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    Roots And Breath Outdoors

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    Sean FargoPublished January 3, 2026 · 4 min read
    Roots And Breath Outdoors

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    Roots And Breath Outdoors — Tunein Logo

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    Sometimes mindfulness doesn’t begin on a cushion or in silence—but on a simple wooden bench beneath towering redwoods.

    In this episode of Mindfulness Exercises, Sean Fargo invites us outside, tracing how years of monastic training ultimately distilled into something beautifully simple: sit at the base of a tree, feel the breath, and let nature lead the practice.

    What unfolds is a grounded, accessible invitation to rediscover mindfulness where humans have always practiced it—outdoors, in direct relationship with the elements, the body, and the living world around us.

    This conversation is especially resonant for anyone who feels stuck practicing indoors, distracted by screens, or unsure whether mindfulness can exist beyond controlled environments. The answer, as Sean gently shows, is that mindfulness not only survives outdoors—it thrives there.

    Sponsored by our Mindfulness Meditation Teacher Certification Program MindfulnessExercises.com/Certify

    Episode Overview:

    Key Themes:

    • Outdoor mindfulness practice
    • Element-based awareness (earth, fire, air, water, space)
    • Breath as an anchor in natural settings
    • Walking meditation and sensory awareness
    • Practicing in public without self-judgment
    • Teaching mindfulness beyond indoor spaces

    Key Takeaways:

    • Nature naturally supports attention and presence
    • Outdoor conditions are allies, not distractions
    • Mindfulness becomes simpler and more embodied outside
    • Practice can happen anywhere—no special setup required

    Show Notes:

    Why Practicing Mindfulness Outdoors Changes Everything

    Practicing indoors often asks us to reduce stimulation. Outdoor mindfulness practice does the opposite—it teaches us how to relate skillfully to what’s already happening.

    Fresh air, uneven ground, shifting light, distant sounds, and changing temperatures provide constant feedback. Instead of distractions, they become anchors for awareness.

    Sean shares how practicing in Thai forests and later in his own Berkeley backyard revealed something essential:nature naturally supports attention.

    When we sit outside, the mind doesn’t have to manufacture calm. The environment already invites it.

    From Monastery to Backyard: A Practice That Travels

    One of the most powerful insights from this conversation is how portable mindfulness becomes when rooted in nature.

    You don’t need incense, perfect silence, or a formal meditation hall. You can practice:

    • On a park bench
    • At the base of a tree
    • In your backyard
    • On a trail or campground
    • During a slow walk around your neighborhood

    This simplicity lowers the barrier to practice and reminds us that mindfulness is not something we add to life—it’s something we remember within it.

    An Element-Based Approach to Outdoor Mindfulness

    To make outdoor practice tangible and approachable, Sean introduces an element-based framework rooted in direct experience.

    Earth

    Feel the honest feedback of the ground beneath you.Notice firmness, softness, balance, and gravity.

    Whether seated or walking, earth teaches stability and presence without words.

    Fire

    Fire appears as warmth, sunlight, and energy in the body.Notice the sun on your skin, heat in the muscles, or the subtle warmth of the breath.

    Air

    Air becomes the breath itself and the breeze across the face.Feel inhalation and exhalation as movement, not something to control.

    Water

    Water shows up as saliva, sweat, tears, and fluidity in sensation.Notice change, flow, and impermanence moment to moment.

    Space

    Space holds everything—the openness around and within you.Listen for silence beneath sound. Feel the roominess of awareness.

    This elemental lens transforms mindfulness from an abstract idea into something physical, alive, and immediate.

    Simple Ways to Begin an Outdoor Mindfulness Practice Today

    Outdoor mindfulness doesn’t need to be complicated. Sean offers gentle permission to start exactly where you are.

    Option 1: Sitting Practice
    • Sit on a bench, rock, or the ground
    • Eyes open or closed
    • Feel the breath moving naturally
    • Notice sensations without fixing them
    Option 2: Walking Meditation
    • Walk slowly and deliberately
    • Sense heel, ball, toe with each step
    • Let sights and sounds pass without labeling
    • Return again and again to sensation
    Option 3: Sensory Awareness
    • Feel wind on the skin
    • Hear birds, traffic, or distant voices
    • Notice light and shadow
    • Stay with raw experience instead of commentary

    There’s no need to block anything out. Everything belongs.

    Working with Discomfort and Judgment Outdoors

    One concern many people have is feeling self-conscious meditating in public. Sean addresses this directly—with warmth and realism.

    People might notice. Thoughts might arise. Judgment—both internal and external—may appear.

    That, too, is part of the practice.

    Outdoor mindfulness builds resilience by teaching us to stay present with both pleasant and unpleasant conditions. We learn to notice judgment, feel it in the body, and gently return to sensation.

    Nothing needs to be fixed. Nothing is wrong.

    Teaching Mindfulness Beyond the Screen

    For mindfulness teachers, this episode offers a powerful reimagining of how and where practice can happen.

    Sean shares ways to guide students:

    • Off Zoom and into parks
    • Onto trails and campgrounds
    • Into shared outdoor spaces

    In nature, distractions don’t interrupt the practice—they become the practice.

    Teaching outdoors often makes presence easier, not harder. Students relax. Attention widens. Awareness feels more natural.

    Nature as a Steady Mentor

    Perhaps the most profound takeaway from Roots and Breath Outdoors is the reminder that nature doesn’t demand anything from us.

    It doesn’t judge. It doesn’t rush. It doesn’t ask us to be different.

    When we show up and listen, nature teaches us how to be with life exactly as it is—changing, imperfect, and deeply alive.

    A Gentle Invitation

    If you’ve ever felt confined by how mindfulness is “supposed” to look, this conversation offers something freeing.

    Sit under a tree. Feel the breath. Let the world in.

    Outdoor mindfulness practice reminds us that awareness doesn’t live inside walls—it lives wherever we’re willing to arrive.

    Nature is already waiting.

    Additional Resources:

    Transcript

    Show transcript· 5 min read

    From Monkhood To Backyard Roots

    Hey everyone, Sean Fargo here with Mindfulness Exercises. I just wanted to share that you know a lot of people ask me what it was like being a Buddhist monk. And quite frankly, most of my time was spent just like this, sitting at the base of a tree. It was very simple. Here in my backyard, my wife and I live in a home in Berkeley, California, where there's these redwood trees in the backyard. And I don't know if you can see it, but they're kind of like growing from the same place at the bottom. And one of the major reasons why we moved here is because these trees. And so we put a bench here that was generously bought for by my wife's aunt. She bought it for our daughter a few years ago when she was born. So this is my daughter's bench. And so it's just really nice to sit back here at the root of a tree, kind of doing what I was doing for a couple of years as a monk. You know, as a monk, our teachers would say, you know, even if we don't teach you a thing about mindfulness or Buddhism or any of that rhetoric, you'll learn everything you need to know by sitting at the root of a tree, kind of sensing into your breath, move in and out of the body, observing your thoughts, sensing your experience with less and less judgment and more and more wakefulness. And so that's mostly what I did.

    Why Practice Outside Matters

    I just found a tree somewhere in the forest, and I would live in different forests in uh throughout Thailand, in Northeast Thailand, in Central Thailand, Northern California, and I would just sit at the base of a tree and meditate. And I think that's something that's not really encouraged much in the West to practice outside. You know, most of us will sit on a cushion inside and we'll have like our spot inside our house that's quiet and we'll meditate there, which is great. But not all of us consider just walking outside and meditating. I admit, you know, especially in places like the United States, it might look a little weird to be closing your eyes outside by a tree, but

    Sensing Nature Without Judgment

    who cares? We can sit at a local park, we can sit at a beach, we can sit in our backyard, we can go camping and just practice mindfulness outside. We can have our eyes open or closed, it doesn't really matter, as long as we're sensing into our moment-to-moment experience without judging it. And and so, you know, as we're sitting out here, we can sense into the sensations of the sun on our skin, the breeze on our skin, sense into the temperature, whether it's cool or warm, we can notice our reactivity or judgments of it being hot or cold. And can we just be with the actual sensations and the skin and the flesh and the bones without judgment and just kind of being with it moment to moment? Can we notice the thoughts that arise? The elements of the body, so

    Elements Inside And Around Us

    sensing into the earth element of skin and bone and flesh, hair? Can we sense into the fire element of temperature or lack thereof? Can we sense into the air element of the breath moving in and out of the body? Can we sense into liquid element or the water element of blood in our body and saliva and urine and tears? Can we sense into space inside us? And then can we sense into the elements outside us of the earth element, water element, fire element, wind element, space element? So we're we're sensing into the elements of nature both inside us and outside us. And you know, as mindfulness

    Taking Mindfulness Outdoors Together

    teachers, can we encourage people to practice outside, to find the roots of a tree to sit at? Maybe you can do mindful walking outside and practice sensing into the bottoms of our feet as we walk on a trail. You know, we can lead sessions at a local park or a campground, we can lead retreats at a campground, or do a long day long at a park. So we're not confined to the internet as mindfulness teachers, we're not confined to boardrooms or libraries or community centers or offices. We can take groups of people or individuals outside to practice mindfulness. This is where most people have been practicing mindfulness for thousands of years is outside, not on Zoom, not inside offices or anything like that. It's outside. And so, you know, my encouragement to everyone is to find what works for you. You know, where in nature do you practice mindfulness? I'd love to hear, you know, where you practice mindfulness. So please write a comment in the comment section where your favorite places in nature are to practice mindfulness or to teach mindfulness. And I'm sure we'll get some interesting answers and hopefully, you know, inspire all of us to take our mindfulness practice outdoors. So those are my thoughts for the day. Hope all of you are doing well. Whether you know it's a beautiful day or not, you know, it's always fun to practice outside and just being with what is, whether we like it or not, whether it's pleasant or not, can we be with it without judgment? And just kind of staying with our experience as it arises. You know, if it's unpleasant, we'll probably learn a lot and build resilience. If it's pleasant, then we had a great time, right? So thanks again for for listening, and I hope you all are doing well. Take good care.

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