Welcome,
My name's Paul and I'll be guiding you through the senses awakening meditation sequence today.
If you haven't already switched off notifications or vibration on your phone or other devices,
Please take a moment to do so now.
And closing down your eyes,
Getting nice and comfortable in your seat,
Knowing at any time you can adjust your position during the meditation.
Taking a moment to acknowledge the effort you've made to be here.
How are you feeling right now?
Recognizing that for the next 30 minutes,
There's nothing for you to do but simply rest.
I invite you to notice your breath as it is,
Without seeking to change or control it in any way.
Just observing it.
Breathing in,
Breathing out.
Noticing if your breath is fast or slow.
Is it shallow or deep?
Continuing to observe your breath as I share the theme of the week.
The theme of the week here at Scented Meditation is the benefits of movement.
Moving our body is important for our physical and mental health.
It gets us out of our head and more connected with our body.
When we move,
We engage with our surroundings and see and feel what's happening around us.
Moving changes our perspective,
Not only visually,
But also in the way we think and feel.
Moving can give us a break,
Whether it is a short walk to the kitchen for a cup of tea,
Or a longer walk outside,
Or some exercise.
When you are deciding on whether or not to get up and move,
I invite you to remember the benefits of movement,
And then just start.
You may continue to observe your breath as it is,
Or you may practice a few minutes of three-stage breathing,
Which is where we breathe into our belly,
Then our ribs and upper chest.
If you haven't practiced this before,
I'll guide you along.
If you wish,
You may lightly place both hands on your belly,
With your fingertips touching or almost touching,
Taking a slow and steady breath in through your nose,
Down into your belly,
Feeling your belly rise as you do so.
Breathing out through your nose,
Feeling your belly gently fall.
Now sliding your hands up to lightly rest on your ribs.
Your hands can be on any part of your ribs,
Just finding a spot that's comfortable for you.
When you next inhale,
Breathing slowly into your belly,
Then into your ribs.
Breathing out slowly from your ribs,
And then your belly.
If it's easier,
You can simply set an intention to breathe into your belly and ribs.
At any stage,
You can return to the natural rhythm of your breathing.
Now moving your hands up towards your neck,
So that your fingertips are lightly curled over your collarbones,
Or somewhere near your upper chest.
As you next inhale,
Breathing into your belly,
And then into your ribs,
And then up into your collarbones and upper chest.
Breathing out slowly from your upper chest,
Then your ribs,
And then your belly.
Taking slow and steady breaths,
But never to the point of discomfort.
Continuing at your own pace,
Breathing into your belly,
Ribs,
And upper chest.
You may leave your hands where they are,
Or let them rest wherever feels comfortable.
In the practice of effortless meditation,
Whenever you happen to notice your mind is on your thoughts or emotions,
Or just wandered away.
Gently and effortlessly,
Resting your awareness back on your anchor,
Such as your breath right now.
Allowing your thoughts and emotions to come and go,
Are an integral part of effortless meditation.
It doesn't matter how many times your mind drifts away.
What matters is the easy and effortless process of resting your awareness on your anchor,
Whenever you remember.
We might wish for a good meditation.
Really though,
There's no good or bad meditation.
Rather,
We only assess the effects of a meditation after we've finished it,
And observe how we feel afterwards in our daily life.
On your next exhale,
Allowing your breath to return to its natural rhythm,
And letting your hands rest back on your lap,
If they're not already there.
I invite you now to scan your body,
Starting by resting your awareness on your face,
Noticing any sensations in your forehead,
Around your eyes,
In your ears,
In your cheeks,
And your jaw.
Noticing whether there's any tension or tightness held in those places.
On your next exhale,
Letting go of that tension,
And letting your face soften.
Moving your awareness around to the back of your head,
Gently floating your awareness down the length of your spine,
Drifting down between your shoulder blades,
All the way to your tailbone,
Softening your back as you go.
As you reach the base of your spine,
Allowing your awareness to expand across your whole back,
Noticing any sensations there.
Drawing your awareness around your sides to your chest,
Noticing any movement there as you breathe in and out.
Noticing if your chest feels tight or closed,
Or relaxed and open.
On your next breath out,
Releasing any tension held there.
Bringing your senses to your belly,
Noticing any rumbling or other sensations there.
On your next exhale,
Releasing any tightness held there.
Radiating your awareness from your belly button outwards,
Along to your arms and legs,
To your fingers and toes.
And radiating your awareness down to the base of your spine,
And up to the crown of your head.
Now noticing all the sensations in your body,
For what they are in this moment.
On your next exhale,
Feeling free to release any remaining tension as you slowly breathe out,
Relaxing your whole body.
I invite you now to tune in to each of your senses,
One by one.
Starting with your sense of touch,
Noticing where your hands are placed,
And what they feel.
Sensing your clothes against your skin.
Maybe feeling the air gently moving across your skin.
Feeling where your body is resting on your seat.
Shifting to your sense of hearing,
Becoming aware of the sounds around you.
Noticing whether they are near or far away.
Resting your awareness on the different sounds.
The sound of the music,
Or sounds within the music.
Maybe the sound of your own breathing.
You might hear sounds from outside the room.
Maybe birds,
Wind,
People or traffic passing by.
Gently drifting from sound to sound at your own pace.
Shifting to your sense of smell,
Breathing in and noticing the smells reaching your nose.
Resting your awareness on each smell,
Fragrance and scent.
Noticing any sensations in your nostrils as each smell reaches you.
Observing any reactions to the scents as you inhale them.
I invite you now to explore your sense of taste.
Noticing any flavours lingering in your mouth.
Maybe the taste of a drink or food from earlier on.
Resting your awareness on each taste,
Whether it be intense or faint.
Noticing any thoughts or emotions that arise from those tastes.
Maybe noticing there are no thoughts or emotions.
Returning to your sense of sight.
Keeping your eyes closed.
Resting your awareness on what you can see.
Your whole field of vision.
Maybe there are patterns,
Shapes or movement.
Maybe there's just darkness.
Noticing any changes as your eyes remain closed to what you see or perceive.
Now taking in your observations from all of your senses.
Noticing them in this moment.
I invite you now to rest your awareness on one of your senses as your anchor for the remainder of the meditation.
What might be your sense of touch or taste?
Sight or smell?
Maybe it's the sound around you.
Not trying to hold on to what you are sensing or trying to focus on it.
Just effortlessly and lazily resting your awareness on what you can sense.
Your thoughts and emotions will come and go.
Whenever you happen to notice where you are,
Gently and effortlessly resting your awareness on your sense as your anchor.
Continuing at your own pace.
Drifting away,
Drifting back.
Effortlessly resting your awareness on your sense as your anchor.
You are not your thoughts.
Your thoughts are just passing through you.
You are not your emotions.
Your emotions too are just passing through you.
You simply are.
I invite you now to let go of your sense,
Releasing it as your anchor.
Then simply rest for the last few minutes while you allow the effects of the meditation to sink in.
You may stay seated exactly as you are or recline into a more comfortable position.
There's nothing to do here but rest.
I'll tell you when it's time.
Your body is starting to deepen your breath.
Deepening your breath and becoming aware of your body once more.
Aware of the tips of your fingers and toes.
Noticing gentle movement into your fingers and toes,
Hands and feet.
Expanding this gentle movement into the rest of your body.
Stretching or twisting in whatever way feels good.
Noticing how you're feeling.
Maybe setting an intention to carry those feelings throughout the rest of your day.
And maybe consider being more open to experiencing the benefits of movement.
Thanking yourself for meditating today.
Whenever you're ready,
You may gently open your eyes or keep them closed and rest a little longer.
Please take as long as you like.
