What is it?
- Literally: An hour combining spiritual practices together in a synergistic and efficient format
- Intention: Co-develop a virtual environment to support your spiritual practice towards independence, freedom, and peace
- Analogies: Peloton for spiritual practice. The future of spirituality at home.
When is it?
We are back!! Register on Luma:
Benefits
🧠 Access your subconscious:
- What IS the diff b/t journaling vs writing?
- We are training ourselves to write from our subconscious mind, to draw out insights that aren't as accessible when we do directed writing.
- Your journals can fuel your essay drafts with new angles you haven't (consciously) thought of.
🧘 Convert writing superpower to easier meditation:
- Going from the hustle of daily life -> sitting for 20 min like driving a car at 100MPH and then slamming the brakes! Kinda rough!
- Instead, use your writing superpower to empty your mind through journaling, and bring it to a peaceful state in preparation for meditation.
- Pairing supportive habits also help them both stick.
🙌 Community over discipline:
- Here for you most weeks, see above for schedule :)
- *Beginner and drop-in friendly* - Both guided and unguided options provided
Format
👋 Intro: 5 min
- Open up your journal/app of choice (I use 750words.com)
- Access This Page: https://christinchong.com/journal-zendo
✍️ Journaling: 25 min
- Write to clear the mind first in preparation for sitting (recommended word count: 750 / ~3 pages)
- Experiment with writing in all lower case, type in a speed faster than you can “think”
- If you are stuck, just write “I don’t know what to write...” etc. “I’m thinking about...”
- If you’d like, write around a personal story, time-travel and revisit what happened in the past…or will happen in the future
- Choose from selection of background music (or play your own!)
- Journaling prompt (optional):
- Please mute yourself
2022-08-11:
How can one reset one’s life; make it simpler and more enjoyable? Accompanying meditation: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AjLyhfpp_-8
- If you finish earlier, feel free to stretch, relax for a few min
🧘 Meditate (guided/silent): 20 min
- Choose from selection of guided meditation (or sit silently)
- Please mute yourself
🍵 (Optional) Reflection: 10 min
- Reflection/mantra in fewer than 5 words
Your Menu
Background Music for Journaling
![[Twitch safe] Animal Crossing Lofi Chill Hop Mix 🎧 🌴](https://images.spr.so/cdn-cgi/imagedelivery/j42No7y-dcokJuNgXeA0ig/7eb3fcc4-808f-4efa-9e1f-369fa98c3543/hqdefault/w=640,quality=90,fit=scale-down)
Guided Meditations
- Peace-o-meter Meditation with Ajahn Brahm
- Metta Meditation with Ajahn Brahm
- Compassion & The Inner Tyrant with Ayya Canda
Recommended Books
On journaling as spiritual practice:
On mindfulness:
Past Journal Prompts
2022-04-08: Distractions: What distracts you?
2022-04-09: Energy: What energizes you and why? What saps your energy and why?
2022-04-11: Compassion: Where do you have the hardest time being compassionate?
2022-04-12: Would you rather be enlightened, be happy, or be at peace? Why?
2022-04-13: What causes and conditions enable peace in your life?
2022-04-14: What emotions are hard to access for you? What emotions come easily? Explore both “positive” and “negative” ones.
2022-04-15: What is a sacrifice that you or someone else has made, that you are thankful for?
2022-04-18: Is there any part of your life/identity that is burdensome to maintain? What can be done to let go of this burden?
2022-04-19: If you take away the ability to compare yourself with others, what are you left with?
2022-04-20: How is your emotional/mental state correlated with your body posture? Are there any gentle adjustments that can be made?
2022-04-21: What kind of coincidences have worked in your favor lately? Might there be a way to better notice when things go right?
2022-04-22: Have you ever noticed when you might tense up and hold your breath, or breath shallowly, throughout the day? Are there ways to remind yourself to enjoy your breath?
2022-04-25: Recall the last time you felt your mind was content and not actively seeking out anything. (It could be as short as a few seconds!) What are the qualities of the mind at that moment?
2022-04-26: What are the minimal requirements for you to feel at peace? How do they change throughout the day?
2022-04-27: What would it feel like if you can be a beginner again—at journaling, meditation, for whatever that’s occupying your mind?
2022-04-28: What if you think of “responsibility” as “response ability,” or “ability to respond,” instead? Can it help lighten your sense of obligation?
2022-04-29: How do we celebrate impermanence?
2022-05-02: Try using the word “why” as a repeated prompt today for whatever that’s on your mind. “Why...” “Why...” “Why...”
2022-05-03: Is there a way to be kinder to your todo list?
2022-05-04: What is your version of “the force”? How can you inject more of it into your life?
2022-05-05: How would you like to be perceived by others? What do you wish people would appreciate about you?
2022-05-06: What tradition do you want to rebel against?
2022-05-09: Who is your “threshold guardian”—an ancient fear that is guarding you from the unknown? Describe what this guardian might look like. What can you do to negotiate honor and respect from this guardian?
2022-05-10: Write a letter to a friend you’ve been meaning to reach out to. Send it if you’d like (or not!)
2022-05-11: How can we move from reflection to action?
2022-05-12: Many disappointments are rooted in unrealistic expectations. How might letting go of expectations help you think more clearly about the realities of your situation?
2022-05-13: What if control can be perceived as a burden and can be discarded? What small aspects of your life can be improved by letting go of a little bit control?”
2022-05-16: For tasks that persistently remain in the todo-list undone, how do they relate back to your values? If they no longer serve you, are there ways to let go of the tasks?
2022-05-17: What would you keep doing in your life even if you never become “successful” at it? How would you go about things differently?
2022-05-18: What are some areas of your life that you can begin to “wrap up” and free up your space and time? What can that feel like?
2022-05-19: What does an optimal journaling and meditation environment look like for you, both externally and internally?
2022-05-20: How can one embody or extend the benefits of journaling and meditation, while not doing either?
Online Resources
- Follow @christintweets for spiky Buddhist teachings