Namaste,
I'm Emma from Becoming Mama Yoga and this is a meditation for releasing attachment and aversion.
In yogic philosophy,
It is considered that two out of five of the main causes of human suffering are attachment to pleasure and avoidance or aversion to pain.
As parents or prospective parents,
Both pleasure and pain are really common experiences and it's easy to want to cling to the pleasurable and work hard to resist the not so pleasurable.
While it is great advice to never make things harder than they need to be,
Resistance or avoidance could become part of your motivation to make things easier.
I'd like to spend a little time getting you used to the idea that not all pain can be avoided,
And sometimes resistance can be futile.
Just causing suffering that would not otherwise be felt if you were to stop resisting.
This meditation is also designed to help you enjoy pleasure while it's there without clinging to it.
Because when we cling,
As an excellent TV show character once told me,
We're so busy waiting for the end of this that we miss the this of this.
It's unlikely that just one meditation will resolve all issues of attachment and resistance for you,
But trust that every time you practice letting go,
You make those muscles,
So to speak,
Stronger.
Settle in for your practice,
Sitting comfortably with the legs crossed,
Hips lifted on a pillow or bolster,
Or sit on a chair if that's better for you.
Just make sure that you're really comfortable with your back against some kind of backrest and your feet flat on the floor,
Or bring the floor up to you on some books or a block or something if you need.
If you prefer to lay down,
That's fine too.
Just take care with laying down to meditate because you might fall asleep.
Most would lay on their back in shavasana,
Arms and legs long,
Spine long,
Nice and symmetrical,
Side to side,
Chin lightly tucked to lengthen the neck.
Pregnant women more than somewhere 20 to 24 weeks would usually start laying on their left hand side for shavasana.
The right is okay if the left is uncomfortable.
And you just need some kind of pillows or bolsters to support the uppermost leg from the knee to the ankle.
That support could rest between the legs or in front of the downside leg.
A pillow or a rolled towel for the neck might help to give some extra support and adding extra pillows to rest the uppermost arm on could help particularly for those in more advanced states of pregnancy.
Once you're very comfortable.
Allow the eyes to gently close or rest the gaze unfocused on a spot in front of you.
Set an intention for your practice if you like.
Maybe.
.
.
I give myself permission to let go,
Or I am open to letting go.
Silently repeat that intention three times.
Begin to notice the sounds around you,
Beginning with those outside the room.
Then moving closer.
And closer.
No need to identify the sounds.
Just notice and move on to the next.
Eventually.
You may notice the sound of your own breath.
Observe it as it moves in and out.
Notice the soft sound it makes as it passes through the nostrils.
In and out.
In and out.
Now notice some other characteristics.
Maybe the feel of the air moving in and out the nostrils.
Cooler air moving in,
Slightly warmer air moving out.
Your respiratory system just doing its job.
Going about its work without you needing to actively engage with it.
Notice the breath moving the body.
Expanding the ribcage and belly on the in-breath.
Then gently and easily contracting with the out-breath.
Your breath.
Always there for you,
Powerful and quiet,
Renewing your life force.
Oxygenating your cells,
Keeping the whole body nourished and moving.
Your breath is one of the most powerful and easy to access tools at your fingertips.
And you can always return to a simple breath observation practice at any time.
Letting the ebb and flow of breath calm the body.
And the mind.
Any time.
We will begin a visualisation practice,
But remember if at any time you lose focus or anything comes up that feels too much for you.
Just go back and rest with the breath.
Finding comfort and ease in the rhythmic movement of your body being breathed.
Oxygenated.
Renewed.
Let your mind take you to your favourite place in nature.
Maybe it's a place you've been before.
Or maybe you've seen a picture.
Or it's just a place you know but you don't even know why.
It doesn't matter,
Just any place in nature where you can feel deeply relaxed.
Look around at all the details,
Colors,
Textures,
Plants,
Animals,
Sky,
Floor,
The shadows,
The leaves on the trees cast on the surface beneath your feet.
Feel what the weather's like,
Maybe warm sun against your skin,
Maybe the cool touch of water,
Maybe sand in your toes.
Maybe you stroke a silky flower or lay in soft grass.
Hear the sounds all around,
Running water,
Birds,
Trees,
Wind.
Notice the smells of the place.
Salt.
Earth.
Water.
Fire or wood smoke,
Plant or animal smells,
Anything you would normally smell in this fantastic relaxing nature scape.
Notice any tastes,
Perhaps a lingering minty toothpaste or cool water you drank.
Or maybe some of the fresh scents of nature,
Trees,
Leaves,
Grass,
Translating to taste on the tongue.
Wherever you are.
Allow yourself to float.
Effortless,
Entirely at ease.
Maybe float in water that's nearby?
Just as the leaves or driftwood do.
Maybe there's no water,
So you float on the breeze or just watch the clouds floating by.
As you float,
Your mind may start to wander,
Wanting to attach to this thought or that.
This is entirely natural.
Thank the mind for doing its job.
Then gently bring the attention back to observing yourself floating.
Or watching the clouds floating.
There's no need to hold onto anything.
No need to pick it up or examine it you're just watching it all pass on by It is possible for you to observe it all,
To see and hear and feel it all,
But also to let it go.
You are bigger than just your thoughts,
Bigger than just your emotions.
They all ebb and flow,
Come and go,
Like the leaves on the water,
Like the clouds in the sky.
You remain.
You are the constant.
You can choose to pick up a thought or feeling and look it over just as you can choose to let it go and watch it float away.
There is a time and a place for everything and sometime you will pick up those thoughts and feelings and examine them more closely.
Deciding on courses of action,
Which to keep and which to discard.
But right here,
Right now,
This is your time.
To just watch them float around.
Trusting that you'll come back to any that need some attention later on.
Your time right now.
Is just to spend on noticing them all without attention to anything.
If you find yourself attaching to any one thought or feeling,
Or to many thoughts and feelings,
Kindly remind your mind that there's another time for that,
But it isn't right now.
And let it go.
Just as you might with a feather or a leaf.
Watching it dance about on the breeze as you observe,
Unconcerned.
Not needing to grasp and hold.
Just trusting that.
If it's important for you,
It'll stick around and you can pick it up again later.
Return the attention.
To the image of that naturescape around you.
As though you were really sitting or laying there.
Watch your body.
As though observing yourself on a film screen.
Seeing yourself relaxing,
Being breathed.
Effortless,
Easy,
Enjoying time spent resting and rejuvenating.
Feeling content?
Refreshed Leah.
Home.
Ready.
Take a few more moments here,
Breathing easy,
Feeling good.
When you're ready.
Bid goodbye to your special place in nature.
And journey on back to notice your surroundings.
Floor or furniture beneath you,
Ceiling or sky above you.
Feel the clothes against your skin.
Reflect once more on your intention.
Repeating it silently to yourself again.
Boom.
When you're ready.
Begin to gently move the body.
Eyes still closed or partly closed at first.
Move the hands and feet,
The arms and legs.
Then finally,
When the time is right.
Slowly opening the eyes.
If you are laying down,
Roll to one side.
And then use your hands to press you up to sit.
May you have a beautiful day.
Namaste.
