There is a quiet, steady companion with you right now. It has been there since your first moment of life, and it will remain with you through joy, grief, distraction, and celebration.
Your breath.
In this three-minute guided practice, Sean Fargo, a former Buddhist monk who founded Mindfulness Exercises, opens with the aim of reducing anxiety. He guides you to soften the body, rest attention on the breath as a home base, and return gently, without judgment, when thoughts wander.
The notes below expand on the practice with reflection and practical instruction.
Sponsored by our Mindfulness Meditation Teacher Certification Program mindfulnessexercises.com/certification/
Episode Overview:
In This Episode, We Explore:
- Settling into a comfortable, supported posture
- Softening the belly, shoulders, and jaw
- Choosing the breath as a steady home base
- Receiving the breath rather than controlling it
- Using a soft “thinking” note when the mind drifts into storylines
- Re-relaxing the body when tension returns
- Allowing background sounds and sensations
- Strengthening the muscle of returning to presence
Intention: To rest attention on the breath as a home base, and to return to it without judgment.
Show Notes:
Why the Breath Is Such a Steady Anchor
The recording says the mind is conditioned to move off into thinking about the future or the past. When anxiety rises, we can become entangled in those stories, often without realizing it.
There are many possible anchors, such as sounds or sensations throughout the body. The recording uses the breath, the most common one. It is:
- Happening now
- Rhythmic and steady
- Requiring no belief system
- A connection between body and mind
The breath doesn’t ask you to create anything new. It invites you to receive what is already here.
Settling the Body: Softening Before Focusing
Before anchoring attention in the breath, the recording begins with the body. It asks you to find a relaxed posture, breathe naturally and fully using the belly, and invite a sense of ease. Then:
- Relax the belly as you breathe
- Drop the shoulders
- Loosen the muscles of the face and jaw
- Close your eyes or look downwards
- Rest your hands in an easy, effortless way
There is no rigid meditation pose required. Take a few moments to scan through the sensations of the body, and wherever possible soften and release any obvious physical tension. From there, attention can rest on the breath.
Choosing the Breath as a Steady Home Base
Once the body has softened, gently place attention on the breath. There is no need to control it. Simply feel it.
You might notice:
- The rise and fall of the belly
- The cool air at the nostrils
- The subtle expansion of the ribcage
- The pause between inhale and exhale
Choose one location and allow it to be your “home base.”
A home base is not a prison. It’s a place you return to, again and again, when the mind wanders.
Receiving the Breath Rather Than Controlling It
In this practice, we receive the breath, much as you would listen to sounds. We let it come and go, moment to moment, with relaxed awareness, discovering what the breath really feels like as a changing experience of sensations.
Breathing in, notice what it is like. Breathing out, notice again the immediate experience of sensations.
The Gentle “Thinking” Note
Wandering thoughts are completely natural. During the practice, when you notice you’ve drifted into planning, remembering, judging, or storytelling, you gently label it with a soft, friendly mental note:
“Thinking.”
Then, just as gently, you return to the breath. Each time you notice that you’ve drifted into the future or the past, it’s an opportunity to strengthen what the recording calls the muscle of remembering to come back to this moment.
Re-Relaxing and Reopening Awareness
Sometimes when we focus on the breath, the body tightens again without us realizing it.
So we pause.
We re-relax. We open our awareness again to the body, feeling its aliveness, and relax the sensations around the heart.
And then we continue. Without judgment of good or bad, right or wrong, we gently return to the inflow and outflow of the breath.
Allowing Background Sounds and Sensations
In this practice, we don’t try to eliminate sounds or sensations.
Something touching the skin. A sound. A temperature.
Whatever is in the background can be there without drawing you away. The breath remains the foreground anchor, and you continue to rest with it.
Strengthening the Muscle of Returning to Presence
The practice is not about achieving perfect focus. The recording describes it as developing the capacity to recognize when thoughts are happening without getting lost in the storyline.
Each time you notice you’ve drifted and gently come back, you are practicing:
- Noticing
- Pausing
- Re-relaxing
- Coming back into this moment without judgment
How This Practice Works With Anxiety
Sean opens the recording by saying the practice is to reduce anxiety. It asks you to:
- Rest attention on the breath in the present moment
- Note thoughts as “thinking” and return
- Soften physical tension
- Receive the breath rather than control it
And at each step, it asks you to return without judgment.
A Simple Daily Practice (5–10 Minutes)
If you’d like to integrate this into your day:
- Sit comfortably.
- Soften the belly, shoulders, and jaw.
- Notice the natural breath.
- When the mind wanders, gently note “thinking.”
- Return to the breath.
- Re-soften as needed.
- Continue for as long as you like, for example 5–10 minutes.
A few minutes a day is a place to start.
The Beauty Was Always There
The beauty of your breath is something you notice. It is steady when your thoughts are not, and present when your mind travels elsewhere.
The recording ends: “Breathing in, know that you’re breathing in. Fully here, awake at home in presence.”
Additional Resources:
- Free Training with Sean Fargo: How to Teach Mindfulness With Confidence & Credibility
- Certification: Mindfulness Meditation Teacher Certification Program
- Blog: How to Record a Meditation: The Ultimate Guide Based on Sean Fargo’s Expertise
- Blog: Why community matters for mindfulness and how we’re deepening ours
