and shoulders

June 9th (yoga). Front yard, on grass, towel. 

  • Was very confused as to what I was doing
  • I focused a lot on following the motions so I don’t feel like I gained much from it.
  • Considering going back to Hatha yoga.

June 13th (meditation). Outdoors, grass, towel, seated.

  • Half lotus position
  • I focused primarily on my posture during this session. I felt like the breathing came a bit more natural to me since I was seated outside in nature and it allowed me to focus on my body as a whole rather than isolating myself in my room.

June 16th (yoga). Dance studio, Bucksbaum on campus. 

  • I felt super comfortable being in the space since it is where I tend to go when I am feeling overwhelmed.
  • The mirrors were helpful in seeing my movements. But similar to dancing I think I was too focused on the movement. 
  • Once I feel more comfortable with movements I would like to close my eyes to see whether that would change my experience. 

June 20th (meditation). DSM airport, seated, white noise in headphones.

  • I was fairly distracted by my surroundings and all that was going on around me.
  • I think my mind was scattered by the stress of travelling and so it felt very unproductive.
  • It showed me the importance of the space that I practice meditation in. It makes me curious to see how one could calm down their mind waves in crowded places. My ears tend to ring when I am feeling overwhelmed or stressed and so I really heard that when meditating in the airport.

June 23rd (yoga). Central park, with a friend, Hatha yoga.

  • This session was led by my friend who practices Hatha yoga
  • There was a significant difference between my experience with Dru yoga since it was more static
  • We focused primarily on the way the various positions stretched different parts of our body. 
  • I felt very in tune with my body as I could feel the muscle connection throughout my body. 
  • We laid on our backs at the end to do a body scan. During this process I really felt like one with my body

June 27th (meditation). My friends balcony, NYC.

  • Regardless of the fact that I was surrounded with traffic noise and just a whole lot of chaos I felt really good during this session.
  • I could hear the transition from my head being filled with thoughts to immersing myself into my environment.
  • I was curious whether I felt more comfortable in the city since it was familiar to me growing up in Tokyo. It could also be in relation to the fact that I can focus a lot better listening to music when I study.
  • Does comfort and familiarity affect the ability to meditate? 

June 30th (yoga). Krumm Nature Preserve, outdoors, Dru Yoga.

  • It felt really good to be immersed in nature today. Especially with Dru Yoga, I prefer to be in movement with nature around me; feeling the breeze move my surroundings and being able to hear the changes. 
  • Healing to me could be defined to be
    • Being able to be let go of all things social and being one with nature. 
    • I say this because I feel like what I need to be healed from, especially someone who isn’t living my day to day with illness, is the social barriers that shape my perception. 
  • During this session I wasn’t able to do the stretches as in the menu since I didn’t have access to my guide for the stretches.

July 4th (meditation). Maine, beach side, multiple people.

  • Approximately 30min meditation. Instead of  timing it like I usually do, I did not time it this time and a group of us just sat in a line and facing the ocean. Some people were lying down.
  • Losing the concept of time and just hearing time pass with the waves crashing was very soothing for me. 
  • Seated in half lotus position, I focused mainly on my posture. Sitting in sand made it clear how much I slouch with the way my butt was placed in the sand. I made my best effort to stack my spine on my tail bone, picturing the way a baby sits upright. 
  • During this process, I initially was reflecting on how the trip so far was going, and what kind of barriers I am feeling. Gradually, I let myself sink into a blank state tuned out to just my surroundings. 

July 7th (yoga). Maine, dock, with friends, hatha yoga.

  • This session was led by my friend’s older sister who has been doing yoga intensely for the past 4 years. 
  • One thing that really stood out to me was how open/willing people are to trying yoga regardless whether it was their first time or inflexible.
    • Universal interest in yoga?!
    • Even the parents would be doing yoga at the house. 
  • It really showed how accessible yoga is for all ages and bodies.
  • I feel like even if yoga isn’t practiced properly, in this society(?) 

July 11th (meditation). Iowa, covid, indoors.

  • I have been spending a lot of time alone. It has provided me with the time and space to journal, water color, and reflect on my summer. 
    • Maybe it’s because my summer has been about healing but I feel like I have been really in tune with my thoughts, mental state, and just overall wellbeing. Is it a reflection of how just thinking about and being aware of your mind and body can be healing?
    • How do I continue this mentality once the semester starts and my mind is going to be full with the stress of classes?
  • Today was the first time I was able to comfortably sit in a full lotus position. It took me a long time getting used to how turned out my legs had to be to sit in that position but doing it makes me notice that being seated closer to the ground makes it easier to keep my posture straight. 

July 14th (yoga). Outdoors, towel, Dru yoga. 

  • It was very hot today. For some reason I thought that would make my experience less worthwhile but I was pleasantly surprised by my ability to focus solely on the movements.
  • In comparison when I first had trouble fully engaging with the movement, I feel like I’ve gotten to understand the perks of Dru yoga.
    • Dru yoga allows me to engage my entire body and move in unison. Instead of the recognition of different muscle groups like in Hatha yoga, Dru yoga shows me how they can all move together to create a natural flow. 

July 18th (meditation). Iowa, night time, laid down.

  • Instead of seated meditation, I was feeling very tired and wanted to let my brain and body rest and so decided to do it lying down.
  • I closed my eyes and focused on my breathing trying to relax my body as much as I can.
  • Instead of feeling like one in a room I felt as if I were morphing into one with the bed. It wasn’t like I was sinking into the bed, I would describe it more like I became the bed, or the bed became a part of me.
  • One thing I really liked about lying down while meditating is how easy it was to relax. While seated, there’s always something uncomfortable, whether it’s the way your clothes sit on you or the material of the carpet that itches your leg. 
  • I have a couple of friends that prefer lying down while meditating to help fall asleep.

July 21st (yoga). Indoors, towel, Dru yoga. 

  • This was probably the first time I did yoga indoors at home. 
  • One significant difference I could feel was the weight on my feet. Since towels and grass are somewhat soft, I could never notice the movement of my weight on my feet. I really enjoyed that I could feel the weight shift from one leg to another. 
  • It really changed the way I pushed off the ground when doing the movements. It added another layer of body recognition(?) for me. 
  • It made it feel like when I swayed side to side the energy in my body moved with my weight. When I pushed off the floor, the force felt like it really mirrored the movement of the energy getting pushed up.
  • This makes me curious as to whether dancing could be used as a form of energy healing. 
  • I’m mostly curious because ballet teachers would always use an analogy of pushing energy or light out of our toes when we pointed them.

July 25th (meditation). Silent meditation video filming. 

  • Today, I filmed the video for my final project. The video starts with the stretches from Taking the Path of Zen by Robert Aitken (North Point Press, 1982.), allowing individuals to find what position was most comfortable for them. Then it progresses to a 20min silent meditation, where a bell is rung every 5min to indicate the time.  
  • It was my first time guiding a meditation and so I had trouble focusing on my own practice since I kept an eye on the clock. I feel as though it made this particular experience very performative. But I hope that the video turns out to be something that other people can just follow and have a positive experience. enjoy:)
  • Link:  https://drive.google.com/file/d/1FZ8Kjer_PuBjQiTcHhKalB1BUELLsINR/view?usp=drive_link 

July 28th (yoga). Last session of Dru yoga, outdoors.

  • This was my last yoga session and also the last healing session.
  • Today, I did Dru yoga without the videos and let myself move out of memory.
  • What I liked most about this session was the adaptability of the sequence. I was able to focus more on planting my feet into the ground and pushing off the floor. 
  • My experience with Dru yoga has shown me how important it is to apply personal preference into the practice. To some level this might be because of the comfortability or just a perspective adjustment to the movements. Regardless, I believe that my repetitive practice helped me adapt more into the benefits of Dru yoga.
  • So what I would recommend for those thinking of trying Dru yoga is to let it grow on you. It might not be your cup of tea at the beginning but repetitive constant practice will show you the benefits of the practice.