Dana: donate here
Like all my work, these online meditations, videos and interviews are shared on a Dana basis.
Dana is an ancient method of conscious exchange, a practice of both giving and receiving. It invites us to receive experiences of gratitude, generosity and appreciation as well as feelings of scarcity and lack. It asks that we look more closely at our motivation and expectations, demanding that we step out of a transaction mindset (how much can I get from this moment and how little can I give?) and into a generosity mindset (how deeply can I receive this moment and what would I like to offer in return?) Dana helps us strengthen the nourishing flow of reciprocal and sacred relationship by bringing it into everyday life.
Dana is gratefully received here.
Thank you!
Like all my work, these online meditations, videos and interviews are shared on a Dana basis.
Dana is an ancient method of conscious exchange, a practice of both giving and receiving. It invites us to receive experiences of gratitude, generosity and appreciation as well as feelings of scarcity and lack. It asks that we look more closely at our motivation and expectations, demanding that we step out of a transaction mindset (how much can I get from this moment and how little can I give?) and into a generosity mindset (how deeply can I receive this moment and what would I like to offer in return?) Dana helps us strengthen the nourishing flow of reciprocal and sacred relationship by bringing it into everyday life.
Dana is gratefully received here.
Thank you!
Online Meditations
Daily meditations: 7-8am GMT, December 11-15 2023
A week of five Daily Meditations on the SANGHA LIVE online dharma platform
Each hour-long practice includes 15 minutes of Dharma teaching, 30 minutes meditation and 15 minutes interactive Q&A.
Mark your calendars: more information and registration will be available soon!
A week of five Daily Meditations on the SANGHA LIVE online dharma platform
Each hour-long practice includes 15 minutes of Dharma teaching, 30 minutes meditation and 15 minutes interactive Q&A.
Mark your calendars: more information and registration will be available soon!
Living in Sacredness (library archive: June 26-30 2023)
A week of five Daily Meditations on the SANGHA LIVE online dharma platform
Each hour-long practice includes 15 minutes of Dharma teaching, 30 minutes meditation and 15 minutes interactive Q&A.
Meditation is more than a practice of being present. The way in which we are present determines whether we reinforce habits of separation, or re-weave the fabric of sacredness. During this week we will explore how it feels to come into reciprocal, sacred relationship in all directions. A sacred relationship is one which is imbued with curiosity, kindness, wonder and reverence. It is also reciprocal: through exploring the sacredness of body, breath, consciousness and emotions, we discover the naturalness of appropriate response. We plant seeds of Love in a world of separation.
The Body is Sacred.
The Breath is Sacred.
The Mind is Sacred.
Emotions are Sacred.
In Sacredness, Love Responds.
A week of five Daily Meditations on the SANGHA LIVE online dharma platform
Each hour-long practice includes 15 minutes of Dharma teaching, 30 minutes meditation and 15 minutes interactive Q&A.
Meditation is more than a practice of being present. The way in which we are present determines whether we reinforce habits of separation, or re-weave the fabric of sacredness. During this week we will explore how it feels to come into reciprocal, sacred relationship in all directions. A sacred relationship is one which is imbued with curiosity, kindness, wonder and reverence. It is also reciprocal: through exploring the sacredness of body, breath, consciousness and emotions, we discover the naturalness of appropriate response. We plant seeds of Love in a world of separation.
The Body is Sacred.
The Breath is Sacred.
The Mind is Sacred.
Emotions are Sacred.
In Sacredness, Love Responds.
Interviews
The Meaningful Life podcast
What Can I Learn from this Moment?
I am delighted to have participated in a rich and wide ranging conversation with marital therapist and author Andrew G. Marshall.
I share some personal material about my own life and experiences, as we explore three fundamental questions:
What can I learn from this moment?
What’s asking to be loved?
What can I give in return?
We also discuss the nature of suffering, the difference between suffering and pain, animistic cosmology, and what it means to live in sacredness.
After the intermission we return to discuss a listener's question, who asks for support with the suffering she feels after discovering she’s unable to conceive.
If you choose to subscribe to The Meaningful Life you will also have access to a further discussion where I speak about relating to anger as a sacred emotion, and where I share three things I know to be true.
Listen here or search for The Meaningful Life on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Google Podcasts and other podcast apps.
What Can I Learn from this Moment?
I am delighted to have participated in a rich and wide ranging conversation with marital therapist and author Andrew G. Marshall.
I share some personal material about my own life and experiences, as we explore three fundamental questions:
What can I learn from this moment?
What’s asking to be loved?
What can I give in return?
We also discuss the nature of suffering, the difference between suffering and pain, animistic cosmology, and what it means to live in sacredness.
After the intermission we return to discuss a listener's question, who asks for support with the suffering she feels after discovering she’s unable to conceive.
If you choose to subscribe to The Meaningful Life you will also have access to a further discussion where I speak about relating to anger as a sacred emotion, and where I share three things I know to be true.
Listen here or search for The Meaningful Life on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Google Podcasts and other podcast apps.
Videos
Stability and Spaciousness: working with doubt and judgement
90 mins
This practice of standing poses invites us to create and maintain space and stability, so that the breathing body can move with naturalness and ease. These qualities of stability, spaciousness and ease offer a home for destructive mind-states such as doubt and judgement to be held in safety, while our attention stays close to the breath. It is a powerful way to return our attention to what is real and true in our experience, and remember our potential and power.
Optional props: 1 or 2 bricks (or a chair) and something to sit on if needed.
www.youtube.com/watch?v=QIB6pFCETqI
90 mins
This practice of standing poses invites us to create and maintain space and stability, so that the breathing body can move with naturalness and ease. These qualities of stability, spaciousness and ease offer a home for destructive mind-states such as doubt and judgement to be held in safety, while our attention stays close to the breath. It is a powerful way to return our attention to what is real and true in our experience, and remember our potential and power.
Optional props: 1 or 2 bricks (or a chair) and something to sit on if needed.
www.youtube.com/watch?v=QIB6pFCETqI
The Courage to Grieve: transforming anger into compassion
80 mins
This quiet restorative yoga practice begins and ends with a self-sourcing meditation, which connects us to body, breath, Earth and Sky. This helps us grow in the confidence and courage needed to meet truth with love. The yoga postures open our lungs and stimulate the lung meridian to help us meet life's inevitable grief with this courage. As grief opens our hearts, the energy of anger begins to transform into compassion, which is the true foundation of nonviolent action.
Props: a blanket (or towel) and a bolster (or cushions).
www.youtube.com/watch?v=ElyRJIJJt1A
80 mins
This quiet restorative yoga practice begins and ends with a self-sourcing meditation, which connects us to body, breath, Earth and Sky. This helps us grow in the confidence and courage needed to meet truth with love. The yoga postures open our lungs and stimulate the lung meridian to help us meet life's inevitable grief with this courage. As grief opens our hearts, the energy of anger begins to transform into compassion, which is the true foundation of nonviolent action.
Props: a blanket (or towel) and a bolster (or cushions).
www.youtube.com/watch?v=ElyRJIJJt1A
Sacred Anger, Sacred Action
60 mins
A well-rounded practice with postures to support becoming grounded and aligned in presence, followed by slow sun salutations to move stuck energy, and yin yoga to cultivate self-compassion.
This practice invites us into a healthy relationship with anger, remembering its energy to be a call to sacred nonviolent action.
No props needed, but a chair and brick are useful.
www.youtube.com/watch?v=qx_cCqKD6pY&t=2966s
60 mins
A well-rounded practice with postures to support becoming grounded and aligned in presence, followed by slow sun salutations to move stuck energy, and yin yoga to cultivate self-compassion.
This practice invites us into a healthy relationship with anger, remembering its energy to be a call to sacred nonviolent action.
No props needed, but a chair and brick are useful.
www.youtube.com/watch?v=qx_cCqKD6pY&t=2966s
Shoulders and Upper Back: Realign Body and Mind
30 mins
This is a short yoga and meditation sequence that can be done at your desk if necessary. The practice releases tension in the shoulders and upper back, allowing deeper breathing. It helps to revitalise by increasing "prana vayu", the subtle energy within us that relates to the element of air. With this vitality, we realign and reconnect our body and mind with the energy within and around us.
www.youtube.com/watch?v=unFwuESB0Pg&t=338s
30 mins
This is a short yoga and meditation sequence that can be done at your desk if necessary. The practice releases tension in the shoulders and upper back, allowing deeper breathing. It helps to revitalise by increasing "prana vayu", the subtle energy within us that relates to the element of air. With this vitality, we realign and reconnect our body and mind with the energy within and around us.
www.youtube.com/watch?v=unFwuESB0Pg&t=338s
Dawn Chorus Yin Yoga and Meditation: Receptivity
50 mins
This "dawn chorus" yin yoga and meditation practice supports receptivity and balance. We follow a kidney and bladder sequence to enhance authentic listening, as we are guided by birdsong and the words of Kalu Rinpoche:
"We live in illusion and the appearance of things. There is a reality. We are that reality. When you understand this, you see that you are nothing, and being nothing, you are everything. That is all."
No props needed, but 3 or 4 foam blocks (or a brick, several hardback books or firm cushions) may be useful.
www.youtube.com/watch?v=b6EKecLOEJ4&t=1705s
50 mins
This "dawn chorus" yin yoga and meditation practice supports receptivity and balance. We follow a kidney and bladder sequence to enhance authentic listening, as we are guided by birdsong and the words of Kalu Rinpoche:
"We live in illusion and the appearance of things. There is a reality. We are that reality. When you understand this, you see that you are nothing, and being nothing, you are everything. That is all."
No props needed, but 3 or 4 foam blocks (or a brick, several hardback books or firm cushions) may be useful.
www.youtube.com/watch?v=b6EKecLOEJ4&t=1705s
Yin Yoga and Meditation: Short Kindness Practice
30 mins
A short yin yoga and meditation practice to support an inner atmosphere of kindness.
Prioritising kindness has been transformative in ways I wouldn't have imagined. I have chosen it to be the first attitude I turn towards when I wake up, holding with kindness any early morning thoughts or feelings that surface. Returning to kindness throughout my day, as I pause and soften. I am watching the way movements of mind that create suffering in me, whether comparison, expectation, judgement or shame, begin to fall away in kindness. That feelings of sadness, isolation and confusion also find a home there. It is an inner atmosphere that not only effortlessly holds suffering, but equally easily celebrates ease. I am noticing that joy, gratitude, and love rest in gentleness and softness when kindness is present. It is the fabric that unites all experience, calling us to return to being held by the fabric itself regardless of what arises.
www.youtube.com/watch?v=j6OtmucoIo0&t=1294s
30 mins
A short yin yoga and meditation practice to support an inner atmosphere of kindness.
Prioritising kindness has been transformative in ways I wouldn't have imagined. I have chosen it to be the first attitude I turn towards when I wake up, holding with kindness any early morning thoughts or feelings that surface. Returning to kindness throughout my day, as I pause and soften. I am watching the way movements of mind that create suffering in me, whether comparison, expectation, judgement or shame, begin to fall away in kindness. That feelings of sadness, isolation and confusion also find a home there. It is an inner atmosphere that not only effortlessly holds suffering, but equally easily celebrates ease. I am noticing that joy, gratitude, and love rest in gentleness and softness when kindness is present. It is the fabric that unites all experience, calling us to return to being held by the fabric itself regardless of what arises.
www.youtube.com/watch?v=j6OtmucoIo0&t=1294s
Yin Yoga and Meditation: From Fear to Connection
90 mins
A yin yoga and meditation practice to balance the kidney and bladder meridians, returning us to an inner gentleness. We begin by cultivating an atmosphere of kindness, as we feel what is here in our immediate experience. Reconnecting with body, heart and mind, with spirit (through vertical alignment with earth and sky), and with soul purpose (who we are and why we're here), brings us into right relationship with all things.
No props needed, but a bolster or cushions may be useful.
www.youtube.com/watch?v=68JgvGLJAZw
90 mins
A yin yoga and meditation practice to balance the kidney and bladder meridians, returning us to an inner gentleness. We begin by cultivating an atmosphere of kindness, as we feel what is here in our immediate experience. Reconnecting with body, heart and mind, with spirit (through vertical alignment with earth and sky), and with soul purpose (who we are and why we're here), brings us into right relationship with all things.
No props needed, but a bolster or cushions may be useful.
www.youtube.com/watch?v=68JgvGLJAZw
Restorative Yoga, Inversions and Meditation
90 mins
A deeply balancing yoga and meditation practice to help quieten the mind, relax the abdomen and open the heart and lungs. This practice supports us to transition from argument to trust, and surrender into the healing potential of opening to the aliveness within and around us.
The props used are a yoga mat at the wall, a bolster, 4 or 5 foam blocks, 2 blankets or cushions, a chair and a strap.
Here are some ways to substitute some of these yoga props with everyday items:
foam blocks = large hardback books
chair = any chair without arm rests and with unobstructed space under the legs
strap = belt or dressing gown cord
bolster = tightly roll several firm blankets or towels together into a cylinder and tie together in the centre and at both ends
* please do not practice inversions if you are menstruating, but follow the alternatives offered *
www.youtube.com/watch?v=EqlcHJ_hAOE&t=7s