Guided Meditations

True Calm

Wanting to be calm all the time is an understandable desire. It’s a natural reaction to a world that offers and encourages very little of it. That being said ‘calm’ in the way we are often taught mindfulness, is not the solution, nor the intention of those who originally pioneered mindfulness meditation.

The Problem Solving Mind

Of the most characteristic features of the modern mind is its predilection and talent for solving problems. Its commitment to the task is so zealous, however, that this helpful ability often becomes a source of suffering itself.

Voluntary Stillness, Involuntary Emotions

When we choose to be still in the body, we soon discover the seemingly endless movements of the mind. The stillness we inhabit provides a stable lens through which to view the often turbulent emotional worlds playing on outside of our everyday awareness

Relating to Experience as Energy

Although the labels we use to categorise experience can be useful at times,  experientially speaking all there really is, is simpy energy. Emotions for example are simply energy in the body paired with a particular conceptual framework.

Sitting With Not Knowing

We are constantly told throughout our lives that the acquisition of knowledge is the highest priority. But what we’re not told is that the obsession with ‘knowing’ everything can be the very obstacle to wisdom and happiness.

Being With Uncertainty

Our mind is constantly trying to latch onto aspects of experience to define itself in some way. Part of it yearns to ‘know’ to organise, to grasp the chaos around it and within it. But there is another part of our minds that is able to simply accept the chaos as it is, as the true nature of reality.

An Ever Gracious Host

Inspired by Rumi’s poem ‘The Guest House’, we look at how we can treat each of our experiences with respect and as a different individual guest, whether we find them pleasant, unpleasant or neutral.

Befriending the Inner Critic

When we rebel against the inner critic, we get into a never-ending struggle with it. On one side we may think this is better than internalising with it, because we are not outright accepting it, but in truth we are merely defining ourselves in opposition to it.

Freedom From Judgement

We often find ourselves caught in a delusion. The delusion that we can directly fight fire with fire. That judgement can cure judgement. But judgement only ever leads to more judgment. 

Peace With Experience

If we cultivate an aggressive spirit towards our experience here today we will always find a new enemy no matter where we go. True peace will never come from war and judgement.

Unconditional Presence

Learning to truly be with our experience as it is, means allowing it to be without trying to change it, fix it or make it “better”. You are enough as you are and this moment is enough as it is.

The Art of Letting Go – 1

In order to learn to be truly present, we must learn to be completely aware of and with experience, without compulsively pursuing the impulse to ‘fix’ it.

The Art of Letting Go – 2

‘Letting go’ in meditation means releasing the tensed grasp we’ve already applied to something in our experience unconsciously, not applying yet another tension to battle against the first.

Peace With Experience

If we cultivate an aggressive spirit towards our experience here today we will always find a new enemy no matter where we go. True peace will never come from war and judgement.

Freedom From Judgement

We often find ourselves caught in a delusion. The delusion that we can directly fight fire with fire. That judgement can cure judgement. But judgement only ever leads to more judgment. 

Befriending the Inner Critic

When we rebel against the inner critic, we get into a never-ending struggle with it. On one side we may think this is better than internalising with it, because we are not outright accepting it, but in truth we are merely defining ourselves in opposition to it.

An Ever Gracious Host

Inspired by Rumi’s poem ‘The Guest House’, we look at how we can treat each of our experiences with respect and as a different individual guest, whether we find them pleasant, unpleasant or neutral.

Being With Uncertainty

Our mind is constantly trying to latch onto aspects of experience to define itself in some way. Part of it yearns to ‘know’ to organise, to grasp the chaos around it and within it. But there is another part of our minds that is able to simply accept the chaos as it is, as the true nature of reality.

Sitting With Not Knowing

We are constantly told throughout our lives that the acquisition of knowledge is the highest priority. But what we’re not told is that the obsession with ‘knowing’ everything can be the very obstacle to wisdom and happiness.

Relating to Experience as Energy

Although the labels we use to categorise experience can be useful at times,  experientially speaking all there really is, is simpy energy. Emotions for example are simply energy in the body paired with a particular conceptual framework.

Voluntary Stillness, Involuntary Emotions

When we choose to be still in the body, we soon discover the seemingly endless movements of the mind. The stillness we inhabit provides a stable lens through which to view the often turbulent emotional worlds playing on outside of our everyday awareness

The Problem Solving Mind

Of the most characteristic features of the modern mind is its predilection and talent for solving problems. Its commitment to the task is so zealous, however, that this helpful ability often becomes a source of suffering itself.

True Calm

Wanting to be calm all the time is an understandable desire. It’s a natural reaction to a world that offers and encourages very little of it. That being said ‘calm’ in the way we are often taught mindfulness, is not the solution, nor the intention of those who originally pioneered mindfulness meditation.