This is a guided meditation practice from Buddhism Guide called allowing your thoughts to flow.
This meditation is especially for those who are feeling stressed,
Anxious,
Overwhelmed or suffering from OCD.
Sit comfortably with your back straight and eyes lightly closed.
It really doesn't matter if you're sitting on the floor,
On a chair or lying on your back.
The important thing is that you're relaxed and comfortable.
To begin with,
I want you to take three slow deep breaths in through your nose.
Hold for a moment and then breathe out through your mouth.
So let's begin.
Breathe in and hold.
And breathe out.
Again,
Breathe in.
Hold.
And breathe out.
One last time,
Breathe in.
Hold.
And breathe out.
Now bring your awareness to your breath flowing into and out of your nose.
Don't force the breath in any way.
Just breathe naturally.
On the in-breath,
Mentally recite the word calm.
And on the out-breath,
Mentally recite relax.
Feel your mind becoming calm and your body becoming relaxed.
Now I want you to imagine yourself standing on the bank of a flowing river.
I want you to look around you at the river,
The sky,
The trees and just notice what else you can see.
Now listen to the water flowing down the river and the birds singing in the trees.
Are there any other sounds you can hear?
Now see if you can smell the flowers,
The grass and the trees.
Can you smell anything else?
Finally,
I want you to bend down and touch the grass.
What does it feel like?
Is it soft?
Cold?
Damp?
Now I want you to notice your mind.
Is it distracted?
Focused?
Loud?
Quiet?
Just observe it.
Don't judge or criticise it.
Just become aware of it.
Whatever it's doing,
Just know that it's okay and there's no need to try and stop it as that's impossible.
Look at the river and try to imagine that your thoughts are just like the flowing water.
They come and go,
Just drifting along,
Forever flowing,
Forever moving,
Appearing from nowhere and disappearing into nothing.
Now imagine yourself standing in the river,
The water pulling you this way and that.
It feels like you have no control.
When we get all entangled with our thoughts,
It's exactly the same.
They're pulling us in this direction and that.
We're being pulled in all directions.
Rather than standing in the river,
Try to imagine yourself sitting on the riverbank,
Watching your thoughts slowly drift by.
Stay here for a while and notice how your mind becomes calm and relaxed when you simply watch your thoughts coming and going without getting caught up in them.
Can you see your unsolicited thoughts coming and going?
There's no need to engage them,
Believe them or get all knotted up by them.
Simply watch them appear and disappear.
Remember,
Thoughts are just thoughts.
They aren't necessarily true or real.
They're just thoughts.
You can't touch them or see them.
They're simply a process of the mind.
The brain is just a thought-generating device.
So there's no need to engage every thought.
Just watch them arise and fall away.
You are not your thoughts and they do not define you.
We all have unhelpful thoughts,
But that doesn't make us bad.
It's simply a thought.
It's not who we are.
Just acknowledge and accept the thought is there and leave it go on its way.
Simply watch it flow down the river.
Whenever you find yourself overthinking or getting obsessed,
Imagine your thoughts are like the water in the river and allow them to float off uninterrupted and unimpeded.
Now,
Focus your attention back onto the breath flowing in and out of your nose.
Give yourself permission to relax and feel safe.
In a moment,
Whenever you're ready,
You can slowly start to open your eyes and introduce yourself back into the world,
Leaving all your overthinking,
Obsessive thoughts,
Stress and anxiety behind you.
Now,
Focus your attention back onto the breath flowing in and out of your nose.
Give yourself permission to relax and feel safe.
