Simply Notice

TL;DR

Simply Notice — a 17-minute guided meditation, read by Lucas

Since you woke up, thousands of things have passed through you, and almost all of them just left on their own. This one settles the body, rests in the space around you, and lets go; then it notices whatever comes, a sound, a feeling, a thought, giving each the same attention and leaving each to pass. Under it: warm pads with single notes from a changing cast of soft instruments, each sounding once and fading, a breeze far off, and soft binaural tones through the first half.

How to listen:

• Sit or lie down somewhere quiet where you won’t be disturbed. Never while driving or walking.
• Headphones help: the music carries soft binaural tones.
• The voice leaves long silences between its lines. They are part of the practice.
• If anything feels like too much, open your eyes, move, and feel what is holding you up.

About

Description. A guided meditation of about 17 minutes that settles the body, rests attention on the space around it, lets go, and then notices whatever comes, a sound, a feeling, a thought, giving none of it more attention than the rest. A long rest follows, and an easy return to the room.

Before you listen. Sitting or lying down, somewhere you can close your eyes for a while. Not while driving.

Safety and aftercare. You can stop at any point: open your eyes, move, look around the room, and feel what is holding you up. If the breath is not a comfortable place to rest your attention, rest it where your body is supported, or on the sounds around you; the practice is the same. Paying close attention can sometimes bring up fear, old memories or a sense of unreality. That is known, it is not a failing, and it is a reason to stop for now. If you have a history of trauma, dissociation or panic, keep it short, and consider having someone you trust nearby or talking with a professional first. If you feel unsettled afterwards, move, walk, eat something, and talk with someone. If resting with nothing to hold on to feels like too much, rest your attention where your body is held, on the chair, the bed or the floor.

Credits. The descent, settling, space, letting go and only then the practice, follows the guided meditations of Dr Joe Dispenza. Noticing with none of it more than the rest, and almost everything already passing through, is Michael Singer’s teaching; resting in a field with no object chosen is Jon Kabat-Zinn’s. The words are ours. Its plainness answers what Jenna and Jessi Clayton said of an earlier meditation.

Written by Lee Brown, with AI assistance (Claude).

Transcript

Opening

Since you woke up, thousands of things have passed through you.

Faces. Sounds. A hundred small thoughts.

Almost all of them just left, on their own.

That’s worth noticing, once in a while.

So for a while, there’s nothing to keep up with.

Nothing to catch just yet.

Settle in, any way you like.

Close your eyes.

Let your weight sink down.

Let your breath come and go.

Part One: Space

Notice the space ahead of you.

Behind you.

Above your head.

Beneath you.

On either side.

Take in all of it at once.

Let attention widen, further still.

Look for where the space ends.

The space your body is in, and the space within it.

Rest attention on the space itself.

Part Two: Letting Go

Unclench your jaw.

Soften the muscles around your eyes.

Lower your shoulders.

Loosen your hands.

Drop the effort to get somewhere.

Release your plans for later.

Set down the hours behind you.

Stop keeping track of time.

Give up checking your progress.

Let go of being in charge.

Part Three: Whatever Comes

Now notice whatever comes.

Sounds.

Feelings.

Thoughts.

Give each the same attention.

A sound, a feeling, a thought: each one, the same.

Leave each one to pass.

Notice what passes on its own.

Chase none of it.

Push none of it away.

Treat a thought like a sound.

Notice whatever comes next.

Like the weather, most things come, change, and move on.

Find one thing already fading. Watch it go.

Notice it all evenly.

Part Four: Rest

Now nothing more is asked.

No need to do anything.

Part Five: Return

Notice the weight of your body.

Your breath.

The sounds nearby.

Move your fingers and toes.

Open your eyes.

Take in the room around you.

And meet whatever comes next.