How To Be Calm At Times Of Challenge

When we can create space in our minds, we increase our capacity and ability to deal with all kinds of trauma and challenge. This includes illness, death and loss, conflict, anxiety and stress, and abuse in all its forms. The mind is extraordinarily resilient, and when we work to resolve our issues, we create time, space, and energy.

Listen to this meditation regularly, and your mind will become a peace palace. This wonderful soundtrack is used with the kind permission of Scott Buckley.

Transcript

Welcome,

Dear friends.

Thank you for joining me for this meditation,

Where you will learn how to create space within your mind,

Which will give you the capacity and reflexes to deal with trauma,

Uncertainty,

Doubt and fear.

It will also help you to manifest what you need on the road ahead.

If you find peace and inspiration here,

Consider returning to this space whenever you need calm,

Clarity or rejuvenation.

Now,

Gently close your eyes and begin by listening to the sounds around you.

Notice the gentle hum of life as each moment gracefully gives way to the next.

Maybe you can hear the rustling of leaves outside the window,

The distant rhythm of traffic or the soft breath of your own presence.

Don't label the sounds as good or bad,

Just notice them and whatever it is you hear,

Allow it to draw you inward,

Away from the outside world and into stillness.

Now,

Imagine yourself standing at the edge of a forest.

You can see majestic trees rising up from the ground,

Dense foliage,

Dappled sunlight and deep shadows.

These trees represent the thoughts,

Feelings,

Responsibilities and memories that sometimes crowd the mind.

Some of these trees are old,

Some towering,

Some small,

Some helpful,

All part of your inner landscape.

Like your thoughts,

Feelings,

Responsibilities and memories,

They all represent something different.

Some feel comforting and familiar,

Whilst others feel intimidating and foreboding.

Despite this,

Step forward into the forest.

The air is cool and fragrant.

Shafts of sunlight filter between the branches,

Illuminating a trail on the forest floor.

You follow the winding trail,

Deeper into the heart of the forest.

As you walk,

It all feels rather familiar,

And you notice how in some areas of the forest,

The trees are clumped together.

This represents how your mind can sometimes be,

Where thoughts,

Obligations and stories collide and you can be pulled in numerous directions.

You continue to walk along the path,

With curiosity and with a desire to understand and grow.

Soak in the atmosphere of this enchanting forest,

Full of mystery and wonder.

You now arrive at a small clearing,

And the ground is scattered with fallen branches,

Which represent old concerns,

Outdated beliefs,

Unwanted thoughts and feelings that still linger in the memory.

You kneel down and pick up one of the branches.

It feels lighter than you expected,

Hollow,

Almost weightless.

And you realise in this moment that some worries only feel heavy because they are left unexamined.

And these branches represent residual feelings and emotions that no longer have any value,

And yet,

Still clutter your mind.

So,

You decide to pick up several more branches.

In each case,

You notice that they are weightless.

You now pick a spot to stockpile them together.

The more branches that you clear,

The more sunlight reaches the ground,

Warming the forest floor.

This,

In turn,

Creates a feeling of spaciousness.

There is now a realisation that the more branches you move from the forest floor,

The more space is created within your mind.

So,

Just keep clearing the forest floor for a little while.

You now get back to your feet and leave the clearing behind and rejoin the trail.

At this point,

The forest begins to thin.

The trees are standing further apart,

And the light falls more generously within the space.

The trail leads gently upwards,

And as you follow the incline,

You arrive at a ridge.

This is a point where you can see the entire landscape.

As you walk higher,

You can see through the trees.

There are some mountains in the distance,

Framed by a piercing blue sky.

The mountain peaks are crowned by beautiful white clouds.

It's breathtaking.

Just stand here for a little while,

Drinking in this magnificent scene.

This aerial perspective represents the place in your mind where you can see everything and let go of that which is no longer useful.

As you stand here,

The responsibilities,

Obligations,

The pointless stories increasingly evaporate into the ether,

Carried away by a gentle breeze.

In this moment,

You become aware that clarity doesn't come from pushing thoughts and feelings away.

It comes from spending time exploring your inner landscape.

You continue to walk along the ridge path,

Which leads to a huge plateau.

A smooth stone,

Shaped by nature's hand over centuries.

You walk out to the centre of the plateau.

You can see below you a vast valley,

Laden with every shade of green.

Wide,

Calm and sunlit.

There are rivers making their way gently through the valley.

The valley is also bursting with a variety of colour.

It's packed with different species of shrubs and plants,

Which have found their home in this place.

This valley is even more spacious.

And it's within the spaces that your mind can find the solutions to all its problems.

While standing here on the plateau,

Breathing in the view,

You are reminded of the vast uncharted expanses that live in your mind.

For the next little while,

Feel the joy of this knowing,

Spreading through the mind,

Softening any emotional turbulence.

Feel its influence,

Disempowering your regrets,

Your shame,

The feelings of inadequacy.

Breathe in to this feeling now.

You can see another path descending from the plateau,

Down into the valley.

And so you make your way down this path.

Each step takes you closer to the vastness you viewed from above.

And as you descend,

The path widens,

And you reach the grasslands.

The air feels soft and it's fragrant with nature's perfume.

Walking through the valley,

You're in awe of the silence.

The gentle breeze carries some warmth and you enjoy its soft caress.

You can feel that everything is alive.

This valley is the part of you that is rich with every possibility.

Here,

Your ideas can be expanded.

They are boundless.

Your emotions can fully express themselves.

There is room here for rest,

Healing and growth.

Kneel down and gently place your hand on the earth.

And as you do,

You release all the things that you've been carrying,

Which no longer serve you.

As your hand remains in contact with the earth,

There's a beautiful energy coming up from the ground.

You can feel it passing through you.

There is a strength rising up in you.

Feel its power.

And as you do,

You can feel yourself letting go of the old stories,

The old beliefs,

The unwanted noise of the past.

Hold on to this image and these feelings.

And notice how beautiful it feels.

You rise up from your knees and ahead of you,

You can see a river.

You're drawn by the beautiful sound of the running water.

This is the river of new possibilities.

It represents new directions in your life.

You walk towards it with positive anticipation and hope.

You've now reached the edge of the river and you watch it flowing effortlessly,

Knowing exactly what it needs to do and where it needs to go.

You notice it doesn't hurry or force its way.

It simply finds its way into the spaces that exist.

You admire its unspoken knowing.

You now imagine the spaciousness within your mind having the same characteristics as this river.

Always carrying you forward in a way that feels natural and organic.

It's time for you to trust this unseen momentum.

Gently kneel down and put your hands in the river.

Feel the water passing through your fingers.

It's a lovely sensation being connected to the energy and the life force of the river.

You now cup your hands together,

Scooping up some water which you splash onto your face.

You feel stimulated,

Refreshed and restored.

And something in you opens up to the river of new possibilities.

See if you can feel what those possibilities could be.

Hopefully by now something has emerged and you rise up with these new possibilities in mind.

You leave the riverbank and continue walking through the valley.

You now notice a large patch of open ground.

This represents the space you've created within yourself along the way.

This is fertile ground where you can plant whatever desire,

Intention or dream you have.

It could be a small intention,

A tentative hope,

A new direction.

Whatever it is,

Make sure it comes from your heart.

Now go ahead and sow the seeds of your desires,

Intentions.

And dreams.

The seeds you have sown will go on to fulfill their promise in the coming days,

Weeks and months.

So trust that they will unfold exactly as they need to and their energy and instruction will become clear to you.

It's now time for you to return to where you started this journey.

So you leave this large patch of open ground and make your way back to the river.

Taking in the colours,

Shapes,

Sounds and forms.

You make your way back through the lush grasslands of the valley.

As you walk back,

The spaciousness you've discovered travels with you.

And you can feel yourself opening up,

Expanding,

Growing.

You now walk up the path back to the plateau.

And once you reach the top,

You just stand here looking out at the incredible vista once more.

Now rejoin the ridge path and make your way down the incline.

You reach the thinning part of the forest.

Continue walking until you reach the clearing where the old branches were set aside.

There you are reminded that they represent outdated beliefs,

Old concerns and unwanted thoughts and feelings.

You feel lighter knowing that you don't need to carry these old energies anymore.

You continue to walk through the forest.

Once again you notice the trees are more tightly packed together.

But now you don't feel burdened by the old stories,

Responsibilities and heavy memories.

For you,

Everything feels more spacious.

Just stop here for a while and breathe.

And feel how different the inner landscape feels.

Lighter,

Wider,

More open.

You've made space within not by forcing anything but by using your creative intelligence and calling upon thoughtful reflection.

You now promise yourself that you will come back to visit these places of spaciousness within the mind and extend them further.

It's now time to bring your awareness back to your body.

You reconnect with the sounds and the space around you.

And you step back into this moment,

Back into the rhythm of your breath.

Now,

Take a slow full breath and hold it for a couple of seconds.

And as you slowly exhale,

Open your eyes.

Just take a moment to give thanks for the gift of this incredible journey.

Now you have learnt how you can create space within.

Come back as often as you can.