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How to Meditate: Meditation 101 for Beginners
10 Science-Backed Benefits of Meditation
What is Meditation?
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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 skepticism versus discernment and curiosity. So there's an old Zen story about this. There was a man who was born blind and he said, "I do not believe in the world of light and appearance. There are no colors, bright or dull.
There's no sun, no moon, no stars. I don't believe that anyone has witnessed these things." Now, his friends tried to argue with him about this, but he clung to his opinion. "What you say you see are illusions," he said."If colors existed, I should be able to touch them. They clearly have no existence and are not real. They have no weight, no substance.
I feel no substance, no weight where you see colors. So clearly they don't exist." Then one day a doctor was called to see this blind man. He mixed up a medicine which he applied to the cataracts and the blind man's eyes. And as he mixed this mixture into his eyes and the cataracts melted suddenly a whole new world and reality opened up before him. He suddenly took in all the light he could not see.
In some ways we have a similarity with the blind man, because if we've not experienced something directly, sometimes we have this insistence or this idea that it's not possible. It's just fanciful thinking. So when it comes to your own mind, for instance, maybe you haven't had a chance yet to glimpse the possibilities laying dormant there. You may have heard some teachers or some wisdom traditions, or even modern neuroscience talking about the possibility of easing suffering and stress and finding a sense of wholeness, oneness, and inner peace. But if you've never felt it yourself, you might have a lot of skepticism and doubt about that.
Now it's important to know that skepticism has its purpose and we don't want to just go around believing everything that people tell us and being kind of naive. But on the other hand, skepticism can block us off from new experiences and possibilities. So rather than seeing skepticism as an altogether bad thing, I'd invite you to just make a slight pivot and reorient to a healthier curiosity. So think about being an investigator, an explorer of your own direct experience, rather than just believing or disbelieving what somebody tells you. So just being interested and open to exploring mindfulness and meditation for yourself.
Giving the practice a go for a number of days, weeks or months and then checking in with yourself. Is this making a difference? What kind of difference? In this way we can find our own direct experience to be the most important part of our discovery process. So instead of coming to this practice already having made up your mind, instead, we lay aside our assumptions, preconceived ideas and opinions, and instead make the effort to know and see for ourselves. So as always, thank you for your practice and your presence here with us and just inviting you now to settle in for today's meditation.
All the Light We Cannot See
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, and welcome to your Daily Mindfulness. Today I'm going to talk about skepticism versus discernment and curiosity. So there's an old Zen story about this. There was a man who was born blind and he said, "I do not believe in the world of light and appearance. There are no colors, bright or dull.
There's no sun, no moon, no stars. I don't believe that anyone has witnessed these things." Now, his friends tried to argue with him about this, but he clung to his opinion. "What you say you see are illusions," he said."If colors existed, I should be able to touch them. They clearly have no existence and are not real. They have no weight, no substance.
I feel no substance, no weight where you see colors. So clearly they don't exist." Then one day a doctor was called to see this blind man. He mixed up a medicine which he applied to the cataracts and the blind man's eyes. And as he mixed this mixture into his eyes and the cataracts melted suddenly a whole new world and reality opened up before him. He suddenly took in all the light he could not see.
In some ways we have a similarity with the blind man, because if we've not experienced something directly, sometimes we have this insistence or this idea that it's not possible. It's just fanciful thinking. So when it comes to your own mind, for instance, maybe you haven't had a chance yet to glimpse the possibilities laying dormant there. You may have heard some teachers or some wisdom traditions, or even modern neuroscience talking about the possibility of easing suffering and stress and finding a sense of wholeness, oneness, and inner peace. But if you've never felt it yourself, you might have a lot of skepticism and doubt about that.
Now it's important to know that skepticism has its purpose and we don't want to just go around believing everything that people tell us and being kind of naive. But on the other hand, skepticism can block us off from new experiences and possibilities. So rather than seeing skepticism as an altogether bad thing, I'd invite you to just make a slight pivot and reorient to a healthier curiosity. So think about being an investigator, an explorer of your own direct experience, rather than just believing or disbelieving what somebody tells you. So just being interested and open to exploring mindfulness and meditation for yourself.
Giving the practice a go for a number of days, weeks or months and then checking in with yourself. Is this making a difference? What kind of difference? In this way we can find our own direct experience to be the most important part of our discovery process. So instead of coming to this practice already having made up your mind, instead, we lay aside our assumptions, preconceived ideas and opinions, and instead make the effort to know and see for ourselves. So as always, thank you for your practice and your presence here with us and just inviting you now to settle in for today's meditation.
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Kelly Boys offers a fresh and illuminating take on how to step out of lifelong patterns that keep snagging us.
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This is the app I turn to when I want to feel calm and loved.
- Abby
Melli has a beautiful way of guiding and reminding us of the stillness within.
- Adrienne James
I have been on a journey of healing and learning self-love. Amidst the work, I have been using the mindfulness app for the gentle reminders, guides to the moment (especially the difficult ones).
Kelly Boys offers a fresh and illuminating take on how to step out of lifelong patterns that keep snagging us.
- Tara Brach, PhD
Truly life changing. This isn't solely meditation and mindfulness...this is about striving to be the best the versions of ourselves.
- Marisa, Plus+ Member
Relaxing and assuring beyond description... thank you, Cory.
- Babs312
This is the app I turn to when I want to feel calm and loved.
- Abby
Melli has a beautiful way of guiding and reminding us of the stillness within.
- Adrienne James
I have been on a journey of healing and learning self-love. Amidst the work, I have been using the mindfulness app for the gentle reminders, guides to the moment (especially the difficult ones).
Kelly Boys offers a fresh and illuminating take on how to step out of lifelong patterns that keep snagging us.
- Tara Brach, PhD
Truly life changing. This isn't solely meditation and mindfulness...this is about striving to be the best the versions of ourselves.
- Marisa, Plus+ Member
Relaxing and assuring beyond description... thank you, Cory.
- Babs312
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Shamash's guidance is a gift of wisdom to help us in our busy and stressful lives.
- Paul Gilbert, PhD, FBPsS, OBE, Centre for Compassion Research and Training, University of Derby, United Kingdom
Excellent! Cory gently guides you into internal peace.
- Steve Ericson
A necessary tool for those who feel lost.
- Piper
Just want to say a big thankyou to all involved as this has had a positive impact in my daily life 🙏 Valuable teachings that have allowed me to have a better relationship not only with those around me, but with myself. Heal ourselves and we heal the world 💫✨🌍
- Marty
I start every day with Cory or Melli for my daily practice. Including this app into my practice helps me continue to build more mental focus and understanding of my thought processes. What a welcome and powerful gift.
- Oku
Shamash's guidance is a gift of wisdom to help us in our busy and stressful lives.
- Paul Gilbert, PhD, FBPsS, OBE, Centre for Compassion Research and Training, University of Derby, United Kingdom
Excellent! Cory gently guides you into internal peace.
- Steve Ericson
A necessary tool for those who feel lost.
- Piper
Just want to say a big thankyou to all involved as this has had a positive impact in my daily life 🙏 Valuable teachings that have allowed me to have a better relationship not only with those around me, but with myself. Heal ourselves and we heal the world 💫✨🌍
- Marty
I start every day with Cory or Melli for my daily practice. Including this app into my practice helps me continue to build more mental focus and understanding of my thought processes. What a welcome and powerful gift.
- Oku
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