Breath Break: We Must Practice

In the words of Thich Nhat Hanh, “We must practice in a way that removes the barrier between practice and non-practice.”
This short, gentle meditation invites you to do exactly that.

Over just a few mindful minutes, you’ll be guided to soften into your breath, notice what’s here now + allow presence to become a natural state rather than a task. This is a moment to pause, to feel yourself breathing + to remember that mindfulness isn’t something we do, it’s who we are when we truly arrive.

Perfect for a mid-day reset, a transition between activities, or a grounding ritual before bed. Simply breathe + let the practice become your life.

Transcript

Thich Nhat Hanh reminds us that we must practice in a way that removes the barriers between practice and non-practice.

It's a reminder that we need to take the awareness that we build together in meditation out into the world,

Out into our everyday,

But it takes time.

It takes returning to this moment again and again.

It takes your breath and focus and sometimes community.

Sometimes it takes routine.

And so if you've arrived here for the hundredth time or the first,

I want you to get comfortable.

I want you to find a seat or a support system against your back.

I invite you to close the eyes or find a soft gaze.

I invite you to relax the hands and the toes,

To unclench your teeth,

To soften your jaw,

To soften your shoulders.

I invite you to tune in to the rhythm of your own breath.

I invite you to feel the inhale and notice the exhale.

And if your attention shifts,

If your focus goes to something outside of the experience that you're in,

Remind yourself that you are here in this moment,

Practicing mindfulness,

Becoming in tune with your own breath.

Notice the next inhale and the next exhale.

Follow that rhythm with your awareness the same way that you would follow a trail through the woods,

One single step at a time.

Noticing the beauty of that trail.

Noticing the beauty of your breath.

And you may find that in our sweet humanness,

Our attention wavers quite a bit during our practice,

But that,

My dear friends,

Is the practice.

And with full awareness,

Full attention,

I want you to draw in a big,

Deep breath through the nose and sigh it out.

Become really present with your body and where you are in space in this room.

And if your eyes were closed,

You might just take a moment to open them once again and shift the body.

Keep this connection to breath.

Keep your attention in the moment.

Until again,

My sweet friends,

Namaste.