Mantra Meditation Script
This page provides written guidance and a closing bell, not an audio track. You can read it to someone, print a copy, or review the instructions and repeat the phrase on your own during the silent pauses.
This secular ten-minute exercise uses “here, now” as an attention anchor. It does not represent a traditional initiation or a particular religious practice. Read slowly, around 90–110 words per minute. Bracketed directions indicate silence and should not be read aloud.
The mantra meditation guide explains how to choose other words. If repetition feels distracting, the mindfulness script uses sensation instead.
The script
Settling
Take a comfortable seat and let your hands rest. Close your eyes if you wish, or let them remain open. Feel the support beneath you. Leave your breathing alone for a few moments. It does not need to match a count or become especially slow.
In this practice, we will quietly repeat two words: here, now. The words give attention a simple place to return. You do not need to make yourself feel present before saying them. Think of them as something to practice with, rather than a statement you have to prove.
[Pause for 45 seconds.]
Beginning the phrase
Silently say, here, now. Let a small space follow the words. Then repeat them again. Choose an easy pace that leaves your face and throat comfortable. You may notice the words as an inner sound, or simply know that you are repeating them.
Keep breathing naturally. The phrase does not have to fit an inhale or an exhale. If the two happen to fall together, that is fine. If they do not, let the words and breathing have their own rhythms.
[Pause for 60 seconds.]
Returning without force
When you realize that you have stopped repeating the words, start again with the next here, now. There is no count to recover and no place you should have reached. You can begin with this one repetition, whether the distraction was brief or lasted a while.
If you find yourself saying the words more loudly inside your head, soften the effort. You do not need to drown out other thoughts. Let the phrase be clear enough to notice, while other things may still happen around it.
[Pause for 75 seconds.]
A little more space
Continue with the same phrase. Notice the small space after each repetition. You do not have to fill it immediately. Let the next words arrive at a pace you can comfortably continue. If the words lose their meaning for a moment, you can still attend to their simple sound.
Should repetition become uncomfortable, let it stop. Feel your hands or look gently around the room. Choosing another anchor is allowed. If the words still feel useful, continue with here, now for the next quiet interval.
[Pause for 60 seconds.]
Letting the words end
Now release the phrase. Listen to the room and feel your position in it. Let ordinary sounds take the place of the words for a few moments. Notice that you can choose to repeat the words and choose to stop. Move your hands or feet gently. When you are ready, lift your gaze and return to the next part of your day.
[Leave the remaining time quiet.]
Practice without reading
Once you know the instructions, use the mantra method's ten-minute timer and keep the same phrase for one session. The ten-minute body scan offers a different attention task. For another read-aloud text, browse the script library.