Let my mom teach you to meditate.
As a heartfelt offering to anyone who stumbles upon this tiny corner of the Internet, I offer the following free playlist of breathing, meditation and relaxation audios by my late mother, Susan May Neufeld. She was a gifted yoga teacher and my guiding light. She died of uterine cancer in 2018 at age 66.
For the last few years, I have been sharing my mom’s recordings with subscribers of my newsletter in its prior incarnation, but there was a problem: considerable background noise. Enter my friend Victoria Marin, who once took a yoga immersion course that my mom and I taught together and is now a podcast editor. I am so grateful to Victoria for her sound editing on the files below, enabling the practices to be enjoyed without distraction.
If you’re new to meditation, take a listen, see what resonates and, if you feel like it, pick one practice to do consistently for a while. Please let me know if you have any questions.
Listing in order of length…
Alternate Nostril Breathing Tutorial (2 minutes): Alternate nostril breathing, known as nadi shodhana, is said to balance the two sides of the brain and always makes me feel calmer. It’s also a nice way to settle yourself before a meditation practice, and you’ll hear it instructed at the beginning of several of the files in this playlist. Pro tip: If you’re in public or have a stuffy nose, you can do alternate nostril breath in your mind, visualizing the breath as an inverted V going in one side and out the other.
Inner Teacher Meditation (9 minutes): This is a seated meditation to tap into your inner teacher during hard times. Of all the practices of my mom’s that I have shared, this is by far the fan favorite — and one I come back to myself again and again in moments of difficulty.
Breathing Through the Senses (10 minutes): This seated practice incorporates numerous techniques to calm the nervous system: inhaling and exhaling evenly, alternate nostril breath, breathing with attention on the five senses, and visualizing a healing light surrounding your brain. Once you’re familiar with these techniques, any of them can be practiced for just a minute or two whenever you need a reset in your day.
Pulsation Meditation (10 minutes): This seated practice includes noticing the temperature of the breath, finding an even rhythm to the inhale and exhale, and repeating the mantra so hum, representing the breath’s pulsation and the connection of individual and universal.
61 Points, 75 Breaths Yoga Nidra (14 minutes): A guided relaxation meant to be done reclined with your eyes closed, maintaining a slight trace of awareness. It can take the place of a longer nap! If you struggle with insomnia, I recommend memorizing the sequence to do in your mind when struggling to fall asleep so you don’t need to look at an electronic device.
Transforming Negativity Meditation (14 minutes): Angry? Scared? Who isn’t these days? Try this seated meditation to transform any negative energy you feel ready to release. You’ll start with alternate nostril breathing, followed by visualizing an energetic shift. The practice concludes with repetition of the mantra so hum, which means “I am that,” representing the breath’s pulsation and the connection of individual and universal.
Blade of Grass Meditation (15 minutes): Seated, you’ll perform alternate nostril breathing and visualize a blade of grass in the wind growing more still as your mind quiets. Then watch the breath rise and fall at your navel center.
Lake of the Mind Meditation (15 minutes): A seated practice of guided breathing followed by a meditative visualization to calm a turbulent mind like ripples across a lake slowing down.
Transformation Meditation (15 minutes): This is a seated practice on samana vayu, the energy of transformation, balance and assimilation, meant to ignite your inner fire and the energetic center of power in your abdomen.
Healing Ball of Light Meditation (18 minutes): In this seated pratice, you’ll picture a healing ball of light that breaks up physical or emotional pain in your body, slowly descending along your spine. Once you learn the technique, you can do it on your own as needed for a shorter time.
I’d love to hear about your experience with these practices.