Meditation flash mob promotes peace

Students sit for peace at the UC Rock Monday afternoon. Giancarlo Falconi // Staff Photographer
Students sit for peace at the UC Rock Monday afternoon. Giancarlo Falconi // Staff Photographer
Students sit for peace at the UC Rock Monday afternoon. Giancarlo Falconi // Staff Photographer

One empowering word – peace – made students walking by the Rock stop in their tracks simultaneously, when it was shouted out Monday afternoon.

At exactly 12:10 p.m., students immediately stopped and sat down silently with their eyes closed as part of a meditation flash mob. As others walked by and observed of what was occurring, some decided to participate.

After five minutes passed, a leader screamed “Peace out!” and everyone got up and wandered off as if nothing had happened.

The standstill event was organized by Miami Mindfulness, an organization aiming to enhance lives by using the freedom of focus.

Jaydev Hemrajani, vice president of Miami Mindfulness, said the flash mob was planned to grab students’ attention and to show them how to time out of their busy day to bring peace to their minds.

“This is a chance for everyone to stop and just focus on breathing and focus on being rather than doing, and that’s what our club is about,” Hemrajani said.

Junior Giovanni Calixte joined the flash mob for the experience and to support the idea behind it.

“The main purpose for me to join was because it sounded interesting,” he said. “I always wanted to join a flash mob, so I didn’t know too much about the cause in the beginning, but it’s fairly obvious and I think it’s a good reason doing it.”

Hemrajani hopes that the event allowed students to meditate publicly while catching the attention of others to remind them that peace can always be found within.

“We wanted to make a statement,” Hermrajani said.