I Have Arrived, I Am Home: A Calming Mantra For Anxiety

What if the peace you keep chasing is already here? Most of us live one step ahead of ourselves, rushing toward the next thing, sure that rest is waiting somewhere down the road. This calming mantra meditation stops that chase. Mantra repetition is one of the simplest practices there is, and research shows it really works to lower stress and anxiety. With just two phrases and your breath, you'll feel your racing mind slow down and your body finally exhale. The first phrase is "I have arrived, I am home," from the teaching of Thich Nhat Hanh. The second is a three-thousand-year-old line from Psalm 27, "shivti b'veis Adonai kol yemei chayai," "may I dwell in the house of God all the days of my life." Together they carry you out of stress and the feeling of never being enough, and back into the present moment. Perfect for beginners and for anyone feeling anxious or overwhelmed. Use it daily, whenever you need to come home.

Transcript

Welcome to this 10-minute guided meditation with some very light guidance from me. Today we're going to be doing a mantra, And a practice like this can be a true refuge. Our teacher, Rav Arya Kaplan, Calls it one of the simplest types of meditation and a good place to begin. You repeat a verse or a word over and over with the point being to not analyze it. As he put it, The meditator is simply communing with the words and allowing whatever arises to just simply come up. We say the mantra in the softest voice you can comfortably manage. Whisper it or even just mouth the words. Your mind is going to wander. And there is a Hasidic teaching that any thought that comes to you during meditation comes for a reason. So let it come and come back to the words. And when we're done, Just stay where you are for a few minutes and let it settle before you go on with your day. Thich Nhat Hanh taught this mantra. I have arrived. I am home. And David HaMelech asks for one thing. One thing I ask from God. Kol Yimei Chaiyai. That I dwell in God's house all the days of my life. To dwell, To already be there, To always be at home. So the mantra has two parts. I have arrived. I am home. Shifti Bevez Adonai. Kol y'mei chaiyai. So let it go at whatever pace it wants, Slow, Quick, Whatever feels most comfortable to you. And let's begin. I'll do a few with you, And then you'll take it on your own. I have arrived. I am home. Shifti beves Adonai kol y'mei chayai. I have arrived. I am home. Shifti Bevez Adonai. Kol Yimei Chaiyai. I have arrived. I am home. Shifti Bevez Adonai. Kol yimei chayai. I have arrived. I am home. Shifti beves Adonai, Kol y'mei chayai. I have arrived. I am home. Shifti Beveis Adonai. Kol y'mei chayai. And now my voice will fade. And you just take the mantra. I have arrived. I am home. Shifti beves Adonai, Kol y'mei chayai. And now, Let the words go and just sit with whatever presence you're in. This is the true Irmiklah, The city of refuge, Right here wherever you happen to be sitting. Be a refuge unto yourself. And when you're ready, Feel the weight of your body on the chair, Feel the room around you, And let the eyes open. Carry the words with you today. Any moment you remember them, You're already back. You don't have to go into the forest. It's all here right now. So until we meet again, May you find moments of stillness, Clarity, And soulful connection in your daily life. Gentle reminder to continue to nurture your inner world where your life connects with the divine and where every breath is your praise. The goal is soul. Baruch Adonai le'olam. Amein ve'amein.