Hey all, each shape in this image has a match. I usually print and Color them in as I go for a break from the screen. Hopefully this helps and you enjoy.

Imagining what kind of world we’d live in if majority of the people on the planet would live mindful rather than with full minds

Today on my birthday, I am making a wish for us... I want us to stop hurting, to stop struggling and to finally be at peace. To love and have love reciprocated... To achieve and have people to celebrate our achievements with. To forgive ourselves for messing it up and healing. To stop feeling lonely and overwhelmed and to figure out what to do or how to travel on this road. Because you deserve it... All of the love and happiness❣️💕

Lately I’ve been feeling a bit stuck. Progress has been slow on some projects I care about deeply, and a few people close to me are going through health challenges. Then Alan Watts video popped up, talking about life as a river.

The timing couldn’t have been more perfect.

He spoke about how life flows like water — sometimes smooth, sometimes wild and chaotic, sometimes gentle and still. He described how humans are often obsessed with controlling things, planning every step, chasing goals... and in doing so, we forget to experience the moment.

And then came this line that hit me hard:

"A person who falls into a river and fights the current is more likely to drown. But the one who surrenders to the flow, floats."

That image just stuck with me. It made me realize how often I’ve been resisting what is, rather than flowing with it. Surrender isn’t giving up — it’s trusting that life might actually carry you exactly where you need to go… if you let it.

He also said something beautiful about how the stick and the river are not separate. Just like we’re not separate from life — we’re made of the same energy. That really softened something in me. Reminded me to stop clinging so tightly to outcomes, and instead reconnect to the simple things: the wind, the birds, the people I love, the work I’m doing right now. Not someday.

Just wanted to share in case it helps someone else take a deep breath and trust the flow a little more today.

Meditation is wild when you think about it… You're just sitting there, doing absolutely nothing… …except fighting your inner demons, replaying every awkward moment since 2007, trying to focus on your breath while your brain reminds you of that one time you waved back at someone who wasn’t waving at you.

But somehow...

In between all that chaos, there’s this tiny space of silence. That space between the thoughts - which at first feels so alien, so unfamiliar, even terrifying... And that’s the part that heals you. That’s the part that helps you rediscover yourself.

What’s been the hardest part of meditation for you… and what kept you going anyway?

Let the past go. Only the present matters!

Enjoy the moment.

This morning I sat down for a short session to clear my mind but I could not break my fixation on making a meditation timer I would actually use. I call it the Bodhigotchi, and it has buttons to start a meditation, initiate a breathing exercise, or to deny the dogs Buddha nature (iykyk). Is a tool like this antithetical to the practice?

I used to think mindfulness meant sitting perfectly still, eyes closed, fighting off thoughts.

That pressure made me give up often.

But one day during my “challenge,” something clicked: I was journaling about my feelings of restlessness, and instead of trying to “fix” them, I just noticed them.

That was it. Noticing was enough.

That shift — from controlling my thoughts to observing them — was a turning point.

It turned the practice into something gentle, not forced.

Have you ever had that “aha” moment in your practice where it suddenly felt different?

I’d love to hear your story.

Lately I noticed my head was full of random thoughts every day.
Some small, some personal, some that I didn’t want to lose but also didn’t know where to put.

Instead of letting them swirl around, I started building a space where I could “talk it out”, but in a mindful way. I'm a bit technical and introverted as well, so went to look for ai models to help me out.

Now I built an ai companion that helps me turn daily mental clutter into clearer thoughts.

It doesn’t replace human connection. It’s more like a private journal that listens back and reflects, so I can organize what’s going on in my mind.

I just wanted to share this here because I know many of you also deal with busy thoughts, and for me this has been a helpful way to slow down and bring more clarity into my day. Its free to test and use: narrin.ai

Hi everyone. I hope this is allowed, thank you for your time.

Several years ago, I was struggling to tame my mind, that of a restless young man filled with insecurity, fear, and anger. But eventually, I realized that trying to fix myself by attaining material things was just like trying to put bandages on an untreated wound. I had to really dig deep and figure out where the wound (or the root) was coming from. I dug heavily into mindfulness, self-development, neuroscience, and ancient Eastern philosophy, and applied the practices, and it profoundly changed my life into one of fulfillment and peace. I packaged the tools that most helped me into the book in a concise and practical manner.

Please feel free to ask me anything about my journey.

The Book is called: Motivated Insight: Reaching Your Optimal State And Unlocking Your Inner Freedom - Available on Amazon in both Paperback and Kindle (Online) versions.

I don’t understand how people live with them on — overhead fluorescents, harsh kitchen spots, even the glow of their phones like flashlights under their skin. It’s too much. Feels like being interrogated in my own house. When I leave the porch light off, the neighborhood kids call my place “creepy.” That’s fine. I’m not here for them.

The dark is safer. Calmer. It doesn’t ask anything from me. It doesn’t buzz in my skull like the cheap fixtures in barracks used to — the ones that flickered like they’d explode but never did. I hated those most. Always felt like they were waiting for the worst moment to go out. Like a trap.

I stalk around the house now. That’s not paranoia — it’s a habit. I check the windows twice. Make sure no one can see in. I know the floorboards that creak and the ones that don’t. Barefoot, quiet. The shadows make sense to me. They keep everything where it should be.

When I’m moving like that — slow, deliberate — it’s the only time I feel like I’m back in control. Out there, everything was noise and sun and chaos. But here? In here, I hunt the silence. I make sure no light gets in.

I don’t want to be seen. I just want to see.

Lately I’ve been experimenting with adding more structure to my mornings, something intentional but not overwhelming.

What’s been working best? A single affirmation card.

Every morning I pick one card, read it out loud, and sit with the message. No phone. No scrolling. Just 60 seconds of presence.

Here’s today’s: “I do not shrink for comfort - I rise for truth.”

I designed this little deck myself because I wanted something that felt gentle, confident, and human. Not toxic positivity. Just grounded encouragement.

It’s now a part of my morning tea, journaling, and sometimes even breathwork. It’s simple - but surprisingly powerful.

Just wanted to share in case anyone’s looking to add something small-but-steady to their mindfulness practice 💛

I'm looking to make friends from anywhere in the world. If you want, just call me in private and I will welcome you with open arms. I'm really cool and fun

Have you ever truly wondered how a great company works?

Forget the org charts and the business models. The truth is much simpler. It's a truth you feel every second of your life.

A great company is a heart.

The world is the body. And the body has a constant, urgent need. A need for a solution, a connection, a cure. This need is like tired blood, returning to be renewed. This is the "corporate issue."

A great company is the organ that answers that need.

Its job is to take in the problem…the tired blood…and breathe new life into it. The product and engineering teams are the chambers that receive the world’s need. The research and strategy teams are like the lungs, infusing it with a vital spark of innovation, the oxygen.

Then, the sales and marketing teams, the powerful final chambers, pump the new, life-giving solution back out, sending it with force and purpose to every corner of the body.

This is how the system works. This is how it adds value.

But the real secret to a successful company, the thing that makes it all work, isn't the chambers.

It's the beat.

The steady, reliable, powerful rhythm. A pulse of trust that flows through the entire system. The quiet confidence that each part will do its job, in perfect time, over and over again. That pulse is the culture. It is the leadership. It is the unspoken agreement to work as one.

You, in your daily work, your meetings, your small tasks, might not always see the whole picture.

But you are not just doing a task. You are contributing to a vital, life-giving pulse. You are a part of the beat.

And as you sit here tonight, you can feel it. The steady, quiet rhythm of your own heart, doing its job without fanfare.

And you realize, with a sense of wonder, that you are not just working in a system.

You are the beat in the heart of the world

Today, I finally understood the principle of non-action or what the “Tao Te Ching” calls “Wu Wei”. Since reading the Tao Te Ching, I’ve struggled with that concept, as it isn’t meant to stop you from doing things, but it literally tells you to practice non-action? That is seemingly a paradox… right?

Today, I realized that it is not a paradox. I was removing coffee stains from an inhuman amount of coffee cops with salt and elbow grease… when I realized that I was not the one doing the washing. My mind, or consciousness or focus or whatever you want to call it, was INSIDE the cup, I was washing. “I” was in my hands and in the cup, I was completely swallowed up, by the activity, to a point where it felt like “I” didn’t exist outside the washing. Like I forget my own body and mind, because I am doing something in mindfulness, in such a manner that I become one with the activity.

I was no longer the one washing the cup, I was observing that the cup was being washed, without meaning to do anything. When I was suddenly pulled out of this reverie, it just hit me… now I understand this concept… I’ve tried it twice, the other time was while I was doing gardening at home. Most importantly - both times, was when I was focused on my breath and the activity and my hands and practicing mindfulness.

I see this as a huge breakthrough, because it shows me the key to the present and it proves to me, that what so many spiritual figures, books and philosophers try to point towards with words… is real! but it is rather difficult to explain, in words…

This is the answer to many things, as the magic happens, when you’re in this state, because you’re doing something, but it is like a break. It doesn’t feel like effort, but like flowing. Time seems to stop and you no longer feel the aches and pains in the body or the thoughts that seem to loop around causing frustration or worry about the dentist appointment you have this afternoon.

It is like readily available bliss, peace, calm, tranquility… in which the drama of life just disappears. It is the art of non-action. The art of Wu Wei. The art of being peaceful, while engaging in activity. Dare I say - the art of happiness?

Shout out to an influential figure in my life - Thich Nhat Hanh. I’ve never met you, but your way of communicating these things, makes it easy to understand. Thank you Thay - may you rest in peace

Link: https://substack.com/@stagnir/note/c-153778898

For too long, I played small. I hid parts of myself, I downplayed my worth, and I let fear convince me to shrink.

But here’s the truth that changed everything: You weren’t created to live small. You were built to live fully.

🎥 This short video is a wake-up call I wish I had years ago: Stop Shrinking. Start Living.

https://youtu.be/0z8LJRIQFf8?si=dYkov-v8YUWuU2JM

If you’ve been holding back, doubting yourself, or hiding your light—this is for you.

👉 What’s one area of your life where you know you’ve been shrinking… and you’re ready to stop?

Drop it below. Someone needs to hear your story.

Interpreted as Stoic counsel, the lyric claims an internal standard of worth: belief is epistemic authority first, and it’s audited by behavior after. What single act would constitute sufficient evidence to you that this belief is warranted?

Four Divine Abidings is a game about the Path to Full Liberation. It's a hand-painted, mindfulness-themed Journey of idle/incremental genre. I've tried to build calm, atmospheric experience with established mindfulness practices and core Buddhist principles woven into gameplay mechanics.

⬖ Four Brahmaviharas are main player qualities, they are developed throughout the game and applied in various encounters.

⬖ The Noble Eightfold Path is implemented as skills system.

⬖ Karma and Rebirths concepts are one of the main game mechanics.

⬖ Mindfulness and Buddhism lore is optionally available in simple terms throughout the game.

⬖ Gameplay-wise the game is of idle/incremental genre. Much progress unfolds on its own, players choose the direction in which it will unfold, and solve different strategic tasks on the Path.

My hope is that it can help someone. Breathing in, breathing out. Breathing in, I know that I am breathing in, breathing out, I know that I am breathing out.

Breathing in, I smile to the world, breathing out, I am calm.

Breathing in, I am calm, breathing out, I am at peace.

https://youtu.be/xwrbc8JrYU8?si=nil6M-QA-hhz40gn

I’m writing a series where each book is dedicated to each month specific to current time! I’ve already published September 2025. Although it’s still relevant even if you’re not reading it in September.

My goal is to help people get out of the slump and routine they may feel stuck in. This book is a quick read but filled with a wide variety of information. It helps you understand the month you’re in and the changes occurring around you. Why you may feel certain ways.

It also aligns with Septembers moon phases and suggests how to use this time and make the most out of it. Other chapters include seasonal recipes, creative hobbies, mind improvement, DIY, and tied in every section is education and historical knowledge.

I hope you love it as much as I have writing it! I’m almost done with October which is similar but even better!!

If you have Kindle Unlimited then you can read it for free!! I’d love any and all advice, thoughts, suggestions. It may not be perfect but I’m learning. It also reads best I found on the kindle app on your phone.

https://a.co/d/8hO4pOT

Xoxo