What You Added

This meditation is a companion to chapter one of The Suffering You Add, "The Two Arrows," which is a story the Buddha told about the pain that arrives and the pain we add to it afterward. If you haven't read the chapter yet, start there. The meditation will be here when you're ready.

It runs about twenty minutes. The first seven do nothing but settle your nervous system, which is longer than most recordings spend, and it is the part that makes the rest possible.

Before you press play:

• Find a quiet place where you won't be interrupted for twenty minutes, and close the door.

• Place a simple sign on the door that says, "Back in 20 minutes."

• Tell the people you live with that the twenty minutes are not negotiable. This will feel excessive. Do it anyway, and notice what comes up when you ask.

• Silence your phone completely, or better, leave it in another room. A notification is a first arrow you volunteered for.

• Use headphones rather than speakers. My voice needs to be closer to you than the room is.

• Sit or lie down, whatever lets you be still and comfortable. A chair with your feet on the floor works well, and so does the floor itself with a cushion, blanket, or bolster.

• Use an eye mask or a folded towel across your eyes. Blocking the light helps your mind stop scanning the room and start settling inward.

• Have a blanket nearby. Your body temperature may drop slightly as you relax.

• Keep your notebook and a pen within reach. You will want them the moment the recording ends, and not one second before.

That's it.
No special equipment and no experience necessary.
Just a quiet room and twenty minutes.

After it ends:

Open your notebook first and write whatever is there, before you organize it and before you look at anything else. Then turn to the pages at the end of the chapter.