Stilla Meditation

Our social conditioning tells us to sit still and don't move to much. But the body is an alive organism and it is never really still. The heart beats, the breath moves, muscles have tiny micro movements. There are a lot of things happening. If we allow the body to move as it wants to and support those movements its easier for the body to relax and we come in more contact with our inherent aliveness. The core question is "If I say Yes to my body now, what would it do?" and let your own enjoyment of the movements be the guiding force, without pushing or effort.

The practise of watching the breath is a great exercise both for beginners and more experienced meditators. The breath is always available for you and by stopping and feeling your breath for just a few moments at the time during your day you can create a big difference in your life.

When consciously turn our attention towards our thoughts with curiosity, we are no longer trapped by them. They can be there and we can just watch them, like watching a movie. The mantra, "I wonder what my next though is gonna be" , is an effective way to step out of identification with thought and just watching them as they are.

We are practicing taking the perspective of the observer. Noticing everything that shows up and seeing that we are not that which we observe. You are not your thoughts, you observe them. You are not your emotions, you observe them. You are not your body, you observe it. You are that which observes.

We don't silence the mind by forcing it or trying to stop our thoughts. The silence is already there underneath and all we do is letting go of the things we stack on top. Letting go of trying to achieve anything special, letting go of silencing the mind, letting go of any expectations around meditation. Even letting go of trying to let go. This is the way to peace.

Our mind is like a snow globe. The more we shake it, the more the snow swirl around. But if we put it down and let it just be as it is, the snow falls to the ground. It's the same way with our thoughts. When we try to silence the mind we are shaking our mental snow globe which will just make the thoughts swirl even more. Instead, simply let the thoughts come and go and just watch them. It's not a problem. Let them take care of themselves, and come back to the breath.

Our mind is preconditioned to focus on the negative and uncomfortable. It's a good survival mechanism that works well. But it can become a little much some times and we forget to enjoy what is there to enjoy. In this session we experiment if it is possible to enjoy comfortable sensations in our body.

If you were an alien from outer space and your consciousness was magically beamed into this human body. How would you experience your body then? In this meditation we focus on beginners mind by experiencing the body as for the first time.

Gratitude can be found in the smallest of things, but some times it can be difficult to connect with gratitude. One trick is to imagine what your life would look like without the thing you want to be grateful for. For example the breath. What would it be like if you couldn't take your next breath? If your next exhalation would be your last. Very soon you would experience panic and within just a few minutes, you would be dead. But because your body is breathing, you don't need to experience that. So with every new breath that you take, you have something to be grateful for.

You don't need to do anything to experience what is already here, because it's already here. In this meditation we play with just allow what is already here simply be as it already is.

You are not your body. You are not your opinions. You are not how much money you have in the bank. You are not your achievements. You are not your name. You are not you age. You are not your place of birth. You are not... so many things that you often take yourself to be.In this meditation we explore what it is that you are.

Turn towards what is already here, in your body and in your mind. Hold it close and intimate. Make yourself soft towards it and let it in. Let it touch you. Love it if possible. This is not a metaphor or a poem. It's a manual, an accurate description of how to feel what you are feeling.

Counting the breath gives the mind something to do while meditating. This makes it easier to stay present and aware instead of drifting off into distractions.

You carry many labels and rolls that you take to be who you are, such as your job-title, your relationships (mother, brother, friend), your opinions, your beliefs and your body. But beyond all of that there is the fundamental truth that you Are. You exist. Completely independent of all of those labels. In this meditation we explore the subjective experience of "I am"-ness.

After only a short time without the breath, nothing would be as important to you as taking the next breath. In this session we practice receiving the breath as the precious gift that it is.

It touches me to think about the gentleness of awareness, how it holds everything in its silence, without discriminating or pushing anything away. This is love.

The Vietnamese Zen master, Thich Nhat Hanh, remind us to sit with a half smile. Just like our posture, our facial expression affect the mood chemistry in our body and can help us embody a soft, calm and open attitude. In this meditation we experiment with that as we scan through the body.

The body is always in the present moment. Resting in it by simply allowing it to be as it is can be a great way to restore your energy.

The more we try to be peaceful the more we stir the water of the mind and the less peaceful we will be. By just letting go we find the peace that is already there in the background already.

We can use the breath to better feel the body and also to help the body relax. This is what we try in this session.

In this session we go over the whole body, relaxing each part and towards the end we fill it up with new energy with restorative breathing.

Kindness is such a powerful antidote to stress and self criticism. Most of us have an inner voice that can be quite harsh and if we would hear someone speak like that to someone we cared about we would stand up and defend them. But for some reason it is more difficult when it comes to ourselves. Today we practice kindness as a counter weight to this harsh inner voice.

Meditation can be a bit of a paradox, because we clearly practice in order to get something. To feel more calm, have more peace of mind, deal better with anxiety or stress. And at the same time, the practice itself is about Not trying to achieve anything specific or get anywhere. Inner peace arises on it's own when we stop trying to achieve it.

The body carries our history, both the good and the bad. This can lead to tensions that we carry around. In this session we scan the body and help it relax by reminding it that it is safe and ok to do so.

At the ground of our experience there is the silence of awareness. It surrounds everything and permeates everything. Let's rest in it.

When we practise coming back to presence again and again we strengthen it becomes easier to do during our day and with time our thoughts become less sticky.

By practicing body scan you will become better with noticing the signals that you body is sending you. In this way you can become more aware about what you want and need so you can act in alignment with yourself.

Many of us have a tendency to make ourselves smaller than what we are. In this meditation we play with occupying a bit more of our inner space in the room, paradoxically.

Awareness is like a blank canvas where all of our experiences show up. In this meditation we notice the breath moving in this space of awareness.

If your body is working reasonably well, you have so much to be grateful for. In this meditation we scan through the body and give it some well needed appreciation for all that it is doing for us.

Nurturing an inner atmosphere of compassion and kindness by meeting the breath and whatever comes up with an inner smile.

The body is always connected to the present moment. When you scan through the body and allowing all sensations to be as they are you are increasing our capacity be present with discomfort, so that you don't need to check out when life becomes difficult.

There is a part of you that can stay with both pleasure and pain without becoming attached or rejecting towards it. Through meditation this part becomes stronger.

There is an inherent satisfaction in being completely alert in a relaxed way. The experience of being completely here, present in the moment and knowing our experience fully. Today we play around with the balance between relaxation and alertness and practise combining the two.

Instead of spinning webs in your mind I invite you to land in your body and feel what is alive there. Simply admit how you feel and ask yourself, "how does it actually feel?" Sharp or smooth, heavy or light, hot or cold? And then allow that. This is the way to inner freedom.

Collecting yourself back together into the knowing that you are enough and everything is ok.

When we simply observe our thoughts without reacting to them it becomes clear that we are not our thoughts. One way to practice creating that distance is by trying to catch the beginning of the next thought.

Today we use sounds as our object of meditation. When we become increasingly aware about the content of our awareness we also become more aware of awareness itself. One example of this is when we become increasingly aware of sounds we also become more aware of the silence behind the sounds.

Behind all sensations is a stillness that is untouched by whatever is moving. It's the stillness of awareness and when we allow everything to be as it is, we are meeting the world from this place of stillness.

A deeply relaxing and calming session with focus on sensing the body as one field of sensations that fit together.

Counting the breaths give the mind something to do while meditating. This makes it easier for the mind calm down.

When we rest our attention on the breath, we nurture our inner stillness.

Let the breath take center stage and let all other sensations be there as background dancers. There is space in you to include everything that shows up, so you don't need to push anything away or get hyper focused on one thing. Just let everything be as it is.

We practice really being With ourselves with care and compassion. You are the space of awareness where all experience can belong and be welcomed. Comfort and discomfort alike.

We tune into the breath as source of life."Breathing in, I am here""Breathing out, I let go"

Awareness is the only thing that we really have some control over in life. By focusing on the breath we train our capacity to direct our attention to that which is useful for us. To things that are resourcing us and make us more capable to meet life with love and wisdom.

Our body is such a miraculous thing that we often take for granted. In this session we connect with the body with appreciation and gratitude. This is a great way to cultivate a soft and kind inner climate.

The only place you can experience the breath is in the present moment. Connecting with the breath is a great way to center yourself in times of turmoil and challenge.

Give the body time to rest and restore with this deep relaxation exercise.

In your body, streams of material from earth meet and form life. There is nothing in your body that doesn't come from the earth. You are a natural extension and part of earth. This meditation is inspired by Henry Shukman.