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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, and welcome to your Daily Mindfulness.
Today, I'm going to talk
about the wishing game.
So there's an old story about this.
Five children were
playing the wishing game.
The first child was asked, so if
you had a wish, what would you want?
She replied, "If I had a wish,
I would want an ice cream."
Then the second child who was a few
years older said, "If I had a wish,
I'd wish for an ice cream factory."
and the first child thought, "Oh wow.
That's so clever."
The third child was then asked,.
"You know, what would you wish?"
He said, Well, if I had a wish, it
would be for a billion dollars because
with a billion dollars, I can buy an
ice cream factory, a cookie factory
hamburger shop, and a skateboard shop.
Then I can have whatever
I want whenever I wanted."
Well, the first two kids went, "Oh, wow.
That is the best wish ever.
That's so clever."
They thought this kid is a genius.
Now the next child, when they asked him,
you know, "What would you wish for?"
He said, "Well, if I had a wish, I
would wish that I had three wishes.
So I could wish for an ice cream factory
with my first wish, a billion dollars with
my second wish, and with my third wish
I would wish for another three wishes."
Well, of course all
the kids' jaws dropped.
"Oh wow.
Weeh," they said this, "You've
really cracked the code here.
You're amazing."
So the fable goes, the last
child was the young Buddha.
When it was his turn, he said, "I would
wish that I had no wishes at all so that
I could be happy, fulfilled, and content."
This really sweet story points to a mental
trap that we often get ourselves stuck in.
The trap of always wishing for
this moment to be different and
therefore cultivating a kind of
background sense of dissatisfaction.
So when you're always wishing for
something else, you're never fully
satisfied, never fully allowing yourself
to drop into contentment and never
quite fully present with what is.
Now of course letting go of the
wishing game doesn't mean that we
can never plan for things or make
positive changes in our lives.
It simply means learning to let go of
the continuous mental storylines that
say this moment is not good enough.
I need more.
I need this, that or the
other before I can be happy.
So this is the invitation for
practice today to see if you can
notice when the wishing game arises
in your mind, the stories about what
you need before you can be happy.
And when they do arise, just
letting them go as best you can and
switch your focus to appreciation
and gratitude for something about
the present moment experience.
So you just want to pick one thing or
two things you're really grateful for
and let the energy of gratitude and
contentment fill your body and mind.
By opening to the enoughness and fullness
of our lives, we naturally live with
more presence, contentment and joy.
As the old saying goes, "Happiness
is not having what you want.
It's appreciating what you have."
As always, thank you for your
practice and your presence here.
Let's settle in now
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.
- 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
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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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