Hello and welcome.
My name is Matt.
In this session I'll offer a few gentle reflections followed by a rainstick sound bath to support rest,
Stillness or sleep.
There's nothing you need to achieve here.
You don't need to stop your thoughts or change your experience.
Simply find a comfortable position and allow yourself to settle.
You're welcome to listen or drift off.
Today I want to explore something simple and quietly profound,
What I like to call doorways into stillness.
Not as an idea,
Not as a belief,
But as something you can notice and step into right now.
So why do people think they're bad at meditation?
When I talk to people about meditation the most common thing I hear is,
I'm terrible at it,
Or I've tried a couple of times but I can't quite in my mind.
And I understand why people think that.
But here's the important part.
Meditation doesn't begin with quieting the mind.
It begins with noticing just how noisy it already is.
The first doorway into stillness is not silence,
It's awareness.
The mind is like the surface of the ocean.
There are waves,
Sometimes gentle,
Sometimes chaotic.
And if you've lived a busy life you may be so used to the waves that you think that the whole ocean is restless.
But beneath the surface there is depth,
Spaciousness and calm.
You don't reach that calm by fighting the waves,
You pass through them.
The world is quieter than we think.
If you stop for a moment and really look around you might notice something surprising.
Most of the noise doesn't come from the world itself,
It comes from us,
Animals,
When observing them.
For the most part I contend to rest,
To lounge and just to be.
Nature too is usually calm,
Even though it has moments of intensity.
Storms come and storms pass.
The world knows how to return to stillness and so do you.
Surrender as a doorway.
Even places filled with movement,
Like the ocean,
Wind or rain,
Can be deeply meditative.
When you stop resisting them,
The white noise,
Rhythm and force,
When you surrender to what's happening rather than arguing with it,
Something opens.
This surrender is one of the clearest doorways into stillness.
What stillness really is?
Stillness doesn't mean nothing is happening,
It means you're no longer judging what is happening.
When you say I like this or I don't like this,
Just experience.
When judgment appears we step out of the moment and into commentary.
Stillness lives underneath preference.
I remember once when I ate an extremely hot chili,
My mouth was burning,
My eyes were widening,
My body buzzing.
And yet there was a moment of pure presence,
No escape,
No resistance,
Just absolute awe.
The sensation didn't disappear,
But the suffering did.
That's the power of stillness.
Thoughts are just like waves.
Many people feel overwhelmed by their thoughts.
They seem constant,
Intrusive,
Sometimes even disturbing.
And when we're tired,
Those thoughts can feel louder,
Darker and more personal.
But no matter how intense a thought feels,
It's just a thought.
It has no power unless you feed it.
Trying to push thoughts away.
Thoughts are just like waves on the ocean.
Many people feel overwhelmed by their thoughts.
They seem constant,
Intrusive,
Sometimes even disturbing.
And when we're tired,
Those thoughts can feel louder,
Darker,
More personal.
But no matter how intense a thought feels,
It's just a thought.
It has no power unless you feed it.
Trying to push thoughts away only keeps them alive.
Allowing them to pass is another doorway into stillness.
They are waves,
Not the ocean.
Becoming still when you're tired.
Tiredness can actually help us.
If you notice yourself becoming sleepy while doing something you don't want to do,
That's often a sign that presence is being avoided.
If you can,
Pause.
Sit somewhere quiet,
On the floor,
In a chair,
Spine upright,
But relaxed.
Gently engage your core so your body supports itself.
Close your eyes.
Notice the breath.
Let the exhale lengthen.
You might hum softly on the exhale,
A low tone,
Like a cat purring.
No effort,
No performance,
Just vibration.
Sleep is not failure.
If sleep comes,
Let it.
Deep rest is one of the most natural doorways into stillness there is.
Lying on your back,
Organs resting freely,
Lungs open,
Body safe.
If you drift off,
Your body has chosen wisely.
The myth of one day I'll feel complete.
Many of us believe stillness will arrive later,
When life is sorted,
When problems are solved,
When everything feels secure.
But the world is always changing.
There will never be a moment where everything stays perfectly aligned forever.
And that's not bad news.
It's freeing.
The world is like sand.
You can hold some,
But most of it slips through your fingers.
Eventually you realize it's easier to put the sand down.
What you actually take with you.
Money comes and goes.
Experiences come and go.
And yes,
Even the body comes and goes.
But awareness remains.
Hot and cold,
Like and dislike,
Pain and pleasure are just two sides of the same coin.
When you stop chasing one and running from the other,
A quiet humor appears.
You begin to watch life unfold instead of wrestling with it.
Stop trying to turn dog poo into chocolate.
Here's the simple truth.
Dog poo will never become chocolate.
And that's okay.
The world isn't against you.
It's just changing form.
The mind however loves drama.
It sends notifications,
Clickbait,
Stories you didn't ask for.
Like a child tugging at your sleeve.
If you stop reacting,
The mind eventually gets bored and stillness returns.
Floating,
Not fighting.
If you're in the ocean and waves are crashing around you,
Thrashing only creates more waves.
Floating takes less effort.
Allow the waves,
Allow the thoughts.
Remain the silent witness.
Beneath all movement,
The universe is profoundly quiet.
That quiet is always available.
And with that,
I invite you to move from words into sound.
Let the thinking mind rest.
Let vibrations do the work.
Welcome back.
Take a moment to notice your breath and the space around you.
If you're feeling rested,
Move slowly as you return.
If you're still tired,
You're welcome to remain at rest.
Thank you for taking this time for yourself.
