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Appreciation

Take time off to appreciate ourselves, our inner experiences—thoughts, emotions and pain that we might be experiencing—and others even if we don’t feel like it. Inspired by Ram Dass’ writing on Trees.

“When you go out into the woods and you look at trees, you see all these different trees.

And some of them are bent, and some of them are straight, and some of them are evergreens, and some of them are whatever.

And you look at the tree and you allow it. You appreciate it. You see why it is the way it is.

You sort of understand that it didn’t get enough light, and so it turned that way.

And you don’t get all emotional about it. You just allow it. You appreciate the tree.

The minute you get near humans, you lose all that. And you are constantly saying ‘You’re too this, or I’m too this.’

That judging mind comes in. And so I practice turning people into trees.

Which means appreciating them just the way they are.”

Guide: Noelle Lim

Duration: 23 mins

Image credit: Yerlin Matu, Unsplash

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Just This Breath

A common meditation practice is to focus on the breath. In this session, we contemplate what it really means to do so – breathing, opening to life. Breathe away.

Inspired by David Whyte’s poem Enough.

Enough. These few words are enough.

If not these words, this breath.

If not this breath, this sitting here.

This opening to life

we have refused

again and again

until now.

Until now.

Guide: Noelle Lim

Duration: 22 mins

Image credit: Josh Couch, Unsplash

To register for our Wednesday Pause session at 12:30-1pm SGT on Zoom, please visit here

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No Expectations

Shaped by evolution, our minds are constantly busy scanning experiences and benchmarking it to some expectation to keep us safe and feeling pleasant. Here is an invitation to drop expectations to free up space in the head in order to truly hear ourselves and access our being.

This practise is inspired by Henri Nouwen, Catholic priest’s writings, “Only An Invitation”.

Duration: 23 mins

Guide: Noelle Lim

Image credit: Kim Davies, Unsplash

Only An Invitation, Henri Nouwen

Our world is so full of conditions —

demands, requirements, and obligations

that we often wonder

what is expected of us.

But when we meet a truly free person

there are no expectations,

only an invitationto reach into ourselves

and discover there

our own freedom.

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Only Kindness Ties Your Shoes

This Wednesday’s practise is about inviting kindness into our experiences, and is inspired by Naomi Shihab Nye’s poetry “Kindness”.

Duration: 23 minutes

Guide: Noelle Lim

Image credit: Andriyko Podilynk, Unsplash

Kindness, Naomi Shihab Nye

Before you know what kindness really is
you must lose things,
feel the future dissolve in a moment
like salt in a weakened broth.
What you held in your hand,
what you counted and carefully saved,
all this must go so you know
how desolate the landscape can be
between the regions of kindness.
How you ride and ride
thinking the bus will never stop,
the passengers eating maize and chicken
will stare out the window forever.

Before you learn the tender gravity of kindness
you must travel where the Indian in a white poncho
lies dead by the side of the road.
You must see how this could be you,
how he too was someone
who journeyed through the night with plans
and the simple breath that kept him alive.

Before you know kindness as the deepest thing inside,
you must know sorrow as the other deepest thing.
You must wake up with sorrow.
You must speak to it till your voice
catches the thread of all sorrows
and you see the size of the cloth.
Then it is only kindness that makes sense anymore,
only kindness that ties your shoes
and sends you out into the day to gaze at bread,
only kindness that raises its head
from the crowd of the world to say
It is I you have been looking for,
and then goes with you everywhere
like a shadow or a friend.

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Changing Moments

Kobayashi Issa, Zen poet and scholar wrote:

This world of dew

is a world of dew

and yet, and yet.

What he wrote could be interpreted as the law of nature is as it is. Accepting and adapting to these laws, we could become more comfortable with changes and be less unhappy.

In this practise, we observe nature that is our changing experiences such as thoughts, emotions and body feelings moment-by-moment, and cultivate the capacity to accept what’s here for us like unwanted thoughts without needing to have a different experience.

Guide: Noelle Lim

Duration: 24 minutes

Image credit Sven Mieke, Unsplash

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Emptying The Boat

Is there something that’s sitting on your boat that’s slowing your down? Causing you to crave or to resist? Causing unhappiness? Here’s a practice on letting go.

Duration: 25 minutes

Guide: Noelle Lim

Image credit: Natalya Erofeeva, 123rf

This is a recording of our Wednesday Pause sessions, 12:30-1pm SGT (4:30am GMT). Register here

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Stillness

Finding stillness in calm. Being still puts us in a state of not always needing to react and fix, and to simply let go.

Duration: 23 minutes

Guide: Noelle Lim

Image credit: Kote Puerto, Unsplash

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Facing Uncertainty

Whether you’re an entrepreneur or worried about your livelihood during this pandemic, how can we cultivate our capacity to face uncertainty, to face the unknown future? One way is to meditate and be kind to ourselves

Duration: 24 mins

Guide: Noelle Lim

Image credit: Mikhail Vasilyev, Unsplash

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Cultivating Attention

Start the new year with the resolution to keep our resolutions haha. Here’s to cultivating attention and being intentional in directing our mental energy. With a focused mind and warm heart, let’s conquer the world!

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Something New Is Here

Our last meditation session for 2020, Something New Is Here, inspired by e.h.’s poetry. Hopefully 2021 will be kind to us. Enjoy and Happy New Year!

Take down all your troubles

And wrap up your regret

Tie them to the rays of light

The sun sheds as it sets

Whisper all that was

To fleeting seconds as they pass

But hold onto your hope

For something new is here at last

Beg your own forgiveness

And then grant it in one breath

Lay the year down softly

As it waits to face its death

Then sit with eyes turned skyward

As the night-time comes alive

All that’s been is over

And a new year has arrived.