The Goop founder’s latest venture promotes ‘eyes-open’ meditation. We try it out to see if it helps us see the light – or is just another wellness gimmick in disguise

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“Open your eyes,” Gwyneth Paltrow tells me. I am sitting in my kitchen listening to her new AI-powered meditation app, Moments of Space, which encourages users to keep their eyes open while meditating.

“Observe all the objects in your surroundings,” she instructs. I see a pile of washing up from last night. I shift my focus in the direction of the fridge, and notice an overdue council tax bill reminder pinned to the door. Perhaps looking out of the window will prove less distracting. I spot my next-door neighbour’s sweet kitten … using my garden as a litter box. Maybe “eyes-open meditation” is a little easier in a sprawling Montecito “sanctuary” than my east London flat.

From my very first downward dog, I was hooked. But training as a yoga teacher led me to a miserable world of false promises, exploitation and near-total burnout. Could I find my way back to the mat?

In a steamy room in a high-end London gym, I roll on to my right side and open my eyes. A soothing Aussie drawl emerges from the darkness, telling me to sit up, bring my hands together and remember the universe is fundamentally supporting my soul. Everyone here has taken a lunch break from our media, PR or marketing jobs to take this class. Our bearded guru, A, speaks as an Eddie Vedder song plays in the background and I feel a deep sense of relief. For a minute there is peace. In two more, we’ll be ripping off Lycra in the highly charged changing room, before rushing back to our desks with a tiny portion of soup from the chain next door. But for this one minute, three times a week, I feel calm. I feel calm because A looks me in the eye and says everything is going to be OK. I’m not thinking about how my body looks, if the boy I fancy is in the office today, how anyone else’s body looks, what my boss thinks of me … I am simply in the moment. I’m 23 and this is my introduction to yoga, the moment I found myself ready to sign up for everything it could offer me. I had no idea it was the start of a 10-year rollercoaster of giddy highs, miserable exploitation and physical and emotional burnout.

I was enchanted by “the yoga world” and mesmerised by yoga teachers in general. The incense, the candles and the vague platitudes about the meaning of life were intoxicating. I was at the end of my first relationship and a year into an exciting job at a running magazine. I had no idea what I was doing and felt perpetually out of my depth. I was facing my first ever houseshare after years living with my boyfriend, and I was putting all my anxiety into running. My increasingly unhealthy relationship with food and exercise needed a channel, so why not make it spiritual? Yoga wasn’t just a hobby, it could be a way of life. More than anything, I needed focus. And while most sensible people my age were experimenting with ecstasy and staying out all weekend, I was hellbent on finding my highs elsewhere.

The Buddhist monk and bestselling author’s latest book tells the story of his spiritual journey. He discusses joy, suffering and how to foster happiness and health

I get anxious about interviews, I tell Matthieu Ricard moments after he appears on my computer screen in his red and saffron robes, his background, somewhere in the Dordogne region of France, discreetly blurred. He starts laughing uproariously before I can even get my confession out; he laughs frequently and infectiously throughout our call. “Really? In your job?” Yes, I reply. Does anything make him anxious? He considers the question. “Yes, missing planes or trains. Besides that, I don’t have many worries.”

This interview in particular feels intimidating. Ricard, 77, combines the rigour of a French intellectual (he has a PhD in cellular genetics, has written books on altruism, meditation and compassion for animals and translated numerous Buddhist texts into French and English) with the wisdom you get from 50-plus years of intense spiritual practice. I have the profundity of a Pop Tart and told a fruit fly to fuck off this morning; of course I’m anxious.

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Enlarge / Slow Roads lets you drive through infinite dynamically generated landscapes in an easy-going way. (credit: Ars Technica)

A few days ago, an Edinburgh, Scotland-based developer named Anslo announced Slow Roads , a free, easygoing driving game with procedurally generated scenic landscapes that runs in a web browser. It's available at slowroads.io and requires no logins or installs to play.

Many driving video games lock you into rules that can make driving feel stressful, which is great if you're in a competitive mood. But sometimes you might want to just relax and enjoy the ride. That's where Slow Roads comes in. In the game, you can't crash, fail, or lose. The road stretches on forever as scenic landscapes zip by. If you steer off the road, press "R" to reset your car's position onto the pavement. Even roads are optional: Drive off-road or underwater if you want.

The game runs in Chrome, Firefox, Safari, and Edge browsers.

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