The Meditation Podcast

Our modern society relies on defecit. Governments, organizations, and corporations use debt to create wealth. Advertisers highlight our individual defecits -- our flaws and insecurities that encourage us to engage and purchase. This can lead us to devalue our own wisdom, our unique voice, our personality, our humanity. In today's meditation, we explore radical self acceptance. This podcast is made possible with great thanks to our subscribers on Patreon. Join our community at Patreon (dot) com (slash) theMeditationPodcast

The language we use in our internal dialog has a profound effect on our experience. This includes nonverbal communication, such as images or feelings we invoke. When we reflect on our self talk and self-invoked feelings, we gain clarity on the ways in which we influence our experience in the world, in community, and in our daily lives. In today's meditation, we meditate on self love. This podcast is made possible with great thanks to our subscribers on Patreon. Join our community at Patreon (dot) com (slash) theMeditationPodcast

The term ADHD Brain refers to neuro-divergent or neuro-spicy attributes. This can, but does not necessarily, include people on the PTSD or ADD spectrum. In the context of this podcast, I am referring generally to people who are easily overwhelmed or distracted. The most commonly accepted traditional styles of meditation value stillness and silence, which can feel especially difficult for people experiencing ADHD Brain. In today's meditation, we invite movement as an anchor to keep our overly active minds focused, as we meditate with ADHD Brain. This podcast is made possible with great thanks to our subscribers on Patreon. Join our community at Patreon (dot) com (slash) theMeditationPodcast

Meditation allows us the opportunity to slow our actions, regulate our nerves, and gain insight from our own natural wisdom. Reiki is a gentle infusion of life energy. Combined, these practices help us to invoke rest and recovery. In today's meditation, we practice a simple meditation, infused with reiki. This podcast is made possible with great thanks to our subscribers on Patreon. Join our community at Patreon (dot) com (slash) theMeditationPodcast

We often enter our meditations with some kind of expectation. We expect a clear mind, a favorable outcome, answers, insights, and solutions. However, our meditations don't always play along nicely. Our minds race, our anxieties seem to increase, and we remain lost in our unanswered questions. In today's meditation, we learn to embrace disorder, uncontrol, and chaos. This allows us to simply exist. Over time, we learn to release control over ourselves, and to think and act deep in our true nature. This podcast is made possible with great thanks to our subscribers on Patreon. Join our community at Patreon (dot) com (slash) theMeditationPodcast

As we celebrate another cycle around the sun, we may reflect on our place in that cycle. Days lengthen in the global North. Decay and hibernation feed new life into the approaching Spring. Likewise, we can release the actions, wishes, and aspetcs of ourselves that no longer serve us, In doing so, we can repurpose our energy to support our future Being. In today's meditation, we enter a new year as our new selves! This podcast is made possible with great thanks to our subscribers on Patreon. Join our community at Patreon (dot) com (slash) theMeditationPodcast

During the winter holiday season, I like to reflect on reasons I am thankful. Many people use a gratitude practice or gratitude journal to help focus on the good in our lives. The feelings associated with gratitude bathe us in an infusion of well being, recharging our parasympathetic nervous systems, and our overall happiness. In today's meditation we practice gratitude, infused. This podcast is made possible with great thanks to our subscribers on Patreon. Join our community at Patreon (dot) com (slash) theMeditationPodcast

Many of you know that I have nearly completed a year-long Yoga Teacher Training, and I am developing a technique that I call Core Breathing. Based on decades of experience, Core Breathing is a key aspect of my Yoga teaching style. It is a simple set of muscle actions that prioritize our powerful deep core muscles, support effortless movement, and free up space for our lungs. Today we will demonstrate and explore the simple technique of Core Breathing in meditation. This podcast is made possible with great thanks to our subscribers on Patreon. Join our community at Patreon (dot) com (slash) theMeditationPodcast

In grief, we mourn the loss of a physical presence. At times the intensity of our sadness can mask a more subtle presence. In today's meditation, we cultivate our connection to the unseen world and the Life Force that lives there. Through this connection, we can access a more complete understanding of our grief, and the subtle presence that lives beyond our physical senses. This podcast is made possible with great thanks to our subscribers on Patreon. Join our community at Patreon (dot) com (slash) theMeditationPodcast

When we experience stress, our bodies tighten, which can restrict our lungs, air flow, and the subtle Life Force energies flowing through us (chi, prana, reiki, etc). In today's meditation, we align our physical and energetic bodies with our breathing. This podcast is made possible with great thanks to our subscribers on Patreon. Join our community at Patreon (dot) com (slash) theMeditationPodcast

Use this short meditation when you want to shift gears, recenter, or simply check in with your self. In today's meditation, we reground, recenter, reset - with ease! This podcast is made possible with great thanks to our subscribers on Patreon. Join our community at Patreon (dot) com (slash) theMeditationPodcast

The Twenty is a meditation I developed using techniques from yoga, yoga nidra, and qigong practices. We inhale deeply, release our exhale, and count each breath to twenty. This simple practice helps to regulate the nervous system and gently observe our racing minds. In today's meditation, we count our breaths to twenty. This podcast is made possible with great thanks to our subscribers on Patreon. Join our community at Patreon (dot) com (slash) theMeditationPodcast

Debilitating aspects of stress build over time. One way to reset our baseline stress levels is via self care toward the nervous system, specicifically the Vagus nerve. In today's meditation we use breathing, movement, and reiki to 'reboot' the nervous system. This podcast is made possible with great thanks to our subscribers on Patreon. Join our community at Patreon (dot) com (slash) theMeditationPodcast

What is a heart's desire? It can be a desire of the moment: to sleep, to daydream, to smell the ocean, to eat my favorite meal, to spend time in community or with loved ones. It can be a lifelong desire: What is my purpose, my calling, my service, my passion? What would I do every day if I could do anything ... where hours pass, and it feels like minutes? Whether we are in a life-milestone crisis, seeking to adjust course, or simply checking in about what we really want, acknowledging our heart's desire can help us to align our choices with our values and needs. In today's meditation, we seek our heart's desire. This podcast is made possible with great thanks to our subscribers on Patreon. Join our community at Patreon (dot) com (slash) theMeditationPodcast

Life events can overwhelm us. In addition to the challenges of daily life, we also carry the change and loss that many of us experienced during the pandemic. In today's meditation, we practice letting go. This podcast is made possible with great thanks to our subscribers on Patreon. Join our community at Patreon (dot) com (slash) theMeditationPodcast

Dr Charles is a Minister and Babalawo, father, mentor, and friend. To describe the impact he has made on my life would take hours, so I will simply share his words with you. In today's meditation, I am honored to introduce Dr Charles Brown. This podcast is made possible with great thanks to our subscribers on Patreon. Join our community at Patreon (dot) com (slash) theMeditationPodcast Please note that Dr Charles uses language referring to God as 'he' and people as 'men'. It is intended and understood that 'men' includes all people, and that the infinity and mystery of God is beyond body and gender.

Meditation, in its simplest form, is simply awareness. In today's meditation, we practice awareness. This podcast is made possible with great thanks to our subscribers on Patreon. Join our community at Patreon (dot) com (slash) theMeditationPodcast

Overwhelm, anxiety, stress, grief, frustration. These intense, 'big feelings' can sap our energy, our drive, our focus, our presence, and our joy. In today's meditation, we allow the Universal Life Force of Reiki to help us experience peace, even within the intensity of our big feelings. This podcast is made possible with great thanks to our subscribers on Patreon. Join our community at Patreon (dot) com (slash) theMeditationPodcast

When we direct life force energy toward ourselves, we sometimes get stuck in an isolation loop. This can happen when our need to receive healing energy conflicts with our power to give it. By directing our power toward others, we allow it to flow more fully – including within ourselves. In today's meditation, we practice moving life energy together. This podcast is made possible with great thanks to our subscribers on Patreon. Join our community at Patreon (dot) com (slash) theMeditationPodcast

As we enter the fall season, nature shows us an example of turning inward. Like plants dropping their leaves to allow their outward selves to fall away, we can also drop the parts of ourselves that no longer nourish us. This is part of a global life cycle, nourishing the essence, the seed of life within us. In today's meditation, we focus on our inner essence, and prepare for the darkness of winter. This podcast is made possible with great thanks to our subscribers on Patreon. Join our community at Patreon (dot) com (slash) theMeditationPodcast

I don't know about you, but I've been feeling exhausted. My energy levels alternate between hyperfocused and hyperalert to lethargic and unmotivated. I go to bed buzzing, and I wake up tired. I need a recharge! In today's meditation, we use the Universal Life Force of reiki to restore fatigue and rebalance ourselves. This podcast is made possible with great thanks to our subscribers on Patreon. Join our community at Patreon (dot) com (slash) theMeditationPodcast

Since 2020, our concept and purpose of 'home' has evolved. For many of us, home has become more of a refuge, a sanctuary, an office, a workspace, and we may have experienced significant changes in where we lay our heads. In today's meditation we fill our home with awareness, peace, appreciation, and unconditional love. This podcast is made possible with great thanks to our subscribers on Patreon. Join our community at Patreon (dot) com (slash) theMeditationPodcast

Smiling feels good, calms our stress levels, stimulates the Vagus nerve, and sends a message to our psyche that we are ok. As a mindful practice, smiling disrupts patterns of self-judgment by circulating kindness and unconditional love to ourselves. In today's meditation, we smile inward. This podcast is made possible with great thanks to our subscribers on Patreon. Join our community at Patreon (dot) com (slash) theMeditationPodcast

Modern life is full of distractions. Our jobs, screens, and apps all pull our attention by design. Environmental noise from people, animals, and machines can all distract our focus and affect our mood. We tend to shift our attention to whatever alert, sound, or nudge is the loudest and most persistent. When our environment feels out of our control, we may lose focus on our current task, and we may off-track our habits and intentions. In today's meditation, we center ourselves in the eye of the hurricane. This podcast is made possible with great thanks to our subscribers on Patreon. Join our community at Patreon (dot) com (slash) theMeditationPodcast

A paradox of human existence: when I turn my attention upon myself, am I the self being observed, or am I the Self that is observing? The idea of a 'higher self' is one way to experience the part of ourselves that exists both within and outside of us, independent of our bodies, independent of the physical world. In today's meditation, we experience our higher self, our divine nature. This podcast is made possible with great thanks to our subscribers on Patreon. Join our community at Patreon (dot) com (slash) theMeditationPodcast

Being human is naturally resilient. I believe that our natural state is health and wholeness. It is also a natural human process to lose track of our wholeness, to 'forget' who we are. When we forget our nature we are often tempted to 'try' to 'fix' ourselves, when our most effective action may be to simply allow. In today's meditation, we amplify our healing ferquency, and allow our bodies, minds, and spirits the space to heal. This podcast is made possible with great thanks to our subscribers on Patreon. Join our community at Patreon (dot) com (slash) theMeditationPodcast

When we raise our inner voices of self-loathing, criticism, and doubt, the noise can grow into chaos. We need a consistent inner voice – the quiet internal rhythm that literally pumps life through our bodies. In today's meditation, we center our attention on the heartbeat. This podcast is made possible with great thanks to our subscribers on Patreon. Join our community at Patreon (dot) com (slash) theMeditationPodcast

As we flip our calendars to a new year, we face an opportunity to revisit our intentions. Which parts of our human experience would we like to drop, diminish, add or amplify in the coming year? In today's meditation, we infuse the new year with Universal life force of Reiki. This podcast is made possible with great thanks to our subscribers on Patreon. Join our community at Patreon (dot) com (slash) theMeditationPodcast

Last Friday I slipped on ice, hit my head on a stone stair, and got a concussion. It affected my thought process quite a lot. I was tired, had splitting headaches, and had trouble comprehending and speaking words. Until yesterday I felt strange, not like myself, like something was off. I am ok, and am now recovering, but with my brain working on healing itself, I have not had much capacity for complex thought or "strenuous mental activity". This experience led me to think a lot about shoulds. The things I feel I should be doing, the life or career milestones I should have reached by now, the project I should start, or the project I should finish. Shoulds come from our survival needs and fears, our societal and cultural messages, the voices of our well meaning friends and families, and our own self talk. Our shoulds are often tied closely with our self worth. And so, in today's meditation, we listen to our shoulds with compassion. This podcast is made possible with great thanks to our subscribers on Patreon. Join our community at Patreon (dot) com (slash) theMeditationPodcast

Welcome to The Meditation Podcast. This is Jesse Stern with Episode 109, Grieving and Healing. My oldest friend died last week. We were born 6 months apart, friends since birth. He was like a brother to me. He was my first companion in meditation and healing work. He was severely abused as a child. The trauma of his abuse led to severe mental illness. He spent many years of his adult life between housing stability and homelessness, and between mental stability and schizophrenia. He died alone. I am in shock, I am angry, and I am sad. In today's meditation, we honor and grieve for those we love.. This podcast is made possible with great thanks to our subscribers on Patreon. Join our community at Patreon (dot) com (slash) theMeditationPodcast

Happy Halloween, Samhain, and Dia de los Muertos. During this season we traditionally honor our ancestors, and those loved ones who are no longer with us. In today's meditation we honor our ancestors ... and raise our spirits. This podcast is made possible with great thanks to our subscribers on Patreon. Join our community at Patreon (dot) com (slash) theMeditationPodcast

As the world stumbles its way through our third year in a global pandemic, many of us have experienced major changes in our work lives, our relationships, our routines, and our travel patterns. This may have left us feeling tired, uninspired, burnt out, exhausted, nihilistic, or even hopeless. In today's meditaiton, we use reiki and energetic healing energy to relight and reignite our inspiration. This podcast is made possible with great thanks to our subscribers on Patreon. We would not exist without your support. Join our community at Patreon.com/theMeditationPodcast

Here at The Meditation Podcast, we have often described meditation as sitting still and breathing. While this is one way to practice meditaiton, it is not the only way. Movement in meditation is useful when our bodies want to move. It can also be a great practice to prepare for mindful activity in our daily lives. In today's meditation, we practice meditation in movement. This podcast is made possible with great thanks to our subscribers on Patreon. We would not exist without your support. Join our community at Patreon.com/theMeditationPodcast

Our self-care practice is an important antidote to the pressures of production and improvement and optimization. However, sometimes even our self-care can feel like a chore or a means to a different end. In today's meditation, we experience the simple pleasure of our practice. En-joy meditation. This podcast is made possible with great thanks to our subscribers on Patreon. We would not exist without your support. Join our community at Patreon.com/theMeditationPodcast

Chakras are the traditional Sanskrit name for energy centers in the body. If you prefer, you may think of them simply as energy centers, electromagnetic poles, or source points of tension and release. Like any form of energy, when our chakras become depleted, stuck, or imbalanced, we may follow suit and become depleted ourselves. In today's meditation, we recharge and rebalance our chakras, and rest ourselves in a blissful state of self healing and restoration. This podcast is made possible with great thanks to our subscribers on Patreon. We would not exist without your support. Join our community at Patreon.com/theMeditationPodcast

Is your life 'up in the air'? Are you 'on Cloud 9', walking around with your 'head in the clouds'? While cliche, these expressions may indicate a loss of grounding. As we navigate the ups and downs of our lives and circumstances, it may be useful to reconnect our feet to the earth and our minds to our bodies. In today's meditation we ground our energy and our attention. This podcast is made possible with great thanks to our subscribers on Patreon. We would not exist without your support. Join our community at Patreon.com/theMeditationPodcast

Work hard! Lose weight! Fight aging! We live in a culture of self improvement. Advertising encourages us to strive toward an ideal that is impossible to attain. Whether related to body image, how we earn or create income, or how we fit in to some standard of 'normal' -- we take for granted the idea that products, diet trends, or hard work will somehow improve us. Many of us have internalized the belief that we need to change fundamental aspects of our selves in order to be acceptable to our families, our jobs, or our communities. Non-judgmental awareness of our selves is the first step toward self clarity. Self clarity is the first step toward knowing what we want and need. And knowing our wants and needs is the first step toward contentment and true inner power. In today's meditation we accept ourselves just as we are. This podcast is made possible with great thanks to our subscribers on Patreon. We would not exist without your support. Join our community at Patreon.com/theMeditationPodcast

Many of us are experiencing disturbed sleep. We have trouble falling asleep, staying asleep, dreaming, and waking up refreshed. Many of us feel anxiety, stress, and uncertainty in our daily lives. Sleep, designed to restore our bodies and minds, has instead become yet another source of worry and anxiety. In today's meditation, we sleep. This podcast is made possible with great thanks to our subscribers on Patreon. We would not exist without your support. Join our community at Patreon.com/theMeditationPodcast

Over fifteen years of the Meditation Podcast, many listeners have shared their profound life transformations, physical mental and emotional healing, relief from anxiety, and being able to fall asleep. Serving others in this way has been some of the most rewarding and fulfilling work of my life, and I hoped to create something special to celebrate our 100th episode. So, in today's meditation, I celebrate myself and this community and the Meditation Podcast. This meditation is my own prayer for myself, and I believe it will also serve you. You are welcome to support me, or follow my example. Give yourself whatever you need today. This podcast is made possible with great thanks to our subscribers on Patreon. We would not exist without your support. Join our community at Patreon.com/theMeditationPodcast

Many of us become overwhelmed with anxiety, disturbing news, or concerns about the future. This can create doubt within ourselves that tests our integrity and our core beliefs. In today's meditation, we practice self-kindness, while experiencing an infusuion of healing reiki life force energy. This podcast is made possible with great thanks to our subscribers on Patreon. We would not exist without your support. Join our community at Patreon.com/theMeditationPodcast

We all create intentions, goals, resolutions, prayers, wishes, and dreams. But for many of us, these intentions remain unfulfilled. According to the Law of Attraction, this is because we do not release or surrender our intentions. Instead we continue to micro-manage our intentions, using our conscious minds and force of will. When we are unable or unwilling to release our intentions, we block our own good. This creates a perpetual state of want, instead of a path to fulfilment. Our intentions live in the realm of the unknown. It is impossible to take a known path to the unknown. Known paths lead to known destinations. But how do we find, or even see, an unknown path? In today's meditation, we use the Law of Attraction to experience our intentions as complete, and we surrender them to God, the Univers e, our Highest Self. This podcast is made possible with great thanks to our subscribers on Patreon. We would not have been able to continue without your support. Join our community at Patreon.com/theMeditationPodcast

As we navigate through the joys and stresses of life, we may sometimes lose our sense of power, of connection, of liviing in our truth. We may latch onto our losses and disappointments, we may become overwhelmed with grief or anxiety, or we may simply need a little reminder of who we truly are. In today's meditation, we power up the capacity to heal ourselves, to feel clear in our purpose, and to experience simple joy in our daily lives. This podcast is made possible with great thanks to our subscribers on Patreon. We would not have been able to continue without your support. Join our community at Patreon.com/theMeditationPodcast

This month, we celebrate 15 years of The Meditation Podcast! It has been a wonderful and powerfully healing journey for us, and for many of you as well. Thank you for taking this journey with us. In today's meditation we sit still and breathe. This podcast is made possible with great thanks to our subscribers on Patreon. We would not have been able to continue without your support. Join our community at Patreon.com/theMeditationPodcast

Many of us experience difficult feelings such as anxiety, frustration, anger, isolation, empathy, grief, depression, or uncertainty in career and relationships. When unresolved, these feelings build on each other, and we may begin to feel overwhelmed or overloaded by their 'size'. In today's meditation, we process and release Big Feelings. This podcast is made possible with great thanks to our subscribers on Patreon. Join our community at Patreon.com/theMeditationPodcast

In the last few weeks, I've talked to a lot of people who were releasing secrets, have recently had secrets revealed to them, or in other ways were processing information that led to new perspectives on long held beliefs. Knowledge of secrets – whether holding on to, releasing, or learning of them – can feel like a shift in emotional or psychic weight. New perspectives can affect not only ourselves, but our relationships with others and how we interact with the world. In today's meditation, we practice embracing secrets, knowledge, and rebalancing the psyche around things that change our perspectives. This podcast is made possible by our subscribers on Patreon. Join our community at Patreon.com/theMeditationPodcast

A mantra is a phrase or sound that is repeated during meditation. It can be spoken, chanted, whispered, or repeated silently in the mind. Mantra meditation can help to focus and restore the mind body and spirit. 'So Hum' is a Sanskrit phrase meaning simply 'I Am'. In today's meditation we practice this mantra. This podcast is made possible by our subscribers on Patreon. Join our community at Patreon.com/theMeditationPodcast

We live in a culture that rewards productivity. We push ourselves to produce results at our jobs, at the gym, with our income, our weight, we read and podcast topics on self-improvement. We use our bodies and our time to the point of exhaustion. So, where does rest fit into productivity? Resting allows our desires and intentions to manifest, without the effort and control. At rest, we allow our bodies to restore and to heal, our natural breathing and sleep cycles to return, and we accept ourselves without needing to 'improve'. Rest is its own reward. In today's meditation, we rest. This podcast is made possible by our subscribers on Patreon. Join our community at Patreon.com/theMeditationPodcast

Many of us have spent a year or more seeing the potential for deep changes in our lives. From our work and personal lives, to our economy and justice system, the individual and collective possibilities have never been greater. So, how do we create the lives we want, the communities we want, the world we want? In today's meditation, we manifest our dreams. It is highly recommended that you first write out clear and specific details about your dream — what does it look, sound, or feel like? You will now have a guide to help you form a dream that feels real enough to touch. This podcast is made possible by our subscribers on Patreon. Join our community at Patreon.com/theMeditationPodcast

In today's meditation, we go within - to charge our intuition, our divine guidance, our sense of peace and protection. This is a great meditation for the morning, or anytime you need a pause to refresh yourself. This podcast is made possible by our subscribers on Patreon. Join our community at Patreon.com/theMeditationPodcast

Many parts of the world are beginning to reopen, after a year of closure, isolation, and quarantine. Many of us have experienced collective and/or individual trauma, for various reasons, and sometimes in layers. We are less familiar with working, playing, or socializing in groups. Returning to what we once thought was 'normal' can be scary, stressful, and overwhelming. In today's meditation, we enter a refuge, a safe space within, where we can recharge our energy, reset our stress levels, and recover from overwhelm. Let's step out from our screens, and from the routines that we have gotten used to over the last year, knowing that we can retreat whenever we need to. This podcast is made possible by our subscribers on Patreon. Join our community at Patreon.com/theMeditationPodcast

In today's meditation we practice self love, self healing, and self acceptance. Today is a longer meditation, so we're going to jump right in. You may wish to have a blanket handy, and a pillow to either sit on or rest your head on if lying down. This podcast is made possible by our subscribers on Patreon. Join our community at Patreon.com/theMeditationPodcast