Mountain meditation is a mindfulness practice that is often included in psychological treatments, such as Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction (MBSR) and Mindfulness-Based Cognitive Therapy (MBCT). In mountain meditation, people are asked to extend their perspective beyond their bodies and cultivate a broader sense of time and space by imagining themselves as a mountain [1]. This type of meditation aims to enable clients to view their internal experiences and life challenges as temporary, impersonal events, just as the mountain experiences changing weather patterns [2]. In this way, mountain meditation differs from more traditional mindfulness practices (e.g., breathing meditation) where sustained attention (e.g., staying focused on the breath), inhibition (e.g., disengaging from following mind-wandering thoughts), and attention switching (e.g., shifting from mind-wandering back to the breath) are encouraged [3].

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The effectiveness of mountain meditation has been compared with that of progressive muscle relaxation, a well-known relaxation exercise, and it was found that mountain meditation had a greater effect on mood [3]. The researchers have hypothesized that mountain meditation would also have a greater effect on attentional scope, that is, the extent to which one’s attentional field is broad (e.g., attending to the forest) or narrow (e.g., attending to an individual tree); however, no significant difference was found [3]. Notably, although this study tested the effect of just a single mountain meditation session, the attentional scope could improve substantially with additional practice.

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Goal:

We can feel ungrounded, fearful, or even paralyzed in the face of difficult emotions and life circumstances. The mountain meditation is designed to help you cultivate stillness and calm and to connect with their inner strength and stability in the face of internal and external challenges.

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Advice:

• This practice may also be done in a standing position, specifically in the yoga pose called the ‘mountain pose.’ In the mountain pose, one stands with his or her feet hip-width distance apart, arms down by the sides with palms facing forward, and shoulders back and upright. Standing in this meditation may help you cultivate a greater sense of strength and energy. If standing up, remind you that they may open your eyes (maintaining a soft gaze on the floor in front of you) if you feel at all unbalanced.

• You may carry this metaphor with you throughout your day by simply closing your eyes at any moment of emotional distress and connecting with the visualization of yourself as a mountain. Remind yourself that even when the mountain is battered by the wind or drenched with rain, its rock-hard interior remains stable and calm.

• This meditation is not about doing anything in the face of adversity or emotional turmoil; the idea is to learn to become aware of our changing (inner and outer) environment and to honor and feel these changes with equanimity, encountering each moment with mindful composure and clarity.

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References:

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1. Kabat-Zinn, J., & Zinn, J. K. (2013). Mindfulness meditation in everyday life. BettterListen! LLC.

2. Minor, H. G., Carlson, L. E., Mackenzie, M. J., Zernicke, K., & Jones, L. (2006). Evaluation of a Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction (MBSR) program for caregivers of children with chronic conditions. Social Work in Health Care, 43(1), 91-109.

3. Xu, M., Rowe, K., & Purdon, C. (2020). Examining the impact of a single session of mountain meditation on attentional scope. Journal of Cognitive Enhancement, 4, 155-166.

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