Category: Primal Spirituality

Healing hatred, opening to Love with the help of the Earth

Post author By Toby
Post date March 16, 2026

“If we are able to acknowledge our self-hatred & work on forgiving ourself, then overcoming our resentment & hatred of others becomes 100% easier, as does opening to love”

Dear Integral Meditators,

I’m currently working on the next workshop, class & deep-dive sessions. They focus on:

Heal and regenerate the energy of your physical body and internal organs
Revitalize and transform your emotional vitality & balance
Work with colour & vibration in meditation
Promote your Mind-body connection – By directing awareness and a gentle smile to internal organs, we deepen somatic awareness, fostering relaxation and vitality
Connect to the living energy of Mother Earth for personal healing & planetary harmonization

The article below is an example of this type of inner-work.

Heads up for the Spring Equinox balancing & renewing meditation on the 18th & 21st March!

In the spirit of transforming,

Toby

Healing hatred, opening to Love with the help of the Earth

In this piece, I’ll be pointing out some mindful positions to help to heal our wounds of hatred and resentment. The positions draw from:

A traditional Qi Gong method of smiling to our internal organs to heal emotional imbalances
Connecting to Mother Earth as a support for our practice
Looking at the psychology of working with and transforming difficult emotions

Want to let go of hatred toward others? Forgive yourself

One distinction that I would like to open with regarding hatred is this; if we are able to acknowledge our self-hatred, and work on forgiving ourself, then overcoming our resentment and hatred of others becomes 100% easier.
Recently I was in a coaching session with a client. The principal subject of the session was feeling resentment and hatred to members of her previous company who had conspired to get her sacked. A key moment in the journey came when she recognized the hatred she had toward herself for being so ‘naïve’ and foolish as to be taken advantage of. By acknowledging the grudge she bore toward herself, and practising forgiveness and support to that part of her that was ‘foolish, naïve & stupid’, relatively rapid healing was able to be made regarding letting go of hatred towards others in the outer situation.

Mindful positions for transforming hatred into love

Position 1: Connecting to Mother Earth as support

As you sit or stand, be aware of the Earth beneath you. Feel her energy rising into your body through your point of contact with the floor, embracing you like a Mother holding a child. If you like feel your feet/body sinking a few cm’s into the Earth, her body merging with yours.

Position 2: Smiling to and with your heart

The organ that often holds hatred in Taoist belief is the heart. Inwardly direct your attention to your physical heart, smiling to it gently. As you do so feel yourself getting in touch with any hatred or resentment you may feel toward others, and particularly toward yourself. Feel and experience that hatred as a cloudy, darker red energy within the heart. When you are ready, breathing in, feel the hatred, breathing out, release it down your body into the earth, like ice melting into water. Let Mother Earth receive the imbalanced energy so it can be recycled in her body. Let go of the hatred, connect of you can with forgiveness, particularly toward yourself. Be held by the Earth as you do this.

Position 3: Receiving love into the heart

Feel energy rising up into your body from Mother Earth. Filling your body with light. In particular feel it flowing into your heart, which begins to glow with a bright, clear red energy, and the energy of love. Enjoy breathing with this energy, feeling it build strength in the heart. Extend this love towards yourself, the Earth and others.

Hatred transformed

So, the hatred transforms mainly into the love here. But you may also like to feel that the hatred has been transformed into a particular type of courage, strength and clarity within the love that is able to see and protect from the malevolent intentions of others, enabling you to move safely and confidently through the world.

End with a period of relaxation, non-doing and integration.

Related articles: Healing thru the Earth, & Earth-as-Self
Smiling meditation & your psychosomatic health
Accepting & recycling your difficult emotions
Recognizing Three Types of Fear, Meditating on three Types of Courage

© 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

Ongoing weekly on Wednesday – Beginners mind, resilient body – a 10-week integral meditation course

Starts Saturday 17^th January, 5.30-6.15pm, & then weekly – Beginners mind, resilient body deep-dive: An 11 -session practice series

Wednesday 18th (7.30pm) & Saturday 21st (5.30pm) March – Spring Equinox balancing and renewing meditation

Saturday, March 28^th 9:00am – 12:30pm – Inner smile & Earth Healing meditation workshop – Build health, confidence & energetic resilience in life

Wednesday April 1^st, 7.30-8.30pm & Saturday, 4^th April, 5-6pm – Which meditator are you? – Free meditation seminars: The five types of meditators & how to build your path to inner freedom

Starts Wednesday 8^th April, 7.30-8.30pm, & then ongoing – The inner smile – Meditations for inner regeneration & connecting to the Earth – An 8-week course

Saturday 11^th April, 5.30-6.15pm SG time, & then ongoing – The inner smile & Earth healing deep-dive – An 8 session practice series

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 Earrth healing, emotional mindfulness, healing emotiona, inner growth, integral meditation, integral meditation asia, integral mindfulness, love, meditation, meditation in singapore, mindfulness, mindfulness in Singapore, mindfulness meditation, power of mind

Beginners mind, resilient body creative imagery Energy Meditation Enlightened Flow Enlightened service Greenworld Meditation Inner vision Life-fullness meditation and creativity Meditation techniques mind body connection Mindful Resilience Primal Spirituality Qi gong Tree of Life Tree of Yoga Zen Meditation

Healing thru the Earth, & Earth-as-Self

Post author By Toby
Post date March 9, 2026

“Release the weight & burdens of your life downwards into the Earth. She in turn receives it, taking it into her body, where it can be recycled & renewed”

Dear Integral Meditators,

This week’s article looks at ways of relating to the Earth that are healing & regenerative, as well as them relating to ourselves AS the Earth, which can lead us to developing unusual inner strength & independence.

If you enjoy the article, we will be doing a related meditation in this week’s Wednesday & Saturday meditations, you would be welcome to join!

Finally, heads up for the Spring Equinox balancing & renewing meditation on the 18th & 21st March!

In the spirit of resilient identity,

Toby

Healing thru the Earth, & Earth-as-Self

Experience yourself sitting or standing on the Earth. Feel her body beneath you. Feel your body as a part of here body, which of course it is. Imagine your body sinking a few centimeters into the floor, so that you feel like your body and the Earth are connecting energetically. Feel her energy supporting you from below.

Releasing the wounds of adulthood

In the state described above, spend some time getting in touch with the emotional wounds, burdens, and trials of your life. Sense how they turn up in your body and your body energy. As you breathe in, feel yourself getting in touch with the weight of these wounds. As you breathe out, feel yourself releasing them downwards into the Earth. She in turn receives this wounded energy, taking it into her body, where it can be recycled and renewed.

Receiving regenerative energy

Now sense downward into the Earth, and feel her energy rising into your body, flowing in particular into the areas of your body that carried the emotional wounds, the fatigue, the world-weariness that you released downwards previously. Feel these areas of your body becoming renewed and strengthened. Spend some time relaxing with this experience.

The Earth-as-Self

Experiencing your connection to the Earth, reflect upon how your body and energy came from her, and is a part of her.

Your body came from your parents bodes, the bodies of all humans come from the Earth
Every time you eat, you take the body of the earth into yourself, her body becomes your body

You are like a leaf, the Earth is the tree. The bigger identity of the leaf is the Tree. You are the Earth!

Imagine your sense of your body expanding outwards, becoming the size of the room that you are in, or the landscape around you. Experience your body as the whole room, and or as the whole landscape around you.
Feel roots growing down from your body into the Earth, filling it. Feel your energy moving down and expanding into the Earth. Feel your massiveness, stability, and solidity. You are the Earth, the Earth is you.

From this position of Earth-as-self, having renewed yourself through the Earth, turn and inwardly face your life, and your life challenges. Feel your strength, equanimity, and compassion. Connect to the new beginning in each moment from this position of calm, resourced Earth-strength-that-you-are. Go and meet your life.

Standing on your own feet

ADULTHOOD, by Anthony De Mello

To a disciple who was always at his prayers the Master said, “When will you stop
leaning on God and stand on your own two feet?”
The disciple was astonished. “But you are the one who taught us to look on God as
Father!”
“When will you learn that a father isn’t someone you can lean on but someone who
rids you of your tendency to lean?”

Related article: Yin stability – Mother Earth meditation
Born from life, not into it
Connecting to your Big Mind

© 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

Date for your diaries:

Wednesday April 1^st, 7.30-8.30pm & Saturday, 4^th April, 5-6pm – Which meditator are you? – Free meditation seminars: The five types of meditators & how to build your path to inner freedom

Ongoing weekly on Wednesday – Beginners mind, resilient body – a 10-week integral meditation course

Starts Saturday 17^th January, 5.30-6.15pm, & then weekly – Beginners mind, resilient body deep-dive: An 11 -session practice series

Wednesday 18th (7.30pm) & Saturday 21st (5.30pm) March – Spring Equinox balancing and renewing meditation

Saturday, March 28^th 9:00am – 12:30pm – Inner smile & energy balls meditation workshop – Build health, confidence & energetic resilience in life

Wednesday April 1^st, 7.30-8.30pm & Saturday, 4^th April, 5-6pm – Which meditator are you? – Free meditation seminars: The five types of meditators & how to build your path to inner freedom

Tags Earth 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 Beginners mind, resilient body creative imagery Energy Meditation Greenworld Meditation Inner vision Meditation techniques mind body connection Mindful Resilience Primal Spirituality Qi gong Tree of Life

Yin stability – Mother Earth meditation (& new Gaia trance sound-tech track)

Post author By Toby
Post date March 7, 2026

“Experience yourself in an interactive, friendly communion with the Earth, where you feel gratitude and receive sustenance from her, and she in turn enjoys the connection with you”

Dear Integral Meditators,

It has been a fast-moving 2026 so far, both in terms of daily life and in terms of world events! Obviously, meditation and mindfulness are a pillar of how I build capacity to hold space for stress in my life. In my article below I outline a simple meditation for connecting to the Earth that can be done anytime.

Beneath the article is some information on a new track from IAwake technologies called Gaia Trance. I’ve been working with their sound technology since about 2011, and I have found it to be extremely useful. Gaia Trance is a great track collection for attuning to the energies of the Earth, and I’ve been enjoying the effects of listening to it. It is on special offer for the next few days, so if your curious, this could be a good opportunity for you to try it out!

In the spirit of Earth connection,

Toby

Yin stability – Mother Earth meditation (& new Gaia trance sound-tech track)

Looking for stability, calm, coolness? Look no further than below

You can do this exercise either sitting on a chair, or standing in the traditional qi gong horse stance, with knees slightly bent and feet about a shoulders-width apart. Place your hands down, about 10cm from the sides of your hips, palms pulled up so that they are facing the ground.
Breathing nose to belly, start to sense downward with your mind, focusing particularly on the soles for the feet, and the palms of the hands. Move your awareness down into the Earth, sensing her gentle life-force. Imagine your feet sinking down a few centimetres into the floor, so that your body & the body of Mother Earth are connecting more deeply.
Feel the energy of the Earth flowing up into your feet and the palms of your hands.

The energy flowing up from your feet flows into your perineum, lower belly, at the back towards the kidneys, at the front of the belly, to the area just behind the navel
The energy flowing up from your hands flows through the arms into your heart, spreading out from there

You might sense and feel the Earth energy as being golden or blue (or another colour), or you may just feel it as primarily a sensation. Let the Earth energy cool, balance and relax any stressed areas in your body. If you feel the need, you can also send any difficult energy in your body down into the earth, where it can be ‘recycled,’ a bit like compost(!) You can send this energy through your feet or out through the palms and fingers.

Let the energy from the Earth go to wherever it needs to go in your body to effect healing and balancing.

If you like you can imagine yourself growing roots down into the Earth, so that you feel grounded and stable, like a tree (see my article on ‘Standing like a tree’).

Try and experience yourself in an interactive, friendly communion with the Earth, where you feel gratitude and receive sustenance from her, and she in turn enjoys the connection with you.

Towards the end of the practice, feel the Earth qi or energy in your body gathering as a ball of luminous light behind your belly button, a few centimetres behind your navel. If you like you can place the palm of one hand over your belly as you do this.

Related article: Tired of being tired – Relaxing into, not fighting with your fatigue

© 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

From I-Awake: We wanted to let you know about our upcoming release, Gaia Trance: An Ecstatic Resonance with the Living Earth, developed by iAwake’s remarkable friend and colleague, Nadja Lind.
Here’s the story behind Gaia Trance from Nadja:
“There have been times when I felt completely disconnected—my nervous system fried, my body in pain, my mind heavy from PTSD symptoms. In those moments, these neuro-acoustic tracks became my lifeline. Not just to calm me, but to shift me—instantly. From shutdown to clarity. From overwhelm to relief. From numbness to joy. Real joy. And to this day, it still amazes me how effortlessly these tracks work their magic—every single time.”

Gaia Trance will retail at $37. We will introduce Gaia Trance with a limited time offer of 20% OFF ($29.60) from March 5th – 12th only.
Here is more information about this latest release:
Drift into spaces shaped by water, tropical birds, a golden shimmer, and a gentle tribal didgeridoo beat that pulls you forward in waves—rising, expanding, softening—before easing you into a quieter descent. The embedded frequencies sit underneath this flow, with alpha and theta guiding the journey and delta settling in more gently toward the end.

Enter a hypnotic earth trance carried by primal resonance, subtle rhythm, and flowing natural textures
Elevate your consciousness immersed in a finely layered soundscape of live didgeridoo, water, and tropical birds, gently progressing from alpha to theta to delta frequencies

Feel grounded, expanded, and calmly renewed as the journey settles into a soft, restorative descent

Ongoing weekly on Wednesday – Beginners mind, resilient body – a 10-week integral meditation course

Starts Saturday 17^th January, 5.30-6.15pm, & then weekly – Beginners mind, resilient body deep-dive: An 11 -session practice series

Wednesday 18th (7.30pm) & Saturday 21st (5.30pm) March – Spring Equinox balancing and renewing meditation

Saturday, March 28^th 9:00am – 12:30pm – Inner smile & energy balls meditation workshop – Build health, confidence & energetic resilience in life

Wednesday April 1^st, 7.30-8.30pm & Saturday, 4^th April, 5-6pm – Which meditator are you? – Free meditation seminars: The five types of meditators & how to build your path to inner freedom

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

Beginners mind, resilient body creative imagery Inner vision Integral Meditation Meditation techniques mind body connection Presence and being present Primal Spirituality Zen Meditation

The mind waving at itself & the Ocean-ness of consciousness

Post author By Toby
Post date February 9, 2026

“Observing mind-waves helps us to relate to thoughts in a different, free-er way than our normal, or conditioned perception allows”

Dear Integral Meditators,

All day your mind is waving at you, what does this mean? Find out in the article below! If you enjoy it, we will be exploring these methods in both the weekday (Weds eve) and Saturday sessions this week. You are invited!

If you are interested in Qi gong, do check out the Qi Gong for Improving your Health and Energy Levels & for Self-Healing that I will be facilitating on the 28th Feb.

In the spirit of mind-waves,

Toby

The mind waving at itself & the Ocean-ness of consciousness

The ocean waves, the mind thinks

In Zen there is an expression; ‘the mind-waves’. Mind-waves is a term that helps us to relate to thoughts in a different way than we usually do. Our normal, or conditioned way of relating to thoughts is something like:

I am having thoughts – the thoughts are inside me; I am the possessor of the thoughts, the thoughts are the possessed object
I am identified with the thoughts – my identity has fused with the thoughts, to the extent that my sense of self has been reduced in the moment to this current train of thought

In meditation we can think of the mind, or consciousness as an ocean. The ocean is a vast body whose nature is water. Our mind is a vast containing space whose nature is awareness. The ocean ‘waves’, the currents and the wind produce waves on the surface of the water. The ocean and the waves are not two separate things; its is the nature of the ocean to ‘wave’ and the waves all have the nature of ‘ocean’.
Similarly, the currents in our mind and consciousness produce ‘thoughts’. It is the nature of the mind to ‘thought’ and the thoughts have the nature of the mind.

Practising: The mind waving to itself

Armed with our image then, we can start to watch our mind where we watch the mind ‘waving’ to itself. We notice that in the ‘ocean-field’ of our consciousness, there are thoughts coming and going. To get an initial feel for it you can use this method from my previous article:

“Use the body and breathing as an anchor for your attention. If you think about your attention as like a boat, and your thoughts and feelings as being like the waves, wind and other moving conditions around the boat. Your body and senses then become like the anchor that keeps the boat in one place. You don’t even need to try too hard still your mind and feelings. Just keep coming back to the anchor of your body, and you’ll find this gives you the basic ‘weight’ and stability for a sense of calm to start to come into your mind”

Once you feel relatively stable using this method, you can then simply practice watching the thoughts arising from your mind, like waves arising from the sea. You watch the mind ‘waving’ to itself, recognising the thoughts are a particular expression of the unlimited, oceanic nature of your own mind, or root-consciousness

Mind-waving and zones of the body

It can be interesting and informative to watch the waves of your mind whilst anchoring your attention at different levels of your physical body:

If you watch centered in your head, you will notice the mind-waves are more cognitive in nature
If you watch centered in your heart-centre, you will notice the mind-waves are more emotive in nature
If you watch centered in your belly, you will notice the mind-waves are more instinctual in nature

Watching from any of these levels, the watching of the waves should then lead to a capacity to relax into the nature of the mind itself; our formless timeless ‘Ocean-of-consciousness’. This is great for relaxation of you are a recreational meditator. If you are a professional, or more serious meditator then wave-watching is a great way to relate and connect to your already-awakened nature, and experience yourself as that.

Related reading:
Effortless wholeness – The ocean & it’s wave; not one, not two
Riding the Waves of the Mind
The sea snakes of the mind
A bag of rats & a big meadow (tactics or strategy?)

© 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

Tues 13^th, Weds 14^th January, & then weekly – Beginners mind, resilient body – a 10-week integral meditation course

Starts Saturday 17^th January, 5.30-6.15pm, & then weekly – Beginners mind, resilient body deep-dive: An 11 -session practice series

Saturday 28th February, 9am-1pm – Qi Gong for Improving your Health and Energy Levels & for Self-Healing

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

A Mind of Ease Beginners mind, resilient body Energy Meditation Integral Meditation Meditation techniques mind body connection Mindful Breathing Mindful Resilience Primal Spirituality Qi gong

Creating ‘healing & energy snacks’ – meditating on Jing qi

Post author By Toby
Post date January 21, 2026

Dear Integral Meditators,

Movement coaches that I follow often recommend ‘movement snacks’, meaning short mobility and movement breaks in your day to keep your body and joints nourished. I think this can be applied just as easily and importantly to nourishing our mind, heart and inner energy. To this end, here is an example of a short meditation snack to promote healing and energy:

Stand or sit comfortably, feet shoulder-width apart, spine straight, shoulders relaxed.
Place hands over the lower abdomen.
Inhale slowly through the nose, letting the belly expand.
Exhale gently, drawing the belly inward.
Repeat for 6–12 breaths, focusing on building warm, grounding energy in the belly.

Try it 3x a day for the next 5 days and notice how you feel!

There is an article of mine explaining a bit more about energy in the belly (from a qi gong perspective) below if you want to find out a bit more.

And if you want to learn a whole range of healing and energy snacks, as well as full meditations, then I invite you to this Saturdays workshop Meditation and Mindfulness for Self-Healing and Creating High Levels of Energy, live or online.

In the spirit of healthy snacking,

Toby

Article: Guided qi gong healing visualization and breathing exercise for developing, maintaining and increasing our Essential energy or “jing-qi”

The main body of this article is going to be a practical guided exercise, but first I want to mention expand a little on the term “jing qi” (see also my article of the four levels of qi).

What is jing qi?

Jing qi translates as meaning “essential energy.” Our essential energy is derived from the potency of the fluids in our body that carry the energy of our life force, particularly our sexual fluids, hormones and neuro-chemicals.
Qi gong exercises and lifestyle advice often centre on the development of this form of qi within our energy system, as when it is strong our immunity system will be strong and our energy levels will be high.
Our jing qi is supported by our “Yuan qi” or primordial energy (the pre-natal life force that we received from our parents) and “Jen qi” or true energy (postnatal energy derived from breathing and metabolism of food). Thus, qi gong exercise nurtures our jing qi, and we support this by good diet and breathing habits (yuan qi), and the preservation and care of our yuan qi.
In general our jing qi pervades our body and all of the subtle energy meridians that interpenetrate our physical being. However, in qi gong the focus or fulcrum of our jing qi is explained to be in our lower dan-tien (dan tien meaning elixir filed or energy centre). For this reason the exercise below uses the lower belly area as its point of focus.

Qi gong healing visualization and breathing exercise for developing, maintaining and increasing our Essential energy

Preparation
Sit or stand in a relaxed position, with the head, neck, chest, belly and pelvis aligned vertically with each other, so that the weight of your upper body is able to travel down your lower torso in to the chair (if seated), or down your lower torso and legs into the floor (if standing).

Finding your core
Visualize a line of light and energy coming down from the sky, passing through the dead centre of your crown, brain, neck, chest, belly and pelvis, exiting through your perineum and passing down into the centre of the Earth. This is the vertical core line of your body. Once you have a clear image or feeling for it, breathe in and out of it gently for a little while.

Focusing your jing qi
Now see along the core line of your body at the level approximately 3cms beneath your belly button there is a ball of light about the size of a golf ball. This is the fulcrum of the jing qi or essential energy in your body. Focus on it gently for a while, as you focus on it you will feel its light begin to glow and intensify.
(See general article for core body breathing HERE).

Building and distributing your jing qi

As you breathe in, visualize the ball of light in your belly glowing intensely with energy and qi. As you breathe our, feel light and energy flowing out from your lower belly into the energy meridians of your body. By the time time you finish your exhalation you can feel all the energy meridians of your body from your crown to your toes glowing with the light of your jing qi. Follow this breathing pattern for as long as is comfortable.

© 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, meditation snack, mindfulness, mindfulness in Singapore, mindfulness meditation, power of mind, qi gong

A Mind of Ease Beginners mind, resilient body Energy Meditation Enlightened Flow Inner vision Integral Awareness Integral Meditation Integral meditation training pages Life-fullness Meditation Recordings Meditation techniques mind body connection Mindful Breathing Mindful Resilience Mindfulness Presence and being present Primal Spirituality Qi gong Zen Meditation

Foundational beginners mind/energy resilience practice with guided meditation

Post author By Toby
Post date January 12, 2026

Dear Integral Meditators,

The Beginners mind, resilient body integral meditation courses start this week!

The article below outlines the basic practices, and links to two guided meditations that you can have a listen to. I’ve been enjoying my own practice preparing for these sessions, you might find participating is just the thing to get your 2026 going from good to great!

In the spirit of new beginnings,

Toby

Foundational beginners mind/energy resilience practice with guided meditation

This article outlines the basic forms of two meditations:

The beginners mind meditation,
and the microcosmic orbit meditation.

These are the two meditations that we will be exploring in the ‘Beginners mind, resilient body’ meditation programs’. There are then two short, 10minute meditations that you can use to get some experience of both practices.

Here are two quotes that communicate something of the essential meaning and benefit of each meditation style.

Beginners mind: “If your mind is empty, it is always ready for anything. In the beginner’s mind there are many possibilities, in the expert’s mind there are few.” – Shunryu Suzuki from the book ‘Zen mind, beginner’s mind.’

Microcosmic orbit: “When we do not know how to conserve, recycle and transform our internal force, our energy consumption becomes as inefficient as a car that only goes at 5miles per gallon…. By practicing the M-O meditation, we can get in touch with our energy-flow and locate weak spots in its path, so that we can correct them. This helps us to use our life-force more efficiently and achieve better internal ‘milage’.” – Mantak Chia, from the book ‘Awaken healing light.’

Basic descriptions, & guided meditations

With the both basic descriptions, you can see links to more detailed articles embedded. The recording links are at the end of each description.

Beginners mind basic ‘mindful positions:

Position 1: Establishing stable meditation posture & breath, sitting between the two trees, being present, not lost in thought, not falling asleep.
Position 2: Meditating on the two Soto Zen principles:

Sitting meditation and awakening are not two different things
One must not wait for awakening

Position 3: Recognizing each moment as a new beginning

Practice the 10minute beginners mind meditation with the recording

Microcosmic orbit basic mindful positions

Position 1: Connecting to our light body, or energy body,
Position 2: Visualizing the microcosmic orbit within our energy body
Position 3: Practicing circulating energy within the M-O, up the back & down the front of the body. Noticing areas of the orbit that feel open and areas that feel closed
Position 4: Pausing the flow of the MO, letting the energy go to an area of our body that needs healing or energizing

Practice the 12miute basic microcosmic orbit meditation with the recording.

Initially, you can practice them individually to get a feel for the process. What I like to do, and what I teach in the Beginners mind, resilient body programs, is to then combine them together. So, you can listen to the beginner’s mind first, and then do the microcosmic orbit practice after. You’ll find that:

With a relaxed, open beginners mind, you can open to the energy flow in your body, when you do the microcosmic orbit practice.
When you do the microcosmic orbit practice, this helps to feel alert and balanced which makes your beginners mind more accessible.

You can also put them together in different ways, for example you might do the beginners mind in the morning, and the microcosmic orbit in the evening; not all at once, but doing both in the same day. It’s up to you to find a combination that works for you and your schedule.

An integration recording

Once you have some familiarity with the ten-minute guided meditations above, you can try this:

Beginners mind + Microcosmic orbit 10minute integration form

Enjoy!

© 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

Tues 13^th, Weds 14^th January, & then weekly – Beginners mind, resilient body – a 10-week integral meditation course

Starts Saturday 17^th January, 5.30-6.15pm, & then weekly – Beginners mind, resilient body deep-dive: An 11 -session practice series

Saturday 24th January, 9.00am-12.30pm – Meditation and Mindfulness for Self-Healing and Creating High Levels of Energy

Tags beginners mind, inner growth, integral meditation, integral meditation asia, integral mindfulness, meditation, meditation in singapore, microcosmic orbit meditation, mindfulness, mindfulness in Singapore, mindfulness meditation, power of mind, resilience meditation

Beginners mind, resilient body Energy Meditation Enlightened Flow Life-fullness Meditation techniques Presence and being present Primal Spirituality Qi gong

Brightening your brain using your vital energy – Microcosmic orbit meditation

Post author By Toby
Post date December 27, 2025

“Linking your vital energy to your brain function is one of the most effective ways to improve your cognitive function and your overall energy resilience”

Dear Integral Meditators,

This weeks article explores a fundamental ‘energy resilience ‘ practice that I highly recommend becoming familiar with!

In the spirit of resilience,

Toby

Article: Brightening your brain using your vital energy – Microcosmic orbit meditation

Microcosmic orbit meditation is an ‘energy meditation’ that I’ve been using for thirty years or so. It is very simple in essence. In this article I am going to:

Explain a simple microcosmic orbit technique you can get started with
Give examples of how I have been using it to help with my health, mental clarity and energy levels

Your vital or generative energy

Microcosmic orbit meditation uses as its base the sexual, generative, or vital energy that we carry in our lower belly, hips and generative organs. It raises this energy up the back of the body into the brain, enhancing our brain energy, but simultaneously raising the vibration of the vital force. You start then by focusing awareness down to your hips and loins, bringing some warm, friendly, nurturing attention to this area of your body. This can be done over the course of a few breaths, being nurturingly present to your vital energy.

The basic circuit

If you then imagine that there is a loop or circuit of energy, made up of two channels. The first runs from the perineum, to your crown, up the spine into the brain. The second runs down the front of your body. You can imagine it as:

A point of energy in the perineum
The back channel as a tube made of light rising from perineum to the coccyx, up the spine to the base of the skull, then up the back of the head to the crown, down to the third eye between the eyebrows, and down to the upper lip
The frontal channel runs from the lower lip down the front of the chin, neck, chest belly, then down thru the sexual organs back down to the perineum

A simple practicum

So, then a twelve-breath practice that I like to do is as follows:

Three breaths smiling gently and sending friendly awareness to my vital energy down in my lower belly and generative organs
Six breaths where I am focusing on feeling the energy rising up the back of my body as I inhale and exhale, rising into the brain, flowing up to the crown and down to the third eye
Three breaths focusing on the energy flowing down the front channel from my third eye and lips down to my sexual organs again, completing the circuit
Pausing and feeling the flow continue organically

Repeat 1-3 times as a little ‘set’ of microcosmic orbit practice. Part of the point of this practice is to:

Use your vital energy to being energy and clarity to your brain and mind-function
Circulate your vital energy thru-out the whole body to promote overall health and wellbeing
Promote a sense of balance and increased capacity for presence

Examples of when I use this practice during the day include:

As a part of my daily sitting practice, to bring clarity and energy to my meditation
As a short work break to re-set my energy
If I cannot sleep at night as a way of balancing the energy of my body and making it easier to relax

You can see a slightly more detailed description of the meditation technique here:
Meditation on the microcosmic orbit
It’s the sort of practice that builds not just over one or two repetitions, but over extended periods of short, consistent practice. We will be using a number of variations and types of this meditation in the upcoming Wednesday & Saturday series on ‘Beginners mind, resilient body’, as it forms the ‘resilient body’ half of the program.

© Toby Ouvry 2025, 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 Wednesday, 7.30-8.30pm – Going beyond your limitations, tapping into your hidden strengths – Meditating with your bright shadow, a 6-week course

Tuesday 30th December, 7.30-8.30pm, SG time – 2026 New year ‘Beginners mind’ meditation (Free, online only)

Tues 13^th, Weds 14^th January, & then weekly – Beginners mind, resilient body – a 10-week integral meditation course

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

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Getting your imagination & creativity to work for you

Post author By Toby
Post date December 1, 2025

“Your reality is a dynamic co-creation between your imagination & your environment. Learn how to use this to open doors in life for you, rather than close them”

Dear Integral Meditators,

This week’s article focuses on the psycho-dynamic relationship between your imagination and your environment.
If you enjoy it, then feel free to come along to the Wednesday and Saturday bright shadow meditations, which are psycho-dynamic in the way described below.

Heads up for the last workshop of the year, Saturday 13th December, 9am-12.30pm – Psychic & Psychological Self-defence half day workshop, also very much an ‘evolutionary magical’ focus here.

In the spirit of the imaginal,

Toby

Your inner magician part 2 – getting your imagination & creativity to work for you

In my previous article on activating your inner magician I defined your inner magician as:
“The inner magician is that part of our inner self that is both creative and magical, and that if we harness it effectively has the power to change our daily life and experience for the better”

I then went onto define magic as defined magic as:
“The higher expression of our inner magician is that part of self that is able to work with the higher, evolutionary or developmental expression of magic.”

This article looks at the second and third aspect of activating our inner magician:

“Engaging our creative imagination consciously to ‘sculpt’ our experience of any given situation for the better,” and

“Not being content to let good ideas remain in our head, but actively finding ways of expressing those ideas concretely in our daily life.”

Aspect 2: Engaging our creative imagination consciously to ‘sculpt’ our experience of any given situation for the better

We think that there is a concrete reality ‘out there,’ waiting to be discovered, that has some kind of fixed or intrinsic qualities. Actually this is not quite the case. What happens is that the “bare facts” our outer reality meets our mind, which then imagines or projects its own ideas onto that outer reality.
From this we can see that what we experience in life has something to do with the “facts” of our life, but equality as much it also has to do with our imaginative response to those facts. Our reality and our imagination are in a constant process of interacting together in a psycho-dynamic manner. To work with magic is to realize the power of your imagination to co-create any given situation in your life, and leverage on that imaginative power effectively. For more on this you can read my past article “Taking your creative imagination as your object of meditation”.
Our imagination is deeply and powerfully magical, it can create great art and great bliss, or it can create our own private hell.

Aspect 3: Not being content to let good ideas remain in our head, but actively finding ways of expressing those ideas concretely in daily life.

Our inner magician realizes that any good idea that we understand, create or hear about is an INJUNCTION. An injunction is somewhere between an invitation and an obligation. This means that when we have or hear a great idea, we recognize that our understanding of this idea is INVITING us to use the idea as a practical tool with which we can change our life for the better. By virtue of understanding of the idea we could also say that we have an OBLIGATION to try and integrate that idea into our life. If we just let that idea remain in our intellect that would be a great waste right? Many of us are guilty of this; having great insights and ideas about our life, but not implementing them, thus wasting them.
So, our magical self or inner magician is delighted when good idea come our way and immediately seeks ways to start expressing these ideas in a practical way to change our life for the better.

Practical Work

If you want to follow up on this article on a practical level, here are two suggestions:

Use the image above as an object of meditation in order to help you to intuitively connect to your own “Inner Magician”. Alternatively find a picture of a ‘magical person that resonates with you, and use that as a visual base for connecting to your IM.
Observer the interaction between your imagination and inner conditioning with your outer environment. Notice how your reality is a dynamic co-creation between these two. Reflect on how to use this to open doors in life for you, rather than close them.
As soon as you have or understand a good idea intellectually, immediately ask yourself “How can I make this idea a concrete, practical reality in my life?” Do whatever you can to act upon your answer to this question.

Related article: Connecting to your magical self or inner Magician part 1

© Toby Ouvry 2025, 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

Starts Tuesday 11^th & 12^th November, 7.30-8.30pm – Going beyond your limitations, tapping into your hidden strengths – Meditating with your bright shadow, a 6-week course

Starts Saturday 15th November, 5.30-6.15pm SG time – Bright shadow meditation Deep-dive – A 5 session practice series

Saturday 13th December, 9am-12.30pm – Psychic & Psychological Self-defence half day workshop

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

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Compassion, wisdom & your original face

Post author By Toby
Post date September 29, 2025

“What is your original face before your parents were born?”

Dear Integral Meditators,

The ‘Original face’ mentioned above is a well known Zen koan, or riddle. In the article below I outline some simple awareness exercises to use it to develop your wise compassion, or ‘Karuna’.

If you enjoy it, you’d be welcome to join this week’s Tues/Weds or Saturday Zen meditations, where we will be exploring our original face in the sessions.

In the spirit of originality,

Toby

PS: October & November see the return of my Shadow & Language of the shadow workshops, click the links for full details!

Compassion, wisdom & your original face

This article is really a set of pointing out instructions for developing compassion in the spirit of Zen meditation. There are five ‘positions’, each one can be explored as a practice in its own right, but put together they invite a rich and wholistic growth of our wise compassion over time.

Position 1: Centering in the six directions

Sit comfortably, then become aware of the direction in front of you, behind you, to your left, to your right, above and below. Become aware your vertical center, which you can visualize as a line of light and energy extending from your crown to your perineum. As you breathe in, breathe into your bodily center, as you breathe out let your awareness expand out into the six directions. Us this breathing pattern to become focused, relaxed, and present.

Position 2: Reflecting on your own pain & suffering with self-compassion

In this state of relaxed presence, become self-aware, creating an atmosphere of warmth and care toward yourself. Become aware of any parts of yourself that are in pain or suffering for whatever reason. As you breathe in, feel yourself contacting these parts of self, as you breathe out extend gentle understanding and compassion to them, embracing them with this energy.

Position 3: Meditating on your ‘Original face’

Reflect upon the well-known Zen koan:

“What is your original face before your parents were born?”

Here your ‘original face’ is simply the space of consciousness itself before thoughts are ‘born’, the space and ‘face’ before you think (see the description of the Host in my previous article). Return to position 1, centering in the six directions, but emphasizing moving into stillness and non-thought in the moment. As you breathe in center, as you breathe out let go of your thoughts and relax into the open space of consciousness itself, your ‘original face’.

Position 4: Generating wise compassion for all living beings, recognizing them as ‘Self’

Position 3 invites us to see that, in the space of consciousness itself, ‘self’ and ‘other’ dissolve into a singular identity as consciousness itself. Consciousness itself appears as both ‘self’ and ‘other’. Recognizing this, allow your care and compassion to extend from yourself to all other living beings, knowing that, in the space of your original face, we are all one aspect of the same being. This combination of compassion and the wisdom recognizing your ‘Original face’ is called Karuna in Zen, which means wise compassion.

Position 5: Reflecting on your own opportunities for daily compassionate presence, & small acts of compassion

From the ‘metta’ perspective of position 4, now reflect on your own day and life. Look for ways in which you might be able to direct your compassionate presence towards those around you, and express it to them in small, appropriate ways.

Related article: Host & guest – Zen Witnessing

© Toby Ouvry 2025, 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

All upcoming classes & workshops

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

Ongoing Tuesday & Weds September, 7.30-8.30pm, – Integral Meditation from the Perspective of Zen – A 10 week series

Saturdays 5.30-6.15pm – Zen meditation Deep-dive – A 10 session practice series

17 Oct 2025, 8am-12pm & 21 Nov 2025, 8am-12pm – The wisdom of Zen meditation practice retreat & course, levels 1&2

Saturday 25th October, 9am-12.30pm – Finding Freedom From What Holds You Back in Life: Practical meditations & techniques for working with your shadow-self

Saturday 22nd November, 9am-12.30pm – Meditations for Developing the Language of Your Shadow Self Workshop

Saturday 29th November, 7-9pm – Living Life From Your Inner Center – Meditations for Going With the Flow of the Present Moment

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

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Host & guest – Zen Witnessing

Post author By Toby
Post date September 23, 2025

Dear Integral Meditators,

The Host and guest is a traditional Zen analogy for the for the stages of the path from an un-awakened to awakened state. Its a simple blueprint that can inform you at any level of your inner growth, particularly if you are an active meditator.

If you enjoy it, you’d be welcome to join this week’s Tues/Weds or Saturday Zen meditations, where we will be exploring Host & guest in the sessions.

In the spirit of ,

Toby

Host & guest – Zen Witnessing

The Host and guest is a traditional Zen analogy for the for the stages of the path from an un-awakened to awakened state. The image is taken from the Surangama sutra, where ‘Host’ means emptiness, our essence, the nature of mind, while ‘guest’ means phenomena, or the content of consciousness.

The Host, consciousness itself, the Witness

If you look at your awareness from moment to moment, there are things that are changing within it, and there is something that is not changing. The thing that is not changing is the experience of awareness itself – that which is aware of and watches the content of consciousness coming and going. This is why it is often called the ‘the Witness self’. In the analogy it is the ‘Host’ because it is the permanent, or fixed resident in our consciousness. The contents of consciousness are like the guests in an Inn or hotel, coming and going in a transient manner. Contrastingly, consciousness itself, or the Witness Self is like the proprietor of the Inn, the ‘permanent resident’ so to speak.

The guest – the content of our consciousness

The content of our consciousness is essentially:

Our body and sensory experience, the outer word
Our mind, thought perceptions and inner world
The feelings and emotions that attend/arise from our physical and mental worlds

Unlike our observer consciousness, our outer experiences, thoughts and emotions come and go, like the guests of the Inn.

Part of the emphasis on being present in the moment, both in Zen and in meditation more generally, is so that we can start watching our awareness, and distinguish between the Host and guest in our own being and consciousness. By doing this we can start to effect a transformation of our identity that has four stages:

Stage 1: The guest within the guest
This stage of development refers to the un-awakened person, whose identity completely revolves around the guest, and who has no awareness whatever of the Host.

Stage 2: The guest within the Host
This stage refers to the initial stages of our meditation. At this stage our identity often still gets lost in the guest; in our thoughts, feelings, and body. However, we are aware of a ‘higher or deeper level’ of being, the Host, and our life begins to be informed by it.

Stage 3: The Host within the Guest.
At this stage out sense of self has substantially transitioned to the Host, which becomes is the main driving force in our life and actions. The guest still occasionally becomes unhappy and tries to take charge, but by this time the Host is usually in the driving seat.

Stage 4: The Host within the Host.
At this stage we have achieved a stable experience of enlightenment; our identity is firmly centered in the Host, and it is the Host that always guides the activities of the guest. We are no longer caught up in the illusory games of the guest, but are able to use our transient ego as an expression of our formless enlightened nature.

Some of the Pertinent questions to ourselves in our meditation and daily life to start centering ourselves around the Host:

Where is my identity focused right now, within the Host or guest?
Which aspects of the guest (thoughts/mind, senses) does my sense of self most often get mixed up in?
Where is the Host within me right now?

The journey of Zen is one that takes us from our current obsessional identity with the form level of our being to a core identity based around Consciousness itself, the Host. It is an unfolding PROCESS that progressively reveals the Enlightened nature that is already within us, here and now.

Related article: Witnessing the witness

© Toby Ouvry 2025, 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 host & guest, inner growth, integral meditation, integral meditation asia, integral mindfulness, meditation, meditation in singapore, mindfulness, mindfulness in Singapore, mindfulness meditation, power of mind, Zen, Zen meditation