Browse
Top articles
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
00:00
00:00
Duration
Personalized support for learning how to integrate mindfulness into your life. Delivered fresh everyday by our world renowned experts. Choose meditation duration:
Hi, and welcome to your Daily Mindfulness.
Today I'm going to share
with you a Zen parable.
This is actually one of my favorites.
It's about how our minds can create
heaven and our minds can create hell.
So the story goes that once upon a
time, a really notorious and tough
samurai went to visit a Zen master.
And when he arrived, the
master was deep in meditation.
So the samurai used to getting
his way and being respected, spoke
forcefully to the Zen master, "Tell
me the nature of heaven and hell."
Now the Zen master just sat peacefully.
So the samurai yelled again, "Tell
me the nature of heaven and hell."
The Zen master slowly opened his eyes
and looked the samurai up and down.
And then he replied to him
with the same forceful tone,
"Why should I answer to you?
A rude shabby, worm-like you?
Why should I waste my
time telling you anything?
Get out of my sight.
I have no time for your stupid questions."
Well the samurai could
not bear these insults.
He was filled with rage and
hatred overcome by them.
So he drew his sword and raised
it ready to kill the master.
And the master then looked straight
into the amurai's eyes with
compassion and said, "That is hell."
The samurai stood stone still.
And he immediately understood
that anger had taken him over.
His mind had just created
his own hell in an instant.
One filled with anger, hatred,
aggression, and a total loss of control.
He realized he was so taken over
by anger that he was ready to kill
someone he just met a few minutes ago.
The samurai dropped his sword and
dropped to his knees and began to weep.
He knelt before the master and bowed
in gratitude for the understanding.
The Zen master gently bowed back and with
a tender smile said, "And that is heaven."
The sudden awakening of the samurai
to his own suffering and unconscious
behavior illustrates the difference
between being caught up in a thought
or feeling and being aware of a
thought or feeling as they arise.
And this is what we might
call self-awareness.
And this kind of self-awareness
means we can also self-regulate.
Self-regulation is like an
ongoing in a conversation or
interaction with ourselves.
It frees us from being a prisoner of our
own feelings and impulses, which often
creates hell in our lives, like the
samurai, and it gives us back choice.
So instead of reacting and probably
just creating more hell, we can
choose consciously to respond.
We can choose to respond with
patiencem with kindness, with
humility, or with courage.
We can respond with presencem
with awareness and therefore
create more heaven in our lives.
So now just to be clear, people with
this kind of high self awareness and
self regulation still feel bad moods and
strong impulses, just like we all do.
But they find ways to regulate them and
respond in more useful ways to life.
So today, as you go about your day, just
remembering that we can choose to step out
of suffering or in this, you know, parable
out of hell and stepping into more heaven
by being aware, when a strong impulse or
emotion is arising, letting go of reacting
and then choosing a wiser response.
And therefore creating
more heaven in our lives.
So as always thank you for your
practice and your presence here with us.
And now just inviting you to
settle in for today's meditation.
Get Unlimited Access
A Mindfulness Plus+ subscription gives you unlimited access to a world of premium mindfulness content.
Email Missing
We couldn’t detect your email with the SSO provider you have selected.We are here to make a positive impact on the world. We never want to sell you something that hasn’t helped you live a better life. That’s why if you’re unhappy with any purchase from us, you have 30 days to get a full refund and your money back.
If you subscribed to Mindfulness Plus+ and are unhappy with your purchase, please get in contact with us within the 30-day period and we’ll refund your purchase.
Learn more about our Mindfulness Guarantee.
Mindfulness
We believe in a world where everybody has access to the life-changing skills of mindfulness.
Private Browsing
Congratulations on taking the first step towards a more mindful life! As a token of our appreciation, we want to offer you an exclusive opportunity to upgrade to Mindfulness Plus+ for a price you won't find anywhere else.
Mindfulness Plus+ is our premium membership that includes everything you need to learn mindfulness and keep practicing throughout all stages of life.
Take this exclusive offer to further your mindfulness skills and experience deeper levels of well-being.
Annual membership
$0
Just a small sample of the life-changing 5-star reviews we get on a daily basis.
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
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.
-
Claim your free access
Create a mindfulness account and we’ll unlock this premium session in your account forever.
7-Days free trial, cancel anytime.
Complete a few quick questions to make your own personalized mindfulness plan.