Meditations

The art of living wisely requires us to learn to let go. But how can we do so? Sometimes we need more love or forgiveness. This teaching and meditation will help show the way. Letting go does not mean losing the knowledge we have gained from the past. The knowledge of...

How can we move through our difficult situations with wisdom and graciousness? This meditation, one of my favorites, shows us how to do so in illuminating, empowering ways. It is almost always helpful.

In this guided meditation, we will explore how to transform the difficult emotions that arise in our lives. Practicing with the power of loving awareness and interested attention to these intense states in body and heart, we can create a field of deep understanding...

Remember, wherever you are, spaciousness is always available. We know this, but we often forget. Yet spaciousness is not far away. With this simple meditation we are invited to allow the deep spaciousness of loving awareness to arise.

Eternity is always here. It is always Now. In this simple meditation, we are invited to become "The One Who Knows," the spacious witness to all things. We can take a breath, come to rest, step outside of time, let go of making and doing and planning, and remember the...

“Enlightenment is one with the trusting heart.”- Zen proverb You can learn to trust the big picture, you can learn to trust your inner knowing, you can be inspired by trust. These simple meditations invite you to find in yourself a trusting heart.

Waves arise naturally on the surface of the vast ocean without troubling its depth. This meditation is an invitation to make your mind like the vast ocean.

If there is one thing this world needs, it is more compassion. With tenderness and courage we can learn compassion for ourselves and others.

We are always in transition, each new day is a rebirth. This pith instruction from the Tibetan Book of the Dead invites us to let go into our luminous true nature.

Peace is possible. We can step out of the struggle with ourselves, with our judgments and fears and inner conflicts. We can learn to live in peace and with a kind heart, without believing the reactive mind.

In this meditative practice, you will take time to reflect inwardly,with kindness and with courage, on how and when you are living true to yourself. When you live fully and honestly, it can change your life and all around you.

The gate to human well-being and transformation swings open when we practice living with a grateful heart. When we find gratitude, we find freedom and love. This teaching and meditation invites you to gratitude.

When great loss comes, the heart needs to grieve. We need to find a way to honor and tend our grief, to respect its deep feelings, its time and rhythms. This teaching and meditation can help.

The beautiful truth is that love can be awakened, cultivated, and invited to grow in our hearts. The practice of metta or lovingkindness taught here is a simple, timeless way to open the heart and to move through the world with a loving spirit.

Let yourself sit quietly and at ease. Allow your body to be relaxed and open, your breath natural, your heart easy. Begin the practice of gratitude by feeling how year after year you have cared for your own life. Now let yourself begin to acknowledge all that has...

Sit comfortably for a few minutes, letting your body be at rest. Let your breathing be easy and natural. Bring your attention into the present, sit quietly, and notice whatever sensations are present in your body. In particular, be aware of any sensations, tensions,...

We have forgotten our essential nature. Much of the time we operate from the protective layer. The primary aim of Buddhist psychology is to help us see beneath this armoring and bring out our original goodness, called our Buddha nature. We can notice the healthy...

Forgiveness is both necessary and possible. It is never too late to find forgiveness and start again. Buddhist psychology offers specific teachings and practices for redemption and the development of forgiveness. Like the practice of compassion, forgiveness does not...

Meditation comes alive through a growing capacity to release our habitual entanglement in the stories and plans, conflicts and worries that make up the small sense of self, and to rest in awareness. In meditation we do this simply by acknowledging the moment-to-moment...

Equanimity is a wonderful quality, a spaciousness and balance of heart. Although it grows naturally with our meditation practice, equanimity can also be cultivated in the same systematic way that we have used for loving-kindness and compassion. We can feel this...

May you be held in compassion. To cultivate compassion, let yourself sit in a centered and quiet way. In this traditional form of practice you will combine a repeated inner intention with visualization and the evocation of the feeling of compassion. As you first sit,...

The practice of meditation does not ask us to become a Buddhist or a meditator or a spiritual person. It invites us to fulfill the capacity we each have as humans to awaken. The skill of becoming more mindful, and more present, and more compassionate, and more awake...

Buddhist psychology is filled with practices that shift us to the universal perspective. These include contemplations on the vastness of time, the cycles of impermanence, the mysterious inevitability of your own death, the boundlessness of love. Here is one way to...

Pick a situation of difficulty or conflict with others.  Reflect on your last encounters and on the motivation from which you operated.  How did this work?  Now imagine you can bring the highest possible intentions to your next encounter.  Take a moment to reflect. ...

You can begin to study the effects of the states of mind that fill your days.  To start, it helps to become deliberately aware of the states that arise on your difficult days, days where you are caught up in problems, conflict, unhappiness.  Instead of ignoring,...

  Use this practice to bring wisdom to a situation of inner or outer conflict.  Initially begin by sitting.  Later you can practice in social situations. Sit quietly and easily, focusing on your breath or body. When you feel settled, bring to mind a time ten...

First, sit quietly for a few minutes.  Now reflect on the times in your life when you are most absorbed, concentrated and fully present. They maybe while gardening, playing tennis or basketball, writing computer code, listening to a friend, or in business, creating...

“Develop a mind that is vast like space, where experiences both pleasant and unpleasant can appear and disappear without conflict, struggle or harm. Rest in a mind like vast sky.”  ~Majjhima Nikaya A simple way to connect with the spacious awareness of consciousness...

To work with a sacred image, choose someone who inspires you, St. Francis or Kwan Yin the goddess of infinite mercy, Jesus or Mary, Buddha or Tara.  It helps to have a clear, beautiful picture that you can place in front of you while meditating. Rest your gaze softly...

“With the mind, observe the mind.” – Buddha  This first simple practice gives an immediate experience of mindfulness of thought. Sit comfortably and quietly. After a few moments, resolve to count your thoughts for one or two minutes. You can set a timer, or simply...

First select a suitable place for your regular meditation. Place a meditation cushion or chair there for your use, and add any books or images that help make it feel like a sacred and peaceful space. Select a regular time for practice that suits your schedule and...

Sit comfortably and quietly. Let your body rest easily. Breathe gently. Let go of your thoughts, past and future, memories and plans. Just be present. Begin to let your own precious body reveal the places that most need healing. Allow the physical pains, tensions,...

To begin meditation, select a quiet time and place. Be seated on a cushion or chair, taking an erect yet relaxed posture. Let yourself sit upright with the quiet dignity of a king or queen. Close your eyes gently and begin by bringing a full, present attention to...

As you reflect on your spiritual life you can ask yourself: What do you know in your heart about the truth of life? Do you actually need more knowledge than this, or is this simple fundamental wisdom enough? What keeps you from living simple truths you know? What...

One of the most useful and grounding ways of attending to our body is the practice of walking meditation. Walking meditation is a simple and universal practice for developing calm, connectedness, and embodied awareness. It can be practiced regularly, before or after...