Regulating - Chibs Okereke & 'Stop' - Thich Nhat Hanh

 

From CHIBS OKEREKE - Transcribed from Insighttimer on Jan 25, 2026

In this short [descriptive] practice [and guide]we'll be noticing when the mind runs ahead of reality. 

And then we're going to gently invite ourselves back to what's true right now. 
Let's allow the body to arrive before the mind tries to sprint off
into the rest of the day. 

You can close your eyes if that feels comfortable.
Or simply soften your gaze with the eyes open.
And let's begin by feeling the support beneath you.
The chair. The bed, the floor. Holding you safely. 

See if you can allow the shoulders to drop a little. Maybe unclenching the jaw.
Softening the belly. And now let's take a slow comfortable breath in
through the nose. And a soft, easy breath out, through the nose or the mouth.
Breathing in through the nose. And out through the nose or the mouth.
One last breath in. And a slow breath out. And now allowing the breath
to return to its natural rhythm. 

And now I invite you to bring your attention to the simple reality of this moment. Perhaps you can feel the feet on the ground, body breathing.

Maybe you can hear some sounds in the room. Just taking a moment to notice that you're here.

Now, the mind will want to run ahead into what ifs. Worst case scenarios. Conversations that haven't happened yet. problems that haven't arrived. That's just your nervous system, trying to prepare and protect you.

Today we're practicing something different. We're noticing the moment that our thoughts start to sprint into the future. And we're choosing not to feed the frenzy. So as we breathe in, Feeling the breath moving low into the belly. And as we breathe out. Letting the exhale be just a little longer than the inhale. A slightly longer out breath, tells the nervous system. "You're safe."

--> And if a thought pops up about something we said or something we're worried might happen. Just seeing if we can notice it. In the same way that we'd notice a cloud passing across the sky. A thought like to predict. But the body knows what's real. Presence is where clarity lives.

Wei Ying-wu - In the Depths of West Mountain, Visiting the Master

In the Depths of West Mountain, Visiting the Master

A disciple for years at Twin Stream,

What brings you to these mountains?

Great luminaries keep the world at war,

But your mind water-flowing idleness,

You swept tigers from forests,

And now sit alone, utter stillness.

Guarding this frontier, we double silence

Wander narrow passes where clouds are born. 

--Wei Ying-Wu, 737-792, David Hinton, Translator

If the mind wants to wander for a while, let it. So what? Clouds cover the sun for a moment but do not destroy it. ~ Zen Moments

Dogen Zenji quotes | Zen Every day - impermanence

Dogen Zenji quotes | Zen Every day: "“No matter how bad a state of mind you may get into, if you keep strong and hold out, eventually the floating clouds must vanish and the withering wind must cease.”

Dogen Zenji"

'via Blog this'

Bassui - essence

“The essence of your mind is not born, so it will never die. It is not an existence, which is perishable. It is not an emptiness, which is a mere void. It has neither colour nor form. It enjoys no pleasures and suffers no pains.

I know you are very ill. Like a good Zen student, you are facing that sickness squarely. You may not know exactly who is suffering, but question yourself: What is the essence of this mind? Think only of this. You will need no more. Covet nothing. Your end which is endless is as a snowflake dissolving in pure air.” 

― Bassui Takusho

Meeting and parting - Blake

The meeting and parting of living things 
is as when clouds having come together, 
drift apart again, or as when the leaves are parted from the tree.  
There is nothing we may call our own in a union that is but a dream....

--William Blake