Maxene Magalona goes on a 10-day silent retreat: ‘The pain was only temporary’

PUSH TEAM

<p>After undergoing yoga training in Bali, Indonesia since the start of the lockdown, Maxene Magalona and her husband Robbie Mananquil have chosen to remain abroad for the meantime with the ongoing pandemic. Maxene also celebrated her 34th birthday there last month.</p><p>Recently, Maxene shared that she recently went on a 10-day silent retreat called Vipassana meditation which is known as one of India's most ancient techniques of meditation.</p><p><a href='https://push.abs-cbn.com/2020/9/1/fresh-scoops/maxene-magalona-set-to-start-teaching-yoga-classes-161047'><strong><u>READ: Maxene Magalona set to start teaching yoga classes online</u></strong></a></p><p><a href='https://push.abs-cbn.com/2020/11/25/fresh-scoops/maxene-magalona-spends-34th-birthday-in-bali-indo-189939'><strong><u>READ: Maxene Magalona spends 34th birthday in Bali, Indonesia: ‘I wish for healing, harmony and happiness’</u></strong></a></p><p>On her Instagram account last December 7, Maxene wrote, “The feeling of overwhelming gratitude coupled with clarity and lightness will forever be ingrained in our hearts. Vipassana means ‘clear seeing’ or ‘insight’ and that is exactly what the retreat helped us achieve. Learning this meditation technique allowed us to see reality just as it is with no judgment, stories or labels. We suffer from pain, fear, doubt and anxiety because we tend to create narratives around situations. We have so many expectations and when things don’t go our way, we get extremely frustrated. It seems as though we only want to taste the sweetness of life while avoiding its bitterness and sourness. As much as we embrace the pleasures this world has to offer, we must also accept its challenges and difficulties. The sooner we learn to do this, the better we will be able to flow with the universe,” she shared.</p><p>In the same post, Maxene admitted she had difficulty adjusting to the meditation at the start. “Meditation trains our minds and bodies to accept all kinds of sensations. During the first few days of the retreat, I was experiencing so much distress and frustration because I wasn’t used to sitting in meditation for 10 hours a day! My legs were in so much pain! I couldn’t stop fidgeting and squirming. Our teacher @meditationdave encouraged us to try our best not to react and just sit through the discomfort as he assured us that the pain was only temporary. True enough, the less I reacted to the uncomfortable feelings, the less it became unbearable. I started getting used to it. The Buddha said, ‘See sensations as sensations,’ and that’s exactly what I did. I sat in stillness as much as I could and welcomed all the sensations that came up. I didn’t label them as positive or negative. I just allowed myself to feel everything and not react,” she revealed.</p><p>But after the 10-day practice, Maxene said she has no regrets going through the challenging experience. “Towards the end of the retreat, I was happily floating inside my body. My legs were still in a lot of pain but the upper half of my body was in pure ecstasy. I found myself smiling as I realized that this was exactly what life was about —a blissful balance between pleasure and pain. We just have to surrender and trust that God will take care of us. We need only be still. 🧘🏻‍♀️ 🧘🏻‍♂️ #MeditatewithTheMananquils.” she added.</p><p> </p><blockquote class='instagram-media' data-instgrm-captioned='' data-instgrm-permalink='https://www.instagram.com/p/CIfIq0dlBLd/?utm_source=ig_embed&utm_campaign=loading' data-instgrm-version='13' style=' background:#FFF; border:0; border-radius:3px; box-shadow:0 0 1px 0 rgba(0,0,0,0.5),0 1px 10px 0 rgba(0,0,0,0.15); margin: 1px; max-width:540px; min-width:326px; padding:0; width:99.375%; width:-webkit-calc(100% - 2px); width:calc(100% - 2px);'><div style='padding:16px;'><div style=' display: flex; flex-direction: row; align-items: center;'><div style='background-color: #F4F4F4; border-radius: 50%; flex-grow: 0; height: 40px; margin-right: 14px; width: 40px;'> </div><div style='display: flex; flex-direction: column; flex-grow: 1; justify-content: center;'><div style=' background-color: #F4F4F4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; margin-bottom: 6px; width: 100px;'> </div><div style=' background-color: #F4F4F4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; width: 60px;'> </div></div></div><div style='padding: 19% 0;'> </div><div style='display:block; height:50px; margin:0 auto 12px; width:50px;'><a href='https://www.instagram.com/p/CIfIq0dlBLd/?utm_source=ig_embed&utm_campaign=loading' style=' background:#FFFFFF; line-height:0; padding:0 0; text-align:center; text-decoration:none; width:100%;' target='_blank'><svg height='50px' version='1.1' viewbox='0 0 60 60' width='50px' xmlns='https://www.w3.org/2000/svg' xmlns:xlink='https://www.w3.org/1999/xlink'><g fill='none' fill-rule='evenodd' stroke='none' stroke-width='1'><g fill='#000000' transform='translate(-511.000000, -20.000000)'><g><path d='M556.869,30.41 C554.814,30.41 553.148,32.076 553.148,34.131 C553.148,36.186 554.814,37.852 556.869,37.852 C558.924,37.852 560.59,36.186 560.59,34.131 C560.59,32.076 558.924,30.41 556.869,30.41 M541,60.657 C535.114,60.657 530.342,55.887 530.342,50 C530.342,44.114 535.114,39.342 541,39.342 C546.887,39.342 551.658,44.114 551.658,50 C551.658,55.887 546.887,60.657 541,60.657 M541,33.886 C532.1,33.886 524.886,41.1 524.886,50 C524.886,58.899 532.1,66.113 541,66.113 C549.9,66.113 557.115,58.899 557.115,50 C557.115,41.1 549.9,33.886 541,33.886 M565.378,62.101 C565.244,65.022 564.756,66.606 564.346,67.663 C563.803,69.06 563.154,70.057 562.106,71.106 C561.058,72.155 560.06,72.803 558.662,73.347 C557.607,73.757 556.021,74.244 553.102,74.378 C549.944,74.521 548.997,74.552 541,74.552 C533.003,74.552 532.056,74.521 528.898,74.378 C525.979,74.244 524.393,73.757 523.338,73.347 C521.94,72.803 520.942,72.155 519.894,71.106 C518.846,70.057 518.197,69.06 517.654,67.663 C517.244,66.606 516.755,65.022 516.623,62.101 C516.479,58.943 516.448,57.996 516.448,50 C516.448,42.003 516.479,41.056 516.623,37.899 C516.755,34.978 517.244,33.391 517.654,32.338 C518.197,30.938 518.846,29.942 519.894,28.894 C520.942,27.846 521.94,27.196 523.338,26.654 C524.393,26.244 525.979,25.756 528.898,25.623 C532.057,25.479 533.004,25.448 541,25.448 C548.997,25.448 549.943,25.479 553.102,25.623 C556.021,25.756 557.607,26.244 558.662,26.654 C560.06,27.196 561.058,27.846 562.106,28.894 C563.154,29.942 563.803,30.938 564.346,32.338 C564.756,33.391 565.244,34.978 565.378,37.899 C565.522,41.056 565.552,42.003 565.552,50 C565.552,57.996 565.522,58.943 565.378,62.101 M570.82,37.631 C570.674,34.438 570.167,32.258 569.425,30.349 C568.659,28.377 567.633,26.702 565.965,25.035 C564.297,23.368 562.623,22.342 560.652,21.575 C558.743,20.834 556.562,20.326 553.369,20.18 C550.169,20.033 549.148,20 541,20 C532.853,20 531.831,20.033 528.631,20.18 C525.438,20.326 523.257,20.834 521.349,21.575 C519.376,22.342 517.703,23.368 516.035,25.035 C514.368,26.702 513.342,28.377 512.574,30.349 C511.834,32.258 511.326,34.438 511.181,37.631 C511.035,40.831 511,41.851 511,50 C511,58.147 511.035,59.17 511.181,62.369 C511.326,65.562 511.834,67.743 512.574,69.651 C513.342,71.625 514.368,73.296 516.035,74.965 C517.703,76.634 519.376,77.658 521.349,78.425 C523.257,79.167 525.438,79.673 528.631,79.82 C531.831,79.965 532.853,80.001 541,80.001 C549.148,80.001 550.169,79.965 553.369,79.82 C556.562,79.673 558.743,79.167 560.652,78.425 C562.623,77.658 564.297,76.634 565.965,74.965 C567.633,73.296 568.659,71.625 569.425,69.651 C570.167,67.743 570.674,65.562 570.82,62.369 C570.966,59.17 571,58.147 571,50 C571,41.851 570.966,40.831 570.82,37.631'></path></g></g></g></svg></a></div><div style='padding-top: 8px;'><div style=' color:#3897f0; font-family:Arial,sans-serif; font-size:14px; font-style:normal; font-weight:550; line-height:18px;'><a href='https://www.instagram.com/p/CIfIq0dlBLd/?utm_source=ig_embed&utm_campaign=loading' style=' background:#FFFFFF; line-height:0; padding:0 0; text-align:center; text-decoration:none; width:100%;' target='_blank'>View this post on Instagram</a></div></div><div style='padding: 12.5% 0;'> </div><div style='display: flex; flex-direction: row; margin-bottom: 14px; align-items: center;'><div><div style='background-color: #F4F4F4; border-radius: 50%; height: 12.5px; width: 12.5px; transform: translateX(0px) translateY(7px);'> </div><div style='background-color: #F4F4F4; height: 12.5px; transform: rotate(-45deg) translateX(3px) translateY(1px); width: 12.5px; flex-grow: 0; margin-right: 14px; margin-left: 2px;'> </div><div style='background-color: #F4F4F4; border-radius: 50%; height: 12.5px; width: 12.5px; transform: translateX(9px) translateY(-18px);'> </div></div><div style='margin-left: 8px;'><div style=' background-color: #F4F4F4; border-radius: 50%; flex-grow: 0; height: 20px; width: 20px;'> </div><div style=' width: 0; height: 0; border-top: 2px solid transparent; border-left: 6px solid #f4f4f4; border-bottom: 2px solid transparent; transform: translateX(16px) translateY(-4px) rotate(30deg)'> </div></div><div style='margin-left: auto;'><div style=' width: 0px; border-top: 8px solid #F4F4F4; border-right: 8px solid transparent; transform: translateY(16px);'> </div><div style=' background-color: #F4F4F4; flex-grow: 0; height: 12px; width: 16px; transform: translateY(-4px);'> </div><div style=' width: 0; height: 0; border-top: 8px solid #F4F4F4; border-left: 8px solid transparent; transform: translateY(-4px) translateX(8px);'> </div></div></div><div style='display: flex; flex-direction: column; flex-grow: 1; justify-content: center; margin-bottom: 24px;'><div style=' background-color: #F4F4F4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; margin-bottom: 6px; width: 224px;'> </div><div style=' background-color: #F4F4F4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; width: 144px;'> </div></div><p style=' color:#c9c8cd; font-family:Arial,sans-serif; font-size:14px; line-height:17px; margin-bottom:0; margin-top:8px; overflow:hidden; padding:8px 0 7px; text-align:center; text-overflow:ellipsis; white-space:nowrap;'><a href='https://www.instagram.com/p/CIfIq0dlBLd/?utm_source=ig_embed&utm_campaign=loading' style=' color:#c9c8cd; font-family:Arial,sans-serif; font-size:14px; font-style:normal; font-weight:normal; line-height:17px; text-decoration:none;' target='_blank'>A post shared by Maxene Magalona-Mananquil (@maxenemagalona)</a></p></div></blockquote><script async src='//www.instagram.com/embed.js' type='text/javascript'></script><p> </p><p><a href='https://push.abs-cbn.com/2020/7/20/fresh-scoops/maxene-magalona-reveals-why-she-doesnt-want-to-ge-29741'><strong><u>READ: Maxene Magalona reveals why she doesn’t want to get pregnant yet</u></strong></a></p><p>The couple tied the knot in early 2018 and have revealed in previous interviews that they have no plans of starting a family yet in order to focus on deepening their yoga practice and becoming yoga teachers. </p>

<p><a href='https://push.abs-cbn.com/2020/11/25/fresh-scoops/maxene-magalona-spends-34th-birthday-in-bali-indo-189939'><strong><u>READ: Maxene Magalona spends 34th birthday in Bali, Indonesia: ‘I wish for healing, harmony and happiness’</u></strong></a><p>On her Instagram account last December 7, Maxene wrote, “The feeling of overwhelming gratitude coupled with clarity and lightness will forever be ingrained in our hearts. Vipassana means ‘clear seeing’ or ‘insight’ and that is exactly what the retreat helped us achieve. Learning this meditation technique allowed us to see reality just as it is with no judgment, stories or labels. We suffer from pain, fear, doubt and anxiety because we tend to create narratives around situations. We have so many expectations and when things don’t go our way, we get extremely frustrated. It seems as though we only want to taste the sweetness of life while avoiding its bitterness and sourness. As much as we embrace the pleasures this world has to offer, we must also accept its challenges and difficulties. The sooner we learn to do this, the better we will be able to flow with the universe,” she shared.<p>In the same post, Maxene admitted she had difficulty adjusting to the meditation at the start. “Meditation trains our minds and bodies to accept all kinds of sensations. During the first few days of the retreat, I was experiencing so much distress and frustration because I wasn’t used to sitting in meditation for 10 hours a day! My legs were in so much pain! I couldn’t stop fidgeting and squirming. Our teacher @meditationdave encouraged us to try our best not to react and just sit through the discomfort as he assured us that the pain was only temporary. True enough, the less I reacted to the uncomfortable feelings, the less it became unbearable. I started getting used to it. The Buddha said, ‘See sensations as sensations,’ and that’s exactly what I did. I sat in stillness as much as I could and welcomed all the sensations that came up. I didn’t label them as positive or negative. I just allowed myself to feel everything and not react,” she revealed.<p>But after the 10-day practice, Maxene said she has no regrets going through the challenging experience. “Towards the end of the retreat, I was happily floating inside my body. My legs were still in a lot of pain but the upper half of my body was in pure ecstasy. I found myself smiling as I realized that this was exactly what life was about —a blissful balance between pleasure and pain. We just have to surrender and trust that God will take care of us. We need only be still. 🧘🏻‍♀️ 🧘🏻‍♂️ #MeditatewithTheMananquils.” she added.<p> <blockquote class='instagram-media' data-instgrm-captioned='' data-instgrm-permalink='https://www.instagram.com/p/CIfIq0dlBLd/?utm_source=ig_embed&utm_campaign=loading' data-instgrm-version='13' style=' background:#FFF; border:0; border-radius:3px; box-shadow:0 0 1px 0 rgba(0,0,0,0.5),0 1px 10px 0 rgba(0,0,0,0.15); margin: 1px; max-width:540px; min-width:326px; padding:0; width:99.375%; width:-webkit-calc(100% - 2px); width:calc(100% - 2px);'><div style='padding:16px;'><div style=' display: flex; flex-direction: row; align-items: center;'><div style='background-color: #F4F4F4; border-radius: 50%; flex-grow: 0; height: 40px; margin-right: 14px; width: 40px;'> </div><div style='display: flex; flex-direction: column; flex-grow: 1; justify-content: center;'><div style=' background-color: #F4F4F4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; margin-bottom: 6px; width: 100px;'> </div><div style=' background-color: #F4F4F4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; width: 60px;'> </div></div></div><div style='padding: 19% 0;'> </div><div style='display:block; height:50px; margin:0 auto 12px; width:50px;'><a href='https://www.instagram.com/p/CIfIq0dlBLd/?utm_source=ig_embed&utm_campaign=loading' style=' background:#FFFFFF; line-height:0; padding:0 0; text-align:center; text-decoration:none; width:100%;' target='_blank'><svg height='50px' version='1.1' viewbox='0 0 60 60' width='50px' xmlns='https://www.w3.org/2000/svg' xmlns:xlink='https://www.w3.org/1999/xlink'><g fill='none' fill-rule='evenodd' stroke='none' stroke-width='1'><g fill='#000000' transform='translate(-511.000000, -20.000000)'><g><path d='M556.869,30.41 C554.814,30.41 553.148,32.076 553.148,34.131 C553.148,36.186 554.814,37.852 556.869,37.852 C558.924,37.852 560.59,36.186 560.59,34.131 C560.59,32.076 558.924,30.41 556.869,30.41 M541,60.657 C535.114,60.657 530.342,55.887 530.342,50 C530.342,44.114 535.114,39.342 541,39.342 C546.887,39.342 551.658,44.114 551.658,50 C551.658,55.887 546.887,60.657 541,60.657 M541,33.886 C532.1,33.886 524.886,41.1 524.886,50 C524.886,58.899 532.1,66.113 541,66.113 C549.9,66.113 557.115,58.899 557.115,50 C557.115,41.1 549.9,33.886 541,33.886 M565.378,62.101 C565.244,65.022 564.756,66.606 564.346,67.663 C563.803,69.06 563.154,70.057 562.106,71.106 C561.058,72.155 560.06,72.803 558.662,73.347 C557.607,73.757 556.021,74.244 553.102,74.378 C549.944,74.521 548.997,74.552 541,74.552 C533.003,74.552 532.056,74.521 528.898,74.378 C525.979,74.244 524.393,73.757 523.338,73.347 C521.94,72.803 520.942,72.155 519.894,71.106 C518.846,70.057 518.197,69.06 517.654,67.663 C517.244,66.606 516.755,65.022 516.623,62.101 C516.479,58.943 516.448,57.996 516.448,50 C516.448,42.003 516.479,41.056 516.623,37.899 C516.755,34.978 517.244,33.391 517.654,32.338 C518.197,30.938 518.846,29.942 519.894,28.894 C520.942,27.846 521.94,27.196 523.338,26.654 C524.393,26.244 525.979,25.756 528.898,25.623 C532.057,25.479 533.004,25.448 541,25.448 C548.997,25.448 549.943,25.479 553.102,25.623 C556.021,25.756 557.607,26.244 558.662,26.654 C560.06,27.196 561.058,27.846 562.106,28.894 C563.154,29.942 563.803,30.938 564.346,32.338 C564.756,33.391 565.244,34.978 565.378,37.899 C565.522,41.056 565.552,42.003 565.552,50 C565.552,57.996 565.522,58.943 565.378,62.101 M570.82,37.631 C570.674,34.438 570.167,32.258 569.425,30.349 C568.659,28.377 567.633,26.702 565.965,25.035 C564.297,23.368 562.623,22.342 560.652,21.575 C558.743,20.834 556.562,20.326 553.369,20.18 C550.169,20.033 549.148,20 541,20 C532.853,20 531.831,20.033 528.631,20.18 C525.438,20.326 523.257,20.834 521.349,21.575 C519.376,22.342 517.703,23.368 516.035,25.035 C514.368,26.702 513.342,28.377 512.574,30.349 C511.834,32.258 511.326,34.438 511.181,37.631 C511.035,40.831 511,41.851 511,50 C511,58.147 511.035,59.17 511.181,62.369 C511.326,65.562 511.834,67.743 512.574,69.651 C513.342,71.625 514.368,73.296 516.035,74.965 C517.703,76.634 519.376,77.658 521.349,78.425 C523.257,79.167 525.438,79.673 528.631,79.82 C531.831,79.965 532.853,80.001 541,80.001 C549.148,80.001 550.169,79.965 553.369,79.82 C556.562,79.673 558.743,79.167 560.652,78.425 C562.623,77.658 564.297,76.634 565.965,74.965 C567.633,73.296 568.659,71.625 569.425,69.651 C570.167,67.743 570.674,65.562 570.82,62.369 C570.966,59.17 571,58.147 571,50 C571,41.851 570.966,40.831 570.82,37.631'></path></g></g></g></svg></a></div><div style='padding-top: 8px;'><div style=' color:#3897f0; font-family:Arial,sans-serif; font-size:14px; font-style:normal; font-weight:550; line-height:18px;'><a href='https://www.instagram.com/p/CIfIq0dlBLd/?utm_source=ig_embed&utm_campaign=loading' style=' background:#FFFFFF; line-height:0; padding:0 0; text-align:center; text-decoration:none; width:100%;' target='_blank'>View this post on Instagram</a></div></div><div style='padding: 12.5% 0;'> </div><div style='display: flex; flex-direction: row; margin-bottom: 14px; align-items: center;'><div><div style='background-color: #F4F4F4; border-radius: 50%; height: 12.5px; width: 12.5px; transform: translateX(0px) translateY(7px);'> </div><div style='background-color: #F4F4F4; height: 12.5px; transform: rotate(-45deg) translateX(3px) translateY(1px); width: 12.5px; flex-grow: 0; margin-right: 14px; margin-left: 2px;'> </div><div style='background-color: #F4F4F4; border-radius: 50%; height: 12.5px; width: 12.5px; transform: translateX(9px) translateY(-18px);'> </div></div><div style='margin-left: 8px;'><div style=' background-color: #F4F4F4; border-radius: 50%; flex-grow: 0; height: 20px; width: 20px;'> </div><div style=' width: 0; height: 0; border-top: 2px solid transparent; border-left: 6px solid #f4f4f4; border-bottom: 2px solid transparent; transform: translateX(16px) translateY(-4px) rotate(30deg)'> </div></div><div style='margin-left: auto;'><div style=' width: 0px; border-top: 8px solid #F4F4F4; border-right: 8px solid transparent; transform: translateY(16px);'> </div><div style=' background-color: #F4F4F4; flex-grow: 0; height: 12px; width: 16px; transform: translateY(-4px);'> </div><div style=' width: 0; height: 0; border-top: 8px solid #F4F4F4; border-left: 8px solid transparent; transform: translateY(-4px) translateX(8px);'> </div></div></div><div style='display: flex; flex-direction: column; flex-grow: 1; justify-content: center; margin-bottom: 24px;'><div style=' background-color: #F4F4F4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; margin-bottom: 6px; width: 224px;'> </div><div style=' background-color: #F4F4F4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; width: 144px;'> </div></div><p style=' color:#c9c8cd; font-family:Arial,sans-serif; font-size:14px; line-height:17px; margin-bottom:0; margin-top:8px; overflow:hidden; padding:8px 0 7px; text-align:center; text-overflow:ellipsis; white-space:nowrap;'><a href='https://www.instagram.com/p/CIfIq0dlBLd/?utm_source=ig_embed&utm_campaign=loading' style=' color:#c9c8cd; font-family:Arial,sans-serif; font-size:14px; font-style:normal; font-weight:normal; line-height:17px; text-decoration:none;' target='_blank'>A post shared by Maxene Magalona-Mananquil (@maxenemagalona)</a></div></blockquote><script async src='//www.instagram.com/embed.js' type='text/javascript'></script><p> <p><a href='https://push.abs-cbn.com/2020/7/20/fresh-scoops/maxene-magalona-reveals-why-she-doesnt-want-to-ge-29741'><strong><u>READ: Maxene Magalona reveals why she doesn’t want to get pregnant yet</u></strong></a><p>The couple tied the knot in early 2018 and have revealed in previous interviews that they have no plans of starting a family yet in order to focus on deepening their yoga practice and becoming yoga teachers. 

<p>After undergoing yoga training in Bali, Indonesia since the start of the lockdown, Maxene Magalona and her husband Robbie Mananquil have chosen to remain abroad for the meantime with the ongoing pandemic. Maxene also celebrated her 34th birthday there last month.<p>Recently, Maxene shared that she recently went on a 10-day silent retreat called Vipassana meditation which is known as one of India's most ancient techniques of meditation.<p><a href='https://push.abs-cbn.com/2020/9/1/fresh-scoops/maxene-magalona-set-to-start-teaching-yoga-classes-161047'><strong><u>READ: Maxene Magalona set to start teaching yoga classes online</u></strong></a>

Actress and yoga teacher Maxene Magalona talks about undergoing a challenging experience with her husband Robbie Mananquil in Bali, Indonesia.

Maxene Magalona goes on a 10-day silent retreat: ‘The pain was only temporary’ | PUSH.COM.PH