Becoming the Ocean: A Meditative Journey
Gurteen Bay, Roundstone. Connemara. All photos by Anna King
WELCOME
This blog includes journalling prompts and two guided audio meditations to support you on your journey. It is designed to help you connect with the light that shines in your heart, and explore the unique gifts you carry within.
Please begin by reading the written narrative, as it gives you an introduction to the meditations and will help deepen your experience.
Enjoy…
Becoming the Ocean: A Meditative Journey
Rivers move with the pull of gravity, the rhythm of nature, and the calling of the sea.
The river’s journey to the ocean is an intuitive surrender to its true nature.
Imagine standing on the edge of a river, watching the water move. It twists and turns, carving its own path through the land — sometimes rushing, sometimes meandering, but always moving forward.
The river does not resist its journey; it is drawn toward something vast and infinite.
And when the river reaches the ocean, it expands, becoming part of something greater, something it was always meant to be.
Carrowcally Beach, Westport, Mayo.
The River and the Ocean: A Sacred Metaphor
The river merging with the ocean is a metaphor for our own journey of awakening to the truth that we are more than our individual body-mind.
We are connected to something much greater.
Whether we call it Source, Divine Light, Universal Energy, or simply Home, the message remains the same: we are not separate from Source — we are part of it.
"You are not a drop in the ocean. You are the entire ocean in a drop." — Rumi.
Overcoming Fear and Letting Go
For many years, I have written and curated meditations centred around the shoreline as a space of transition. The shoreline is the meeting place where river, land and ocean come together.
Below is a shortened version of a meditation I teach on retreats, accompanied by a recorded meditation.
At the shoreline, the river faces a moment of surrender to the ocean…
The shoreline is a symbol of personal transformation and change. Like the river, we carry our own stories and memories, but when we venture to the shoreline, we are invited to begin the journey of surrendering to the great unknown.
The unknown can be unsettling — even terrifying for some.
Yet the river’s journey teaches us that surrender is not loss, but expansion. The river does not disappear when it joins the ocean; it becomes something greater… and so too do we when we release our fears and step into the flow of life’s unfolding mystery.
"I would love to live like a river flows, carried by the surprise of its own unfolding." — John O'Donohue
Reflection: Living in Flow
River Cong, Mayo.
When the river joins the ocean, it does not vanish, it transforms. It becomes part of the vast movement of tides, the great rhythm of existence. No longer confined to one path, it is free to move, to expand, and to become something greater.
Taking time to contemplate river wisdom can be a powerful tool for healing. It invites us to slow down and connect with our own inner current and healing potential.
A Meditation
Lay down flat on something comfortable. Make sure you are warm and cover your eyes to make the room dark.
Now, open your eyes and take a moment to reflect.
Write down your responses to these questions:
• What are you holding onto?
• Where in your life are you resisting the current?
• What are you afraid to release?
• What would it feel like to trust the flow?
Pine Island, Connemara.
Discovering Your Inner Light by connecting to source
There are many different heart-based meditations. Some use the element of fire for inspiration, but today we explore the power of water to help us retrieve our unique personal qualities.
Just as every river carves out its own path, each of us is on a different journey through life. Some of us crash through rocky terrain, others traverse soft meadows.
When we turn our attention inward, toward the heart centre, we can begin the process of letting go of our individual sense of self, which is imprinted with the difficulties of navigating our way through life.
But this meditative space is not a place of emptiness — far from it… It is a place of quiet reflection, where our unique gifts reside.
Meditation to connect to your inner gifts:
Lay down flat on something comfortable. Make sure you are warm and cover your eyes to make the room dark.
Take a few moments to write down whatever comes into your mind or emotions.
What qualities are you currently sharing in the world?
Love? Compassion? Creativity? Strength?
What other gifts do you carry within you that are ready to flow into your life?
It may take a few days or even weeks of working with this practice, but in time, you will become more familiar and comfortable with your gifts. They will bring meaning and a sense of purpose into your life, even during challenging times.
Trust the journey.
With love,
Anna xx
Music Credit: Adrift 2, by Christopher Lloyd Clarke. Licensed by Enlightened Audio.