Keeping the Peace Between Sessions (Repost)

Movement Meditation: Using the Breath and Hands to Deepen Stillness

In this meditation, we explore how gentle movement can become part of our contemplative practice. While meditation is often associated with complete stillness, the Christian monastic tradition has long incorporated simple physical movements—such as bowing, kneeling and prostration—to help cultivate deeper awareness. In this practice, we combine the rhythm of the breath with the gentle opening and closing of the hands. Beginning with grounding and awareness of the breath, we settle into the still point between each inhale and exhale before allowing our hands to move in harmony with our breathing. As we breathe in, the hands gently close; as we breathe out, they softly open again. This simple practice offers another anchor for attention, making it especially helpful during times of distraction, stress or anxiety. By uniting breath, body and awareness, we discover another pathway into the stillness that lies at the heart of meditation. This meditation supports mindfulness, contemplative prayer, stress relief, emotional regulation and developing deeper concentration through embodied awareness. It can be used as part of a daily meditation practice or whenever you find it difficult to settle into stillness through the breath alone. Chapters: 00:00 – Introduction: Movement within meditation 01:08 – Opening bell 01:20 – Entering the here and now 02:03 – Centring on the breath 02:36 – The still point between breaths 03:19 – Bringing awareness to the hands 03:42 – Breathing with opening and closing hands 04:50 – Noticing breath, movement and stillness 06:40 – Pausing to notice sensations in the hands 08:05 – Movement as an anchor for anxiety or distraction 09:41 – Returning the hands to stillness 10:19 – Resolution for the day 10:32 – Closing bell ---------------------------------------- Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy [https://acast.com/privacy] for more information.

Inner Sun Meditation: Awakening the Light of Awareness

In this meditation, we return to the ancient image of the inner sun — the light of awareness that rises within us through breath, attention and presence. Across many contemplative traditions, the inner life of awareness has often been imagined as light: the light of consciousness, memory, imagination and divine presence. In this meditation, we work gently with that image, allowing a small spark of awareness to rise and expand within the body. Beginning in stillness and breath, we follow the movement of the diaphragm and imagine a tiny golden spark of light deep within the belly. With each breath, this light rises and grows, becoming an inner sun — warming, illuminating and bringing healing to the places within us that feel cold, tense or burdened. This meditation offers a powerful visual practice for cultivating focus, calming anxiety, deepening self-awareness and reconnecting with the warmth of divine presence within. It can support mindfulness, contemplative prayer, inner healing, emotional grounding and stress relief, and can be especially helpful when feeling scattered, overwhelmed or disconnected. Chapters: 00:00 – Introduction: The inner sun of awareness 00:57 – Opening bell 01:09 – Settling into posture and breath 02:16 – Breathing out tension, breathing in peace 03:13 – Diaphragmatic breathing and grounding in the belly 04:00 – Discovering the spark of golden light 04:42 – Raising the inner sun through the body 05:24 – Expanding warmth and healing 06:44 – Sending light into dark or wounded places 07:58 – Resting in the fullness of the inner sun 08:37 – Returning the light to the belly 09:28 – Resting in the breath alone 10:06 – Closing bell ---------------------------------------- Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy [https://acast.com/privacy] for more information.

Jesus Prayer Meditation (Part 3): Breath, Name and Mercy

In this meditation, we return to the ancient Christian contemplative practice of the Jesus Prayer, deepening the connection between breath, sacred name and prayerful invocation. The Jesus Prayer is one of the oldest and most transformative forms of Christian meditation. Rooted in repetition, simplicity and presence, it draws the mind and heart into communion with divine love through the invocation of the holy name. In this meditation, we move through three stages of the practice: first simply repeating the name Jesus, then adding the invocation mercy, and finally uniting the name and petition with the natural rhythm of the breath. Breathing in: Jesus. Breathing out: Mercy. Through this gentle rhythm, the prayer becomes embodied — anchored in breath, in awareness, and in the present moment. This meditation offers support for contemplative prayer, grounding, emotional calm, spiritual focus, inner healing and resting in divine presence. It can be used as part of a daily meditation practice, in moments of anxiety or uncertainty, or as a calming prayer before sleep. Chapters: 00:00 – Introduction to the Jesus Prayer 00:37 – Opening bell 00:49 – Settling into stillness and breath 01:39 – Breathing in peace, breathing out love 02:59 – Beginning with the holy name 03:32 – Repeating the name of Jesus 04:54 – Adding the prayer for mercy 05:32 – Linking prayer to the breath 06:10 – Breathing in “Jesus,” breathing out “Mercy” 07:38 – Letting the prayer settle naturally into breath 08:01 – Returning to the name alone 09:18 – Resting in the presence of the one invoked 10:07 – Returning to simple breath 10:42 – Carrying the prayer into the day 11:07 – Closing bell ---------------------------------------- Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy [https://acast.com/privacy] for more information.

Natural World Meditation: The Wisdom of the Waters

In this meditation, we continue our journey through the natural world by reflecting on the wisdom of the waters and the creatures who dwell within them. The Christian contemplative tradition often looks to the natural world as a teacher — a living gospel of divine presence, wisdom and grace. Today we turn to the oceans, rivers, lakes and streams, and to the great creatures of the waters: whales, dolphins, fish and countless hidden forms of life. Through their existence, they reveal something profound to us: what it means to live fully immersed in the very element that sustains them. As fish live in water, so we live in divine presence. Together, through breath and imagination, we enter this living symbol of the waters as a way of understanding our own immersion in grace, mercy and divine love. This meditation invites us to surrender, to float, and to trust the deeper currents of life. It offers support for contemplative awareness, trust, peace, ecological reverence and reconnecting with the natural world. It can be used as part of a daily meditation practice, during times of stress, or as a gentle meditation before sleep. Chapters: 00:00 – Introduction: The wisdom of the waters 00:38 – Opening bell 00:51 – Arriving in open-hearted awareness 01:36 – Settling into posture and breath 02:16 – Breathing out tension, breathing in peace 02:56 – Calling to mind oceans, rivers, lakes and streams 03:42 – The whales, dolphins and fish as teachers 04:53 – Water as the element of life 05:19 – Immersion in water as a symbol of divine presence 06:33 – The freedom and joy of the water creatures 07:29 – Floating in the ocean of divine mercy 08:48 – Being filled with streams of living grace 09:44 – Gratitude for the waters and their creatures 10:15 – Stewardship, care and reverence for creation 11:22 – Returning to the body 11:57 – Closing bell ---------------------------------------- Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy [https://acast.com/privacy] for more information.

Reset Meditation: Recovering the Form

In this meditation, we once again return to the foundational form of contemplative practice — the basic relaxation meditation that grounds and renews the whole path. This “reset” meditation is the doorway into meditative awareness: a familiar, trusted practice that allows us to begin again, deepen attention, and strengthen the inner muscles of awareness. By returning often to this form, we build stability and deepen our capacity for stillness. Together, we move through grounding in the body, observing thoughts and emotions without attachment, and resting in the breath as the anchor to the present moment. Through gentle repetition and embodied awareness, we remember that we are more than our thoughts, feelings, or physical sensations. This meditation offers support for stress relief, grounding, emotional regulation, nervous system calm, and contemplative renewal. It can be used as part of a daily meditation practice, whenever you need to begin again, or as a moment of calm and inner stillness before sleep. Chapters: 00:00 – Introduction: Returning to the basic form 00:24 – Opening bell 00:45 – Entering meditation with intention 01:18 – Grounding in posture and ritual gesture 02:23 – Settling into the body 02:54 – Scanning the body for tension 03:30 – Checking in with thoughts and emotions 04:37 – “I am more than my body, thoughts and feelings” 05:22 – Anchoring in the breath 06:08 – Breathing out stress and tension 07:31 – Breathing in peace, light and healing 08:00 – Deep bodily relaxation 09:15 – Resting in the inner self 09:49 – “I am I” — centre of consciousness and will 10:28 – Resting in stillness 11:08 – Returning to the body 11:38 – Closing bell ---------------------------------------- Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy [https://acast.com/privacy] for more information.