Sit Together In Silence: A Guided Zen-Inspired Practice

Sometimes extending our meditation practice can feel daunting, which is why it helps to do it together. In this session, I’ll guide you into three intervals of silence, each about five minutes long. It’s a gentle way to sit a little longer, soften into stillness, and notice what arises when there’s nothing to fix or do.

Inspired by Zen traditions, this meditation also invites you to feel the quiet magic of shared practice, a reminder that even in silence, we are not alone.

Transcript

Thank you for joining me wherever you are at any time of the day. The intention of this meditation is to simply be together. I know sometimes it can feel a little bit daunting sitting there by ourselves and sometimes just being with someone even if I'm not physically there with you just knowing I'm holding this intention with you especially if you're looking to stretch your practice maybe from 1 minute to 5 minutes or maybe from 5 minutes to 10 minutes or maybe that little bit longer. So we're going to sit majority in silence. I do lots of other meditations where they're guided with themes whether it be a little bit cheeky or nature-based but this one will be simple just you and me sitting together. So I invite you to find a little spot you're probably already there whether you're sitting or lying down doing a handstand it doesn't really matter but finding somewhere where you feel like you can sit for a while. Checking to see if your legs are comfy in that position or maybe if your back needs a little bit of support. And then once you feel as if you've got your got your little spot see if you can make it 2% comfier. Now we're going to start letting the senses quieten down closing the eyes if they're not already there. Allowing the mind to slow down by tuning in with your breath. So shifting the focus from that mental mind doing into the feeling being presence. Noticing the inhales and the exhales. Not needing to do anything with them simply watching them. Now noticing your hearing start to slow it down by focusing on a few sounds. And even once you've done that to once again come back to the breath. There's a real practice for us to come back to ourselves and ironically to come back to everything else because we are all connected. And now as we go into our first five minutes of silence I invite you to watch the mind whenever it drifts. Say thank you and come back to the breath. Thank you and come back to the breath. Staying deep. Always coming back to the breath. Holding gratitude for the last five minutes that was. Even if it was noisy internally or externally. Saying thank you to the mind and coming back to the breath. As we drop into our next five minutes. Giving gratitude through the breath. Feeling into the psyche or the physical. Noticing any tension and noticing the softness. Notice them existing together and recommitting to your practice as we sit together for our next and final five minutes. As we come back to our breaths. The simplicity and the magic of the inhale. The hold. The exhale. The stillness. We invite our senses back. First feeling through our body. Feeling whatever is underneath us. Is it firm or soft? Then we invite our hearing. What can you hear that's far away? What can you hear that is close? Feeling our lungs expand and then become smaller again. See if you can tune in to the beating of your heart. Awaken your tongue. What is the last taste sitting on the top? With the next inhale we tune into what we can smell through the nose. And when you're ready, Slowly open your eyes to a new moment. Thank you for sitting here with me. For this shared experience of simplicity and presence. Gratitude goes from my heart to yours. And I want you to know that I believe in your hopes and your dreams. I believe in your truth and your honesty. I believe in your love and compassion. And together let's finish with it all. Beating in the exhale. Inhale. Long. Until next time, As we sit together, Go well.