Morning Stillness: A Simple Guided Meditation for Insight, Wisdom, and Compassion

0:01Welcome to the morning meditation.

0:04This is the morning practice that I do each morning and I like to keep my meditation really simple and

0:12just sets me up for the day nicely with a calm, compassionate heart and the mindset to be able to

0:19do whatever I need to do. So the first thing we do is just settle in, allow the body to

0:25become quiet

0:29And we do this just by allowing the body to relax,

0:34Allowing the shoulders to relax.

0:39Wiggling into this position. Placing our arms in a comfortable place.

0:51And then just becoming aware of our breath.

0:54We don't need to do anything with the breath. We just become aware. We

1:00allow the body to breathe just the way it knows how to do it.

1:06I always find when we get involved in the breathing or the relaxing, that's

1:13when everything goes wrong.

1:17That's when we get caught up into are we doing it right? Are we doing it wrong?

1:26So just allow this moment to be what it is.

1:31Allow the body to relax.

1:35Allowing the shoulders, the face

1:39even your eyes and your cheeks

1:47back and your bum and your legs. Just allowing it all to relax.

1:55Breathing in calm. Breathing out relaxed.

2:05And I spend two or three minutes just settling into this quieter, more stillness time.

2:17And my mind will start thinking stuff up and feelings and emotions will start arising. And I just

2:24acknowledge them and smile and thank you for the thought.

2:30And then just go back to the breath and go back to the allowing this moment to be what it

2:35is.

2:39It's important not to be annoyed with their thoughts or the feelings coming up. That's what the body has evolved

2:46to do. That's

2:48what the mind's evolved to do, is think stuff up. To plan the day, to keep you safe.

2:57To think stuff up and bring it to your attention.

3:02Right now, all we're doing is just allowing this moment to be

3:15being calm, moving out, relaxed.

3:29And it's always really refreshing that we don't have to do anything with all these racing thoughts. We don't

3:37have to do anything with these emotions that arise. We just observe them arising and falling away. Just

3:45the same as we observe the sounds coming in and

3:49changing and adapting and evolving into different sounds. Same as the thoughts

3:57and emotions. This

4:00moment is forever transitioning to a new moment.

4:05It's never the same,

4:11always moving.

4:15It It's always calm.

4:19Beneath all the thoughts, beneath all the feelings,

4:23beneath all the little minutiae of what I have to do. Am I doing it right?

4:30Is this helping? Why am I doing this?

4:34Below all that, there's a lovely calmness.

4:37There's a peacefulness that's always there.

4:50And that peacefulness you don't have to do anything with.

5:02And it really is that simple. Just

5:06training the mind and training the

5:09the process to just, I don't have to do anything with it. I can just acknowledge and smile and

5:17ah. And with that comes wisdom and compassion. With that becomes a kinder heart.

5:25A

5:26more wiser day. With

5:29that you become that person that Handles things in a wise, compassionate

5:37way.

5:41And just before we come back to this moment, just thank your body and thank your mind for allowing it

5:48quiet and down for this moment. And

5:51just take this intention with you for the day that you're going to be calm, open-hearted open

5:59mind and wiser. And just feel what the body knows is best.

6:08So as I count back from five, just five, four, just gently open your eyes,

6:16three, shake out your arms, wiggle your fingers and toes to just look around and one, just take that

6:24breath and just feel that calmness inside but also you're here and alert and

6:32ready for the day ahead.

6:34Thank you. I'm Steven and thank you for supporting me. Wishing you a wonderful, peaceful day. And thank you for

6:42anybody that donates and keeps this