18 Jun PODCAST: Sitting with doubt
In this podcast episode, I sat down with Bas Gemmink and Jolinda van Hoogdalem to explore the theme of doubt. Not from the perspective of something we need to overcome, but rather as something we need to understand more deeply.
Doubt is something we all encounter, whether in our work, relationships, practice or simply in the quiet moments of being with ourselves. It often appears when we are at the edge of something new, when things are not yet fully clear, or when the familiar ground beneath us starts to shift.
Our first reaction
Doubt appears in many moments in life. When things are unclear, when we step into something new, or when the ground feels less certain than before. Our first reaction is often to see doubt as a sign that something is wrong, as if we should wait until clarity returns.
But doubt is not always the problem. It is not always the obstacle we think it is.
There is a form of doubt that contracts. It pulls us into thinking and judging, creating hesitation and distance from what is actually here. This kind of doubt keeps us moving in circles and often drains energy
Doubt is not always the obstacle we think it is.
At the same time there is another quality of doubt that is much more open. It is closely related to not knowing. Instead of pushing for an answer, it allows the question to remain. It invites us to stay present without immediately resolving the situation.
The Great Doubt
In practice this becomes very clear. When you sit in meditation, doubt quickly shows up in thoughts about whether you are doing it right or whether it is working. If you follow these thoughts, the practice becomes mental and restless. But if you return to the body and the breath, doubt changes its form. It is no longer a story, but something you can feel directly, often as tension or movement in the body.
When you stay with that without trying to fix it, something shifts. Doubt is no longer outside the practice, but part of it. It sharpens attention rather than disturbing it, and it keeps you from settling too quickly into fixed ideas.
You can recognise the same movement in daily life. Doubt often appears just before something new emerges. The instinct is to remove it, to find certainty as quickly as possible. But certainty is not always required. What is needed is the willingness to remain present, even when things are not yet clear.
From that place, action can still arise, but it is less driven by fear and more in tune with what is actually needed.
A beautiful practice
A simple way to explore this is to pause when doubt appears and bring attention to the body. Notice where it is felt and stay with that for a few breaths, without analysing it. Let it be part of your experience.
Over time, the relationship changes. Doubt is no longer something to escape from, but something that can be included. And in that inclusion, it begins to open rather than close.
Perhaps doubt is not an obstacle, but a place of practice.