Meditation & mindfulness
Join us for a Meditation Circle every third Wednesday through May 2026! Hosted in a private home at 10684 E. Acacia Drive, Scottsdale. Questions? Contact kateclimb@gmail.com.
Meditation is a mini vacation for your busy brain. You pause, breathe, and give your mind a break from its constant chatter. You let thoughts wander by without hopping on the bus.
Mindfulness is taking that calm vibe into real life. It’s noticing what’s happening right now, whether it be a taste of coffee, the feel of your feet on the ground, or the sound of the wind.
Meditation = practice time.
Mindfulness = game day!
Both help you feel more present and a little calmer.
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Defuse stress and experience greater calm
Explore the mind-body relationship
Connect to our feelings
Expand our sense of who we are, beyond our fears and self-judgment
Find genuine happiness
Discover inner resources that can change our everyday lives
Awaken our capacity for insight and wisdom
Transform our worldview from one of isolation and confusion to one of connection, clarity, and compassion
Broaden our perspective and deepen our courage, based on seeing things just as they are
From the Insight Meditation Society (www.dharma.org).
Also to promote:
Self-awareness through thoughts, emotions, motivations, self-compassion, self-acceptance.
Mindfulness living in the present moment, observe your experiences without judgement, promote equanimity (mental calmness).
Accept impermanence and the natural flow of life and that change can lead to sense of peace and understanding.
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Apps (available from the app store)
YouTube Channels
Websites:
www.dharma.org (Insight Meditation Society)
www.spiritrock.org (Spirit Rock Meditation Center)
Books:
The Path of Insight Meditation(Kornfeld and Goldstein)
Meditation for Beginners (Kornfeld)
The Experience of Insight(Goldstein)
Mindfulness (Goldstein)
Real Happiness (Salzberg)
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These teachers have YouTube videos as well as books and audio books
Samaneri Jayasara, Buddhist Nun in New Zealand. The Simplest Meditation is a nice start and she has more.
The Essential Pema a free downloadable pdf with excerpts from Pema Chodron’s many books/retreats. Her books and audio retreats are available at the library and YouTube. She is an American Buddhist Nun and very relatable.
Dr. Jon Kabat-Zinn creater of the Mindfulness Based Stress Reduction (MBSR) at U of Mass and author of Full Catastrophe Living. He is considered by some to the the father of American mindfulness.
Neuroscience research (some related to Buddhism) at the Center for Healthy Minds, U of Wisconsin, Dr. Richard Davidson.
Joel & Michelle Levey, Founders of WisdomAtWork.com
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Video How Breathing Hacks the Vagus Nerve to Lower Blood Pressure & Inflammation (Dr. Pradip Jamnadas MD)
Meditation and Its Mental and Physical Health Benefits in 2023 (Natl Inst of Health)
Meditation and Mindfulness: Effectiveness and Safety (Natl Ctr for Complimentary and Integrative Health)
Mindfulness Meditation (American Psychological Association)
Meditation: A simple, fast way to reduce stress (Mayo Clinic - includes a broad definition of meditation)
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Rest in Natural Great Peace a poem by Nyoshul Khen Rinpoche
(Also Rest in Great Natural Peace by Olli on Apple Music)OM Zone by Steve Halpern 432 Hz (There are 13 parts on YouTube. All OM Zones are an album on Apple Music. We used this for restorative yoga.)
Floating (Sound Bath) by Waiting for Nova on Apple Music. Also on Spotify. Put it on replay and bliss out.
Kirtan Kriya (short version)
The mantra "Sa Ta Na Ma" in Kundalini Yoga signifies the cycle of life. Sa represents infinity, Ta represents life, Na represents death, and Ma represents rebirth.Long Time Sun by Snatam Kaur
Spectrum Suite by Steven Halpern 1975 (Cited as the start of “New Age” music.)
Deva Premal & Miten on YouTube. Many meditations and lovely music. You can subscribe to their channel.
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Mountain Meditation with Jon Kabat-Zinn, PhD, who founded Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction
Loving Kindness (Meta) Meditation with Sharon Salzburg, co-founder of The Insight Meditation Society
Strengthing Gratitude with Oren Jay Sofer, member of the Spirit Rock Teachers Council
Self-compassion by Great Meditation on YouTube
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From Jeffery Allen’s Duality course on MindValley (summarized).
Five steps for healing a growth moment or period
(when you are grumpy or blameful)Use the following five steps to heal yourself and shift back into positive energy.
Stop analyzing or blaming.
Put your negative energy in check.Stop talking about what you THINK the problem is.
Stop spreading your pain and confusion. Avoid wreaking havoc in your life.Admit you're going through a growth period.
This creates neutral ground. You can say to yourself and others something like: "I'm having a bad day. Don't take me too seriously."Breathe, relax, and run your energy.
Focus on healing yourself until you feel relief, you're no longer grumpy, and you have a deeper understanding.Practice gratitude and amusement.
Apologize if needed. Feed the positive energy loop with others you encounter.
Learn more about Jeffery Allen on his YouTube channel.
Meditation events
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They offer weekly meditations and longer sessions, including retreats.
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A meditation experience in North Cave Creek, AZ.
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Practicing the dharma in the Arizona desert.
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Regular meditations and retreats.
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Shambhala Online offers live and recorded courses with teachers from across the Shambhala community, and with other Buddhist teachers and health and well-being experts from around the world. Regular meditations are also available.
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A variety of zendo-related events are hosted here. They are open to all and require no registration.
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A meditation program and class offerings.
Books
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This book offers a synthesis of ancient wisdom traditions with modern research on extraordinary human performance pointing toward mindfulness, personal mastery, and resilience.
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Gelong Thubten, a Buddhist monk and meditation expert, explores the nature of happiness and explains how to bring meditation into our busy 21st-century lives through simple yet effective exercises.
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Intuition and spiritual growth are linked, per professional psychic and therapist Sherrie Dillard. This book offers a personalized approach to spiritual development, introducing four different psychic types and revealing how to develop the unique talents of each. Designed for both beginning intuitives and advanced psychics.
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Although pain is inevitable, suffering is optional.
This book offers a understanding of where our human experience comes from, allowing us to end our own suffering, and create how we want to feel at any moment. By Joseph Nguyen. -
When upset, we end up saying and doing things that only make matters worse. Pema Chödrön teaches constructive ways to respond to inevitable shocks, losses, and frustrations for true happiness.
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What if it's not the life you wish you had," ask Pema Chödrön, "but the one you've got that holds what you need to reach your highest potential?"
We learn how wisdom, purpose, and true freedom begin right here, and how the Six Paramitas of Buddhism can help us to find them. -
This classic teaching by a Tibetan master continues to inspire both beginners and long-time practitioners of Buddhist meditation. Chgyam Trungpa Rinpoche shows that meditation extends beyond the formal practice of sitting to build the foundation for compassion, awareness, and creativity in all aspects of life.
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Holiday draws on timeless Stoic and Buddhist philosophy to show why slowing down is the secret weapon for those charging ahead.
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Eckhart Tolle shows us how to be with another in a relationship that can contain and weather all things, how to sit with a dying person, where to find wisdom, how to free ourselves of guilt, and how to control our constant stream of thoughts.
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Pico Iyer considers the unexpected adventure of staying put and reveals a counterintuitive truth: The more ways we have to connect, the more we seem desperate to unplug.
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By applying the lessons of those nearing their death to her own life, Bronnie Ware, the author, developed an understanding that it is possible for everyone, if they make conscious choices, to die with peace of mind.
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Pema Choedron shows us how to open to life in all circumstances. Because when we embrace the happiness and suffering, intelligence and confusion that are a natural part of life, we can discover courageous love .
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There is a loving intelligence at the core of your being that can lead you to the fulfillment of your highest destiny. Four words hold the secret to accessing it: whatever arises, love that. By Matt Kahn.
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A foundational guide to mindfulness and meditation. The author of over half a dozen books on mindfulness, Jon Kabat-Zinn combines his research and medical background with his spiritual knowledge to help you find peace and change your life.
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Suzuki Roshi presents the basics of Zen in a way that is remarkably clear and resonates with the joy of insight.
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A basic guide to meditation. Currently out of print but you may find it at a library or reseller.