0:00

This is the Wu Wei

0:02

Wisdom Podcast. Our weekly

0:05

No Nonsense Life Lessons aim

0:07

to inspire you to master

0:09

your emotional and spiritual health,

0:11

achieve balance, harmony and

0:13

flow, and rediscover

0:15

the authentic and awesome

0:17

you. We're your hosts, David

0:20

James Lees and Alexandra

0:22

Lees. This

0:28

is a special episode with

0:30

David and he'll be sharing

0:32

a unique guided meditation with

0:34

you. If you enjoy

0:37

it, you can find lots

0:39

more free meditations on our

0:41

YouTube channel, as well as

0:43

guided meditation albums to download

0:45

and keep in our online

0:47

shop at www .wooaywisdom .com. For

0:49

your own safety, please do

0:52

not listen to this guided

0:54

meditation recording whilst driving. or

0:56

operating machinery. Thank

0:59

you. Hello

1:11

and welcome. Thank

1:13

you for joining me in

1:15

this meditation on creating powerful

1:18

and authentic intentions

1:20

and affirmations. In

1:24

Daoism we call these

1:26

Yi, why I? Because

1:30

they're like a compass. It's

1:33

like a satnav

1:35

that can gently guide us. They're

1:39

not rigid. They're not

1:41

golds. They're not inflexible.

1:46

They're the opposite of all that.

1:49

They are the flexible

1:51

markers of our highest truth. An

1:58

affirmation is the

2:00

spoken reflection of these

2:02

intentions. And

2:05

if you think about

2:07

the word affirmation, they

2:09

are affirming. They

2:13

are affirming what we

2:15

truly believe. They

2:19

are affirming our

2:21

inner wisdom. They

2:24

are affirming who we

2:26

are and what we

2:28

stand for and when

2:30

they use correctly they

2:32

can guide us they're

2:34

like a touchstone we

2:36

can go back to

2:38

because they bring clarity

2:40

confidence and they help

2:42

us in our flow

2:44

so when you're ready

2:46

as you know always

2:48

I like to keep

2:50

meditation simple I believe

2:52

we should all do

2:54

meditation. In fact, I

2:57

think we all do meditation

2:59

in some form. So

3:02

just find a comfortable position.

3:08

And just for the first few

3:10

moments, just become the

3:13

observer. Gently

3:16

scan down your body. Notice

3:19

if you're holding any tension. Perhaps

3:22

in your arms. Hands.

3:30

Perhaps in your shoulder blades. Perhaps

3:34

in your neck. Can

3:40

you release those now? Can

3:42

you get more comfortable? Put

3:44

a cushion on your head. Perhaps

3:47

wrap yourself in a blanket. And

3:57

then just give yourself a few

3:59

moments. One

4:02

of the wonderful

4:04

things about meditation

4:06

is settling into

4:08

stillness. Welcoming

4:12

at inner stillness.

4:14

From the busy

4:16

mind. From

4:19

the inner child who's always

4:21

racing. Thinking about

4:23

worst case scenarios. We

4:25

can step back. We

4:27

can give ourselves a hug and we

4:29

can take a breath. And

4:34

one thing I love

4:36

about meditation is to watch

4:38

how the breath and

4:40

the body cooperate, work

4:42

together. We don't have to teach

4:44

them, it's natural. But

4:47

as we focus and

4:49

watch this, something

4:52

very natural happens. We

4:54

begin to breathe deeper. And

4:59

our body responds naturally, it

5:01

relaxes more. And

5:07

I love the idea of

5:09

the centerline meditation because the

5:11

simplicity. Just imagine a

5:13

centerline, a core. Just

5:15

like a core of an apple. A

5:17

core that goes right through your

5:19

body, starting at the highest point.

5:24

And together, let's

5:26

imagine that center core. Going

5:29

down behind your eyes

5:31

and nose, between your ears,

5:34

behind your mouth. Through

5:37

the centre of your throat,

5:39

shoulders, chest. Just

5:42

follow it. You've

5:44

got the idea. Keep it simple. Between

5:47

the ribs, hips, down

5:50

through the abdomen and out between

5:52

your legs. and

5:56

it may take you a few

5:58

moments to get that established that you

6:00

can think about it very easily. But

6:04

with practice, once you've found

6:06

that center core, something

6:08

a little bit magical

6:11

happens. You

6:13

can use that center core to

6:15

find that sweet spot for

6:17

your head, not too

6:19

far forward or back, neither

6:22

left nor right. And

6:26

this is we way. This is

6:28

being in your flow. Do

6:33

the same with your shoulders. Shoulder

6:36

blades. Not too

6:38

far forward or back. Not

6:40

one higher than the other. In

6:42

fact, see if you can drop

6:44

them both. Make your arms heavy. Your

6:47

biceps. Chest.

6:52

Rib cage. Shuffle

6:55

around wherever you're sitting

6:58

or lying. Can

7:01

you find that deep

7:03

inner stillness and quiet?

7:10

Because this is something

7:12

you can practice anytime

7:14

at work, at

7:16

home, when you're walking. You

7:19

can just find that in a part. But

7:25

when we're meditating or

7:28

focusing together, we can

7:30

dive deeper. Keep

7:33

it simple, but

7:35

just imagine breathing down

7:37

through that centerline. Again,

7:40

don't force, don't

7:43

push, don't rush. Observe.

7:53

You may find each time you

7:55

meditate, the breath goes deeper. Perhaps

7:57

at the beginning it's right at the top

8:00

of your chest. Perhaps

8:03

in a few days, couple

8:06

of weeks, it's more in

8:08

your chest. Or

8:11

even now, you can get in

8:13

more into your abdomen. And

8:17

you can soften. And

8:20

you can explore that.

8:22

inner stillness. I

8:26

call it the Shand

8:28

Sanctuary. It's like the

8:30

spiritual place deep within us. Sometimes

8:33

we get so used to

8:35

hearing the voice of our

8:37

inner child through emotions, red

8:39

light feelings. We

8:43

don't hear this deeper voice,

8:47

the voice of truth. the

8:50

voice of honesty

8:52

and integrity this is

8:55

so important when

8:57

we're talking about setting

8:59

our year, our

9:01

intention and confirming it

9:03

with our affirmation

9:06

what we believe because

9:08

they're like the

9:10

guiding stars of our

9:12

journey they're like

9:15

the north star This

9:19

is not about striving

9:22

or proving. This is

9:24

not about being rigid

9:26

and never moving from

9:28

a course. This

9:30

is almost the opposite. This

9:32

is about aligning and flowing. This

9:37

is not about having

9:39

rigid goals. An

9:44

intention allows

9:46

for natural flow.

9:50

I know I always use the river

9:52

analogy, but it's such a good

9:55

analogy. The river has

9:57

an intention to flow to the

9:59

ocean. But

10:02

if fine to flow and

10:04

ease, it's

10:06

adaptable. But

10:12

what we weigh is effortless

10:14

effort, working

10:16

with life.

10:20

meeting challenges and finding

10:22

a way around them

10:24

that reflects who you

10:26

are. And

10:31

so if you like the river

10:33

and allergy this will work for

10:35

you or maybe in your mind

10:38

I picked yourself at the start

10:40

of a path, path of your

10:42

life. The road

10:44

stretches ahead. But

10:50

it's not straight. It's

10:52

not linear. It's

10:54

winding. It

10:57

finds the line of these

10:59

resistance through the hills and the

11:01

valley. This

11:04

path is so important. Because

11:09

this path is not about

11:11

you being successful. This

11:14

path is not about what

11:16

other people think about you. This

11:19

is not beating

11:21

other people, being

11:23

judgmental. This

11:25

path is

11:27

about your authenticity,

11:30

reaching your potential. And

11:36

can you focus on

11:38

this path? Because there

11:40

will be lots of distractions

11:43

that you can easily move away

11:45

from your path. and

11:48

lose your destination

11:50

Maybe you're more concerned

11:52

about pleasing others

11:54

Maybe you're more concerned

11:56

about what they

11:59

think about you or

12:01

seeking your potential

12:03

and your validation from

12:05

them instead of

12:07

from your path Maybe

12:09

you believe that

12:11

others know you better

12:13

than you know

12:15

yourself How

12:19

could this be true? How

12:23

could someone know you better?

12:32

So at that fork

12:34

in the road

12:37

you have to relax

12:39

and contact that

12:41

spiritual sense deep within

12:43

you and now

12:46

from that sanctuary becomes

12:51

your self -trust becomes

12:53

your trust honesty

12:55

and integrity allows you

12:57

to see clearly

12:59

so you're not distracted

13:01

in that moment

13:03

and that's why something

13:06

like this meditation

13:08

can be very powerful

13:10

because sometimes just

13:12

sometimes we need to

13:14

close our eyes

13:16

take a breath and

13:21

listen to that

13:24

quieter voice that

13:26

authenticity to remind

13:28

ourselves that if

13:30

we follow somebody

13:33

else's path we

13:35

will be on

13:37

their path we

13:39

will be walking

13:42

in their footprints

13:44

we will be

13:46

giving up our

13:48

own path And

13:57

so if we follow them, we

14:00

will always be

14:02

behind them. If

14:04

we follow them, we

14:07

give them authority over ourselves.

14:11

If we follow them, we're always listening

14:13

to them to tell us which

14:15

way we turn, what we do, what

14:17

we shouldn't do, what right

14:19

and what wrong. But

14:27

is this you? Is

14:30

this your spiritual you? Is

14:32

that who you are? Because

14:37

you will always

14:39

be disappointed. Because

14:41

their path is not

14:43

your path. Your

14:47

path is unique. There

14:50

is no one in the

14:52

universe like you. This

14:56

path is not perfect. This

14:59

path doesn't mean to say that

15:01

other people will look and criticise. They

15:04

should, they will. Because

15:06

if you follow their path, they

15:08

will still criticise. In

15:14

fact, this path does not

15:17

demand perfection. It

15:19

simply seeks truth,

15:23

honesty and integrity.

15:27

It simply asks you

15:29

to be who

15:31

you are. To

15:36

know yourself, to

15:38

trust yourself. To

15:45

be your own

15:47

champion. You've

15:51

come through so much. You

15:58

should be so proud of yourself. When

16:11

you acknowledge, then

16:14

your true intention, your

16:18

path will show itself.

16:23

Because you begin to trust your

16:25

honesty. your

16:28

resilience and

16:31

your trustworthiness.

16:43

So for a moment

16:45

return back to the

16:47

stillness find that place

16:49

deep within and the

16:51

question I get asked

16:53

so much is how

16:55

do I know when

16:57

my attention is true? I

17:06

think my answer is

17:08

profound but difficult to

17:10

accept because I believe

17:12

the deep within us

17:15

we always know we

17:17

have always known what's

17:19

true when we followed

17:21

somebody else's path or

17:23

when we got diverted

17:27

So my deep inside, we

17:29

know it's wrong. We

17:34

know we've sacrificed

17:36

our intentions, we've

17:38

given up on ourselves. And

17:46

one simple test, that

17:49

I call the Shen Test, what

17:52

would you say to your physical

17:55

child? If

17:57

a child comes up to

17:59

you and says, my friends want

18:01

us to do something, shoplifting. And

18:04

if I don't shoplift, I won't be

18:06

part of the group. What

18:09

would you say to them? How

18:12

would you guide them? Because

18:16

they know it wrong, they've come

18:18

to you. Just as we know

18:20

that when we do something, it's

18:23

not authentic, it's not true, it's not

18:25

who we are. And

18:32

when we connect to the Shan, when

18:35

we connect to our

18:37

inner wisdom, it

18:39

always guides. Maybe

18:41

not the answer we want. Maybe,

18:44

like for our child, it

18:46

will lose that friend group. Maybe

18:50

it should lose that friend group.

18:55

But in that moment, Perhaps

18:58

our child really

19:00

wants to be in

19:02

the in crowd

19:04

part of the group

19:06

We have to

19:08

look at a wider

19:10

horizon We have

19:12

to believe in ourselves

19:14

And to know

19:16

that this journey where

19:18

on is ours and

19:27

this is where affirmation

19:29

can be so helpful

19:31

they're not empty words

19:33

unless they're not coming

19:36

from your share they're

19:38

not coming from your

19:40

truth and so your

19:42

affirmation should be something

19:44

to you 100 %

19:46

believing there should be

19:48

no doubt we can

19:50

deal with these doubts

19:53

in the meditation when

19:57

you're a little

19:59

bit confused and so

20:01

something that somebody

20:03

would suggest as an

20:05

affirmation could be

20:07

something like I am

20:09

fearless and they

20:11

think that if they

20:14

repeat that time

20:16

and time again almost

20:18

like magically they

20:20

become fearless doesn't work

20:22

because it's not

20:24

the truth I

20:31

would prefer you coming up with an

20:33

affirmation that would say something like, I

20:36

am learning. I'm learning

20:38

to trust myself. Or

20:43

something like I'm learning to trust

20:45

myself more each day. I

20:56

am taking steps. to

21:00

honor my purpose. One

21:05

step at a time. That

21:09

would be a good affirmation

21:11

than something like I am successful

21:13

because that would be false. So

21:16

affirmations have to be

21:19

a factual statement. Something

21:23

that's true. Something

21:25

you can repeat yourself

21:27

and change. and alter

21:29

as you grow. And

21:34

you can use the Shentist. What

21:37

would you say to your child? What

21:41

would you say to a beautiful

21:43

child looking to their eyes? Would

21:48

you tell them that they're not enough?

21:52

Would you tell them that they're

21:54

unlovable? Would

21:57

you tell them that they can't cope? But

22:05

the simple answer is no, of course

22:07

you wouldn't, It would be harmful. And

22:12

this is where affirmations can

22:14

be really helpful to you. So

22:19

instead of lying to yourself,

22:21

I call those the lies. I'm

22:24

not good enough. I

22:26

can't cope. I'm

22:28

unlovable or unworthy. You

22:33

can create an affirmation

22:35

coming from your shame

22:37

that reflects your truth,

22:40

that you

22:43

rather than give

22:45

you pressure, that

22:48

encourages you rather than

22:50

give you demands. So

22:53

have to craft.

22:55

your affirmation. So

23:01

let's try a couple now. Of

23:03

course these may not be suitable to

23:05

you, but it would give you an idea.

23:10

So take a moment, find

23:14

your centerline now. Rebalance.

23:18

rebalance, give yourself time,

23:27

and breathe deep. Could

23:38

you say this to yourself, could this

23:40

be true? Every day

23:42

I move forward with

23:44

purpose and ease. Could

23:53

you say to yourself, I

23:55

trust that my

23:57

journey is unique. Could

24:07

you say and

24:09

allow yourself 100 %

24:12

that I allow my

24:14

life to unfold

24:16

naturally? So

24:27

dealing with the three lies we dealt

24:29

with earlier, could you say something like,

24:32

I am learning

24:34

to accept myself. Can

24:39

you be accurate, encouraging?

24:42

Can you release the pressure? Can

24:45

you hold it deep

24:47

within that chained sanctuary? Can

24:50

you speak it from your truth? Can

24:55

you make your

24:57

affirmations really work for

25:00

yourself and if

25:02

resistance arises don't judge

25:04

in fact it's

25:07

a great opportunity to

25:09

ask why can't

25:11

I say this with

25:13

truthfulness why would

25:16

I say this to

25:18

a child and

25:20

I can't say to

25:23

myself And

25:25

here's the golden thread, that

25:28

self -inquiry, that

25:30

reverse engineering. And

25:33

you'll understand that deep within

25:35

you, you may have a

25:37

belief, maybe from childhood, that

25:40

you're holding on

25:42

to. Like

25:45

a child would hold

25:47

on to a favorite soft

25:49

toy. I call

25:51

it your vow. And

25:56

so it gives you an insight. Could

26:00

you say to yourself, I

26:03

have innate value and

26:05

worth? Could

26:14

you say to yourself, I

26:16

am already enough? So

26:19

you see these

26:21

affirmations, If

26:24

you believe them, can be

26:26

very powerful. If you

26:28

don't believe them, they can

26:30

be the beginning step of the golden

26:32

threat process. But

26:36

above all, the

26:38

affirmation should always reflect

26:40

your truth. If

26:44

it does not, it

26:48

just won't

26:50

work. and

26:58

you lose

27:01

that truthfulness with

27:03

yourself you

27:05

lose that connection

27:08

and that's

27:10

why affirmation and

27:12

intentions are

27:15

very spiritual, very

27:17

powerful because

27:19

they anchor you

27:22

that you're

27:24

not hypocritical Because

27:27

if you would not say

27:29

it in a shantest to a

27:31

physical child, then why

27:33

or why are you saying it

27:35

to yourself? This

27:37

is not your truth. It's

27:40

not honest. It has

27:42

no integrity. You'll

27:44

betraying yourself. So

27:51

just as we finish, Can

27:56

you anchor yourself into your truth?

27:59

Can you find that stillness

28:01

deep within you? As

28:03

you breathe in, can

28:05

you relax your body? Can

28:12

you explore the stillness?

28:22

Can you have that honest day

28:24

with yourself? because

28:28

you are exactly where you need

28:30

to be. If

28:34

this resonate with you, this is

28:36

the message you needed to hear.

28:45

Your affirmations should be

28:47

truthful, honest

28:49

and have integrity. They

28:52

should reflect your natural flow of

28:54

life. and

29:01

therefore your path

29:03

will always be

29:05

clear and when

29:07

you meet junctions

29:09

when you meet

29:11

crossroads your path

29:14

will show itself

29:16

and you begin

29:18

to trust your

29:20

authentic journey you

29:22

will begin to

29:24

choose progress over

29:26

perfection You

29:30

begin to use

29:32

your Yi intentions to

29:35

uplift you and

29:37

empower you. You

29:42

begin to speak to

29:44

yourself with kindness and

29:46

encouragement. And

29:51

every day you

29:54

step towards your purpose.

30:01

you'll begin to trust

30:03

your wisdom and

30:05

you'll be flexible on

30:07

your path as

30:09

your path guides you

30:11

go with it

30:13

you'll be aligned your

30:15

energy this is

30:17

Wu Wei you'll be

30:19

in your flow

30:21

and you'll walk your

30:23

path with confidence

30:25

clarity and ease So

30:30

think about making

30:33

some affirmations that

30:35

you could say

30:37

to yourself you

30:39

could look in

30:41

the mirror and

30:43

there would be

30:45

no hypocrisy even

30:47

if it's something

30:49

like today I

30:51

will try my

30:53

best carry that

30:55

forward with

30:58

an open

31:00

heart and mind

31:02

and let's

31:04

start to build

31:06

yourself up

31:08

with this intention

31:11

this ye

31:13

and let the

31:15

affirmations confirm

31:17

your intentions so

31:19

we've covered

31:21

a lot of

31:23

ground here Something

31:26

you may have to return to and

31:28

practice. I don't expect you

31:30

to get it right. Small

31:32

steps. Sometimes three steps

31:34

forward, two steps back. That's fine.

31:40

Small steps. Remember

31:44

you are exactly where you

31:46

need to be. If

31:50

this message is important for you,

31:53

this is where you need to be. So

31:56

let's take our last breath. Let's

32:01

find that stillness deep within. And

32:08

let's give yourself

32:10

a few moments

32:12

of peace and

32:14

calm. I'll

32:20

gently count you out now, but if you

32:22

want to stay in the meditation, that's fine.

32:27

Could you relax more? Could

32:30

you breathe even deeper? One,

32:35

two, three.

32:39

Bring the energy back into your

32:41

body now. Four,

32:44

five, six

32:47

and seven. And

32:50

when you're ready, you can open your

32:52

eyes. I

32:54

would always recommend you give

32:56

yourself a little shake and

32:58

perhaps a big deep breath

33:00

together. So

33:03

thank you so much for sharing

33:05

this meditation. It sounds

33:07

simple but extremely

33:09

powerful. And

33:13

it's life changing when

33:15

you align your intentions with

33:17

your affirmations so there's

33:19

no gap. It's truthful,

33:21

honest and has integrity. Your

33:24

life will slowly begin

33:26

to change, one step

33:28

at a time. And

33:32

so until we meditate again

33:34

together, thank you so much

33:36

for joining me. Yidau.

33:39

Chidau.