Code of Ethics

The Advaita Meditation Center’s Board of Trustees has adopted the following ethical guidelines, adapted from the Association for Spiritual Integrity’s Honor Code, to guide our work with all participants.

As leaders and officials of a spiritual organization, we commit to:

1. Holding ourselves, our colleagues, and our staff to the highest standards of ethics, right behavior, and professional competency, as commonly recognized by our peers, and in accordance with the principles of Advaita.
2. Performing our organizational and public-facing roles in a caring and compassionate manner in both one-on-one and group interactions.
3. Respecting the rights, dignity, and safety of all who belong to our organization and those whom we serve.
4. Fostering autonomy, empowerment, self-sufficiency, and emotional maturity within our organization and in our dealings with others.
5. Treating questions, concerns, doubts, and experiences raised within our organization and from those we serve, with respect, and never trivializing or dismissing enquiries.
6. Being self-aware, open, and humble about the limitations of our knowledge and experience.
7. Making only honest, realistic statements regarding the benefits of our organization’s offerings.
8. Refraining from giving counsel in matters outside of our areas of training and expertise, and making appropriate referrals as needed.
9. Being as honest and transparent as possible regarding our organization’s business and financial matters.
10. Honoring the sanctity of privacy and maintaining the confidentiality of information shared in confidence with our organization and its representatives.
11. Abiding by local laws with respect to the disclosure of information in cases of sexual or other forms of abuse, and the intention to harm oneself or others. 
12.  Acknowledging that, regardless of our spiritual attainment, we and our representatives are human beings with human personalities, limitations, drives, and needs.
13. Not seeking or presuming exalted privileges or glorified status because of our role in the organization.
14. Never manipulating, exploiting, or deceiving another member of the organization or those we serve to satisfy our personal aspirations, needs, or desires.
15. Establishing and maintaining clear and healthy professional boundaries within the organization and with those we serve. 
16. Never abusing the trust of members of the organization or those we serve to obtain sexual gratification or personal benefits such as money or free labor.
17. Cultivating and practicing honesty, integrity, compassion, humility, and empathy.
18. Engaging in continuous self-reflection, learning, and holistic personal growth.
19. Encouraging feedback about our own methods and behavior—and taking that feedback seriously. This includes complaints submitted to the ASI. 
20. Addressing promptly any personal issues, concerns, or challenges that might affect our professional competency or our organization’s mission.

This Code of Ethics will be periodically reassessed and revised. We also acknowledge that many of the guidelines touch upon highly complex and nuanced issues.

We welcome honest feedback, open discussion, diverse perspectives, and discerning analysis. Please email your thoughts and ideas to advaitameditation@outlook.com. You may also email any concerns about possible violations of this code to that same address, or to the Association for Spiritual Integrity at info@spiritual-integrity.org.