Ten Percent Happier with Dan Harris - We Hate Uncertainty. But This Practice Can Make You Hate It Less. | Bonus Meditation with Alexis Santos

Episode Date: November 8, 2024

Discomfort with the unknown is a natural human response. This meditation will help you relax as you practice allowing the rhythm of life to unfold.About Alexis Santos:Alexis has practiced and taught Insight Meditation in both the East and West since 2001. He has been a long-time student of Sayadaw U Tejaniya (a well respected meditation teacher in Burma whose teachings have attracted a global audience), and his teaching emphasizes knowing the mind through a natural and relaxed continuity -- a style of practice that's particularly useful during our crazy lives. Alexis has completed the Spirit Rock/IMS Teacher Training, teaches retreats across the globe, and currently lives in Portland, Maine.To find this meditation in the Happier app, you can search for “Facing Uncertainty.”See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Wondery Plus subscribers can listen to 10% happier early and ad free right now. Join Wondery Plus in the Wondery app or on Apple podcasts. It's the 10% happier podcast. I'm Dan Harris. Happy Friday, everybody. Time for a bonus meditation. Today, we're talking about one of the least comfortable states of mind on offer. I'm talking about uncertainty. Our meditation teacher du jour is Alexis Santos, who was a guest on this podcast earlier this week. You can check the podcast feed for that episode. We'll put a link in the show notes. A little bit about Alexis.

He has practiced and taught Insight Meditation in both the East and West since 2001. He has completed the Spirit Rock IMS Teacher Training, and he teaches retreats all over the globe, and he currently lives in the great state of Maine. Here we go now with Alexis Santos. Hi, this is Alexis. There's an old saying, you can't stop the waves from coming, but you can learn to surf.

Life just keeps happening. As we grow in awareness and wisdom, we can see that a greater ease and freedom can come not from resisting circumstances, but from relaxing this tendency and allowing the rhythm of life to unfold. As we learn to trust ourselves, we can find ease in the midst of uncertainty. Let's get started. of uncertainty. Let's get started.

Settle into a posture that feels comfortable to you. Sitting or lying down, generally allow your eyes to close if you like. Take this time to simply begin to settle into your own being. Bring awareness to what it feels like to be you right now, in your body and in your mind. Begin to notice what is present for you. You might take a couple of deeper breaths, feeling the breath as it comes in, and letting it go on the out-breath. Allow the breath to return to its natural rhythm.

Allow the body to relax, softening any obvious tensions in the shoulders, soften the face. Just allow the body to be as it is and inviting in a sense of ease. When we are aware, we're able to know our state of mind, and we can learn about our habitual reactions that may not serve us so well. The reactions of fear and anxiety, worry, and the tendency to control. One of the biggest triggers of these habitual reactions is uncertainty. We don't know when our next sickness or misfortune will happen, if we'll lose our partner or our job.

Uncertainty is a part of this world, just as change is a part of this world, just as change is a part of this world. Moment to moment, the world is changing. Take a moment to consider this. Think of something you are currently facing where there is some uncertainty. At work, with your friends or family, take a moment to feel into this uncertainty. We can simply notice what's present. We can turn towards anxiety, towards fear. We can even recognize the resistance to these feelings. Take some time now to see if you can turn towards any tightening up or contraction that might be present with a sense of curiosity.

Not to fix or change it, but to be aware of it, to receive it with interest. As you move into the rest of your day, see if you can find moments when uncertainty triggers a need for control or when fear and anxiety take over. Identifying these patterns allows us to shift from fearing uncertainty to recognizing the mystery of this life just as it is. When you're ready, you can open your eyes if they have been closed. Good to be with you and thank you for your practice. Good to be with you and thank you for your practice. Thank you, Alexis. If you can find more meditations like this one over on the Happier app,

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