Hello and welcome.
This is Jen,
And I'm so glad you're here.
Today I'm going to be guiding a mountain meditation.
Which is a little different from some of the other practices that we do where maybe we focus on the breath or another.
Anchor of our attention that's based in our direct experience.
In the mountain meditation,
We'll be doing a bit of visualization,
Actually bringing to mind a mountain and its qualities and relating to those qualities within ourselves.
Mountains have quite a presence,
Right?
They generally bring a sense of stability,
Of groundedness,
Of centeredness in the midst of the many things that change on them and around them.
And sometimes bringing these qualities of stability and steadiness to mind can help us feel a bit more grounded in our everyday experience,
In the midst of all the different things that happen around us,
To us,
And shape our experiences.
So let's get started.
First,
Finding a comfortable posture.
Sitting upright.
Not too rigid.
But with a proud posture.
Spine straight.
And if it feels right to you,
Closing your eyes or softening your gaze.
Maybe taking a moment to connect with your breath.
Just noticing how it is right now.
And then bringing to mind your favorite mountain.
This can be a mountain that you have been on.
Maybe that you've hiked on.
Or skied on or seen in person.
Or it can be a mountain that you're familiar with from pictures or movies.
Or if you're having trouble bringing a real mountain to mind,
You can just make one up.
But regardless of which mountain you've chosen.
Really take a good look at it in your mind's eye.
Maybe it has one peak.
Or multiple peaks.
Maybe it's steep.
Maybe it has soft rolling hills.
Maybe there's snow on the top of the mountain.
Maybe it's covered in trees.
Just bring to your mind's eye all of the characteristics of this mountain.
And then begin to.
.
.
Visualize yourself as this mountain.
This mountain is you.
You can think about your body as the mountain as you sit.
Your head.
The lofty peak.
Your shoulders and arms,
The sloping sides.
Your seat,
The stable base.
Sitting firmly.
Now we can think about how much changes.
Around us.
Even in a single day.
Thinking about how the light shifts from the morning when the sun rises.
To the evening when the sun sets.
Changing the whole appearance of the mountain and everything on it.
Light and shadows.
Warmth and coolness as the sun rises and sets.
We can think about.
The activity on the mountain in terms of the plants and animals.
And how that shifts within a single day.
Certain animals are active during the day.
Others at night.
Even changes with the plants from day to night.
Maybe reaching toward the sun in certain moments.
There's constant change.
On the mountain.
Even within a single day.
And yet,
It's all the same to the mountain.
It just sits.
Just exists.
Think about these changes in the course of a day.
And yourself as the mountain underneath it all.
We can also think about the changes of the seasons.
So in addition to these daily changes,
These longer term changes.
Thinking first.
About the summertime.
Maybe there's lots of activity on the mountain,
Lots of tourists.
There may be a lot of heat and warmth.
Maybe sometimes there's thunderstorms.
In the summertime.
And all of these tourists may come and visit the mountain.
And have different opinions.
About the mountain.
And their experience.
They might say things about what they think.
Wow,
What a beautiful day.
It's perfect.
Or,
Ugh,
I can't believe it rained today.
It was too crowded.
Never coming back here.
And yet.
.
.
Underneath it all.
The mountain just sits.
It's all the same to the mountain.
We can think about the transition to fall.
The turning of the leaves.
Maybe periods of exceptional beauty,
Vibrant colors,
As the leaves turn from green to red,
Orange,
And yellow.
Busyness of the animals as they prepare for winter.
The days begin to get shorter.
The environment changes.
And still.
The mountain just sits.
Ever Steady.
Underneath these changes.
We can think about.
The wintertime.
On the surface of the mountain.
Sometimes bringing harsh conditions,
Darkness.
Maybe periods of isolation.
Or difficult times that feel like maybe.
They'll never end.
But yet.
.
.
The mountain is still strong and steady.
Stable underneath it all.
We can bring to mind next.
The experience of spring on the mountain.
Life emerging.
Animals becoming more active.
Days becoming longer again.
Plants growing,
Flowers blossoming,
New growth and activity.
There might be feelings of warmth.
Of connection and activity returning.
And yet underneath it.
.
.
The mountain is still the same.
Stable.
Unchanging underneath the surface.
We can think of so many parallels.
Between our lives.
And the mountain.
There's so much that happens on a given day.
There's so much that happens in different seasons of our lives.
Sometimes we feel like we're in periods of growth,
Of transformation.
Of activation,
Of change,
Of connection.
And other times like in the harshness of winter.
We can feel lonely.
We can struggle.
We can be unsure when the warmth is going to return.
And yet.
Like the mountain.
There's part of us that remains constant and steady underneath all of that.
The pleasant and unpleasant experiences.
The joys and the sorrows.
There's a steadiness at the core of us.
Just like the mountain,
Standing underneath it all.
Meditating can help us connect with that sense of steadiness.
Helping us.
To feel a bit more grounded and connected.
In the midst of all of the changes that happen.
And this isn't to say.
That we shouldn't be affected by.
All of the things that happen in our lives.
We should meet our experiences fully.
And.
.
.
Meet those joys and sorrows with as much presence.
And connectedness and intention.
As we can.
Bringing this mountain imagery and meditation to mind.
Can help us.
Meet those experiences more fully,
Knowing that there's a part of us that is constant.
Underneath all of the change.
There's part of us that is like the mountain.
In a moment,
I will ring the bell three times,
Signifying the end of this mountain meditation.
But just remembering that this sense of steadiness.
Of connectedness and groundedness.
Is something we can carry with us long after the sound of the bell.
Thank you for your practice.
