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How to Meditate: Meditation 101 for Beginners
10 Science-Backed Benefits of Meditation
What is Meditation?
How to Meditate: Meditation 101 for Beginners
10 Science-Backed Benefits of Meditation
What is Meditation?
Benefits of Mindfulness: Mindful Living Can Change Your Life
Mindfulness 101: A Beginner's Guide
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Hi, welcome back to your Daily Mindfulness. In today's session, I want to talk about the relationship between agency and surrender. Now, agency is essentially our capacity to feel like we can impact our life on a moment to moment basis. It can even be looked at as a form of feeling like we have control and influence over what is arising. This form of having influence and control over our experience can sometimes be poo-pooed in the mindfulness space because there's so much emphasis on letting go of control and holding a spacious relationship to what is arising and seeing that thoughts are arising, emotions are arising, sensations are arising, without much input from us.
And being able to get to a place of just holding all of it without trying to change it. And that's powerful. However, having some sense of agency over our experience, even an ability to direct our attention to a different aspect of our experience is fundamental to what it means to be human. Our brains are programmed and wired to want to feel a sense of agency. It's one of the biggest buffers against depression.
When we don't feel like we have choice, when we don't feel like we have influence over our experience, we fall into a learned helplessness response. And in fact, the new research on learned helplessness shows that it's not actually learned. Our default response to a difficult situation is to be helpless, is to stop trying, and to basically like curl up in a ball and go into a freeze response. You could think of an animal in a life-threatening situation. What we have that is unique though, is a wiring that Dr.
Marty Seligman calls the hope circuit that overrides that feeling of helplessness because it's telling us no, we can influence our situation, we can get out of it, we can change it. So that part of the brain is incredibly important and it is a big buffer against depression and anxiety. So I want to make sure we're, we're holding that. At the same time, though, all we can influence is what is arising in this moment, all we can influence is how we're showing up in each moment. What happens after that, in many ways, for lack of a better phrase, is God's business.
It's the universe's business. We don't really have control over it. And so one way to look at this, the relationship between agency and surrender is to see it as being committed to the process, but detached from the outcome. Committed to the process, but detach from the outcome. In this way, we're recognizing that we have influence over how we're going to relate to this moment.
That's agency. However, we don't have influence over what's going to happen next. That's surrender. And by holding those two, we can show up in a way that makes us feel empowered, but allow life to unfold in a way that allows us to feel ease. So see if you could take this into your day, commitment to the process, but detachment from the outcome.
Thank you for your practice. Let's settle in for today's meditation.
Agency and Surrender
Personalized support for learning how to integrate mindfulness into your life. Delivered fresh everyday by our world renowned experts. Choose meditation duration:
Duration
Your default time is based on your progress and is changed automatically as you practice.
Hi, welcome back to your Daily Mindfulness. In today's session, I want to talk about the relationship between agency and surrender. Now, agency is essentially our capacity to feel like we can impact our life on a moment to moment basis. It can even be looked at as a form of feeling like we have control and influence over what is arising. This form of having influence and control over our experience can sometimes be poo-pooed in the mindfulness space because there's so much emphasis on letting go of control and holding a spacious relationship to what is arising and seeing that thoughts are arising, emotions are arising, sensations are arising, without much input from us.
And being able to get to a place of just holding all of it without trying to change it. And that's powerful. However, having some sense of agency over our experience, even an ability to direct our attention to a different aspect of our experience is fundamental to what it means to be human. Our brains are programmed and wired to want to feel a sense of agency. It's one of the biggest buffers against depression.
When we don't feel like we have choice, when we don't feel like we have influence over our experience, we fall into a learned helplessness response. And in fact, the new research on learned helplessness shows that it's not actually learned. Our default response to a difficult situation is to be helpless, is to stop trying, and to basically like curl up in a ball and go into a freeze response. You could think of an animal in a life-threatening situation. What we have that is unique though, is a wiring that Dr.
Marty Seligman calls the hope circuit that overrides that feeling of helplessness because it's telling us no, we can influence our situation, we can get out of it, we can change it. So that part of the brain is incredibly important and it is a big buffer against depression and anxiety. So I want to make sure we're, we're holding that. At the same time, though, all we can influence is what is arising in this moment, all we can influence is how we're showing up in each moment. What happens after that, in many ways, for lack of a better phrase, is God's business.
It's the universe's business. We don't really have control over it. And so one way to look at this, the relationship between agency and surrender is to see it as being committed to the process, but detached from the outcome. Committed to the process, but detach from the outcome. In this way, we're recognizing that we have influence over how we're going to relate to this moment.
That's agency. However, we don't have influence over what's going to happen next. That's surrender. And by holding those two, we can show up in a way that makes us feel empowered, but allow life to unfold in a way that allows us to feel ease. So see if you could take this into your day, commitment to the process, but detachment from the outcome.
Thank you for your practice. Let's settle in for today's meditation.
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Vidyamala’s tips on catching anger as it’s happening or about to happen are great - clear, practical, and doable.
- Vicoir
The little talks before the meditations are priceless. It's like I've found my peeps. The topics, the quotes, the goals—it all makes so much sense to me, things I want to be thinking and learning about. Most importantly, the meditations are kindness-centered, which I love. It feels like a new way to approach meditation.
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Incredible, easy to navigate app. I would highly recommend this app to anyone who wishes to reduce stress and anxiety or simply as an aid to improve overall mental health.
- Kirtus
I love how the app gives me pointers to new things to explore.
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Better than Headspace. I've had the paid version of both apps, and I must say I enjoy this one better.
- Gina, Plus+ Member
Vidyamala’s tips on catching anger as it’s happening or about to happen are great - clear, practical, and doable.
- Vicoir
The little talks before the meditations are priceless. It's like I've found my peeps. The topics, the quotes, the goals—it all makes so much sense to me, things I want to be thinking and learning about. Most importantly, the meditations are kindness-centered, which I love. It feels like a new way to approach meditation.
- Lauren
Incredible, easy to navigate app. I would highly recommend this app to anyone who wishes to reduce stress and anxiety or simply as an aid to improve overall mental health.
- Kirtus
I love how the app gives me pointers to new things to explore.
- Lydia
So calm and soothing. I love the new bundle with Kelly Boys, she’s brilliant!
- EJ
Better than Headspace. I've had the paid version of both apps, and I must say I enjoy this one better.
- Gina, Plus+ Member
Vidyamala’s tips on catching anger as it’s happening or about to happen are great - clear, practical, and doable.
- Vicoir
The little talks before the meditations are priceless. It's like I've found my peeps. The topics, the quotes, the goals—it all makes so much sense to me, things I want to be thinking and learning about. Most importantly, the meditations are kindness-centered, which I love. It feels like a new way to approach meditation.
- Lauren
Incredible, easy to navigate app. I would highly recommend this app to anyone who wishes to reduce stress and anxiety or simply as an aid to improve overall mental health.
- Kirtus
I love how the app gives me pointers to new things to explore.
- Lydia
So calm and soothing. I love the new bundle with Kelly Boys, she’s brilliant!
- EJ
Better than Headspace. I've had the paid version of both apps, and I must say I enjoy this one better.
- Gina, Plus+ Member
I am very new to meditation, and am so happy that my first introduction to it has been through this app
The first session was fantastic. I feel safe. And supported. Almost like having someone helping me through my difficult time. I’m very grateful for this app.
- Babi
You get a lot of useful tips for handling stress and anxiety in 'real life'.
- Joy
Highly recommend.
- Humanfrst
Kelly Boys is hands down the best. Everytime I click on one of her guided meditations I get excited for the calmness that lies ahead.
-
I am very new to meditation, and am so happy that my first introduction to it has been through this app
The first session was fantastic. I feel safe. And supported. Almost like having someone helping me through my difficult time. I’m very grateful for this app.
- Babi
You get a lot of useful tips for handling stress and anxiety in 'real life'.
- Joy
Highly recommend.
- Humanfrst
Kelly Boys is hands down the best. Everytime I click on one of her guided meditations I get excited for the calmness that lies ahead.
-
I am very new to meditation, and am so happy that my first introduction to it has been through this app
The first session was fantastic. I feel safe. And supported. Almost like having someone helping me through my difficult time. I’m very grateful for this app.
- Babi
You get a lot of useful tips for handling stress and anxiety in 'real life'.
- Joy
Highly recommend.
- Humanfrst
Kelly Boys is hands down the best. Everytime I click on one of her guided meditations I get excited for the calmness that lies ahead.
-
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