Goblet Meditation

This short practice can be used through the day to ground during challenging moments. The practice uses the imagery of a goblet to create a three part breathing practice. It is also known as the three minute breathing space. I learnt it from my teachers and mentors at the Ottawa Mindfulness Clinic.

Transcript

The Goblet Meditation.

A three-minute breathing exercise.

This breathing exercise can be helpful to ground ourselves so we feel steady in the face of difficult or intense emotions.

Our tendency is to get caught in the stories about the emotional content and to try to get out of it as quickly as we can.

This can lead to impulsive choices or reactivity that feeds into a rapid cycle of more unpleasant emotions.

Because the breath conditions our body and emotions,

We can use that breath to bring us to a space that is a platform from which we can observe and choose our actions with mindfulness.

If it helps to visualize the sequence,

You may wish to picture a goblet,

A bowl,

Stem,

And base form the three parts of focus for the breath awareness.

First,

Open your awareness to your experience.

Open to everything in your sense field.

Touch,

Sight,

Sound,

Smell,

Taste,

Thoughts.

Imagine the top of the goblet is a bowl in which everything can be held without attraction or aversion.

Be gentle with yourself.

Respect your limits for being present to what's in your sense field.

You may wish to visualize placing whatever comes up for you in the bowl of the goblet.

Now,

I'll invite you to bring your attention to your breathing at your nostrils,

Abdomen,

Or ribs.

Feel the sensation of the breath.

Bring the focus to the breathing just as it is.

You may wish to visualize this narrowing as the stem of the goblet.

Now,

I invite you to ground yourself in your body.

Bring your attention to your body,

Whether it's sitting or standing.

Feel the floor under your feet or the solidity of the seat if you're sitting.

Sense into the ground,

Feeling it supporting you.

You may wish to visualize this as the base of the goblet.

Now,

Gently bring your awareness back to your surroundings.

Take a deep breath in and a long,

Slow breath out.

If you wish,

You may want to write down what you noticed in this practice.