A Dharma Meditation Beyond Overthinking

0:01So, this meditation is to help you just let go of the overthinking. The intention is to

0:08gently shift our awareness from the busy mind to the simple, but yet really profound reality of

0:16just the present moment.

0:19Discovering the peace that is always available to us. It's always available right here. So

0:27find a comfortable posture. Whether sitting on a cushion or in a chair. And just allow your hands to

0:34rest on your lap.

0:37Or whatever position that you feel most comfortable when you're normally meditating. And

0:43you can gently close your eyes or just gently soften them to a few feet in front of you. Whatever

0:51you feel comfortable with.

1:02And just simply give yourself permission to be here. Give

1:08your body permission to breathe. Just the way it wants to.

1:20And your body knows how to breathe just the same as your body knows how to relax.

1:27Just allow it to be what it is.

1:36Allow your body to relax into this moment.

1:49And as you begin to settle in, just take a moment to arrive in this moment. There's nothing you need

1:56to do here nowhere else you need to be. And

2:01often we find ourselves caught up in the mind's constant activity.

2:09And we can easily mistake this for for

2:15who we really are.

2:23So in Zen, there's a concept known as Shikantaza. I think it's pronounced. Which is roughly

2:31translated to just sitting. It points to a simple but yet really profound truth. That we

2:38don't need to do anything to our thoughts. We don't need to fight them, suppress them, or even analyse them.

2:46The invitation is to simply shift our attention.

2:54So just before we continue with the meditation,

2:58It's just worth remembering that when we do have thoughts, when it comes into your head, as they will, that's

3:05what the mind is there to do. It's evolved to think, to protect you, to come up with stuff. We

3:13don't have to do anything with them. And

3:17it's so incredibly simple, but yet so powerful.

3:21So just bring your awareness to your breath.

3:25Notice the natural effortless rhythm of your breath

3:30as it enters and leaves your body.

3:35You don't need to deepen it or change it in any way.

3:41Body knows how to breathe. It's been doing it for a long time without you getting involved.

3:50You may notice the rise and fall of your chest or your belly.

3:58And Just for a moment, notice the activity of the mind.

4:03See if you can observe it without judgement.

4:11Notice that it's just wandering, looking for stuff.

4:15If it's not looking for stuff, it's handing you stuff. It's handing you thoughts.

4:27And you're not the thoughts because you wouldn't be aware of the thoughts if you were the thoughts.

4:35So you can be aware of the thoughts.

4:39A handy little mantra is, I have thoughts, but I am not those thoughts.

4:51I have thoughts, but I am not those thoughts.

4:57And you don't have to do anything with them.

5:17And perhaps it feels like a busy train station. And

5:22sometimes it's like thoughts just coming and going. Or that flywheel just reoccurring worries.

5:33You imagine sat on the platform and trains come and go. Well, if it's not your train, you don't do

5:38anything with it. You

5:40notice the train. Oh, that's not mine. And you just carry on waiting.

5:50And that's what we can do with the thoughts. Ah, that's not a thought I want to get onto.

5:59And then let it go.

6:02Your mind will try to go and get another one.

6:07And eventually it will learn what thoughts you want to get onto.

6:14And if we just bring our moment to the body,

6:19what's the body doing right now?

6:28How are your legs feeling?

6:39How are your feet?

6:48How are your hands?

6:57And you may notice when you move away from the

7:02thoughts and the mind to the body, the mind just quietens down and It's almost like, ah, okay, you're

7:10going to focus on the body, so I'll just go a bit quiet.

7:25You may feel the points of contact with your body, with the chair or the floor. You

7:32may notice some weight and the pressure.

7:37And You bring your awareness to the sensations in your hands, maybe. Are

7:42they warm? Cool? Maybe

7:46there's a tingling? Just

7:49notice. That's

7:51all.

7:59And what if you expand your awareness to all the sounds around you?

8:04Maybe the distant hum of something you can hear.

8:23And all these sounds are part of the present moment.

8:28There's nothing to fix or figure out. There's

8:33just feeling arising. Just hearing is happening And just being is happening.

8:56And as you rest your attention here in the physical sensations, the sounds of the moment,

9:03just notice what's happening with the mind again.

9:09You'll find it's quieter.

9:13It's not fleeting for one thought for another in panic.

9:19So if you just allow your shoulders to relax, the body goes, or the mind goes, okay.

9:34In fact, the body and mind just goes, okay.

9:41Sometimes it might take a couple of instructions.

10:00I think the most important thing is that you don't have to fight the thought. You cannot simply stop the

10:07thoughts by thinking.

10:26And thoughts never last long. They're

10:30a moment, and then poof, they're gone.

10:36If you have a thought that's relentless, it's a new thought every moment. It's

10:42not the same thought.

10:49So we're just going to rest in this awareness just before we come back.

10:54I've got a couple of affirmations. That really might help.

11:00And you can remember these affirmations anytime you want a little bit of peace.

11:08And they go like this. May I find peace in the present moment.

11:15May I trust in my ability to let go.

11:20May my mind be spacious and my heart be at ease.

11:27I'm going to say them one more time and this time really feel them as if they're totally true to

11:33you.

11:34May I find peace in the present moment.

11:48May I trust in my ability to let go.

12:01May my mind be spacious and my heart be at ease.

12:17And now it's just time to really appreciate your body and your mind in this moment. And

12:24the whole universe come together to give you this little bit of peace where

12:29it's nice to think in it

12:31So five. Four, just gently open your eyes. Three, move your arms, wiggle your

12:39fingers and toes. Two, look around the room. One, just take a little deeper breath and just be here and

12:47really appreciate the fact that nothing's changed.

12:53Your mind has not quietened down in any way. Your mind's thoughts are still coming. But

13:01just that knowledge that you don't have to do anything with them,

13:05that's like a superpower.

13:08I have thoughts, but I'm not those thoughts. And

13:13just like that, you take away all of their power, all of their energy, just like that.

13:20Thank you, and I hope you have a wonderful day. Just a gentle reminder that... I put out all these

13:27meditations as part of the Inner Peace Meditations podcast and the Stillness in the Storms podcast.

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13:58awesome and thank you. Have an amazing, peaceful day.