Mountain Meditation

We're going to do the mountain meditation now.

It lasts for about 15 minutes and it's best done sitting or standing.

And during this meditation the anchor is the image of the mountain.

Remembering that the breath is always there for us if we encounter intense sensations or emotions.

So let's enjoy three sounds of the bell.

So now taking a strong upright position,

Planted solid and adopting a posture that is stable,

Upright and open.

The back is straight but not stiff and letting the shoulders drop.

Now if it's possible and it feels comfortable for you,

Closing your eyes.

And now narrowing your attention to focus on the breath,

Wherever it is most clear for you.

And just observing your breath without trying to change it or regulate it in any way.

Allowing the body to be still.

And now as best you can,

Allow yourself to picture a mountain.

Any mountain that you can clearly visualize.

It might be a real mountain or an imaginary one.

Maybe somewhere you've visited or something you've seen in a movie.

It doesn't really matter.

And letting the image become as clear as you can.

It doesn't matter how clear it is.

Whatever you see is just fine.

It should be a mountain with a peak or several peaks.

Able to hold snow in the winter.

So viewing your mountain from a distance.

So you can see the whole mass of this mountain.

From the peak,

Down the slopes,

Past the foothills which may be grassy or wooded.

Until it merges with the surrounding land.

And whatever its shape or appearance,

Just sitting and breathing with the image of this mountain.

Observing it and noticing its qualities.

And perhaps noticing how it merges with the land but it is also distinct from it.

This mountain couldn't be missed.

And taking in your mountain.

What about the colors or the different shades of green?

And the shape.

How much of your field of view does it feel?

How solid it is?

How grounded and immovable it is?

And perhaps moving a little closer.

Keeping the whole image in view.

And this mountain has stood here for thousands of years.

Yet despite its unchanged presence,

There are a number of things that change around the mountain and on the mountain.

Clouds passing across the sky that shadow the mountain slowly or quickly,

Depending on the wind.

And sometimes the mountain seems brighter.

Sometimes in shadow.

Another change is that every day darkness comes.

The mountain becomes dimmer as the sun fades until it is complete darkness.

Yet it is still here.

And perhaps you can see it if the moon is out.

But it looks very different from how it was.

Then comes the dawn and the dim mountain becomes brighter as the sun rises.

The sun bursts onto the mountain,

Illuminating the whole mass of the mountain from the peak downwards.

This reflects back whatever colors the season is displaying on the mountain.

Yet despite all this change,

The mountain remains the same.

To the onlooker the mountain may look different and on the surface it may be different,

But it is always the same mountain from day to day,

Season to season.

And time passes and spring arrives and greenery grows on the mountain making it seem more vibrant and bright.

The trees grow new leaves,

The grass grows,

The flowers bloom in the high meadows and slopes while animals take care of their young.

Streams overflow with the waters of melting snow.

And time passes and you notice the days get longer,

The nights shorter as spring changes to summer.

The green becomes darker and stronger in color as people come toward now and admire the mountain.

Insects are buzzing everywhere and flying around.

As summer goes on the hot sun dries things out and the colors take on a more yellow appearance.

But despite the changing seasons the mountain remains the same,

Unchanged by what is happening around it.

As time passes you notice the days get shorter and cooler.

The sun sets earlier as summer changes to autumn.

We see browns and reds as the leaves of the trees change colors and then they fall.

The grass becomes less vivid and the mountain begins to seem more bare again.

And time passes and the days get shorter.

Sometimes instead of rain snow falls and just a few flakes at first until one day you notice that everything has turned white,

Everything is transformed.

The streams are frozen,

Winter is here.

You only occasionally see animals or just their tracks.

Most of the birds have gone.

Throughout all of this the mountain remains the same.

It doesn't resist the seasons or try to change them or hurry the seasons along.

The mountain is not disturbed by these changes at all.

It is simply this mountain,

Unchanged by what is happening around it.

Other things happen to change the appearance of the mountain.

When it's sunny and calm the mountain seems a gentle place and those people come to view it,

Find it a safe and comfortable place,

Having a clear vision of the mountain in the clear skies.

Then the weather changes.

Sometimes it's misty,

Sometimes dense fog surrounds it,

Clouding the mountain.

We can't see the mountain from the distance in this weather.

The people that come can't see much of the mountain at all and people say it's not a good day for that mountain today.

And yet,

Seen or unseen,

This is still the same mountain.

It has not changed.

Then perhaps the weather changes again.

Thunderstorms come,

The rain pours,

Lightning flashes,

The streams around the mountain swell and the mountain seems wild,

Stormy,

Bleak at times.

Through all of this wildness on the surface the mountain remains the same.

Sooner or later the storm passes and brightness returns again.

We can begin to let ourselves borrow some of these qualities from the mountain so that these various experiences of storm and turmoil affect us mainly at the surface.

And we can keep awareness that underneath we remain the same,

Like the mountain,

Neither resisting change or trying to hold on to what has changed,

Accepting the weather as it is right now.

And perhaps at times being able to celebrate the fact that in our lives things do change,

That give colour,

Excitement to our lives.

And perhaps the colour and excitement can make it easier to bear and accept the storms.

Through all of this,

Like the mountain,

We remain ourselves,

Unique,

But not distinctly separate from the world around us.

So in the time that remains,

Continuing to sustain the mountain meditation on your own,

Moment by moment,

Until you hear the sound of the bells.

The sound of the bells is the sound of the rain.

The sound of the rain is the sound of the rain.

The sound of the rain is the sound of the rain.

The sound of the rain is the sound of the rain.