The monk in us is not some hooded little somebody who is sitting in there, but is our true self, see. …For heaven’s sake, don’t allow the monks to steal the contemplative life from you.

Br. David Steindl-Rast

Welcome to Day One of Discover Your Inner Monk

Imagine yourself walking among the bright yellow lanterns that bedeck the gardens of Tu Hieu Pagoda in Vietnam or pausing to read the Greek words “healing place for the soul” as you enter the breathtaking library at St. Gall Abbey in Switzerland. Or perhaps you can envision yourself in quiet contemplation, gazing up at the soaring sandstone cliffs so perfectly framed by the chapel windows at Christ in the Desert Monastery in New Mexico. Each of these monastic spaces — across continents, traditions, and many years — was created to encourage essential aspects of monk life: solitude, good work, beauty, stillness, study, community, and transcendence. In a kind of reciprocal relationship, the monks’ desired way of living shapes the design of a monastery’s cloisters, chapels, libraries, kitchens, and gardens; these physical spaces, in turn, create the conditions in which monks can contemplate, study, and work with intention.

Most of us don’t live in monasteries, but as Br. David Steindl-Rast says, “Even those who neither want nor can go to a monastery can create for themselves their own little monastery.” This necessary personal monastery is a time and place dedicated to slowing down and getting centered in our own hearts. “This is the process,” he continues, “in which we find the monk within ourselves.” 

Whether it’s your favorite chair by a window, a garden you love, a place of worship, or some other space, the goal is to create a “whole little cosmos” in which your true self can come to the foreground. This is a space in which you can step away from the noise of the world and listen with and to your own heart. In their book Radical Hospitality, Lonni Collins Pratt and Fr. Dan Homan write, “Listen, the ancient monk tells us, listen. It will break your heart, but it will also give you a heart. And it will give you more — it will give you life.”

Today’s Practice: Create a Little Monastery

To set the stage for today’s practice, enjoy this 2-minute video from the Rubin Museum’s Sacred Spaces exhibition. As part of the project, they asked museum visitors to share what spaces are sacred to them. Over 8,000 people responded, offering wildly diverse ideas for how and where we can create sacred space.

Step One: Choose Your Location

Choose a low-trafficked place in your home or somewhere you like to go that you could begin to think of as a monastery for your heart. This can be as simple as a comfortable chair in your living room or a bench outside your work place. Choose a location where you can claim a bit of solitude. If a physical space isn’t possible, draw on your memory to envision a space you can consistently return to in your mind.

Step Two: Make It a “Place Set Apart”

Fr. Ron Rolheiser writes, “A monastery is not so much a place set apart for monks and nuns as it is a place set apart (period).” For this second step, take a moment to consider what simple enhancements will establish your chosen spot as a “place set apart.” 

Here are a few suggestions to consider:

  • Clear the space of distractions
  • Add a candle, a treasured object, a special cloth, a chime
  • Let others know: Since your personal monastery probably won’t be recognizable as such to anyone but you, you may need to let people know, for example, that the blue chair in the corner of the living room is going to be your personal monastery at 7:00 each morning!

Step Three: Listen

Set aside 10 minutes sometime today to sit in stillness in this monastery for your heart, whether you sit in silence, attune to nature’s sounds, or choose meditative music to accompany you. Inspired by Br. David’s reminder that it’s in this kind of space that we can invite our true selves to the foreground, use the following two questions for guided contemplation during your 10 minutes: 

  • What does my heart know that I need to hear? 
  • What does my heart need from me?

Looking Ahead

If possible, return to this monastery for your heart — this particular physical or imagined space — for each day’s reflection and practice this week.

Scroll to the bottom of the page (or click here) to find the Community Conversation space where we invite you to share your reflections about today’s practice.

Deepening Resource

In this 4-minute video, Br. David speaks about the benefits of having a physical space that’s conducive to quiet, as it “makes it easier to go into the inner stillness.” He adds, “When you really go deep inside you come in contact with something that goes beyond words and you cannot really describe it.”

Soft focus black and white photo of leaves on the branch of a tree

Meditative Moments with Br. David Steindl-Rast

Research Highlight

A bit of intentional quiet solitude — distinct from loneliness — offers numerous psychological, emotional, and physical benefits. It helps us know ourselves, allows us to metabolize information, and even boosts creativity. Quiet solitude has also been shown to lower blood pressure, decrease cortisol levels, and stimulate brain growth. Dr. Samantha Stein writes, “Time in quiet solitude can be invaluable in nurturing our relationship with ourselves as well as replenishing us for when we return to the rest of our lives. It’s undoubtedly an investment worth making.”

Stein, Samantha. “The Benefits of Quiet Solitude.” Psychology Today, January 22, 2025.

Photo by Tessa Terrus


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