Joost De Wulf — Be Meditative

an invitation to pause, listen, and simply be

Friends, let us slow down for a moment and simply be here. As we are. No need to become something, to do something, to change.

“Deep listening is the gateway to that unconditional space of being… This deep listening means being fully present without any resistance.”

— Mukesh Gupta

Our situation

We meet every moment through accumulated knowledge — conclusions, memories, images of ourselves and others. This creates a subtle but persistent sense of separation. We try to improve, to change — and in doing so we reinforce exactly the pattern we want to escape. Simply seeing this clearly already opens another possibility.

What meditation is

What most people think meditation is — sitting still for long periods, breathing techniques, concentration exercises, mantras — is not meditation. The problem with all techniques is that they create conditions. Meditation is freedom.

Fully present with what is happening here and now. Whatever arises in the mind, in the body, or outside — the sounds, the wind, nature. When you are with what is, without resistance, that is meditation. It is life itself.

Not “me” giving attention. Attention that has no centre, no motives. When your mind makes plans, just notice. When there is sound, just hear. If a feeling arises, just feel — without attaching a story. The moment you start “practising,” you turn it into something to achieve. Being present is the natural state when the mind is not busy trying, controlling, becoming. Do you practise breathing?

Reaction and Response

Reaction is automatic, from the past. Response comes from stillness — becoming quiet, feeling what is happening, listening to what someone is actually trying to say, and responding from clarity. Whether walking, cooking, working or talking — it is not about the activity, but how you do it. Are you fully present? It is already there. You don't have to create it.

Meditation is not a journey to somewhere else. It is coming home to what is already here.

Two Gateways

One through stillness. One through movement. Not separate paths — the same ground.

Sitting — Not to achieve stillness. Just to be here. A quiet alertness where the mind's habitual reactions fall away. You are not trying to empty the mind. You are noticing what is already present when you stop adding to it.

Listening — Not preparing your answer, not filtering through agreement or disagreement. Can you receive what is actually being said — beneath the words? This same listening turns toward everything: a bird, rain, the hum of a room.

Waiting — Before the response, before the action, there is a moment of alert stillness — fully awake, not yet moving. Not passive. The most alive kind of attention.

Walking — When we are not hurrying somewhere, walking returns us to the body, to the ground, to now. The mental noise quiets — not because you tried, but because something else took its place.

Listening to the Body

The body is not a machine to be optimised. It is an intelligence that constantly adapts. Its signals are not obstacles to worry about. They are information, if you are quiet enough to receive them.

This is not medical advice. If something is wrong, see a doctor.

Reflections on Mental Hygiene

Let the past rest. Every situation is new. Be careful judging people. Finish what you need to do, one thing at a time. Keep it simple. Don't lose yourself in negative thoughts, nor in forced positive ones. Be careful in your speaking and your listening.

→ Read the full reflections (2007, 2023 & 2026)

Meditative walks around Bruges

I walk regularly in the forests around Bruges — Ryckevelde near Sijsele, Tudor, the green edges of the city. These are not guided meditations. They are walks. Slow, quiet, attentive. The ground underfoot, the air, the light through the trees.

Something happens when we walk together without rushing somewhere. If you would like to join, please register below.

→ On aware walking

Morning walk — every Wednesday, 08:45
Ryckevelde, parking Vossenberg, Sijsele

Evening walk — every Saturday, 17:30
Ryckevelde, parking Vossenberg, Sijsele

Contribution: 15€ for 12 walks, insurance included.

→ Register for a walk