Meditating in the garden

I have been out in my garden meditating recently, it's great to have the opportunity( when our great british weather permits) to be outside. Settling into my ordinary garden chair, I just spend a few minutes with my eyes closed taking in my experience of the garden. The sounds of the birds and people in nearby gardens, sometimes the sounds of traffic or planes and the feel of the wind or sun. I notice the different perfumes and smells in the garden and a bee may fly close by.


There is a sense of enjoyment and connection in my experience and that all feeds into my meditation, which may be a practice of just sitting with my experience, moment by moment, or other meditations.Being outside in this way helps us I believe to experience ourselves in relation to the natural world, a world that we can all too easily forget if we live a busy urban life.

I certainly feel more energized and grateful for the opportunity of being a little bit closer to the natural world. So if you have a space outside, a balcony or local park, take the opportunity if you can to spend a little time meditating outside this summer.

Finding Inspiration for meditation

One of the important things in keeping a meditation practice alive is to find inspiration in our lives in general. In fact one of the simple but profound truths that we learn in meditation is that whatever and however we are in our life in general will that be there with us in meditation.

In order then for our meditation sessions, however long or short they are to be alive and vital for us, it is really helpful for us to seek out and encourage inspiration in our lives.

We may find that simply being in nature, our gardens, parks or allotments gives us this sense of wonder, joy and creativity that is characteristic of being in an inspired state of mind. We may be inspired by art, spending time reading or looking at art in it's many forms. Examples of people's lives may provide us with inspiration, as may many spiritual teachings.

If I start a meditation with something that has inspired me, I find that I am mentally more alert and more interested in my meditation. I have a real sense of uplift that carries me past unhelpful states of mind more easily and leads me into a deeper sense of practice.