Thank you for being a part of my life.

Thank you for being a part of this community.

Thank you for the kindness you have shared with me over the years. It has deeply impacted my heart.

Maybe we found each other through my NoStrangers project.

Maybe you have been meditating with me on Insight Timer or Artist Morning for a while.

Maybe we did a HEARTshots photoshoot together.

Maybe we are old friends.

Or maybe you just joined our community recently.

Regardless, your care and presence has impacted my life.

I know it might sound funny to be impacted by humans you have never met before, or been in the same room with, but I am impacted.

Like many of you, I am a sensitive soul that believes everything is energy.

And the energy of this community has brought so much joy into my life.

Thank you.

Bless you.

I love you.

D

Small token of my appreciation:

Have you ever wanted to ask me a question? I’ve made a simple online form (link below). I will do my best to answer as many questions as possible. CLICK HERE

A dangerous game to play in any major relationship is to be so preoccupied with what USED to be that we miss out on what’s happening NOW. So why do we do this to ourselves?

I’m in my 40s, and it’s taken me over a year to realize that the NEW ME is a very different dude from who I was a decade ago.

His core is the same as the old me, but he thrives under different circumstances. He has different tastes, needs, and desires.

At the beginning of 2024, the new me shared some non-negotiables:

• The new me needs movement every single day. The old me would go weeks or months without taking a (now mandatory) walk.

• The new me works out 7 days a week. This might sound extreme, but the workouts are less about big heavy weights and more about sustainable and supportive body nourishment.

• The new me does well with more sleep: 7 hours. The old me was more of a 5-hours-a-night type of guy.

• The new me meditates every day, but for not as long. 15-20 minutes is the sweet spot.

• The old me loved the news, but in a recent meditation the new me opened up about how online content impacts my mind and body. The new me doesn’t follow any news accounts.

• The new me rarely works past 6pm, and almost never on the weekends.

I’m doing my best to be present and honest with the new me, and to swap my old assumptions with an attitude of curiosity and excitement. It’s the same feeling as dating a new person.

The good news is you don’t need to wait a decade to meet the new you.

Tomorrow at Artist Morning, I will be leading a free guided meditation and journaling journey on this very topic. It will be gentle and loving, but also direct. We will slow down, go inwards, ask some good questions, and most of all, listen.

Let’s meet the NEW YOU and really listen to what they have to share.

If you are interested in joining us on this journey, go to www.ArtistMorning.com and join us tomorrow at 9am Eastern Standard Time.

If you can’t make that time, I will be sending the replay next week. If you sign up for Artist Morning, you will get the meditation replay in your inbox.

Big love,

D

Hello Artists,

I am working on something new and exciting at Artist Morning. For the first time ever, I will be launching a paid membership program for community members who want to deep dive with me and receive more direct mentorship and support.

Who is this membership for?

• People who are ready to share more of their gifts with the world
• People who want healthy accountability and are tired of working alone
• People with a growing To-Do List who want support to get shit done
• People who find it difficult to stay away from online distractions
• People who are excited about growing as a community

Instead of building the membership offering on my own, I am co-creating it with the support of the community to make sure it has maximum value.

I’m inviting a small group of people from within the Artist Morning community to sample the program. This way I can get immediate feedback and optimize the membership.

One of the main components of the membership will be called “Deep Dives” and I’m looking for 10 volunteers to pilot the program.

(The membership will include two more interactive components, but today I want to focus on the Deep Dives.)

Deep Dives are a productivity method I have been using for over 4 years and this is how it works:

• We meet for weekly 2 hour Zoom calls and bring 3-5 tasks from our To-Do List.
• I guide us through a short grounding exercise before we dive in.
• We share what we’re working on for the first 25-minute dive.
• We leave our videos on and start working.
• At the end of each 25-minute dive, we do a quick check-in for progress and accountability.
• Then we rinse and repeat. In total there are four 25-minute dives within the 2-hour Deep Dive.

For the month of March and April I will be running the Deep Dive pilot program for FREE and fine-tuning the process for our Artist Morning community.

If you’d like to be included in the pilot, reply to this post/email with the words “Deep Dive”.

For the first round of Deep Dives, I am only looking for 10 people.

Big love,

D

Hello beautiful community. I’m feeling a bit stuck and unsure and could use your advice.

It’s a really simple decision that’s got me perplexed.

So here it is…

Is my @dariusbashar Instagram page the right place to share short affirmation videos?

OR

Should I post these on the @artistmorning account instead?

The video above is a good example of what I mean when I say short affirmation videos. I have tons of videos like this, all with soothing visuals set to beautiful music.

A few weeks ago I started sharing my short affirmation videos on YouTube and they have been getting decent views.

I’d love to share these videos on Instagram. But I also suspect that the pace of Instagram is too fast to ask people to slow down and go inwards for 60 seconds.

I’m okay with any outcome of this question. But instead of trying to figure it out in my head, I thought I’d ask you all.

So here’s the question again, in case you missed it:

Would you like to see more videos like this on this Instagram page, or should I share them on a separate account?

Let me know in a comment below or send a reply to this email.

Thank you for sharing your feedback, and for all the ways in which you have supported and encouraged me over the years. I could not have gotten this far without you all.

Big love,

D

Have you ever wanted to meet me in real life and meditate together? If so, come join Lilian Motta and me for a cosmic meditation experience on February 24 at my loft in Toronto.

After facilitating hundreds of online group meditations at the Artist Morning and Wild Women Wisdom we are excited to share our newest creation with the world.

Imagine an intimate and immersive experience where we fuse our favourite elements of meditation, designed to guide you through a soul-enriching exploration.

It’s called Cosmic Hangs and it’s a combination of:

• guided meditation
• breathwork
• live music
• voice activation
• journaling
• fun creative conversations
• mindful movement

…and lots more. ✨

Level-up your meditation experience, connect with like-minded individuals, and join us on this adventure into self-discovery.

Only 10 spots available!

Our intention is to continue building a community of kind, creative humans who believe in celebrating and supporting each other’s emotional and spiritual growth.

Here’s the link to buy your ticket —> CLICK HERE

Also, if you are NOT in the Greater Toronto Area but would be interested in hosting Lilian and me for a similar experience in your local area, comment below or reply to this email with which city you’re in.

Who knows… if there is enough interest in a specific city, we might make a little road trip. 😉 It would be so wonderful to meet more of you awesome humans in real life.

Big love,

D

If you are open to receiving more love in your life, here’s a simple exercise you can do in less than 5 mins.

STEP 1: Find a comfortable and quiet place and gently close your eyes.

STEP 2: Take 3 deep breaths. The slower the better.

STEP 3: When you feel a bit more present or grounded, repeat the following affirmations 3-5 times each.

Pro Tip: Instead of rushing through, go slowly. See if you can actually bring your attention to each respective body part (e.g. eyes for seeing, ears for hearing, heart for feeling).

AFFIRMATIONS

→ I am open to SEEING love all around me.

→ I am open to HEARING love all around me.

→ I am open to FEELING love all around me.

→ I am open to BEING love.

STEP 4: Continue taking deep breaths. With each new breath, imagine your eyes, ears and heart slowly opening to receive more love.

STEP 5: If you are open to it, place one hand on your chest and give your heart a hug.

STEP 6: When you are ready, slowly open your eyes and notice if anything looks, sounds, feels different. Even a 1% difference can make a *big* impact.

For anyone interested in going deeper, I will be guiding a free meditation tomorrow morning at www.ArtistMorning.com on this exact theme.

We will have a 20 minute meditation and then 20 mins of private personal journaling, all done through Zoom.

It starts at 9AM (EDT) and if you can’t make it, there will be a replay for anyone who signs up.

It’s totally free and everyone is welcome.

Big love,

D

Pretending the tragedies in the Middle East aren’t happening does not work for me. They are happening. They are heart wrenching and they do deeply impact me.

Over-consuming media—especially graphic content about the violence in the Middle East—also does not work for me. My nervous system quickly goes into deep fear and panic and I become paralyzed with sadness.

I believe there is a path where I can both keep my eyes open and also keep my heart open.

In order to make any positive impact, it feels important to stay connected to what’s going on, while also staying connected to my personal power and my ability to take action.

This path begins by finding a way to regulate my nervous system. To find some sort of grounding and peace within. Otherwise, I am only contributing to the chaos.

It might sound silly to you, but sometimes the most helpful thing to do is to take a few deep intentional breaths, or go for a walk, or find 10 minutes to meditate.

Will any of this stop the tragedies that are taking place? No. But neither will pretending it doesn’t exist or throwing yourself into a panic by over-consuming news media.

Remember, you do not need to do anything in this exact moment. Taking action is a very personal choice.

If you are overwhelmed and have nothing to give, then it’s probably better for you to step back and find your centre again. Then from a more regulated nervous system, you might be able to find your power and take some sort of action to help.

Even small actions count. It’s better than shutting down and pretending this is not happening.

If you’d like to join me for a very special guided meditation tomorrow visit www.ArtistMorning.com. Our theme will be world peace.

God bless.

D

PS: If you can’t join us tomorrow morning at 9am EST I am happy to send you a recording of the guided meditation. Sign up for free at artistmorning.com

To anyone out there with a calling to create meditations for your communities: today I’m sharing a Youtube video with a walkthrough of my entire process for creating meditations every week for 25k monthly listeners.

I know for a fact that many of you out there want to share more of your spiritual side with the world. I think this is so awesome.

Story time:

In the midst of the pandemic 3 years ago, I made my first meditation. I had zero training or background in this. My imposter syndrome was having a field day, to say the least.

I kept asking myself, “Who am I to guide a meditation? Who am I to build a community?! What business does a photographer have with any of this?”

It was intimidating, but I made it through.

Fast forward three years: every month 25,000 people meditate with me on Insight Timer and YouTube. I receive over 2,200 reviews every month, with an average rating of 4.85 out of 5 on Insight Timer. This blows my mind.

And every Friday 70 to 90 people join me on Zoom to meditate and journal as a community at www.ArtistMorning.com.

I have also started generating decent money from the meditations. I never expected this and it keeps growing, which is such a nice bonus.

This unexpected spiritual “side hustle” has become one of the greatest sources of joy in my life.

I am sharing this story with the intention of inspiring one of you out there. And today’s video is for anyone on the fence or unsure if they’re ready to dive into their own spiritual self-expression.

If this is you, take a look at today’s walkthrough of my creative process. Hopefully there are a few tips you can use for your own process in this video. Full length YouTube video is now live.

LINK IN MY BIO —> @dariusbashar

Big love,

D

PS: When I use the word “spiritual” I do not necessarily mean religious affiliation. It can be connected to religion, but I am referring to spiritual in a much broader sense.

For me, spiritual can refer to any practice or belief that acknowledges that we are more than humans. That there is something beyond us that is guiding, inspiring and supporting our lives.

You can call that God, Spirit, Soul, Universe or many other names.

The specific words we use are not very important for me. What DOES matter to me is that each of us gets an opportunity to explore our spirituality in our own way.

Remember when I had a crazy idea and decided to jump in headfirst without looking back? Well... this crazy idea became one of the best things I have ever said yes to. EVER EVER EVER. 

If you want to join me live we meet every week on zoom for FREE. www.ArtistMorning.com. 

Big love, 

D

PS: HUGE thank you to the Artist Morning global community. Without you there would be NO Artist Morning. You bring so much joy, kindness and inspiration to my life every single day. Thank you for saying yes to this crazy idea of mine before it made any sense at all. I love you… even if I’ve never met you before.

Good morning beauties!

Hope your Hump Day is off to an awesome start. If you are looking for a BOOST of ENERGY this meditation might do the trick.

See you guys on Friday.

Big love,

D

PS: If you’re looking for a FREE collection of Guided Morning Meditations, I’ve got you covered. There are so many on my YouTube channel.

PPS: Come meditate with me live. We meet as a group on Zoom every Friday at 9am EST. Sign up here for free → Free Group Meditation / @artistmorning