284 ~ Drawing Meditation: Escape to a Forest Sanctuary

Hello Magical Human & welcome back to Madison Mindset the Podcast 🕊

In this episode, I will guide you through a drawing meditation focused on living in harmony with nature, encouraging deeper concentration and present-moment awareness through the practice of drawing with your eyes closed. 🪬🌱
episode overview:
• drawing meditation involves following verbal prompts with eyes closed to create a drawing
• the practice is meant to quiet the mind and deepen concentration, not create perfect artwork
• imperfection becomes a source of enjoyment and lightness
• you will need a drawing pad, something hard to lean on, and a pen or pencil
• extended version with music and additional relaxation available on the Podcast Subscription on Patreon (link is below) 🧚🏼

Relax now...

Love,

Madison Mindset xx

Chapters

• 0:00 Introduction to Drawing Meditation
• 2:31 Setting Up the Practice
• 3:28 Beginning the Meditation
• 5:41 Visualizing the Forest Home
• 9:31 The Garden and Storm
• 12:57 Concluding the Practice

Transcript

Speaker 1: 0:04

Hello Magical Human and welcome back to Madison Mindset, the podcast. In this episode, we are going to do a drawing meditation If you have not done a drawing meditation before. Basically, what it is is following verbal prompts with your eyes closed and drawing what you hear. So this is not about making an artwork or being perfect. It's actually the opposite. It's to help you deepen your concentration into the present moment and to still your mind by giving the mind something to do. So it is not in any way serious. It doesn't matter what the drawing looks like. In fact, I quite enjoy the moment where you get to open your eyes and see what you've done, because it's often very different and it's very funny. You know, especially if you have someone to do this with, it's a great way to lighten the mood and to even allow yourself to have fun, either just by yourself or with others, in imperfection. You know, seeing a drawing that you do with your eyes closed is obviously, most of the time, very messy. So, yeah, you're allowing yourself to enjoy that imperfection and non-seriousness, which is exactly what we need need. So you will need a place to sit, a drawing pad, ideally a hard book or something to lean on, and a pen or a pencil, doesn't matter which. Now I usually will use a yoga block or another book and rest it on my right thigh so that I can draw what I hear with my right hand without having to move too much, because obviously, staying still in your chosen seated position is the goal. So very minimal movement. So just take this time now to set yourself up to find a nice seated position you know, leaning against a wall if you need to, or just sitting upright on a normal yoga prop or whatever else you need, or a meditation prop. Find your pen and your paper and when you're ready, we will begin before we dive into the practice. If you would like the extended version of this practice with some beautiful music placed behind it and also an added visualization for relaxation, you can find that on the podcast subscription in patreon. The link is below. It's only $7 a month. I always appreciate the support and for your support, I love to give you more and give you more practical work to do so. Definitely go and check that out, especially if you enjoy this practice.

Speaker 1: 3:01

For now let's begin. Find complete stillness, bringing the whole body into stillness, your paper and pen just resting on your thigh or wherever you've chosen to place it, the pen ready in your hand. The rest of the duration of the practice, this drawing meditation, is going to be focused on living more with the land, so thinking about living in the middle of the woods in a more natural environment, which many of us do not have the current opportunity to do. So, something a little bit more natural. We're going to take a time to visualize what I describe and you're going to draw this natural living environment. Keep your eyes closed and relax the whole body. Keep your eyes closed and relax the whole body. Take a moment to observe your breath, gently in and out through the nose, gently slow your natural breath, without trying to control anything, just with gentle encouragement longer inhale, even longer exhale, long inhale, even longer exhale. Keep this focus on your breath, encouraging the mind to focus in in this moment on the breath.

Speaker 1: 5:28

Imagine yourself standing in front of a very small eco-type home in the middle of a natural forest. The home itself is very simple. Draw the front of the home. There is a long rectangle as the front of the house and then the roof peaks up into a triangle shape house. And then the roof peeks up into a triangle shape. The roof is made out of canvas, similar to a tent, and it rolls down all the way down the sides of the house as well, covering the windows. The front of the canvas where the front door is is gently pulled up with some rope. The front of the house is all glass and there are double doors. For the front door, you can just see inside of the house. You can just see inside of the house. It is very simple A small kitchen, a small fireplace and a couple of cushions on the ground surrounding a small table.

Speaker 1: 7:09

Out the front of the house is a beautiful rectangle deck. There is no roof covering the deck, it is just simply open. There is a beautiful carpet covering the front deck and there is a yoga mat on top of the carpet, obviously left from the morning yoga practice that you may have done. There is an outdoor chair on the left side of the deck, close to the house, and there is a similar chair just like that one on the right side, close to the house.

Speaker 1: 8:00

Off to the left side of the house, there is an outdoor shower. There are cobblestones underneath feet where you would stand under the shower, and cobblestones lining the walls of the shower as you look at your beautiful house. Behind the house, all you can see are trees and branches. There is a little bit of sky shining through the leaves, but mostly it is tree branches and leaves. Beautiful thick forest. Just in front of the forest, a little bit closer to the house, there is a beautiful landscape of tall grasses about knee or hip height and there is a little space in between the grasses where you've built a path, your own bushwalk, through the forest. You can just see the start of that bushwalk and you know that that heads all the way through the forest and in towards a nearby village where you can buy local groceries and anything else you need clothing, groceries and anything else you need clothing.

Speaker 1: 9:39

Just in front of the deck outside the house, there is an outdoor table just resting on the grass and on the table there rests the book you're reading and there are some paints and pencils there. Perhaps you've been painting or your partner or your children or a friend has been painting and have left the paints on the table for now, and there are some beautiful yellow tall flowers around the table. The grass is long and natural. To get to the front door, you've created a beautiful stone path with some wood chips in the centre of the path. The path is lined with rocks. It breaks off in a fork direction. One part of the path leads around the back of the house and towards the shower, and the next part of the house leads towards you. It leads towards your beautiful garden where you are growing some local and in-season produce, your flowers, herbs, vegetables and fruits, all in this one space, creating a forest all on their own, an edible garden. All of your favourite fruits and veggies are in that garden. All of your favourite fruits and veggies are in that garden. Draw the vines and the branches. There is a watering can and a couple of baskets that you use to collect your daily produce.

Speaker 1: 11:51

Suddenly, you notice some thunder overhead and you feel rain falling down on your skin, over the vegetable patch, over the house, beautiful big raindrops, and you know we're in for a lovely evening shower. You decide to go inside. You take your book off the table and go and sit inside by the fire and read for the afternoon before you start making an evening meal. You are relaxed, content and happy with your life, living side by side with nature. Pause the drawing, take a deep breath. In through your nose, out through the nose, smile. Notice how you feel. Thank you for enjoying this practice with me. Beautiful human, when you're ready, you may open your eyes and enjoy your moment of staring at your drawing. You may like to reflect on this practice with some journaling or some deep breaths. I hope you feel good. Always feel free to come back to the practice if you need to visit this space again. Thank you for being here, love. Thank you.