Supportive Practices (SPs)

These practices are intended to help cultivate an awaken heart, mind and body as we move through our daily life. Some of these practices are specific to mindfulness and/or compassion, while others are focused on growing positive mind states like gratitude and joy. Some people refer to these as “off the cushion” practices.

These practices do not need to require a lot of time and can be practiced almost anywhere. They can also be added to your formal meditation practice. The reason these are called “practices” is because we must return to them over and over. At times, these may feel inaccessible or challenging, even for just a moment. This is normal even for experienced practitioners. I encourage you to be kind and gentle as you try them out, and return to them again and again to fertilize your inner garden.

May these wise words from one of my most influential teachers, Sharon Salzberg, guide you – We can always begin again. No matter what happens, no matter how long it’s been, no matter how far from our aspirations we may have strayed, we can always always begin again.