108 Steps | The Mala as Your Ally Toward Your Direction

Where will you be in 108 steps?

Note: this program is currently offered in Italian. An English version is in progress. If that's what you're looking for, reach out and I'll let you know when it's ready.

You want to change, and maybe you're in a hurry. Maybe you've already tried other techniques, other programs, and maybe someone promised you miracles. And then you always ended up back where you started, feeling like nothing had really changed: the same doubts, the same anxieties and fears, falling back into the same habits and decisions.

Maybe it's time for a different approach, don't you think?

The mala has existed for thousands of years, under many names, in a great many cultures. It has been used as a tool for prayer and concentration, as a mental anchor, for protection, and as a worry bead. In this program I'll teach you to use it to find your direction, and to keep it by your side as a daily reminder of it.

"No wind is favorable to the sailor who doesn't know where to go."

Seneca

How do you choose a direction?

How do you stop reacting and then regretting it?

How do you turn what matters to you into concrete choices?

These are essential things, yet almost no one teaches us how to do them. That's how so many of our decisions end up coming from fear, habit, or the need for approval.

Six group meetings, a few exercises, and one small right step in the direction you choose.

This program comes from my experience, my studies, and above all my love for the concrete: the steadiness of someone who wants to see real, lasting results. Thirty years of working with people and eight years of practice with the mala and the body, condensed into a journey to find a direction that no longer depends on whether the wind is in your favor.

No half-hours a day, no impossible routines, no complicated practices. I'll gently walk with you toward your choice, step by step.

And I won't promise you miracles. No magic stone, no enlightenment in a day. Real change is built one small step at a time, without forcing.

It's work that asks you to be willing to truly look at yourself. It isn't for everyone, but I believe that sooner or later we should all do it. I wish someone had helped me this way when I was twenty: it would have saved me so much time, money, and energy spent on things that weren't right for me.

108 days

The mala is your working tool. It isn't an object to look at but one to use: for the breath, for repetition, for coming back to the body every time the mind runs ahead. You'll learn to use it as an ally.

And above all, you'll be able to bring clarity to your thoughts so you can make different choices, every day. So that after 108 steps, you'll finally be on the path that's right for you.

How it works

6 live evening meetings online, 90 minutes each (Tuesdays, 8:30–10:00 PM Italian time / 11:30 AM–1:00 PM Pacific), in a small group of up to 16 people.

Between meetings you'll receive questions, targeted practices, and tools for reflection.

Attending all six meetings is strongly recommended, because the work that happens in the group is a precious part of the journey. If you miss one, you can catch up with the recording.

At the end of the journey, if you wish, I can suggest the stones to compose your own personal mala. But by then, you'll know how to choose them yourself!

Who it's for

For those who don't know where to go, what to do, which road to take, or how to reach their goals.

For young people who want to find a direction, for those who want to change their life but don't yet know how. For those who have already decided but can't seem to move. For artists and dreamers who struggle with the impact of everyday reality.

But above all, for those who believe, deep down, that they're not enough.

And finally, for those who want to build now the tools they'll surely need later to make more aligned decisions. That's actually the ideal situation: preparing the boat before the storm!

2027 dates: third edition

Tuesdays, 8:30–10:00 PM Italian time (11:30 AM–1:00 PM Pacific)

January 12
January 26
February 9
February 23
March 9
April 13 (closing meeting)

Not sure yet?

Join the pilot meeting on Tuesday, December 1st, 8:30–9:45 PM Italian time. Then decide. If you continue, what you paid for the pilot is deducted from the full program.

How to join

Sign up by completing your order on this page by December 27. On that day, 16 days before our first meeting, you'll receive a welcome letter and a questionnaire, and your 108-day journey will officially begin.

Meetings take place on Google Meet: just click the link I'll send you. Recordings are available only to participants. Names, faces, and contributions will never be published or used by Samdea outside the program.

Please join from a quiet place with your camera on: it helps protect the intimacy of the work and creates a group space that is present and private.

Stop waiting for the right wind. Choose where you want to go.

The Path of the Mala

Cristina Penna