Guided Meditations
Shodaigyo Chakra Visualization
This meditation weaves the seven syllables of Namu Myoho Renge Kyo together with the seven chakra points of the body, pairing each syllable with its corresponding location and color: violet at the crown, deep purple at the third eye, blue at the throat, green at the heart, yellow at the solar plexus, orange at the lower belly, and red at the base of the spine. Moving through the complete Shodaigyo format of silent sitting, chanting, and visualization, it concludes with a full-body integration that draws all seven colors into a single radiant white light. A richly layered practice that engages imagination, breath, sound, and body awareness all at once.
Gratitude Meditation
A gentle, unhurried meditation that moves through the full Shodaigyo format, using breath and awareness as a doorway into gratitude. Beginning with body scan and calming, moving through chanting, and settling into a sustained contemplation of thankfulness, the session explores gratitude not as a sentiment but as a direct experience: feeling supported by the earth, recognizing both pleasant and painful feelings with equal tenderness, and resting in the understanding that in this moment, nothing is lacking. A quietly transformative practice for anyone carrying the weight of what feels missing.
30-Minute Shodaigyo with Light Guidance
A complete Shodaigyo meditation in the classic three-part format: silent sitting, chanting, and silent sitting, lightly guided at the transitions and then left to unfold on its own. The guidance is intentionally minimal, just enough to settle you in and anchor you at key moments, with long unguided periods that invite you to practice independently. Ideal for those who have worked through the course and want a supported but largely self-directed sitting. A good companion practice for any week in the program.
Pebble Meditation
A tactile visualization practice drawn from the Plum Village tradition, using four small stones as anchors for four qualities we carry within us but sometimes forget. Each pebble represents one image: a flower for freshness, a mountain for solidity, still water for calm reflection, and space for freedom. Holding each stone in turn, you breathe into its quality and let it become real in the body. The full Shodaigyo format of silent sitting and chanting frames the visualization, grounding the imagination in breath and sound. A gentle, accessible practice that works equally well for beginners and experienced meditators.
Body Scan
A full-length lying-down meditation that moves with patient, unhurried attention through every region of the body, from the toes of the left foot all the way to the crown of the head. Rather than trying to relax or fix anything, the practice simply asks you to feel what is there: sensation, tension, numbness, emotion, whatever is present in each region is welcomed without judgment. An invitation, as the guidance puts it, to fall awake rather than fall asleep. One of the most restorative meditations in the library, and particularly useful for stress, physical tension, or difficulty settling into stillness.
Mountain Retreat: A guided Visualization
A creative visualization that takes you on an imagined walk through a sun-filtered forest path, opening into a mountain meadow filled with wildflowers, a still silver lake, and cathedral peaks rooted deep in the earth. Using the four pebble qualities from an earlier practice, fresh as the flowers, solid as the mountains, still as the water, free as the sky, you settle into a place that is entirely your own, safe, nourishing, and always available. The session closes by walking you gently back along the forest path and returning your awareness to the room. A restorative practice for anyone needing refuge from a difficult week.
Guided Chanting Meditation
A pure chanting practice, designed to be done in a dedicated sacred space with a candle, incense, and all distractions set aside. Rather than framing the mantra as a concentration tool, this session teaches you to chant as an act of trust and refuge, understanding Namu Myoho Renge Kyo as the full expression of the Buddha's teaching, wisdom, and compassion made available to you in sound. Interwoven with the chanting are reflections on what it means to activate your own Buddha nature: to be virtuous, wise, powerful, fearless, mindful, and free. Suitable for both complete beginners curious about chanting and experienced practitioners wanting to deepen their understanding of why we chant.
Anapanasati: Mindfulness of Breath
One of the oldest and most complete meditation instructions in the Buddhist tradition, the Anapanasati Sutta offers sixteen contemplations organized into four groups: body, feelings, mind, and the phenomena around us. This session opens with five minutes of calming meditation and five minutes of chanting to settle and focus the mind, then moves into a twenty-minute guided Anapanasati practice. Each contemplation is offered as a simple paired phrase breathed in and out: aware of the body, calming the body, feeling joyful, feeling at ease, aware of the mind. Grounded, practical, and immediately accessible, this is a practice you can carry into walking and daily life long after the session ends.
Shodaigyo: 10-Minute Chanting Meditation
A complete Shodaigyo practice distilled to its essentials: two minutes of silent calming meditation, five minutes of chanting Namu Myoho Renge Kyo, and two minutes of silent contemplation to let it settle. Short enough to fit into any day, complete enough to be a genuine practice. A good starting point for anyone new to chanting, and a reliable reset for experienced practitioners when time is short. This is the same structure as the 10-10-10 session in the course, with guided instruction throughout.
Deep Relaxation
A full-length guided relaxation that moves unhurriedly through the complete Shodaigyo format: an extended body scan to release tension layer by layer, chanting to settle and deepen the stillness, and a final silent period to rest in whatever has opened up. The body scan portion is unusually thorough, spending time in each region until the body genuinely lets go rather than simply moving on. The session closes with a gentle loving kindness offering to yourself before returning to the room. A good choice for the end of a difficult day, or any time the body is carrying more than it should.
5-Minute Body Scan and Affirmations
A short morning ritual designed to be done before getting out of bed, combining a rapid head-to-toe body scan with a sequence of simple affirmations breathed in and out. Beginning with a structured breathing technique to clear and activate the breath, the practice moves quickly through the whole body and then settles into paired affirmations: gratitude, joy, strength, safety, and presence. The whole session takes five minutes and is intended to set a calm, grounded mental state before the day begins. The shortest practice in the library and one of the most practical.
Chanting Namu Myoho Renge Kyo: 5 Minutes - Slow Pace
Five minutes of slow, unhurried chanting of the Sacred Title, Namu Myoho Renge Kyo. No instruction, no guidance, just the mantra at a gentle pace with space to breathe. A good entry point for anyone new to chanting, a useful warm-up before a longer sitting, or a standalone practice when five minutes is all you have.
Chanting Namu Myoho Renge Kyo: 10 Minutes - Medium Pace
Ten minutes of steady, rhythmic chanting of the Sacred Title at a moderate pace, approximately four repetitions per breath cycle. A natural middle ground between the contemplative stillness of slow chanting and the energetic drive of fast chanting. Long enough to settle deeply into the sound, short enough to fit into any practice. A reliable everyday chanting session.
Chanting Namu Myoho Renge Kyo - 15 Minutes - Fast Pace
Fifteen minutes of vigorous, energetic chanting of the Odaimoku at approximately thirty repetitions per minute. No instruction, no guidance, just the mantra at full pace. This style of chanting is activating rather than calming, generating heat, focus, and momentum. A traditional Nichiren practice format, and a powerful way to begin or close a longer meditation session.
Chanting Namu Myoho Renge Kyo: 30-Minute Shodaigyo
A complete, unguided Shodaigyo session in the traditional three-part format: silent sitting, chanting, silent sitting. No instruction, no narration, just the full practice from beginning to end. For those who know the format and simply want to sit. The definitive everyday practice session for anyone who has worked through the course.
Chanting Daimoku: Reverse Shodaigyo Tempo
A 30-minute Shodaigyo session in reverse tempo: fast chanting, slow chanting, fast chanting. Where the traditional format opens and closes with stillness, this variation opens and closes with energy, using the vigorous pace to activate and bookend a slower, more contemplative middle period. An interesting variation for experienced practitioners who want to explore how the sequence of energies shapes the quality of the practice.
Chanting Meditation: Opening the Heart
A chanting meditation rooted in the Plum Village tradition, framing the recitation of Namu Myoho Renge Kyo within the imagery of the Ceremony in the Air from the Lotus Sutra. As the mantra is chanted, the visualization opens outward: sound moving through galaxies, flowers arising from the earth, a jeweled stupa shining across the sky, bodhisattvas appearing in all directions, and the Buddha's hand in yours. A devotional practice that invites the imagination fully into the chanting, transforming sound into vision and vision into presence.
Chanting Namu Myoho Renge Kyo and Om Mani Padme Hum
A chanting practice that weaves together two of the most beloved mantras in the Buddhist world: Namu Myoho Renge Kyo, the Sacred Title of the Lotus Sutra from the Nichiren tradition, and Om Mani Padme Hum, the mantra of Avalokiteshvara, the bodhisattva of compassion, from the Tibetan tradition. Different in origin and sound, the two mantras share a common heart: awakening, compassion, and the recognition of our own deepest nature. An ecumenical practice for anyone who feels at home in more than one stream of the Dharma.
Chanting Namu Myoho Renge Kyo: Three Ways
A single five-minute session that explores three distinct forms of the mantra: the full Namu Myoho Renge Kyo, the shortened Nam Myoho Renge Kyo, and the Sacred Title alone, Myoho Renge Kyo, without any prefix. Each form carries a subtly different quality and emphasis. A useful practice for anyone curious about how the mantra changes when its opening syllable shifts, and a good way to discover which form resonates most naturally with your own voice and breath.
Singing the Mantra: Namu Myoho Renge Kyo
The same Sacred Title, offered in a sung rather than chanted form. Where traditional Shodaigyo chanting uses a steady, grounded monotone, this practice opens the mantra into melody, allowing the voice to move freely with the sound. Singing engages the breath, the body, and the heart in a different way than chanting, and can unlock a quality of joy and openness that the more formal style sometimes holds at a distance. An invitation to let the mantra become a song.
Support This Work
These meditations are offered freely, as the Dharma has always been offered. There is no fee, no subscription, and no paywall, and there never will be.
That said, creating, recording, and hosting these meditations does cost time and money. Two Buddhas is an all-volunteer nonprofit, and every contribution, however small, helps keep this library growing and available to anyone who needs it.
If these meditations have been useful to you, please consider making a donation in whatever amount feels right. It is never required and always appreciated.