Nature Our Teacher

In this meditation, nature will be our doorway into being. Join me in my garden for a live meditation filled with the sounds of nature and the city. The practice of today is simply to notice how you meet each moment and whatever it is, let it be. This includes sounds, thoughts, feelings, and emotions. Let it all be as best you can. That’s all. And you’re very welcome and I’m very happy to have you sit with me in my garden.

With love, Andy

Transcript

So the practice today is a simple one. To notice how you meet what you hear and then let it be. Some sounds you'll find beautiful and you'll be drawn towards and other sounds you'll find distracting or they might even cause some tension and frustration. So be curious about how you meet both. But the practice is the same. Just notice and as best you can let them be. And this is really our life. It's written every moment. We don't have control over what happens and there will be surprises. But we can certainly choose how we meet those surprises. How we meet our inner turmoil and outer turmoil as well that we come across. So inviting you to take a nice deep breath in. Breathing out. And gently close your eyes. And as you do this, Feeling the contact points with your body on the surface that you're resting on. Noticing how you are today. This meditation will be very different and you will be very different every time you listen. So you can be curious about how you relate to this meditation each time. Less surprises perhaps. Same sounds, Different experience. So acknowledging how you are right now. However you find yourself. And you can breathe into any tension that's here for a moment. Allowing it to soften and release. Just breathing. And then allowing your awareness to gently settle on your breath. Wherever it's most vivid for you right now. Perhaps at your nose, At your nostrils and maybe down at your belly. Allowing yourself to settle on your breath. All the while allowing the soundscape to come to your ears. Sounds that come and go quite quickly. Meeting us and greeting us. The background drone. And the sounds that come in loudly and abruptly sometimes and catch us off guard. Just sitting and breathing, Meeting them all the same. Noticing how you are relating to them. No need to judge yourself. And then let them be. Let them pass through. Life constantly unfolding. We're here to witness it. And your mind may bring labels to what you hear. Perhaps thoughts will come about the source of the sounds. That's okay, Just notice that your mind is trying to make these sounds known. But in the spirit of not knowing, In the spirit of mystery and wonder. Notice what it's like to sit back a little from trying to know. And just being directly with the sounds, Just as they are. And this isn't a solemn practice. We could be moved by some sounds. So opening your heart to everything. This is a practice of the heart. A practice of kindness. A practice of being part of nature, Part of life and not separate. So inviting you to continue to sit and breathe and be in sounds. Allowing the soundscape to come to your ears. All the while noticing how you experience them. And letting them be. If your mind's wandered off, That's okay. You don't need to be hard on yourself. That's what our minds like to do. Even sitting here, Sometimes our troubles come back to us. Our worries. Our story. So in the spirit of being your own peacekeeper. Giving yourself permission to leave that be for this time. Falling back into presence, Into being here. Being in the soundscape. Allowing it to guide you. Allowing it to unfold. All the while noticing how you meet these sounds yourself. Each time you notice perhaps an aversion to a sound. Inviting your heart to open, Noticing what happens if you let it in. Allow it to pass. If you have a sound that brings you joy, Your heart will naturally open to this. But we can meet all life for the same. To some degree. So continuing to bathe in sounds. And just be here. Showing up for life. Phenomena arising and disappearing. Constantly changing. Meeting us and moving on. And between the banks of pain and pleasure, The river of life flows. Peace is life. Love is life. No river holds a grudge against a rock in its path. No leaf refuses to blow in the breeze. No plant denies water or sunshine. And now allowing your awareness to move inwards a little more. And checking in with how you're feeling right now. Just acknowledging where you're at and what's here for you. And now taking a deep breath in. Breathing out. And gently opening your eyes as we end this meditation.