Session Four: Can Meditation Help Me Let Go?
“Breathing in, I observe the impermanent nature of all dharmas. Breathing out, I observe the impermanent nature of all dharmas.”
— Ānāpānasati Sutta
{A note on the word “dharma”: In this teaching, dharma (Pali: Dhamma) can be understood simply as the phenomena or experiences we encounter—everything that arises in body and mind. So observing the impermanent nature of all dharmas means noticing that everything we experience is continually changing.}
If you have followed the first three sessions, you have already travelled quite a long way.
You began by simply noticing the breath.
Then you became aware of your whole body and learned to calm it.
You noticed feelings as they arose.
And you began to observe the activity of your mind rather than becoming completely caught up in it.
The Buddha now invites us to look a little more deeply.
We begin to notice that everything we experience is changing.
Thoughts come and go.
Feelings come and go.
Sensations come and go.
Even the breath we are following never remains exactly the same.
This is impermanence.
And when we begin to see impermanence clearly, something else becomes possible: letting go.
We don’t have to hold on so tightly to pleasant experiences.
ALSO don’t have to push away unpleasant ones.
We can simply allow life to arise, change and pass away.
These final four contemplations are not about achieving some special state of meditation.
They are an invitation to see more clearly.
As always, the Buddha’s approach is:
Come and see.
Before you begin
Find somewhere quiet and comfortable.
Allow your body to settle.
Reconnect with the breath.
Know each in-breath and each out-breath.
Become aware of your whole body.
Allow it to soften.
Notice any feelings that are present.
Notice the activity of your mind.
There is nothing you need to change.
When you feel settled, gently begin today’s practice.
Today’s Four Breaths
13. Observing Impermanence
Breathing in, I observe the impermanent nature of all dharmas.
Breathing out, I observe the impermanent nature of all dharmas.
Notice the changing nature of your experience.
The breath changes.
The body changes.
Sounds appear and disappear.
Thoughts arise and fade.
Feelings shift.
Nothing stays exactly as it is.
You don’t need to analyse this.
Simply observe.
For a few breaths, notice that everything happening in your experience is moving and changing.
14. Learning to Let Go
Breathing in, I observe the letting go of all dharmas.
Breathing out, I observe the letting go of all dharmas.
Notice what happens when you stop trying to hold on.
If a pleasant thought appears, let it pass.
When an unpleasant thought appears, let it pass.
If your mind wanders, gently return to the breath.
Letting go doesn’t mean giving up.
It means allowing experience to change without constantly trying to control it.
Each breath gives us another opportunity to practise.
15. Releasing Craving
Breathing in, I observe no craving with regard to all dharmas.
Breathing out, I observe no craving with regard to all dharmas.
For these few moments, there is nothing you need to obtain.
Nothing you need to become.
Nothing you need to add to this moment.
Notice any desire for something to be different.
Perhaps you want the meditation to be quieter.
Or you want a particular feeling to return.
Maybe you want to experience something special.
Simply notice.
You don’t have to follow the desire.
You can breathe and allow it to be there without acting upon it.
16. Observing Cessation
Breathing in, I observe the nature of cessation of all dharmas.
Breathing out, I observe the nature of cessation of all dharmas.
This final contemplation can sound mysterious.
For a beginner, there is no need to make it complicated.
Simply notice that things cease.
A breath finishes.
A sound stops.
A thought disappears.
A feeling changes.
A moment ends.
And another begins.
For a few breaths, simply observe this coming and going.
There is nothing to achieve.
Just notice.
One Minute of Stillness
Now let go of all the instructions.
Sit quietly.
Breathe naturally.
Allow everything to arise and pass away without interference.
Nothing to grasp.
Nothing to reject.
Just this breath.
Then the next.
A Question to Carry Into Your Day
What could I let go of today that I have been trying too hard to hold on to?
It might be a thought.
A worry.
An expectation.
An argument.
A disappointment.
Or simply the desire for things to be different from how they are.
My Reflection
Impermanence has become one of the most tangible Buddhist teachings in my own life.
I don’t need to look very far to see it.
The seasons change.
Our bodies change.
People we love change.
Our thoughts and feelings change.
Even the person I thought I was thirty years ago is not quite the person sitting here today.
At first, impermanence can seem rather depressing.
But gradually I have come to see another side of it.
Because nothing stays the same, difficult moments can pass.
Feelings change, anger does not have to last forever.
When life changes, we can learn to appreciate the moment we actually have rather than constantly wishing for another one.
And because we cannot hold on to anything permanently, perhaps the wisest response is not to grip life more tightly but to learn to let go.
That is what these final four contemplations have invited me to explore.
Not an escape from life.
A deeper acceptance of it.
Where Do We Go From Here?
You have now completed the four sessions of Ten Minutes with the Buddha.
But completing them is not the end of the practice.
You might return to Session One tomorrow.
Or spend several days with one particular contemplation.
You may discover that some instructions speak to you more strongly than others.
That is perfectly natural.
Meditation is not a test.
It is an exploration.
The sixteen contemplations of the Ānāpānasati Sutta take us from the simplest awareness of breathing towards a profound investigation of body, feelings, mind and the changing nature of experience.
You don’t need to understand everything at once.
Sit.
Breathe.
Notice.
And, as the Buddha invites us:
Come and see.
A final reflection
Perhaps the greatest lesson of these four sessions is the simplest one:
You already have everything you need to begin.
You have a body, a breath, feelings, and a mind.
And you have the capacity to observe them.
Ten minutes is enough to begin.
Then tomorrow, begin again.
The Buddha’s path begins with one mindful breath—and continues one breath at a time.
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I’ve enjoyed reading your mini-series on meditation, detecting in your writing a definite change in register that comes very close to guiding, a close relation to teaching – and no harm there.
The method of steering a meditation with an aim or object is, of course, the antithesis of the Zen way of ‘just sitting’, which is the basis for my own practice. There is plenty of room for both approaches (and all points between) – we find what suits us, and with no right or wrong.
I find active contemplation of impermanence (which for me, takes place ‘off’ the cushion) leads naturally to that of emptiness (sunyata), but perhaps that is not part of your tradition’s way of looking at things. For me, it’s foundational – but is only really another way of considering dependent arising.
As I sit, I hope to feel/experience impermanence directly as a cohabitor – there’s a subtle difference there, compared with the role of observer, as expounded in the teaching you reference – but perhaps that is just semantics. Reality is distorted by language, binding us to a conceptual view, and it’s an easy error to focus on the finger pointing at a moon, when we can just look at it.
Hello Clive, thank you so much for your very welcome comment on my meditation series and tradition generally. Firstly you are absolutely correct in the hint (I think) that I have altered my writing approach for this series, essentially teaching with a smattering of reflection. It was born because my wife recently started to engage in meditation with some neighbour friends and I thought this would help them to have something to refer to without reading a book.
My wife is originally from Nepal and mostly practices Vipassana meditation having attended a 10 day retreat many years ago. She has no specific tradition she follows, just grew up living to a clear moral code and following her parents through rituals, puja and festivals.
I wrote about my own tradition here a few weeks ago.
https://thisbuddhistlife.com/2026/08/11/buddhist-tradition-and-path/
This didn’t really concern me or even emerge until my recent trip to Nepal.
I have read a little about Zen and tried just silent sitting about a year ago but my own practice is full of contemplation rather than insight even. In other words I often enter a session with the intention of contemplating some aspect of the dhamma rather than sitting to see what arises other than for the first 10min of a 40min session.
My practice and life has evolved over about 30 years, I enjoy reading the Sutta and reflecting on them and nowadays writing about my reflection too. I really dislike writers who regurgitate an aspect of Buddhism without and sharing of personal experiences or reflection, but I suppose that’s not a very Buddhist thing.
Once again Clive thanks for your comment, I have gained a lot from it and will try and engage with you more via your own blog too.
Brian
Clive another reply from me, I got confused a while ago because of your food blog do you have a different one too.
Yes, my practice reflections are to be found at https://nothingmuch07.com/ I only started it at the beginning of this year, while my recipe blog will reach its 10th anniversary next year.
A very thorough reflection and description of this meditation practice which focuses on the Dhamma, Buddha’s teaching. It is also therefore centred on The Fourth Foundation of Mindfulness. Understanding these Buddhist concepts is essential before this phase of meditation is attempted.
Yes you’re right, this session is a very big step up from the first. But I’ve described all of them so that beginner and those new to Buddhism can have a view from my own experience. Some days I meditate as described in Session #1, other days I use Session #4. It depends on whether I feel the need to practice Samatha (concentration meditation) or Vipassana (insight or contemplation meditation) Thank you for your insightful comment too 🙏🕉️