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Meditation on Insight

Audio June 10, 2020
A sculpture depicts a woman seated with her knees drawn up. She is resting her elbows on her knees and her head on her forearms and her hair is in a bun.
For my taste, sculpture should have as little movement as possible. It should not fall, and gesture, and grimace, and if one depicts movement, grimaces come too easily. Rodin himself remains quiet; he puts movement into his rendering of muscles, but the whole remains quiet and calm.
Aristide Maillol

Enjoy this guided meditation paired with Aristide Maillol’s Night. Follow along with the audio or text below.

Step-by-Step Meditation

  1. Sit in a comfortable position.
  2. Take a few deep breaths and contemplate the quiet, inward reflection embodied by the figure in the sculpture. Consider what the figure might be thinking in this pose.
  3. Close your eyes and breathe deeply. Follow each breath to your internal self as the air moves in and out of your body.
  4. As thoughts emerge, acknowledge them without any judgement. Then allow them to pass with your breath.
  5. Continue in this pattern, following your own internal thoughts as they come and go with your breathing.
  6. Breathe, acknowledge, release. Reflect on your thought patterns as you gain a deeper insight into your mind.