Mindfulness, Meditation, & Introspection: What’s the Difference?

This article is part of the ongoing Meditation for All challenge. Subscribers to the free newsletter receive weekly guidance and a daily practice. Meditation vs Mindfulness What Does It Mean to Be Mindful? We hear the word, “mindful” a lot. On one hand, it sounds like a full mind, but on the other hand, people talk about it as though it means the mind is empty. The truth is, mindfulness…

What is Meditation Really About?

This article is part of the ongoing Meditation for All challenge. Subscribers to the free newsletter receive weekly guidance and a daily practice.Meditation is our natural state of being. It is a state of being totally present and alert. We are mindful of ourselves and our surroundings. It is a state of complete inner peace and joy.Ever since humans began farming and settling down, we lost this way of being.…

A Guided Meditation to Heal From Negative Thoughts

Whether we are aware of them or not, we all have negative thoughts that, on a subconscious and unconscious level, stir up stress and tension within our mind and body. In fact, when we are not aware of them, uncomfortable thoughts can easily become repressed, suppressed, and denied. While stuffing them down may be preferable to dealing with them, from a holistic perspective, these disturbing thoughts can turn into chronic…

How Meditation Reduces Pain: A Simple Practice for Real Relief

Study after study has shown that meditation can lower our perception of pain. Some dentists now even offer meditation training for pain reduction instead of using anesthesia!The fact is, our mindset not only affects how much we feel pain; it also often creates the pain by holding tension in the body. Tension in the body is one of the leading causes of chronic pain. It leads to tight muscles which…

Remember This If You’re on a Spiritual Journey

There are no wrong turns on your path if your intuition and instincts are your guides. Be careful about letting others take away your inner voice and your inner power. This path is about liberation and freedom, not freeing ourselves from our own ego only for it to be replaced by someone else’s ego. No enlightened being would charge huge sums of money for their “secret.” Retreats in beautiful places will…

5 Practices That Deepened My Meditation Journey

1. Consistency is key. Like exercise, it doesn’t matter if you used to be fit, you have to stay fit. On days when I am very busy or traveling, I will find times to fit in my meditation, even if I have to break it up through the day or wake up extra early.2. I find an hour in the morning sets me up for a great day, and an…

3 incredible opportunities for deep meditation every day

Happy 4th of July to all who celebrate!Every year, I think about the inner freedom America’s Founding Fathers displayed when they envisioned a new form of government built on the ideals of liberty and equality. They first threw off the shackles of tyranny in their own minds so their creative spirit could imagine a better way forward. The conditions of political freedom were not prerequisites for their flourishing. In fact, it…

You Are Already Enough: Releasing the Illusion of Success

Most of the time, when people think of spirituality and finances, they tend to focus on how to deal with money worries, how to make more, or how to manifest more. That’s a big theme in the spiritual landscape we see online these days. But today, I want to talk about the opposite issue that a lot of people face. And that is our attachment to, and identification with, our…

50 Days in the Wild: A Meditation Experiment That Transformed Me

I had dreams of people visiting me in the forest and feeling like, "Oh no, I broke the rules," and they were trying to tempt me to come back to society. But it was one of the most beautiful, profound, enlightening experiences of my life that I would never trade for anything.When I was a kid, I remember hearing that Jesus of Nazareth went into the desert for 40 days…

Is it better to meditate before or after a long workout?

Q: Dear Todd, sometimes when I meditate after a long run, I’m able to quiet my thoughts, but other times it’s harder. Is it better to meditate before or after a long, strenuous activity? TODD ANSWERS: This is really a personal choice as there is no wrong time to meditate. What matters most is consistency. Oftentimes, a meditation where our mind is very chaotic can be the best thing to…