Welcome to a guided meditation on Beginner's Mind or Hishatshus.
If you're driving,
Please keep your eyes open,
Pay attention,
And just listen along.
In this practice,
We will embrace the freshness of each moment.
Allowing ourselves to see and experience life as if for the very first time.
Which,
If we're honest,
Is exactly what it is.
You and I have never been in this moment before.
His Chachas invites us to let go of any assumptions,
Expectations,
Or past experiences that may cloud our present awareness.
So begin by sitting comfortably.
And really comfortably because if your body is fighting you,
That's where your attention is going to be the entire time.
So upright,
Without straining,
Without effort,
Shoulders soft,
Hands wherever they feel comfortable to rest,
Chair,
Cushion,
Floor,
Bed,
It doesn't matter.
And then just bring your attention to your breath.
Let yourself arrive in this moment with curiosity,
As if you've never been here before.
Beginner's mind means approaching this experience without preconceptions,
Without trying to repeat a past meditation or reach a particular outcome.
Imagine the freedom in simply being here,
Letting whatever come,
Just come.
As you sit here.
Notice if any expectations come up.
Perhaps you feel a desire to recreate a pleasant past experience or a fear of something challenging.
Just notice these thoughts,
These hopes and fears.
And let them pass.
Cultivating this mindset.
Allows us to let go of all that baggage.
And meet this moment.
This breath.
Without judgment or comparison.
Now bring this sense of curiosity and openness to your body.
Notice any sensations,
Whether it's warmth,
Coolness.
Tension or relaxation.
Allow yourself to feel each sensation as it is without labeling it as good or bad.
Approach your body as if you're exploring it for the very first time.
With a sense of wonder and openness.
If you find that your mind starts to wander.
Witches.
Minds have a tendency to do and it's typical for most minds,
Bringing in thoughts about the past.
Or jumping to thoughts about the future.
Gently bring it back to this moment.
Each time your mind drifts,
Remember that this mindset invites you to meet each breath.
Each sensation.
Each thought as it arises without getting caught up in the stories that surround it.
And now,
Let's turn this openness toward ourselves.
Think about the qualities you may believe define you,
The stories,
The opinions you hold about yourself.
What would it feel like to release those judgments?
To see yourself not as some fixed being,
But as someone continuously growing,
Evolving,
Alive with potential.
Imagine that just as each moment.
Just as each breath is new.
So are you.
Each breath.
Becomes an opportunity.
To let go of all the beliefs.
And to welcome the possibility of change and growth within you.
We spoke this week about how much we carry into every moment,
Our expectations,
Our picture of how it's supposed to go.
And sometimes what we carry.
Is that picture of ourselves.
If something has broken open in your life,
A loss,
An illness,
Something you didn't choose or something you did choose.
Something you did.
That you wish you hadn't.
See if you can notice a part of you still working to get back.
Back to who you were before it happened.
And gently.
The way we've been letting things pass this whole time.
See if you can let this pass,
Just for now.
Maybe you aren't healing.
Because you're trying to be the person you were before the trauma.
That person doesn't exist anymore.
Because there's a new you being born.
Breathe life.
Into that person.
Breathe life.
Into that person.
Beginner's mind reminds us that even if we've done something thousands of times.
Each time is new.
Just as you wouldn't step into the same river twice.
You can't ever truly repeat an experience,
So let go of any need for this moment to match what you've known before.
Feel how freeing it is to sit here together,
Simply being,
With no expectations to fulfill.
And imagine now bringing the same freshness to the people in your life.
Picture someone close to you,
Perhaps a loved one,
And allow yourself to see them as if for the first time,
Letting go of past judgments or assumptions about them.
And simply notice the miracle of who they are.
The uniqueness they bring into this moment.
With this mindset,
We can meet others without the filters of our past opinions,
Judgments or expectations,
Creating space for true connection.
This mindset is not about forgetting what we know.
But about holding it.
Gently,
Lightly.
Allowing room for discovery.
And imagine.
Carrying this perspective into your day.
Tasting your food as if for the very first time,
Listening to the sounds around you with fresh ears,
Feeling the textures and the sensations of each step.
As though it was entirely new and the first time.
Seeing those you love and seeing yourself with this fresh beginner's mind.
Each breath,
Each experience can be met with openness,
Curiosity.
True freedom.
Feeling yourself grounded in this simple awareness,
Free from the need to control or predict what's next.
So for the rest of the day,
Week,
Month,
Year,
Life.
Set your intention to carry this sense of ischatos,
Of beginner's mind with you as you move forward,
Letting each moment be a new experience,
Each encounter an opportunity for discovery.
And when you feel ready,
Gently bring your awareness back to the room.
Open your eyes and wiggle your body,
Your fingers and toes.
Take a final full breath in.
And bring this openness with you into the rest of the day.
Infinite possibilities.
Infinite possibilities.
The goal is soul.
Baruch Adonai le'olam.
Amein ve'amein.
