Hello and welcome.
Many of us,
If not all of us,
At some point in our lives struggle to find meaning or are weighed down by the pursuit of it But what if meaning isn't something to pursue?
Or chase.
Or cultivate.
What if it can be discovered in a way that is natural,
Without effort?
Without pressure and conflict.
Let us find out.
As usual,
Allow yourself to get comfortable,
Whether sitting or lying down.
There's no right way,
Just be comfortable.
Allow yourself to arrive in this moment.
And know that there's nothing you need to understand or discover or find in this meditation.
So remove that pressure.
All that is required is attention.
And so bring your attention to the body.
The feeling of sitting or lying down.
The surface beneath you.
How gravity is holding you up.
Any sensations on your skin.
The body's movement as it breathes.
For a few moments allow everything to be as it is.
Many of us spend a great deal of our lives searching for meaning.
We ask ourselves,
What is my purpose?
What am I meant to do?
What path should I follow?
And the big one,
What is the reason I am here?
And these questions can feel deeply important.
But perhaps it is worth looking more closely at the process,
The movement,
Of searching What do we believe meaning will give us?
Perhaps we imagine that once we discover our purpose,
Something will finally become clear.
That we will know where we are going.
That we will finally be able to begin living fully.
But is life something that begins after meaning has been found?
Or is there something we're overlooking?
From a young age,
Many of us are encouraged to create an idea of our future.
Were conditioned to do so.
We are asked questions like.
.
.
What do you want to become?
What career will you choose?
What will you achieve?
Before we have truly lived,
We are often encouraged to decide who we are going to be.
And many of those ideas do not arise from our own direct experience of life.
They are shaped and given to us by our parents,
By society,
By education.
By the expectations all around us.
Slowly,
We can begin living towards an idea of the future.
Rather than meeting the life that is already here.
The mind creates a destination,
A purpose,
An answer.
And then it tells us that once we arrive here,
We can finally begin.
But notice something.
Right now,
Before you have found an answer.
Before you have discovered a purpose.
Are you not already living?
There is breathing.
There are sensations.
There are sounds.
There is awareness.
Light is already unfolding.
And perhaps we have created the idea that meaning exists somewhere ahead of us.
Something waiting to be discovered.
Something that will finally give our life value.
What if this search prevents us from recognising the value of life as it already is?
Imagine someone taking their final breath.
In that moment,
What matters?
Would they say,
I wish I had spent more time searching for meaning rather than living?
Or would there perhaps be a recognition of something much simpler?
That the experience of being alive itself was never insignificant.
That seeing,
Feeling,
Loving,
Experiencing,
Being here was already something extraordinary.
And this does not mean that meaning is unimportant.
Meaning can be one of the most beautiful parts of life.
Meaning in a relationship.
A creative expression,
A contribution,
A moment of connection.
But perhaps there is a difference between meaning that emerges naturally through living.
A meaning that is pursued because we believe something is missing.
When we force ourselves to find meaning it can become another burden,
Another problem to solve,
Another answer we believe we must discover before we can be at peace.
But perhaps meaning is not something that needs to be created.
Perhaps it emerges when we are fully engaged with life.
When we care,
When we pay attention,
When we meet each moment directly.
And so the question might not be,
How do I find meaning?
Perhaps a more appropriate question is can I meet life so completely that meaning no longer needs to be searched for?
Can I meet life so completely that meaning no longer needs to be searched for?
And so for a moment,
See the conflict it can create within you.
Let the search come to a rest,
Not because you have found the answer but because you're willing to meet what was already here.
This moment,
This life as it is,
Whatever it is right now,
It's your life and it's happening.
As we finish this meditation,
Perhaps carry this question with you.
Are you waiting to find meaning before you allow yourself to live?
Or can you discover that living itself is where meaning begins?
Thank you for listening.
Please be compassionate to yourself.
Take the pressure off your back,
Which is not yours to carry.
And until next time,
Stay present.
