| Length | 9:59 |
|---|---|
| Subject | Anxiety & Stress |
| Best time | The middle of a day that is running you |
| Position | Sitting upright, feet flat on the floor |
| Style | You choose the place. I only ask the questions. Music underneath |
About this meditation
Not escaping the moment. Bringing some calm into it, and then taking that out into the rest of the day.
About 11 minutes with Steven Webb's calm voice.
You pick the place, not me. Somewhere in nature you actually like, where nobody will find you. Then you fill in the detail. The weather, the breeze, what you are sitting on, what you can hear. I leave you there a couple of minutes and keep an eye on the clock.
Treat me to a coffee, keep the podcast free, and get my Weekly Calm every Sunday. It is all on stevenwebb.uk
Thank you for sitting with me.
Steven
Stevens new course: Finding Peace in Everyday Life (you choose how much to pay)
- Support Stevens work and links to other podcasts: stevenwebb.uk
- Donate paypal.me/stevenwebb or Buy Steven a coffee
Who this is for
You need a few minutes out and you do not want to be talked at.
This is not escaping the moment. It is bringing some calm into it and then carrying that into whatever is next.
What happens in this meditation
Notice the room you are actually in first. What you can see, what you can hear. Then close your eyes on an out breath.
Then you pick the place. Somewhere in nature you genuinely like, where nobody will find you. A river, a lake, a wood, wherever yours is. I do not choose it and I do not describe it.
Then I ask and you fill it in. What is the weather doing? Is there a breeze? Can you feel the sun? What are you sitting on, grass or a bench or a log? What can you hear from there?
Then I leave you in it for a couple of minutes and keep an eye on the clock so you do not have to.
It ends by asking you to look at what you have to do today from that place, and five back to one.
How to get the most from it
Eleven minutes, sitting up with your feet flat, which grounds it more than it sounds like it should.
Answer the questions properly. The detail is the whole method. Somewhere you can smell and hear works, somewhere you can only vaguely picture does not.
Pick a real place you have actually been. Your body remembers standing there and it will do half the work for you.
Questions people ask
Why do I choose the place rather than you?
Because yours will always beat mine. I have no idea whether you settle by water or under trees, and the one that works is the one you already miss.
What if my mind wanders in the quiet bit?
Then smile at it, thank it for the thought, and invite it to come and sit in the peaceful place with you. That instruction is in the recording, and it works better than telling it off.
Can I use this at work?
Yes. Sitting upright in a chair with your feet on the floor is the position it asks for anyway. Eleven minutes with your eyes shut and nothing visible happening.
Read the transcript
The transcript follows the audio. Press any line to jump there.
0:00Steven Webb: Just while you're making yourself comfortable and getting settled in, I just want to tell you about another podcast I
0:06Steven Webb: have. It's called Stillness in the Storms Podcast. And it's a podcast that helps you to get a little inner
0:13Steven Webb: peace when you need it most and you probably have it least.
0:17Steven Webb: And it's just... Seeing life from a different perspective. And I'm also choosing not to have any
0:25Steven Webb: sponsors for either of these podcasts. So if you would like to treat me to a coffee, you can head
0:32Steven Webb: over to StevenWebb.uk or if you'd like to download the five simple practices for inner peace, also head
0:39Steven Webb: over to StevenWebb.uk. You are awesome. Settle in and enjoy the meditation. I won't disturb you
0:47Steven Webb: after the meditation.
0:53Steven Webb: Welcome to My Peaceful Place Meditation. This
0:58Steven Webb: meditation is best sitting in an upright position, whether a full lotus on the floor or sat on a seat.
1:06Steven Webb: If you are sat on a seat, see if you can place your feet square on the floor. It just
1:12Steven Webb: helps us to ground ourselves. So
1:15Steven Webb: if we keep our backs up straight tuck our chin in. A little. And imagine there's an invisible cord extending
1:23Steven Webb: from the top of your head, gently holding you up in this upright position.
1:29Steven Webb: My Peaceful Place is a little time out. It's not about escaping the present moment. It's about
1:37Steven Webb: bringing calmness to the present moment and then extending it throughout your day.
1:48Steven Webb: So first take a moment to become aware of your surroundings, the room you're in. As you look around, you
1:55Steven Webb: can see the objects. Are there any noises?
2:03Steven Webb: As you turn your awareness to your breath, on the next breath out, gently close your eyes.
2:11Steven Webb: Notice how your breath starts to slow down. Breathing in deeper, breathing out slower.
2:21Steven Webb: Just naturally becoming aware of our breath automatically slows the process.
2:28Steven Webb: The body becomes naturally calmer
2:33Steven Webb: there's any pockets of tension anywhere, just imagine it fading away and just softening on the out breath
2:41Steven Webb: You don't have to do anything with your breath. Your body knows exactly how to breathe. It knows how fast
2:48Steven Webb: and how deep to breathe. We don't have to interfere. Just become aware and observe it.
3:03Steven Webb: And as we become calmer, think of somewhere in nature. Somewhere that you really enjoy going.
3:10Steven Webb: A place where you can be alone with your thoughts, with your breath. A place that
3:18Steven Webb: really feels quiet and calm and peaceful to you. A
3:24Steven Webb: place that you feel safe and secure. A
3:27Steven Webb: place that you know you will not be disturbed.
3:36Steven Webb: Maybe it's next to a river or a lake.
3:43Steven Webb: You know, it's your peaceful place. Totally up to you.
3:50Steven Webb: Imagine what it feels like to be there now in as much detail as possible. The sounds you can hear.
3:58Steven Webb: What's the weather like?
4:01Steven Webb: Is there a slight breeze? Can you feel the sun on your face?
4:12Steven Webb: What can you see when you're looking around?
4:20Steven Webb: Perhaps you're sat on the grass or a large log or maybe a bench.
4:41Steven Webb: What can you see from where you are?
4:51Steven Webb: And as you can see from your surroundings as you take in the surroundings, how does it feel inside your
4:58Steven Webb: body to be in this nice peaceful place?
5:09Steven Webb: And as you breathe in deeper and you breathe out longer and slower, imagine this whole peaceful place becoming
5:17Steven Webb: slightly more peaceful. Slightly more quiet and calm. Even
5:23Steven Webb: more peaceful than when you arrived.
5:31Steven Webb: And as you breathe in calm and you breathe out relax become aware of how your body is relaxing in
5:38Steven Webb: this moment.
5:41Steven Webb: Notice how quiet your mind is and how your mind and body is feeling calm and feeling
5:48Steven Webb: as one.
6:09Steven Webb: As you're sitting in this peaceful place with as much detail as possible, how you're feeling, how calm it is,
6:16Steven Webb: the weather and whether you can feel the sun on your face, whether there's clouds in the sky or what
6:22Steven Webb: you can hear.
6:26Steven Webb: Just sit with your breath and this place at the moment in this lovely calm serene feeling. And I'll leave
6:33Steven Webb: you go for a couple of minutes and
6:36Steven Webb: worry about the time. I'll keep an eye on the time and just feel the calmness. And
6:43Steven Webb: if during this time, if your mind wanders, just smile gently. Thank you for the story. Thank you for the
6:50Steven Webb: thought. And invite your mind to sit in the peaceful place with you.
9:50Steven Webb: Let's bring this experience back with you to the rest of the day. And imagine whatever you've got to do
9:56Steven Webb: today, just imagine approaching it from this peaceful calmness of this moment. Imagine the wisdom
10:04Steven Webb: and the experience that you can bring to each and every moment from this place of deep calmness.
10:15Steven Webb: And as I count back from five, bring your awareness back to your physical surroundings. And
10:23Steven Webb: as I count back from five, bring your awareness back to the physical surroundings. Five or Just open your eyes.
10:31Steven Webb: Three. Move your arms to Shake out your hands and wiggle your toes. Take a deep breath
10:38Steven Webb: and
10:40Steven Webb: thank your body for this moment. Thank you. Namaste.
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