Anchor Meditation For Daily Practice

A simple meditation where one is guided to watch their anchor. Intended to be used regularly, often for a beginner, as a standard meditation practice. After an introduction, the listener is intermittently reminded to return to their anchor, be accepting of whatever arises, and be at ease throughout the track. The anchor can be considered an object of meditation or mindfulness and is usually a consistent and neutral sensation in the present moment. Examples include the breath, the pressure of the seat, generic "sound", the heartbeat, and touching of the hands. This can be a great alternative to breath meditations for people who find watching the breath triggering or overwhelming (note: there is a mention of the breath at the beginning, can be heard in snippet).

Transcript

Let us begin our daily practice.

First,

Find a posture that is comfortable for you,

One that is both grounded and stable.

Now close the eyes,

Or gaze softly at the ground with the eyes slightly open.

Next,

Take a few deep breaths,

Watching the air go in through the nose,

Down the throat,

And into the belly.

Then following it outward,

Slightly heating the air as it leaves your nose.

Watching the breath go in,

And out.

Next search for any tension in the body and let it relax,

Starting up at the forehead,

Down into the face,

Relaxing your jaw,

Letting your shoulders drop,

Softening your belly,

Relaxing your hands and arms,

Relaxing your legs,

All the way down to your toes.

If you feel discomfort or pain at any time,

Try watching it mindfully for a few moments,

And then with compassion you are more than welcome to move.

Now gently bring your attention to your anchor,

Observing it non-judgmentally,

Which we will now do for a number of minutes.

Letting it all be as it is,

Not trying to control or do anything.

If your mind wanders,

Notice with compassion,

Release any tension,

And then gently guide the attention back to your anchor.

Returning to your anchor,

Even if it's a thousand times,

Every time is a perfect moment of presence and awareness.

If there is a particularly clingy experience,

You can try naming it,

Such as planning,

Planning,

Or remembering,

Remembering,

Pain,

Pain,

Or anger,

Anger.

Letting everything in consciousness come and go,

Here and now,

In the internal present.

This is just the way it is,

As we experience it in this moment.

Keep it simple,

With kindness and acceptance of all that arises.

Not trying to get rid of anything,

Just presence here with the anchor.

Staying at ease and aware.

Now for these last few minutes,

Bringing in even more compassion and acceptance.