Inner Sanctuary Guided Meditation

So often in our busy lives we get weighed down by stress and chaos and lose touch with our inner guidance system and ability to self sooth the stress and anxiety we experience. This guided inner sanctuary meditation will support you to reconnect with the part of yourself that is calm, centred and peaceful.

Transcript

As we transition into the inner sanctuary meditation,

Taking a moment just to allow your body to relax in your environment.

And as you prepare to relax very deeply,

You can begin by looking at a spot in front of you.

Finding a spot that you can fix your eyes on.

Noticing one particular spot in the room where you can focus all of your attention.

And as you narrow your attention and focus more and more on that spot,

As if you are zooming in on that spot with your mind,

I'd like you to begin to connect with the purposeful part of you.

The part of you that wants to accomplish things.

That wants to change things.

The part of you that wants to make things better or improve things.

Maybe to improve yourself.

Maybe to improve other people or the world around you in some way.

That part of you that wants to right wrongs and change the world to be just and fair.

And you can spend a few moments now really connecting with that energy of wanting to change things.

That purposeful,

Controlling feeling of wanting to manipulate and alter the world to make it better.

And as you keep looking at that one spot in front of you,

And that purposeful,

Controlling side to you has a tremendous value.

Recognizing how so many human achievements,

Advances in science and technology,

Developments in medicine,

Art and culture,

Society and civilization itself,

Have sprung from that desire to improve things,

To make things better.

And at the same time,

There's a whole other facet of being alive,

Of being human.

A completely different aspect of yourself that's worthy of equal honor.

That also needs the opportunity to flourish and grow.

And right now,

As you keep looking at that one spot,

I'd like you to get the sense of expanding your vision outwards,

To the space around that spot.

As your gaze softens and you become more aware of what's in your peripheral vision,

The objects you can see out of the corner of your eye,

Perhaps you can see parts of your body,

Maybe you're even aware of the space behind you,

Even though you can't see it.

And you have a more expansive awareness that can allow you to get the feeling that you're taking a step back out of yourself.

And seeing all of this from behind your own head,

Taking a step back from life,

Softening your gaze,

And giving yourself this time now to just be present.

That's it.

As you breathe comfortably and notice the instinctive,

Unconscious blinking of your eyelids,

It can be a real relief just to let go.

Letting go just for now of that purposeful energy.

And instead,

Choosing to tap in to your calm,

Present,

Peaceful aspect of yourself.

The you who has always been here,

The true witness of life,

The consciousness always here within you.

While the world outside has been constantly changing,

New sights,

New sounds,

New sensations,

New tastes,

And new smells.

But nonetheless,

There's a part of you that witnesses,

That observes,

That has always watched everything and seen everything from a place of silence,

From a place of peace.

And right now,

You can let your eyelids close,

If they haven't yet.

And prepare to deeply connect with this silence,

This peace,

This silent acceptance,

Of the world as it is,

And of life as it is.

You may have noticed,

How mystics throughout the ages,

Have often spoken of the perfection they've seen in the world.

A perfection that cannot really be expressed in words,

Beyond saying that this world,

This universe,

With all of its violence and injustice,

With all of its joys and wonders,

Is just the way it's meant to be,

Right now,

In this moment.

And this is not an intellectual concept.

This is not a thought for your rational mind to analyze.

Because this is about connecting with a very different part of yourself,

That can be present and peaceful.

With the perfections and the imperfections of yourself.

With the perfections and the imperfections of your body,

Your history,

Your life,

Your personality.

To be present and peaceful,

With the perfections and the imperfections of the people around you,

Of the buildings and the landscape around you.

To be present and peaceful,

With the perfections and the imperfections of the world,

And the universe.

To let it all,

Right now,

Simply be as it is.

There is a reason why people who want to find inner peace take time out from the world.

A reason why they go on a retreat,

Or meditate in a cave high up in the mountains.

Because taking time out from daily life,

And going to a different place,

Where things are peaceful and quiet,

Allows you to get a different perspective on life.

And people can get a taste of what that's like,

When they spend a week or two on vacation,

Or on holiday,

And they go somewhere new,

Far away from where they work,

Far away from their daily routines.

It might not happen on the first day,

It might not happen on the second day,

But often by the third or the fourth day of being away,

Out of your usual routines,

Something shifts inside of you.

Your unconscious mind gets the message,

That all of that purposeful action,

That busyness of work,

Is way over there back home.

And you are here,

In this place,

On this holiday,

Far away from all of that.

And it's okay to relax,

To rest,

As your mind quiets and calms down,

And you breathe a sigh of relief,

And just enjoy gazing out at a beautiful view,

Maybe taking in the sunset,

As the sky turns from blue to red and pink,

Illuminating the clouds of so many different hues,

That it becomes a view you can immerse yourself in,

And really appreciate that here and now.

You can properly rest.

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I don't know what your inner sanctuary is going to look like,

That place within,

Where you can take a step back from life,

And simply be present and peaceful,

To witness the world,

And find joy in the world.

With all of its perfections and imperfections.

And you don't need to consciously decide,

What your sanctuary will be like either.

Because as you relax deeper and deeper now,

That's it.

You begin to feel yourself arriving at a place of stillness within.

A place where you can take in the space,

The beautiful surroundings.

Perhaps you can see the sky.

Perhaps there's water somewhere,

Or you can see the trees,

Plants,

Flowers.

This is your place,

Your space,

Far away from everyday concerns.

Your place to come back to yourself,

And simply be now,

In this space,

Appreciating and savoring life itself.

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Beginning to get a glimpse of the beauty,

The peace,

And the perfection,

Within everything that is.

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And in this sanctuary within,

You can peacefully witness all parts of your life,

All parts of your personality,

The driven,

Purposeful side of you,

The soft,

Vulnerable side of you,

The story of your life,

The story of the world,

How it all came to be.

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And right now,

There's nothing you need to do,

Nothing at all.

You can simply let there be silence.

You can simply let there be peace.

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That's it.

Beautiful,

Deep,

Pure,

Inner peace and silence.

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And this peace can permeate your mind and your thoughts.

It can permeate all of the cells in your entire body,

Each and every one,

And spread out through your life so that you always know you have this sanctuary of peace within you.

Even when you're engaged and purposeful,

Even when you're out there living your life,

You still have this place of quiet stillness and peace within you.

And you can listen to this session often and further develop this quiet,

Peaceful part of your mind as you find that you're appreciating life more,

That you're more present and calm,

And that you can deal with life's challenges with more ease,

So that if you saw on your own face just a little while in the future going about your daily life,

If you could catch a glimpse of your eyes in that future time,

You'd know in an instant from the expression on your face that you're so much more peaceful and calm and content,

That look in your eyes,

In this time a little way in the future,

Of a future you who has been developing this peaceful side to their personality,

A future you who has been regularly returning to this place of quiet stillness within,

And who as a consequence is now so much calmer,

More present and appreciative of life.

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It's time now to return and come back to the everyday world,

And as you slowly bring your awareness back into your body,

You can bring this stillness,

This silence,

And this peace back with you.

As you prepare to come all the way back now with a real sense of calm and peace within you,

Begin to notice the position of your body,

And the sensation of whatever it is you're resting on,

Coming back refreshed and alert.

And whenever you're ready,

Taking as much time as you need,

You can begin to stretch your body,

Gently open your eyes,

And come back to the present moment.

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