Sacred Pause: Mindful Tea Or Coffee Break

This short guided meditation is designed for you to use when you want to slow down and savor the present moment. Especially when we are busy or when mornings are challenging, it is easy to rush through on autopilot and neglect our meditation practice. This meditation, which comes from Thich Nhat Hanh's teaching and the Plum Village tradition, allows you to drop into the present moment through mindfulness. To begin the meditation, have your drink ready and in front of you.

Transcript

Welcome to the short guided meditation for when you are drinking your morning tea or coffee.

To begin,

Have your cup in front of you and notice where your body is making contact with the earth.

Checking in with your breath,

Seeing if you can invite your breath to settle.

Now slowly pick up your cup,

Feeling the warmth of it seep into your hands.

Feel the solidity of the cup and become aware.

Notice that habitual pull just to start drinking and see if you can pause,

Bringing the cup to your nose and breathing in this aroma,

Savoring the smells,

Whether they are light,

Fruity,

Robust.

When the temperature is right,

Take your first sip reverently.

Let the flavor sit in your mouth,

Washing across your tongue,

And follow the journey of this drink into your body.

Invite nourishment and enjoyment as you start your day.

And consider what needed to happen for you to be here right now.

Not just the time it took to brew your beverage,

But the conditions to bring it here to you.

The water that was once a cloud falling down into the earth,

Filtering and traveling many miles to get to you.

And the warmth of the sun,

The wind,

The labor of many people,

So that you can enjoy this moment.

Do you feel impatient,

Restless,

Peaceful?

Are to-dos floating into your mind?

Let all of this be here,

Welcomed without judgment,

Coming back to the rise and fall of your breath,

The warmth in your cup,

Body,

Gratitude for this precious moment.

When we drink our tea or coffee in this moment,

We can introduce a sacred portal into our lives,

A way to rejoin the flow of life,

And re-experience the preciousness of the present moment through our breath.

So savor,

Breathe,

Allow.

To close,

Beloved Zen teacher Thich Nhat Hanh says,

Drink your tea slowly and reverently,

As if it is the axis on which the world earth revolves,

Slowly,

Evenly,

Without rushing toward the future.

Enjoy.

Reviews

My favourite coffee break meditation. Thank you 💜

This is a meditation I like to return to when Ive been caught up in the rush of life. Thank you for helping me remember to slow down and savor this moment as I enjoy drinking my cloud. 🩷

I am filled with gratitude, peace, love, joy and connection and compassion as i finish my tea

Lovely way to reconnect for just a brief moment in the morning. A sacred pause I will try to remember to turn to 🙏

What a marvelous companion with my morning coffee. Thank you!

Thank you for this very simple but effective mindful practice

Avery calming practice that also created a mindful awareness

Excellent thoughts which we very rarely have time for. Many thanks you and the world. 🙏❤️

Thank you! Morning coffee is my favorite time of day. Thank you for making it even better. Namaste.

It works. Thank you 💚🙏

🧘🏾‍♂️🙏🏾📿