Welcome,
And I hope that each one of you will come to find peace within yourself.
Today I'm going to talk a little bit about setting intentions,
And this meditation is based on a live session I did recently.
If you've listened to my meditations or my live sessions,
You know that I've said many times that words and thoughts have power.
The things we say and the things we think have the ability to become reality,
And in the same way,
Setting an intention is a way of making your day better.
Setting an intention is one of those deceptively simple practices that can completely shift the texture of a day,
Or a meditation,
Or even a season of your life.
At their best,
Intentions act less like goals and more like a direction of being,
Kind of a gentle orientation of the heart,
Rather than as a task list for your mind.
I see intentions because they create a subtle pull,
They don't demand or force,
They invite.
And they anchor you in qualities,
Not in outcomes.
Remember,
Goals live in the future,
Intentions live in the present.
And that's why they pair so beautifully with meditation.
They're about how you're showing up,
Not what you're trying to achieve.
And I've found in my own life that often an intention is most powerful when it's simple.
Sometimes you can even use a single word.
Maybe something like soften,
Or allow,
Or return,
Or listen,
Or open.
The simpler intention,
The more room it has to breathe.
And setting an intention can be a powerful practice.
The real magic isn't declaring a wish to the universe,
It's in the way an intention quietly reorganizes your inner landscape.
An intention is a direction,
Not a demand.
It's like turning your body towards a trailhead before you start walking.
You're not forcing the path to appear,
You're orienting yourself.
And it clarifies what you're actually practicing.
Saying may I meet this moment with kindness changes the way you breathe,
The way you listen,
The way you respond.
It's subtle,
But it's a real shift in your nervous system.
Close your eyes now,
And let's get in touch with our breath.
And it doesn't matter if you're sitting,
Standing,
Lying down,
Or kicked back in your favorite recliner.
The only thing that truly matters when you meditate is that you're comfortable and alert.
And always remember that it's your meditation.
You need to do what makes you happy,
Because there is no right way to meditate.
So as we start to settle into this moment,
Let's focus on our breath.
We're just breathing in and breathing out,
One breath at a time.
And then the next,
And then the next.
And that is the present moment.
One breath,
One inhale,
One exhale.
Let's scan our body.
Your face is too tense.
Unfurl your brow and unclench your jaw.
We need to relax more.
Relax your neck.
Relax your shoulders.
These are places of tension in today's world,
Because we're slumped over our phones and tablets and laptops.
Relax your arms and your hands.
Look for any tension in your chest and belly.
And then relax your legs and your feet.
And as you begin to settle into this moment,
Let's focus even more on our breath.
Our breath is our anchor.
It's there for us in all moments.
It's like a river as it flows in and flows out.
Don't just breathe.
Notice your breath.
Notice where you feel it in your body.
We breathe constantly.
But when you sit to meditate,
Notice your breath.
The cool sensation in your nose as the breath flows in.
Or the movement of your chest and belly as your breath flows in and flows out.
And if you have thoughts,
Just let them go.
Thoughts are like clouds in the sky,
Or waves on a lake,
Or leaves floating downstream.
Just acknowledge them and let them go.
And the same goes if you hear sounds in the room.
Just take a moment to settle into your comfortable position,
Whatever that might be.
Let your body find a posture that feels both grounded and open.
Allow your hands to just rest wherever they fall.
Let your awareness begin to gather here in this moment,
In this body.
Notice the subtle movements of your breath.
The rise,
The fall,
And the quiet in between.
There's nothing you need to fix.
Nothing you need to accomplish.
We're just arriving.
Let the breath be your anchor.
Steady.
Simple.
Enough.
Now here I'm going to pause for a moment and let you just breathe and think.
And then I'll be back.
Now you know that I love rivers.
So I'm going to use rivers to explain intentions.
So in your mind's eye,
Imagine you're standing beside a river.
It's not a dramatic river.
It's not a rushing torrent or a roaring rapid.
Just a steady,
Living river.
A river that knows where it's going without forcing anything.
Notice the way the water moves.
How it curves around stones.
How it glimmers in the light.
How it continues forward without strain.
This river is your inner life.
Always moving.
Always adjusting.
Always finding its way.
And what is an intention really?
As you stand beside this river,
Consider this.
An intention is not a demand.
It's not a goal you must achieve.
It's not a promise that you have to keep.
An intention is a direction.
A gentle orientation of your heart.
It's like placing a small leaf on the surface of the water.
And watching it drift in the direction the river already wants to go.
Intentions don't push.
They guide.
They whisper.
This is the way I want to move today.
Take a slow breath in.
And then exhale slowly.
And now imagine stepping closer to the riverbank.
You kneel down and the water is right there.
It's cool and clear and steady.
And ask yourself,
Quietly,
Without pressure.
How do I want to move through the world today?
What quality wants to guide me?
And don't force an answer.
Let it come the way a leaf falls from a tree.
Naturally and in its own time.
Maybe the intention is a word.
Soften.
Patience.
Clarity.
Steadiness.
Maybe it's a phrase.
Let me move gently.
Let me listen more deeply.
Or let me return to myself.
Or maybe it's simply a feeling.
A warmth in your chest.
Or a loosening of your shoulders.
Or a sense of opening.
Whatever arises for you.
Let it be enough.
Now imagine holding that intention in your hands.
As if it were a small leaf.
Or a smooth stone.
Or maybe a tiny boat you made out of bark.
Feel its weight.
And its texture.
And feel its simplicity.
And when you're ready,
Place it gently on the surface of the river.
And now just watch how the water receives it without hesitation.
Watch how it begins to drift.
Not because you push it.
But because the river knows how to carry things forward.
Your intention is now held by something larger than effort.
It's supported by the natural movement of your life.
You don't have to force it.
You don't have to chase it.
You simply return to it.
The way the river returns to the sea.
Feel how your body responds to this intention.
Not as a command.
But as a gentle orientation.
Let the intention settle into you the way sunlight settles onto the surface of the water.
Quietly.
Naturally.
And without effort.
Now imagine stepping back from the riverbank.
The river continues flowing.
Carrying your intention with it.
Know that you can return here anytime.
To reset.
To realign.
Or just to remember.
Your intention is not something you must hold tightly.
It's something you can return to again and again.
Like coming back to your breath.
Now as we near a close,
Take in one more slow breath through your nose.
And let it out through your mouth,
Letting out a sigh.
Feel your body here.
Feel the earth beneath you.
Feel the quiet shift inside.
Subtle,
But real.
And when you're ready,
Open your eyes.
And come back into the room.
Wiggle your fingers and toes and stretch.
And feel how good it is to be alive.
To be here in this moment.
Carry your intention with you.
Not as a task,
But as a direction.
A quiet current beneath the surface of your day.
I hope this has been a beneficial and calming session for each and every one of you.
Life is hard.
And we get through it together.
And we get through it by getting in touch with our breath.
Breathing in and breathing out.
One breath at a time.
Till next time.
