Toby Ouvry Meditation

Slowing down to speed up – Staying productive & creative when you are low-energy

Post author By Toby
Post date June 22, 2026

“Acknowledging & accepting low-energy, gives us a choice to work with it rather than against it. From a position of acceptance, we can then make choices that move us toward energy & creativity”

Dear Integral Meditators,

This week’s article looks at how to work with low-energy states skillfully, rather than just fighting them and getting even more tired!

A few chances to bolster your energy through mindfulness & meditation this week:

The online summer solstice meditation on Wednesday evening
The chakras & non-duality meditation sessions at 5.30pm, Saturday afternoon, & noon at Space2B. the subject will be ‘Second chakra – energy, creativity, union with life’
Thirdly, head’s up for the Mindful Resilience workshop – Practices for sustaining effectiveness, happiness & clarity under pressure that I’ll be doing on the 28th June, which looks at an integrated set of resilience techniques

In the spirit of wise fast & slow,

Toby

Slowing down to speed up – Staying productive & creative when you are low-energy

As we reach the mid-year mark, I’ve been having to manage my energy level fairly mindfully as it comes under stress from various different directions. When there is a lot going on it can be difficult to realize how low on energy you are getting until it is a too late. Below are a few mindful methods I’ve been using to navigate the run into the summer break without breaking apart!

Mindful of the possible vicious cycle with low-energy

When we are in a low-energy state, we are also in a reduced willpower state. This means that it is very easy to try and start a task, but then simply getting distracted by something. For example, I have an intention to get a few emails done, but I get sidetracked by youtube instead. This now means that I am low-energy and my energy has been further depleted-dissipated by distraction. This then means that I am even more tired, but I have not gotten the task done. This might then mean that I stay up later in the evening to get things done (also in a distracted manner), which then means I get to bed too late, which then means I wake up feeling low-energy, and so-on in a vicious cycle. Sometimes going to bed too late also means I am ‘to tired’ to fall asleep, or I sleep in a non-relaxed or stressed manner.
With a cycle like this, low energy breeds distraction, which breeds self-judgment and stress, which makes us even less able to stay productive, which leads to feelings of overwhelm, which leads to lower energy and so on…

Going slower to go faster

If I am in a low-energy state, I find the faster I can recognize it the better. From this awareness, normally my next position is acknowledgment and acceptance of the state of tiredness, and a choice to work with it rather than against it. From this position of acceptance, I then make choices like:

Reducing my ambition for the rest of the day, achieving less, but in a way where I feel good about what I have done and get to bedtime on time, ready to recharge for tomorrow.
If I’m feeling too tired to do anything, I normally take a few minutes to do nothing. Doing nothing helps my energy to gather, and for me to get clear on the next task that I want to do engage in.
Look at my inner narrative, and ‘spin’ it in a positive manner. A simple example of this is I focus on what I have achieved (today/this week/this month) already, and how I can feel good about that, rather than all the things that I haven’t done yet/should have done by now. This helps me to feel happy where I am presently, which takes the edge off any feelings of stress or tiredness.

‘More haste less hurry’ as the saying goes, or, if you like, ‘Less haste, more hurry’!

Observing outside influences (or perceived ones), and setting your own pace

A final point here, when we are tired, it can be quite easy to be pushed out of balance by environmental influences. A stressed-out colleague or boss, the opinion of our partner, the anxiety of our children, an uncomfortable commute home in the evening. These can all push us out of balance, adding dis-orientation, dissipation and confusion to our already low-energy state. The more you can be aware of this, the less likely it is to influence you unconsciously, and the more likely you are to be able to find and keep your center in the eye of the storm.

Related reading: Tired of being tired – Relaxing into, not fighting with your fatigue
You already have what you seek – Getting resilience from resilience

© Toby Ouvry 2026, you are welcome to use or share this article, but please cite Toby as the source and include reference to his website www.tobyouvry.com

Upcoming classes & workshops

Ongoing on Wednesday’s (live & online), 7.30-8.30pm – Weekly integral meditation classes

Ongoing on Saturdays, 5.30-6.45pm SG time – Saturday Integral meditation deep-dive sessions with Toby

12noon on Saturday – Meditation Masterclass Series at Space2B

Sat 20th, 5.30pm & Weds 24th June, 7.30pm – Summer solstice balancing & renewing meditation

Sunday 28th July, 9am-12noon – Mindful Resilience workshop – Practices for sustaining effectiveness, happiness & clarity under pressure

Follow Toby on: LinkedIn, YouTube, Instagram

Integral Meditation Asia

Online Courses * 1:1 Coaching * Books * Live Workshops * Corporate Mindfulness Training *Life-Coaching * Meditation Technology

Tags energy meditation, inner growth, integral meditation, integral meditation asia, integral mindfulness, meditation, meditation in singapore, mindful healing, mindfulness, mindfulness in Singapore, mindfulness meditation, power of mind

A Mind of Ease Awareness and insight Enlightened Flow Inner vision Insight Meditation Integral Meditation Meditation and Psychology Meditation techniques Mindful Resilience Presence and being present Primal Spirituality Zen Meditation

You already have what you seek – Meditating from wholeness

Post author By Toby
Post date June 15, 2026

“You are whole, a lot of the things you seek, you have already. Proceed from there”

Dear Integral Meditators,

This week’s article looks at approaching meditation, & life from a perspective of wholeness, & noticing how much easier it can make things!

Head’s up for the Mindful Resilience workshop – Practices for sustaining effectiveness, happiness & clarity under pressure that I’ll be doing on the 28th June, I also talk about an approach to improving resilience in the article…

In the spirit of the effortless,

Toby

You already have what you seek – Meditating from wholeness

Meditating to express your awakened nature

One of my favourite expressions from Zen meditation is ‘You don’t meditate to attain awakening, you meditate to express it.’ What this means is that, you already have an awakened, whole and complete essential nature, so you don’t need to achieve it, you need to recognize it! Initially it can be difficult for us to relate to ourselves as whole right from the start of our practice, but this is what Zen and other forms of meditation invite us to do. It means inverting the usual ‘doing something to achieve something’ mentality, and relate to your wholeness, in the sense of having awakened nature right now.
There are also ways in which we can meditate in a wise way, where instead of trying to achieve something, we simply recognize that it is already there. Here are three examples that I have bee working with over this weekend with coachees and students.

The presence of stillness and silence

‘I wish my mind could be more still, but it’s so hard!’ Really? Reflect upon the environment you are in right now; the sounds and activity are all contained by the stillness and space that enables your environment. There is loads of physical space and stillness. Inwardly, yes you may have many thoughts, but they are arising in the open space of your awareness, which Is pervaded by stillness and silence. With a bit of skilful attention, we start to see that we are swimming in stillness and silence, like a fish in water!

The feeling of being alive, now

Why are you trying to achieve things? So that at upon achieving that thing, you can then really have the feeling of being fully alive. But wait, you are also alive right now, perhaps if you can open more fully to the simple feeling of being alive in the moment, you can experience the fulfilment and joy of it today, now, without waiting until you achieve your goals.

How much happiness can you accept?

We all have our problems, and those problems can make us unhappy at times, no doubt. But there are also many things in your life great and small that can be causes of happiness. If you can relate to those things now, and accept the happiness that is on offer. This way you can have genuine happiness now, right away. This happiness will then help you deal with your challenges and problems more effectively.

Getting resilience from your resilience

Relating to yourself and life from a position of wholeness
Realizing that you already have what you are looking for in many ways

These are the two essential principles here. I use them in many ways, both in my own life, and in my teachings. For example, in the mindful resilience workshop that I teach, the first practice is to:

“Understanding the different levels of mindful resilience and tapping into the inner resilience that you already have (but may not be leveraging effectively upon)”

So right off the bat, I encourage participants to relate to their resilience as something that they already have, rather than something they lack and need to ‘achieve’. All of this is to say that it is an approach that is ergonomic and flowing, sailing with life rather than struggling against it.

You are whole, a lot of the things you seek, you have already. Proceed from there.

© Toby Ouvry 2026, you are welcome to use or share this article, but please cite Toby as the source and include reference to his website www.tobyouvry.com

Tags inner growth, integral meditation, integral meditation asia, integral mindfulness, meditation, meditation in singapore, mindfulness, mindfulness in Singapore, mindfulness meditation, power of mind, resilience, wholeness

A Mind of Ease Chakra meditation Enlightened Flow Gods and Goddesses Inner vision Insight Meditation Meditating on the Self Meditation techniques Mindful Resilience Presence and being present Primal Spirituality Zen Meditation

Why non-dual meditation should be your go-to practice

Post author By Toby
Post date June 8, 2026

“Non-duality is a view of our experience that invites effortlessness and flow. Integrating it into your practice invites this experience of effortlessness into your life, now.”

Dear Integral Meditators,
This week’s article looks at non-dual meditation, why it is great to make as a central part of your meditation, and how to get started with a simple non-dual breathing practice.

If you are looking for a rich way to integrate non-dual meditation into your life, this week sees the start of the Wednesday evening & Saturday afternoon chakra’s & non-duality meditation programs, they will also be the subject of the Saturday noon meditation masterclass series at Space2B that I run.

In the spirit of the effortless,

Toby

Why non-dual meditation should be your go-to practice

What is non-dual meditation?

Non-dual meditation is a type of meditation that emerged in the 6^th-8^th centuries, explicitly within the eastern Buddhist, Taoist and Hindu (eg Vedanta) traditions, but also implicitly within the western esoteric traditions of the time. Essentially it focuses on the collapse of the subject-object divide within our consciousness into a ‘Just This’ experience. Before that time, the vast majority of meditation was dualistic in nature; there was a subject of consciousness, the ‘I’, meditating on an object of consciousness, this object could be:

Something obvious, like the breathing, “I am focusing mindfully on my breathing”
Something more subtle, like my mind, “I am aware of my thoughts”
Something really subtle, for example “I am aware of my formless timeless consciousness”

Whatever you meditated on, there was a subject and an object of consciousness.

Why it’s a great practice to make your go-to practice

Non-dual meditation is a great practice to make front and centre of your daily meditation because:

It offers access to an effortless level of stress transformation – Non-duality is a view of our experience that invites effortlessness and flow. Integrating into your practice invites this experience of effortlessness into your life, now.
It is the final destination of all meditations. In all of the different great meditation traditions of the world, non-dual reality is the ‘highest’ attainment, the final destination. Since it is that, you may as well bring it in today!
You can practice it on the level you are at – Non-dual meditation is deep but simple. You can practice it on the level you are at today, and have some degree of success. You don’t need to wait until you get ‘better’.
You can integrate your other meditations into your non-dual practice. You can MAKE your current meditation into a non-dual meditation, simply by changing your perspective on it. Non-duality is a VIEW of reality, if you integrate it into your current meditation, it becomes a non-dual practice. For example, in the Chakra meditation series I am about to teach this week, it integrates Chakra meditation with non-duality, which is a great, and very do-able combination!
You being the result into the path – Non-dual meditation focuses on the recognition that awakening is not something you achieve, it is something that you ARE. This is a wonderful understanding to integrate into your daily life; you are already whole and complete as you are, right now!
It is fantastic for living in the world – Non-dual meditation enables us to transform everyday activities into our spiritual practice in ways that would be difficult otherwise. It’s a type of technology that really helps you be ‘in the world but not of the world’.

A simple example

Non-dual breathing meditation – Settle into a rhythm focusing on your breathing, just like a normal mindful breathing meditation. Notice that in the meditation there is a sense of an ‘I’ or self that is focusing on the breathing. Once you have a certain degree of focus and relaxation, gently ‘drop’ the I, so that it is just the breathing doing itself. There is no subject or object of consciousness, just the breathing. Put another way, the ‘self’ is experienced as nothing more than the breathing. To quote Shunryu Suzuki:

“The inner world is limitless, and the outer world is also limitless. We say “inner world” and outer world,” but in reality, there is just one whole world, our throat is like a swinging door. The air comes in and goes out like someone passing through a swinging door. If you think “I breathe,” the I is extra.”

So, one really simple example there, we’ll be looking at seven simple examples in the chakra meditation & non-duality course, which, I promise will be a whole lot of fun!

Related reading: The swinging door – when the breathing does itself
Non-Dual meditation & Organismic reality
Practical dimensions of chakra meditation

© Toby Ouvry 2026, you are welcome to use or share this article, but please cite Toby as the source and include reference to his website www.tobyouvry.com

Watch Toby’s video on chakra meditation & non-duality:

Upcoming classes & workshops

Ongoing on Tuesday’s & Wednesday’s (live & online), 7.30-8.30pm – Weekly integral meditation classes

Ongoing on Saturdays, 5.30-6.45pm SG time – Saturday Integral meditation deep-dive sessions with Toby

12noon on Saturday – Meditation Masterclass Series at Space2B

Starts on Wednesday June 10^th, 7.30-8.30pm – Chakra meditation as a gateway to non-duality, energy & the integrated self -an 8-week course

Starts Saturday June 13^th, 5.30-6.45pm – Chakra meditation as a gateway to non-duality, energy & the integrated self – an 8-session deep-dive practice series

Sat 20th, 5.30pm & Weds 24th June, 7.30pm – Summer solstice balancing & renewing meditation

Tags inner growth, integral meditation, integral meditation asia, integral mindfulness, meditation, meditation in singapore, mindfulness, mindfulness in Singapore, mindfulness meditation, non-dual meditation, power of mind

A Mind of Ease Chakra meditation creative imagery Energy Meditation Inner vision Life-fullness Meditation and Psychology Meditation techniques Mindful Resilience Presence and being present Stress Transformation

3 levels of chakra meditation video, & article on varying your intensity level

Post author By Toby
Post date June 4, 2026

Dear Integral Meditators,

A video & article for you today!

The video is a short introducton to the three different levels of the chakras, & how to work with them in meditation. It’s partly for those who may be interested in the Wednesday evening & Saturday afternoon chakra meditation & non-duality summer courses. But it should be interesting & of value to those who are simply curious!

The article on ‘Yin & yang levels of intensity in meditation’ asks the question: “What level of intensity do I want to bring to my practice, & my life today? Which level will work best in the circumstances?”

In the spirit of creation & adaptation,

Toby

Watch Toby’s video on the three aspects or levels of chakra meditation:

Yang & yin levels of meditation intensity

In the same way that there are different levels of exercise, there are different levels of intensity regarding your meditation. If you have an exercise routine, you will likely have:

Some days that are high intensity days, where you are looking to push your body’s capacity by exercising intensely and close to the limit of your capacity
Other days you may exercise at a low level of intensity with the aim to help your body recover its energy
Other days it may be an intermediate level of intensity, somewhere between a 4-6 out of 10 (with 10 as max effort)

Similarly, when you sit down to do a meditation, it can be useful to distinguish whether you are going to meditate:

At a relatively high ‘yang’ intensity level, emphasizing clarity and capacity growth. This may take some energy to do, but if you feel your energy levels are quite good already, then you can invest some of that energy in improving your meditation ‘level’
At a lower, easy ‘yin’ regenerative level. Here you are not going to worry too much about ‘performance’, rather you are creating a space for your meditation that is aimed at recovery and rest. This type of meditation you may well come out with more energy, feeling refreshed and renewed, almost like you had a bit of a sleep

Of course, you can also choose a level in between, at an intermediate or balanced level of intensity, that ‘4-6’ level that I mentioned above!
The point here is that, if you make a conscious decision about the level of intensity before you start your meditation then that can set you up for a better meditation experience as you actually engage in the meditation.
You can create a formal program if you like where you have set days each week that are designated ‘yin meditation’ others ‘yang’ and one or two intermediate days. What I generally like to do is simply decide on the day, according to how I feel.

A daily example

On the way to work on the train this morning, I did a 15minute meditation. Before I started, my body felt really quite tired, so I decided to do it at a low intensity, ‘yin’ recovery level of intensity. So, I began with this ‘soft focus’ type approach, not worrying too much about precision, brightness or energy. As the meditation went on however, I did feel my state moving from a low energy toward a higher energy level as I progressed. In the second half of the meditation, I picked up the intensity and finished feeling both refreshed and quite ‘on point’ around my energy level. It turned into a ‘bit of both’ type meditation!

A final point, you can use the above principles to vary the level on intensity that you bring to your life appropriately. Some days can be high intensity days, others recovery, ‘yin’ days. Yin days can involve work, yang days can involve recovery or leisure. It’s more about the mindful modulation of your effort, rather than the activities themselves.

Related article: Zen ergonomics – Sailing with, rather than rowing against life

© Toby Ouvry 2026, you are welcome to use or share this article, but please cite Toby as the source and include reference to his website www.tobyouvry.com

Upcoming classes & workshops

Ongoing on Tuesday’s & Wednesday’s (live & online), 7.30-8.30pm – Weekly integral meditation classes

Ongoing on Saturdays, 5.30-6.45pm SG time – Saturday Integral meditation deep-dive sessions with Toby

Starts on Wednesday June 10^th, 7.30-8.30pm – Chakra meditation as a gateway to non-duality, energy & the integrated self -an 8-week course

Starts Saturday June 13^th, 5.30-6.45pm – Chakra meditation as a gateway to non-duality, energy & the integrated self – an 8-session deep-dive practice series

Sat 20th, 5.30pm & Weds 24th June, 7.30pm – Summer solstice balancing & renewing meditation

Tags chakra meditation, inner growth, integral meditation, integral meditation asia, integral mindfulness, intensity level, meditation, meditation in singapore, mindfulness, mindfulness in Singapore, mindfulness meditation, power of mind

Awareness and insight creative imagery Inner vision Insight Meditation Life-fullness meditation and creativity Meditation and Psychology Mindful Resilience Presence and being present Stress Transformation

No such thing as a bad situation? – Mindful life-sculpting

Post author By Toby
Post date June 1, 2026

“How can you create, or ‘sculpt’ your present experience into something valuable, worthwhile, fulfilling? What if it was not primarily about it, but you?”

Dear <<First Name>>,

This week’s article looks at the theme of mindful-life sculpting, where you use your mind & attention to ‘sculpt’ your expereince. As a sculptor by training, its a perenially interesting theme for me.

A reminder of the Wednesday evening & Saturday afternoon chakra meditation & non-duality summer courses. If you are looking for methods that are both profoundly relaxing & transformative, do have a look!
Programs can be participated in live, online or via the recordngs. Click below for full details.

In the spirit of energised relaxation,

Toby

No such thing as a bad situation? – Mindful life-sculpting

No such thing as a bad sculpture

Twice in my degree in the fine arts, specializing in sculpture, I was told by one of the art tutors who taught me “Actually, after you have been making sculptures a while, one of the things that you realize is that there is no such thing as a bad sculpture.” That they meant by this is that, after a while you realize that every object has a certain quality, and that, if you can work your way around to seeing it, you can appreciate, enjoy and even value it.

Your own life from this perspective

In your own life you may have come across many experiences and situations that look a bit like a ‘bad sculpture’. By this I mean that initially you react with a strong negative judgment about it; “This is bad because”:

It’s not what I wanted…
It’s not what I’m used to…
It’s not what I was expecting…
It gets in the way of….

The reasons can go on and on. But then perhaps you have found over time that,

It not what you wanted, but there are certain advantages to it, now I have been living with it for a couple of weeks…
It’s not what you were used to, but now you are starting to see how what you were used to was holding you back in certain ways…
It’s not what I was expecting, but why was I thinking that what I was expecting was going to be the best thing for me anyway?…
It got in the way of this goal, but now there is more room for this other possibility to manifest in my life…

No such thing as a bad situation?

So then, the extension of the ‘no bad sculptures’ idea is perhaps, that there are no bad situations? And that actually it’s more a ‘mindset limitation’ that is the issue…

Last week I discussed halving the work commitment I have toward an organization. In these uncertain times that might seem like a ‘bad’ thing, but actually I need to create space in my work schedule, as it is getting over crowded
I tried to create room for doing some physical sculpture at the end of last year, but I wasn’t able to. Maybe this is inviting me to double down in the idea of my life as my ‘sculpture’, and that I am doing great!
My sleep has not been fantastic over the last couple of weeks, but maybe this is helping me to see how much new capacity I have to cope and thrive in life, even when my sleep is not optimal…

What if there were no bad situations in your life?

What if it was more a matter of you seeing the value in what you are going through? If you are the most powerful creative force in your life, how can you create, or ‘sculpt’ your present experience into something valuable, worthwhile, fulfilling? What if it was not primarily about it, but you?

Related articles: Using distractions, sculpting thoughts, softening the body
Being the center of your universe

© Toby Ouvry 2026, you are welcome to use or share this article, but please cite Toby as the source and include reference to his website www.tobyouvry.com

Upcoming classes & workshops

Ongoing on Tuesday’s & Wednesday’s (live & online), 7.30-8.30pm – Weekly integral meditation classes

Ongoing on Saturdays, 5.30-6.45pm SG time – Saturday Integral meditation deep-dive sessions with Toby

Starts on Wednesday June 10^th, 7.30-8.30pm – Chakra meditation as a gateway to non-duality, energy & the integrated self -an 8-week course

Starts Saturday June 13^th, 5.30-6.45pm – Chakra meditation as a gateway to non-duality, energy & the integrated self – an 8-session deep-dive practice series

Sat 20th, 5.30pm & Weds 24th June, 7.30pm – Summer solstice balancing & renewing meditation

Tags creative mindfulness, inner growth, integral meditation, integral meditation asia, integral mindfulness, meditation, meditation in singapore, mindful sculpting, mindfulness, mindfulness in Singapore, mindfulness meditation, power of mind

Chakra meditation Inner vision meditation and creativity Meditation and Psychology Meditation techniques Uncategorized

Chakra meditation as a gateway to non-duality summer courses

Post author By Toby
Post date May 27, 2026

Dear Integral Meditators,

I’ve just completed the write ups for the summer meditation courses. Both the weekday classes & the Saturday deep-dive sessions will be focused on the chakras as gateways to non-duality.

Actually, all seven chakras have three levels; bio-energetic, mental & consciousness.

In the sessions we will look at all three in an intergral manner, with the emphasis being on the final wisdom-state of the conscious level. The seven gatweays we will cover are:

First chakra – stability, abundance, unity with the world
Second chakra – energy, creativity, union with life
Third chakra – Confidence, power, union with mind
Fourth chakra – Heart, merging, relating – union as love
Fifth chakra – sound, speech, mantra – unity through silence
Sixth Chakra – Observation, integration – union as the witness
Seventh chakra – Consciousness, integration – formless union

I’m pretty excited to facilitate these sessions, I’ve been practising different forms of chakram meditation for the last 30 years, & this will be a conndensation of that expereince into a single 8 session format. If your looking for an ‘inner summer to remember’, this might be your ticket!

Programs can be participated in live, online or via the recordngs. Click below for full details.

In the spirit of energised relaxation,

Toby

Starts on Wednesday June 10^th, 7.30-8.30pm – Chakra meditation as a gateway to non-duality, energy & the integrated self -an 8-week course

Overview: The chakras are a traditional, dynamic meditation form that invite us to discover:

A way of bringing greater energy into our body in a way that promotes health & wellbeing
A way of developing ourselves on seven different levels of our being in a balanced & integrated manner
A way of accessing deeper meditation states more easily & effectively
A way of enjoying working with colour in meditation

Read full details…

Starts Saturday June 13^th, 5.30-6.45pm – Chakra meditation as a gateway to non-duality, energy & the integrated self – an 8-session deep-dive practice series

What is unique to these sessions is that Toby will be showing how to meditate on each of the chakras as gateways to the non-dual state, which is considered the highest or ‘ultimate’ level of wisdom-meditation practice.

Non-duality is a state beyond verbal description, but it can be understood more deeply & profoundly by approaching it from the seven different levels of the chakras. In doing so the richness of your non-dual meditation, & your ability to apply it effectively in daily life will be greatly enhanced….read full details

Tags chakra meditation, inner growth, integral meditation, integral meditation asia, integral mindfulness, meditation, meditation in singapore, mindfulness, mindfulness in Singapore, mindfulness meditation, power of mind

A Mind of Ease Biographical Integral Awareness Meditating on the Self Meditation and Psychology Meditation Recordings Mindful Resilience Mindful Self-Leadership Mindfulness Presence and being present Videos

Mindfulness for Traders: Flow State, Emotional Control & Life Mastery

Post author By Toby
Post date May 18, 2026

Dear Integral Meditators,

Last week I was interviewed by Simon Ree from the Tao Of Trading to give a talk to his community on ‘Mindfulness for Traders: Flow State, Emotional Control & Life Mastery.’

It was a pleasure to be on the show, I’ve done a lot of coaching with traders over the years, & this video captures some major aspects of the sort of mindful processes I go through with them in the sessions.

Watch Mindfulness for Traders: Flow State, Emotional Control & Life Mastery

Even if you are not particularly interested in trading, there are a lot of mindful life-themes that you might enjoy. The section beneath the video gives you the option to just click on the segments you are interested in!

Here is a summary of the key subjects of the talk, with added links to related articles of mine.

Key principles covered include:

The McLaren Problem: why reaching your financial goals doesn’t automatically mean peace of mind, and the psychological work most successful traders never anticipated.
Related article: Wanting what you like, or liking what happens?

The 4 Trees Exercise: a 3-minute practice to anchor yourself in the present moment before you trade. The simplest pre-trade ritual I’ve seen.
Related article: Sitting between the four trees – your basic mandala of presence

The Repression Fallacy: why willpower alone cannot eliminate fear and greed. Suppressed emotions don’t disappear. They re-emerge during your worst trades. His words, not mine.
Related article: Mindfulness, emotions & your MRVA’s (Mass rapid value assessments)

Wu Wei (Non-Doing): when you’re in a hole, stop digging. When you stop forcing, you start noticing what actually opens up.
Related article: Effortless effort – Making everything workable

Optimistic Stoicism: face the worst-case scenario. Inhabit it. Discover you can endure it. Then open the door to genuine optimism.
Related article: Optimistic stoicism

“Could be good, could be bad”: the equanimity of the Chinese horse farmer. Probabilities, not certainties. Managing risk without catastrophising about outcomes.

Upcoming classes & workshops

Ongoing on Tuesday’s & Wednesday’s (live & online), 7.30-8.30pm – Weekly integral meditation classes

Ongoing on Saturdays, 5.30-6.45pm SG time – Saturday Integral meditation deep-dive sessions with Toby

Ongoing on Wednesdays – The inner smile – Meditations for inner regeneration & connecting to the Earth – An 8-week course

Ongoing on Saturdays – The inner smile & Earth healing deep-dive – An 8 session practice series

Tags inner growth, integral meditation, integral meditation asia, integral mindfulness, meditation, meditation in singapore, mindful trading, mindfulness, mindfulness in Singapore, mindfulness meditation, power of mind

creative imagery Enlightened Flow Inner vision Integral Awareness Life-fullness Meditation techniques Presence and being present Primal Spirituality Stress Transformation Using the Energy of Negative Emotions

The seagull whirlpool & other stress transformations

Post author By Toby
Post date May 11, 2026

“You are the seagull above the whirlpool of your life. See yourself centred, relaxed, skilfully adapting to the wind changes, accepting them, working with them moment to moment. You are entirely at home”

Dear Integral Meditators,

This week’s article offers an image for experiencing mindful stress transformation that really struck me.

If you enjoy the article, & would like to shift your own ability to transform your stress tangibly, then do check out my Meditations for Transforming Negativity and Stress into Energy, Positivity and Enlightenment Workshop on this Saturday 16^th & then 23^rd of May.

Also the Wednesday & Saturday Inner smile meditations are also focused on energy and emotional stress transformation, this week we look at moving from fear to fear & stress to gentleness/calm.

In the spirit of seagulls,

Toby

The seagull whirlpool & other stress transformations

At the end of 2014 I wrote an article called ‘The stability of uncertainty’. In it I write about my experience of working with high degrees of uncertainty, stress and change, and learning to quietly thrive on it rather than be oppressed by it. It was a real ‘best of times, worst of times’ period in my life, when I was learning that uncertainty can be transformed and thrived upon if it can be accepted. After awareness, all stress transformation practice begins with acceptance. It is the sure footing that you build in order to then gain the confidence to work with pressure dynamically. Looking back and reading that article, I’m struck by how much of it I still agree with, and find relevant to my own process right now, at this later stage in my life and growth.

On the original article post I noticed that I had used a picture of two seagulls circling above a whirlpool. Looking at it now, I am struck by what a great image this is for becoming a stress transformer. If you imagine you are one of those seagulls. Above the whirlpool there will be strong, fast changing winds, the birds have to adapt moment to moment. Below is a whirlpool that if they get caught up in it would pull them under the ocean. But for a gull, despite all the chaotic energy around them, this feels like home. In fact, this IS their home, their native environment. They are able to stay centred in their bodies, making skilful adjustments to their wings, rejoicing in their capability, enjoying the dance. Compared to the forces around them, they are tiny, like small specks, but they are not thinking about their size or significance, they are busy enjoying being who and what they are, knowing that they can survive, thrive and make their living amidst the turbulence.
Thinking about one of the really big gulls, the albatross, it can go out flying over the open ocean for 6 months at a time, which is really quite something!

You are the seagull above the whirlpool of your life

Imagine yourself now as the seagull above the whirlpool of your life. All of the chaos, the turbulence, the uncertainty, the contending forces in your life are like the whirlpool below you, and the wind and weather around you. See yourself centred in your body, relaxed, skilfully adapting to the wind changes, accepting them, working with them moment to moment. You don’t know exactly what comes next, but you deeply trust in your capability to meet and adapt to it. Constantly moving and adapting, you feel stable in this environment, like it is a home. In the sky and above the whirlpool you live, confident in your ability to find what you need to survive, and able to enjoy what comes your way in the moment. You have made tension your friend, and so you feel free, relaxed, the sovereign of your world. You are connected to your natural intelligence and dignity.
Bring to mind a challenge you are facing in your life right now. Feel the fear, anxiety, overwhelm, or whatever else you feel around it. Now be the seagull.

Related reading: Rats, meadows, & the World doing Itself (Stress tolerance & transformation)
The stability of uncertainty

© Toby Ouvry 2026, you are welcome to use or share this article, but please cite Toby as the source and include reference to his website www.tobyouvry.com

Ongoing on Wednesdays – The inner smile – Meditations for inner regeneration & connecting to the Earth – An 8-week course

Ongoing on Saturdays – The inner smile & Earth healing deep-dive – An 8 session practice series

Saturday 16th & 23rd May, 3.30-5pm on both days – Meditations for Transforming Negativity and Stress into Energy, Positivity and Enlightenment Workshop

Tags inner growth, integral meditation, integral meditation asia, integral mindfulness, meditation, meditation in singapore, mindfulness, mindfulness in Singapore, mindfulness meditation, power of mind, stress transformation

A Mind of Ease Beginners mind, resilient body creative imagery Energy Meditation Inner smile & Earth healing Inner vision Integral Meditation Life-fullness Meditating on the Self Meditation and Psychology Meditation techniques Mindful Confidence Mindful Resilience Presence and being present Primal Spirituality Zen Meditation

Rats, meadows, & the World doing Itself (Stress tolerance & transformation)

Post author By Toby
Post date May 4, 2026

“I am the Wolrd doing Itself”

Dear Integral Meditators,

This week’s article offers three of my favourite perceptual shifts to help you manage & expand into the stress of your life challenges.

If you enjoy the article, & would like to shift your own ability to transform your stress tangibly, then do check out my Meditations for Transforming Negativity and Stress into Energy, Positivity and Enlightenment Workshop on Saturday 16^th & 23^rd of May.

Also the Wednesday & Saturday Inner smile meditations are also focused on energy and emotional stress transformation, you might enjoy these as well!

In the spirit of transformation,

Toby

Rats, meadows, & the World doing Itself (Stress tolerance & transformation)

Undergoing an expansion of capacity more gently

These last few weeks I have been going through a bit of a life change. I’ve felt an urge to take on a few new projects, and the combination of them, in tandem with my existing commitments has left me feeling somewhat dis-oriented and overwhelmed. The interesting thing about the overwhelm in this case is that I don’t feel ‘overwhelmed by the overwhelm’. What I mean by this is that, previously in a similar situation I would be incapacitated by the overwhelm, and then have to cut back on what I am doing in order to get back into balance. In this situation however, I feel more like what I am doing is something that I can do, and I just need to figure out how to relax into it, and my capacity will expand to the size of the challenge.

How to meditate when your mind is too busy, and you feel overwhelmed

I did a coaching session with a client last week, where he had been facing a similar challenge to me; too many things going on on all fronts. As he sat down to meditate, his mind just would not settle; things he had to do kept jumping into his mind. He was sometimes left feeling that he may as well have not meditated!

The positions we explored to help make his meditation time more productive were:

Noticing – That when we feel over-busy, our field of awareness can feel small, like we are stuck in our head. In our head are a bunch of ‘rats in a bag’ all bumping into each other and creating claustrophobia and friction.
Expanding – I suggested that, rather than trying to control his thoughts in this ‘small-mind’ environment, he could try making his awareness big. I mentioned the Zen expression ‘If you want to control your cow or your sheep, put it in a big meadow. To quote from a previous article on the subject: “When sitting with the thoughts in your mind, rather than trying to control them, stop them or ‘fix’ them, you simply make your mind and awareness bigger, like a large open meadow …. In such an environment an animal will tend to simply wonder off, find its place in the field and be content. So, when you make your awareness big, you can sit there watching the thoughts without being so bothered by them, and they in turn tend to gradually return to equilibrium, without you having to work that hard to control or fix them.”
I am the Word doing Itself – In addition to making our mind ‘big’ in this way, I suggested a non-dual perceptual shift. Rather than seeing himself as in the world, struggling to make his way amongst all of the busyness and activity, he should see himself as the ‘World doing Itself’. This perceptual shift means expanding your sense of your body-mind to be the Whole World, way beyond just your small body and individual life. Everything around you is you, you are the World, and the World is doing itself.

This third position keeps your awareness big, and all your little struggles feel correspondingly much more manageable. Because everything feels less stressful and more manageable, dealing with challenges in your life, on multiple-levels becomes much more manageable. We discover that we can take on more, whilst using less energy, and as a result we find our overall capacity increases.

My client liked these three positions, and we did a meditation on them before concluding. Of course, these three positions are equally useful for me in my life, as I expand into the next chapter and explore the limits of my own capacity!

Related reading: A bag of rats & a big meadow (tactics or strategy?)
The world as an organism
Four Mindful Images for Stress Transformation

© Toby Ouvry 2026, you are welcome to use or share this article, but please cite Toby as the source and include reference to his website www.tobyouvry.com

Ongoing on Wednesdays – The inner smile – Meditations for inner regeneration & connecting to the Earth – An 8-week course

Tags inner growth, integral meditation, integral meditation asia, integral mindfulness, meditation, meditation in singapore, mindfulness, mindfulness in Singapore, mindfulness meditation, power of mind, stress transformation

A Mind of Ease Integral Awareness Life-fullness Meditation and Psychology Meditation techniques mind body connection Mindful Breathing Mindful Resilience Mindfulness Presence and being present Stress Transformation Using the Energy of Negative Emotions

How to stop difficult feelings becoming negative emotions

Post author By Toby
Post date April 28, 2026

“Can you distinguish your feelings from your emotions? Oftentimes this skill can help you navigate stressful situations more successfully, & with less effort!”

Dear Integral Meditators,

This week’s article looks at how to distinguish feeling states from emotional states, & use it to navigate difficult circumstances more easily. If you enjoy it, then I invite you to my Mindfulness for emotional intelligence masterclass this Saturday 25th April, 2.30-4.30pm, live or online!

This week’s Wednesday & Saturday class continue our inner-smile meditation series, which is also focused on mindfulness around emotions. All welcome.

In the spirit of ease,

Toby

How to stop difficult feelings becoming negative emotions

The difference between feelings and emotions

One of the most useful distinctions in Buddhist insight meditation that I have found is the distinction between feelings and emotions. Broadly speaking feelings are simply the experience of that which is pleasant, unpleasant or neutral. By contrast emotions arise from a psychological process that involves thinking in a particular way about a feeling. Here are two simple examples:

I see a person who has wronged me in the past, instinctively an unpleasant feeling arises. I then start to reflect on the harm that they have caused me and develop anger or anger. This anger is the emotion, arising from the psychological process of paying attention to the harm done in combination with the initial unpleasant feelings.
I am sick, giving rise to unpleasant feelings in my body. I start to think about how this sickness is ruining my only two weeks of holiday in the year and I start to develop the emotions of frustration, despair and sadness.

Here we can start to see the basic distinction; pain is simply the feeling arising within the moment. We experience emotion when we combine a feeling with a psychological process of focusing on the feeling in a particular way.
With regard to painful feelings, often we compound the pain they cause us by focusing on them in a way that causes us to experience emotional suffering, as in the examples above. The key therefore in preventing painful feelings becoming full blown emotional suffering is to avoid thinking about them or focusing on them in such a way that negative emotions are stimulated.

Some sources of painful feelings

The five sources of painful feelings below are a non-exhaustive list, but it gives an idea of the variety of different sources that can cause painful feelings within us. Any of them if focused on in the wrong way can cause negative emotions to arise:

Physical pain arising from sickness or injury
Pain or irritability arising from hormonal or other biological or energetic imbalances within the body
From people who say or do harmful things to us or have done so in the past
From psychological and/or existential anxiety, e.g.: Worried about not being good enough, fear of dying, fear of stepping out of comfort zone etc…
From spiritual crisis; for example, when the old self or ego structures are collapsing in order for a new level of self-sense to arise.

An insight meditation for acknowledging and releasing negative feelings

Here is a brief insight meditation form that we can use to prevent difficult feelings turning into negative emotions:

Stage 1: Breathing in I am aware of my painful feelings,
Breathing out I acknowledge those feelings fully.
Stage 2: Breathing in I experience my tight grasping at those painful feelings,
Breathing out I relax my grasping at those feelings,
Stage 3: Breathing in I detach from those feelings,
Breathing out I extend compassion and understanding to those feelings.

In stage one as we breathe in, we become consciously aware of any painful feelings we may be experiencing, as we breathe out, we acknowledge them fully. Often, we try and repress or deny negative feelings, which in turn allow them to build and transform into negative emotions. Fully acknowledging what is there and gives feelings the attention they need in order to be addressed.

In stage two we observe how we are clinging to these painful feelings, grasping at them tightly. Then, as we breathe out, we consciously release that tight grasping, energetically relaxing our body and mind.

In stage three we detach from those painful feelings, at the same time as extending a feeling of compassion and understanding toward them. We combine the objective experience of detachment with the positive emotional tonalities of compassion and understanding.

Suggestions for Daily Practice

The essential point is that feelings can be distinguished from emotions, and we can prevent negative emotions from arising by avoiding focusing on painful feelings in the wrong way.
The brief meditation technique I describe above can be done as a two-minute exercise or as an extended meditation, taking a few minutes to focus on each of the stages. It is a meditation that is worth doing sometimes even if we are not fully aware of any negative feelings inside us, as often it will bring to light feelings within us the need a bit of tender loving care.
Of course if there are also practical things that we can do to alleviate the negative feelings, like taking medicine, or having a conversation to clear the air with our partner about a hurt we have then this should be done to!

Related reading: “Insight Meditation – Improving Your Subjective Experience by Developing Your Objective Perspective”

© Toby Ouvry 2026, you are welcome to use or share this article, but please cite Toby as the source and include reference to his website www.tobyouvry.com

Ongoing on Wednesdays – The inner smile – Meditations for inner regeneration & connecting to the Earth – An 8-week course

Ongoing on Saturdays – The inner smile & Earth healing deep-dive – An 8 session practice series

Saturday 25th April, 2.30-4.30pm – Mindfulness for emotional intelligence masterclass

Tags inner growth, integral meditation, integral meditation asia, integral mindfulness, meditation, meditation in singapore, mindfulness, mindfulness in Singapore, mindfulness meditation, power of mind