Friday Night Guided Meditation

0:00 Okay, so we'll start off by doing some meditation. So Report an error in the passage at 0:00 Highlight the passage at 0:00

0:12 we just try to get into a comfortable position as usual and we're just learning how to relax and be in the moment. So Report an error in the passage at 0:12 Highlight the passage at 0:12

0:46 we'll be sitting for half an hour and Report an error in the passage at 0:46 Highlight the passage at 0:46

1:00 the attitude that one can... The one can use when one's meditating is this attitude of just allowing things to be. Just imagine that you were a passenger on a journey somewhere and there's somebody just driving the car and you're just sitting in the back seat just looking out onto the world. And sometimes as human beings we get these opportunities where we can just go with the flow or just be as we are without too many kind of things going on in front of us. Report an error in the passage at 1:00 Highlight the passage at 1:00

1:54 And sometimes we get that opportunity when we're travelling in the car just looking out the window and watching the world go by. And in the same way, When we're meditating, we kind of have the opportunity to be backseat drivers of our lives. And we can just sit back and relax and just look onto the experience that we have right now. Report an error in the passage at 1:54 Highlight the passage at 1:54

2:24 And if we can do it in this kind of manner, it's almost like a relaxing way. A relaxing way. ...of looking at your meditation. Report an error in the passage at 2:24 Highlight the passage at 2:24

· · · silence, 2 minutes

4:49 So we just bring our minds into the present moment, this Report an error in the passage at 4:49 Highlight the passage at 4:49

5:08 present moment that everyone can experience, and it's the same experience for everyone. Report an error in the passage at 5:08 Highlight the passage at 5:08

· · · silence, 1 minute

5:51 And as we're meditating, we're learning what the present moment means. We're learning... The experience of the present moment. Sometimes with our busy lives we don't really have the time to reflect and ask ourselves what does this present moment mean? What does it feel like? What's the experience? So when we have a chance to meditate we get to explore the different aspects of the mind. Report an error in the passage at 5:51 Highlight the passage at 5:51

6:33 One of them is to be able to understand what this present moment is. And as a meditator, we try to stay in this present moment for as long as possible. Report an error in the passage at 6:33 Highlight the passage at 6:33

7:12 Because after a while the body settles down. You don't really feel the body. You don't really feel the sensations in your legs. You don't really feel that. You don't feel the... You might have a little bit of strain in your back or the neck feels fine. In a sense the body kind of slowly disappears as we settle down into our meditation. Report an error in the passage at 7:12 Highlight the passage at 7:12

7:44 And what we're left with is our mind, is our awareness. And as we meditate we're just learning how to be with this moment. Report an error in the passage at 7:44 Highlight the passage at 7:44

8:00 Just experiencing the peace and stillness that comes from it. Report an error in the passage at 8:00 Highlight the passage at 8:00

· · · silence, 2 minutes

10:13 We can start to experience the silence in the meditation. Report an error in the passage at 10:13 Highlight the passage at 10:13

· · · silence, 1 minute

11:31 And we have an attitude of contentment. Content with whatever our minds is showing us. Content with the peace or... Content with the sleepiness or content with the restless mind. Contentment means we're not craving for a particular result. We're not craving for peace of mind. We're not craving for awakening. Report an error in the passage at 11:31 Highlight the passage at 11:31

12:18 In fact, those cravings just add more turbulence. So instead we develop an open mind of contentment. Sometimes contentment means it doesn't matter what we get from this meditation. We're not here searching for anything. We're just here to meditate. And whatever comes along is like an added bonus. Report an error in the passage at 12:18 Highlight the passage at 12:18

13:00 We're just here to develop a mind of contentment. Whatever happens, happens. If the mind's peaceful, great. If the mind's sleepy, great. You can have a nap. If the mind is like thinking too much, that's okay too. Just be compassionate to your mind knowing that sometimes it just goes a little bit wild. And just have the understanding that Report an error in the passage at 13:00 Highlight the passage at 13:00

13:34 That things change and if we come in with an attitude of contentment, the result of that is contentment arises. Report an error in the passage at 13:34 Highlight the passage at 13:34

13:55 Ajahn Brahm, when he teaches meditation, he always says it's not the object or the result that is the most important, the most important part. ...of the meditation is one's attitude. The attitude of contentment, accepting things the way they are, is a wise attitude to develop in one's meditation. Now Report an error in the passage at 13:55 Highlight the passage at 13:55

· · · silence, 15 minutes

29:30 the meditation is going to come to an end. Hopefully we are a little bit more relaxed. We've learnt a little bit about our own minds. Learned a little bit about what it means to be living in the present moment or even having feelings and experiences of contentment arising within our meditation. So now this meditation will come to a close. I will ring the gong three times and then after the third gong you can open up your eyes and come out in the meditation. Report an error in the passage at 29:30 Highlight the passage at 29:30

30:36 The last one is to wake everybody up, to Report an error in the passage at 30:36 Highlight the passage at 30:36

30:46 wake me up. Report an error in the passage at 30:46 Highlight the passage at 30:46