Calm Abiding (Samatha) Meditation - Mindfulness Of Breathing

In this calm-abiding (Samatha) practice from our online meditation course, we will cultivate tranquility of the mind through mindfulness of the breath at the entrance of the nose. To support the mind to rest at this subtle point of contact, we will apply a mental noting technique to each breath that passes in and out of the body. A technique passed down to Whit during his frequent visits to the Buddhist monasteries of Myanmar (Burma).

Transcript

Program 2,

Week 1.

Samatha Tranquility Meditation.

Mindfulness of the breath at the entrance of the nose,

Applying the mental labeling technique,

And in addition,

Mindfully counting each breath.

Taking our time to arrive into relative stillness,

Meeting the body and the mind as they are in this present moment,

Without trying to change or fix anything.

Inviting the windows of the eyes to close if we haven't done so already.

Softening muscular effort throughout the body.

In this practice,

We will mindfully attend to the breath as it enters and exits the body through the entrance of the nostrils.

Continuing to apply our silent mental label of just this inhale,

Just this exhale.

But in addition to that mental label,

We will now also begin to mentally count each breath from 1 to 5.

If we reach five continuous mindful cycles of breath,

We then return to number 1 and begin again towards 5.

At any point that we lose count,

We once again return to 1.

Settling in with a soft exhale of the mouth,

Inviting the mind's attention to gently land upon the entrance of the nose.

Beginning to perceive the subtle sensations of the breath passing in and passing out through the nostrils.

Beginning our practice on our next cycle of breath as the inhale rises.

Just this inhale,

1.

Just this exhale,

1.

Just this inhale,

2.

Just this exhale,

2.

Just this inhale,

3.

Just this exhale,

3.

Just this inhale,

4.

Just this exhale,

4.

Just this inhale,

5.

Just this exhale,

5.

Continuing now on your own to mentally note and mentally count each breath at the entrance of the nose.

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Reviews

Thank you for sharing this 🙏. Good to have silence to practice the method & occasional prompts to keep you on track.

Simple yet powerful. Thank you.

Loved this! Nameste 🙏🏻💕

Thank you so much!

Whit is the best!

Lots of space to practise, simple and precise instructions ✨✨🙏🏻

Perfect mindful meditation - thank you 🙏🏻