Ali Smith
Ali Smith, co-founder and executive director of the Holistic Life Foundation, discusses bringing yoga and meditation to at-risk youth in Baltimore's toughest neighborhoods. He shares how this practice has profoundly transformed kids' lives, reducing violence and improving self-regulation, and how it can benefit everyone.
Deep Dive Analysis
18 Topic Outline
Challenging Meditation Stereotypes and Introducing Ali Smith
Ali Smith's Upbringing: Meditation in Inner-City Baltimore
The Self-Realization Fellowship Method and Its Benefits
College Years: Lapsing in Practice and Search for Purpose
Founding the Holistic Life Foundation and Initial Idealism
First Program: Teaching Yoga and Meditation to 'Problem Kids'
Overcoming Challenges and Witnessing Early Transformations
Specific Techniques Taught: Movement, Breathwork, and Guided Meditation
Impact on Students: From Troubled Youth to HLF Teachers
HLF's Early Growth and Expansion to Diverse Populations
Scientific Studies Confirming HLF Program Effectiveness
Current Scope and Reach of Holistic Life Foundation
Another Student Transformation: 'Smiley's' Journey
Introducing Meditation to Children: Parental Modeling and Timing
HLF's Approach to Teaching Meditation Across Demographics
Addressing Skepticism and Reaching Unwilling Students
Challenges and Future Vision for Holistic Life Foundation
Ali Smith's Personal Daily Meditation Practice
6 Key Concepts
Subjective Meditation
A meditation practice, as taught in the Self-Realization Fellowship method, that focuses on an 'inner light' or 'universal energy' within oneself and everything else. The aim is to still the mind and body to focus on this light, eventually becoming one with it, and allowing it to guide one's actions and thoughts.
Pratyahara (Withdrawal of Senses)
A traditional yogic meditation technique where one intentionally pulls their senses from external stimuli to internal sensations. This process allows for a deeper internal focus, enabling the perception of an 'inner light' through internal sight, feeling, hearing, tasting, and smelling.
Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACEs)
A framework referring to various traumatic events experienced during childhood, such as abuse, neglect, or household dysfunction like parental incarceration or substance abuse. High ACEs scores indicate significant exposure to trauma, which can impact development and well-being.
Taco Breath (Khaki or Satali Kriya)
A breathing exercise, traditionally known as Khaki or Satali Kriya, where one curls their tongue to resemble a taco and breathes in through it. This technique, named by children in HLF programs, is a pranayama method adapted to help still the mind.
Reciprocal Teaching
A method used by the Holistic Life Foundation where students who have learned meditation and yoga practices are empowered to lead and explain these practices to others. This approach helps to disseminate the practices within their communities, as students share what they've learned with peers and parents.
Bhakti Yoga (Off-the-Mat Practice)
A form of yoga focused on devotion and love, which Ali Smith incorporates into his daily life beyond formal meditation. It involves consciously working to recognize the 'inner light' or shared humanity in others, even when feeling angry or wronged, to transcend ego and cultivate love and connection.
12 Questions Answered
Meditation has, by reputation and sometimes design, been associated with upper-middle-class white people, despite its ancient origins across diverse cultures and its current practice by people of all socioeconomic and racial backgrounds in the U.S.
Ali Smith grew up practicing a subjective meditation method from the Self-Realization Fellowship lineage, focusing on an inner light or universal energy, with the goal of stilling the mind and body to connect with this light.
This form of meditation offers stillness, compassion, interconnectedness with oneself and others, and acts as a shield against daily stress, helping to burn off accumulated stress.
The founders were approached by a principal at Windsor Hills Elementary School who initially wanted them to coach football. They proposed an after-school yoga program instead, and the principal agreed, giving them the 'problem kids'.
They used incentives like basketball, kickball, dodgeball, pizza parties, and field trips as bribes to encourage participation, allowing the kids to experience the benefits of stillness and inner peace.
HLF teaches physical yoga movements to help still the body, breathwork (often named by the kids, like 'taco breath') to slow the mind, and guided meditations, especially for kids with trauma, gradually transitioning to unguided practice.
The first randomized control trial showed positive cognitive results in self-regulation, ruminating thoughts, focus, attention, and stress. A follow-up study also linked the program to improved test scores, promotion rates, and decreased suspension rates, noting that kids continued to use breathwork long after the program.
HLF's after-school program serves 120 kids, and their overall programs reach approximately 4,500 kids per week across about 14 Baltimore City Public Schools, as well as private schools, through trainings and curriculum development.
The right age differs for each child, but it's best when they start asking questions about meditation or mimicking a parent's practice, rather than being forced into it, to ensure it remains an enjoyable and useful tool.
For high schoolers, HLF focuses on addressing their specific challenges like lack of peace, poor sleep, stress, and anger. They use more inconspicuous practices (less movement) that can be done discreetly, incorporate more discussions, and emphasize breathwork and mindfulness.
Major challenges include securing funding, ensuring sustainable expansion of programming, and integrating programs into school schedules, as teachers are often reluctant to give up teaching time.
It can be changed by highlighting diverse individuals and organizations doing this work, making practices accessible to everyone in various forms, and empowering students through reciprocal teaching to spread the practice within their own communities.
27 Actionable Insights
1. Model Mindful Behavior for Children
Parents should cultivate their own meditation or mindfulness practice and model mindful behavior, as children are more likely to engage with and benefit from practices they see their parents authentically adopting.
2. Practice Bhakti Yoga for Compassion
Engage in ‘off-the-mat’ Bhakti yoga by consciously working to see the ‘inner light’ or shared humanity in others, even when feeling justifiably angry, to foster connection and love.
3. Meditate Regularly for Mood Regulation
Maintain a consistent meditation practice, ideally not skipping more than one day, as regular meditation helps regulate mood and prevents negative behaviors or being a ‘jerk.’
4. Begin and End Day Mindfully
Start and end your day ‘in the light’ (referring to the inner light/universal energy) to cultivate stillness, compassion, and interconnectedness, which can lead to a noticeable difference in daily experience.
5. Focus on Inner Light
Practice subjective meditation by stilling your mind and body to focus on your inner light, which is seen as a universal energy or spark, allowing it to influence your actions, words, deeds, and thoughts.
6. Withdraw Senses for Meditation
Begin yogic meditation by practicing Pratyahara, withdrawing your senses from external stimuli to focus them internally on the ‘inner light,’ engaging all senses (sight, feeling, hearing, taste, smell) within.
7. Customize Meditation Practice
Adapt your meditation practice based on your current situation, daily stresses, or specific goals, choosing different forms of meditation that best suit your needs at any given time.
8. Explore Diverse Meditation Forms
Explore and study multiple forms of meditation to understand different approaches, as people have diverse needs and preferences, allowing you to find what resonates best for personal practice or teaching others.
9. Introduce Meditation When Kids Are Ready
Introduce meditation to children when they show natural curiosity and start asking questions about the practice, rather than forcing it upon them, to ensure it remains an enjoyable and voluntary activity.
10. Introduce Meditation Gradually (Kids)
For children, introduce meditation slowly by first focusing on physical stillness and watching a few breaths, gradually deepening the practice as they become more experienced and comfortable.
11. Sequence Practice: Movement, Breath, Stillness
Introduce practices to children by starting with physical movement to expend energy, then transition to breath work, and finally guide them into sitting still for meditation, allowing them to gradually experience inner peace.
12. Engage Kids by Naming Breath
To make breath work more accessible and engaging for children, remove complex terminology (like Sanskrit) and allow them to create their own names for the breathing techniques.
13. Use Guided Meditation for Trauma
When working with individuals who have experienced trauma, utilize guided meditations to provide structure and prevent ’empty spaces’ where traumatic thoughts might arise, guiding them through the practice entirely.
14. Provide Positive Outlets for Energy
Offer opportunities, resources, and support to individuals, especially youth, to channel their energy in positive directions, enabling them to uplift their communities rather than engaging in negative behaviors.
15. Tailor Practice Presentation
When introducing contemplative practices, present them in a manner that directly addresses the specific challenges and problems individuals are facing in their lives, making the benefits clear and relatable.
16. Frame Practice as Life Enhancement
Present meditation and breath work as complementary skills that enhance existing activities and overall life, rather than as separate or demanding practices, to increase receptiveness.
17. Emphasize Experiential Practice
Focus on experiential practices where individuals can physically feel and embody the effects of meditation and breath work, making the learning less theoretical and more impactful.
18. Address Teen Stress and Sleep
When teaching high school students, acknowledge and address common issues like lack of peace, poor sleep, stress, and anger, demonstrating how contemplative practices can directly alleviate these specific problems.
19. Teach Inconspicuous Practices (Teens)
For high school students, teach meditation and breath work techniques that can be practiced discreetly (e.g., sitting still without much movement) to avoid self-consciousness or looking foolish in front of peers.
20. Allow Sleep During Teen Meditation
When teaching meditation to teenagers, allow those who fall asleep to do so, as positive peer influence and the eventual need for the practice may lead them to engage with it later, even if not immediately in a group setting.
21. Utilize Reciprocal Teaching
Empower students to lead and explain contemplative practices, fostering reciprocal teaching where they then share these skills within their communities and families, thereby shifting cultural norms organically.
22. Ensure Broad Practice Accessibility
Make meditation accessible to as many people as possible by offering diverse forms and styles of practice, moving beyond a ‘cookie-cutter’ approach so individuals can choose what best suits them.
23. Highlight Diverse Meditation Practitioners
To break stereotypes, actively highlight and promote the work and experiences of meditation practitioners from diverse backgrounds, showcasing that the practice is for everyone, not just a select group.
24. Be Authentic When Teaching
When teaching or introducing contemplative practices, be authentic and true to yourself, as this resonates with people and helps them feel the ’love’ and experience the practice more genuinely.
25. Kundalini Mantra-Based Meditation
Practice a 31-minute Kundalini meditation by silently repeating a mantra and focusing on an energy center, such as the third eye (the space between and above the eyebrows).
26. Daily Morning Meditation (Childhood)
Integrate meditation into daily life, such as practicing every morning before school, to make it a consistent part of one’s routine from a young age.
27. Incentivize Practice (Kids)
When introducing practices like yoga and meditation to children, use incentives such as games, pizza parties, or field trips to encourage their participation and initial engagement.
9 Key Quotes
Meditation was invented twenty six hundred years ago by an Indian guy. And by the way, that's just one form of meditation. It's been around for millennia, practiced by all sorts of people who are not living on the Upper West Side of Manhattan.
Dan Harris
Truth is one, men call it by various names.
Ali Smith
Start your day and end your day in the light and you'll notice a difference.
Ali Smith
Whatever you guys are doing, keep doing it because it's working.
Ali Smith
The kids went from reacting to responding to things that were going on around them. Like, they learned the ability to kind of take that pause between just someone saying something about them and punch them in the face to stop them for a second and maybe walking away and going to breathe.
Ali Smith
If it wasn't for having the program and Ottman and Indian on his lives, that he probably would either be dead or locked up because that's the trajectory. That's where he was headed.
Ali Smith
Everyone has a good heart. You know what I mean? They might not have the opportunity or the push in the right direction or the outlet for that energy.
Ali Smith
Kids call BS early. Like, they'll see it and they'll call it. So, I mean, you've got to kind of walk it before you can talk it with them.
Ali Smith
We were always the band, like for the first few times, and we started running with, and our running joke was that we were an Aboriginal folk band, and Andy was our lead singer. Otman played the didgeridoo, and I played the bull roar, and people would believe us.
Ali Smith
3 Protocols
HLF's Initial After-School Program for 'Problem Kids'
Ali Smith- Start with physical yoga movements to help kids still their bodies and expend energy.
- Introduce breathwork, often adapted and named by the kids (e.g., 'taco breath'), to help slow their minds.
- Begin with guided meditations, especially for kids with trauma, to provide structure and prevent overwhelming empty spaces.
- As kids become more comfortable, allow them to transition to unguided meditation, choosing practices that resonate with them.
- Use incentives like basketball, kickball, dodgeball, pizza parties, or field trips to encourage initial participation.
- Maintain consistency, staying with the same group of students for several years (e.g., fifth through eighth grade) to deepen the practice.
Introducing Meditation to Children
Ali Smith- Start with your own meditation practice as a parent.
- Allow children to observe your practice naturally.
- Wait for children to show interest by mimicking or asking questions about what you are doing.
- Answer their questions honestly and without forcing the practice on them.
- Make it an enjoyable experience, not a punishment, so they can return to it when needed.
Ali Smith's Personal Daily Meditation Practice
Ali Smith- Perform a formal meditation in the morning, which may include Kundalini mantra-based meditation focusing on a chakra (e.g., third eye) for 31 minutes using a timer.
- Alternatively, practice a meditation focused on the heart center and the inner light, continuing for as long as desired.
- Engage in 'off-the-mat' Bhakti Yoga practices throughout the day, such as consciously working to see the 'inner light' or shared humanity in others, even when feeling angry or wronged, to overcome ego and cultivate love.
- Aim to meditate daily, ideally not going more than two days without practice, to maintain emotional regulation and well-being.